acorad

So I tagged a guardrail the other night and I'm not sure how to proceed.

[IMG]http://[/IMG]

Can they just cut out the damaged part and weld in new? Or weld in a piece of a used but not damaged fender?

I took it to a body shop yesterday, and they were talking about taking the entire fender off by drilling out all the rivets,
after they remove the hatch, etc.

V2Rocket

lart could get a cut-off fender for you pretty easily i imagine...although where that is, they couldn't smooth most of it out from the inside, fill and paint?

twichel04

A good body guy should be able to straighten that out. I've seen worse repaired with just a hammer and dolly.

acorad

Thanks guys, that's what I thought. I'll find a different shop.

chrismmm

bummer to see your baby all bent up. hope it gets straight soon. take care

acorad

Thanks Chris, she is my baby. I felt pretty stupid about it.

mytrplseven

Who put that guard rail there??

David Floyd

I "brushed" the armco at Barber Motorsports Park this spring, buddy has a bodyshop was able repair no problem

ZR8ED

I don't see any armco in your avatar...do you have issues with staying on the track often? Just Kidding.

To the OP. A decent bodyshop should be able to repair that without replacing the quarter. Cutting out that panel would be more work than its worth for that level of damage.

Goodluck!

terbiumactivated

It's going to have some filler in it before paint but truly it's not as bad as it looks, especially given that it is cosmetic and not structural damage. The friend I use would be able to make that look 100% without any panel replacement. Do your homework, it's going to take a good body shop but if you choose wisely I don't see why you don't get the car back looking perfect. You might want to check the wheel alignment and all the suspension parts.

PS Is that the zinc coat / primer exposed or has that panel been shot before?

fejjj

Piece of cake for any decent body shop!

djantlive

Most larger shops will replace. They make more money and spend less time.

If you go to a hole in the wall place, they will actually repair that to look like new. A mobile body shop can do that too.

Go to a shady part of town, you will find shops that do old school repairs

acorad

Thanks guys, I now think the place I went to pretty much is like what djantive said, they're mostly a bolt on/off paint shop. I'll find a more hands-on place.

terbiumactivated, I think the grey you're seeing is from the gaurd rail?

Dash01

BTDT brother, I feel your pain.

Take the inner plastic panel off for access from behind. I used a small !" thick phone book or paperback snugged up against the metal, then whacked that with a dead blow mallet to bang out the major part of the dent. Get a contour gauge from Home Depot (~$5) and use it to get proper contour from the other side of the car, to see how much to bend the metal back into shape.

I've seen YT or other sources of shrinking sheet metal, but not tried it yet. This involves spot heating the metal, then suddenly quenching with icewater in a rag or sponge. Reportedly, this might help. Maybe heat from behind but not so hot as to fry the paint, then quench. If so, you may be able to reduce the damage to a point that a paintless dent removal guy can do the final touches. Or not.

David Floyd

If you don't spin every now and then your not going fast enough

acorad... you could go crazy and do a widebody