Pictures of damage to my 951
04-01-2002, 04:46 PM
#1
Race Director
Thread Starter
Pictures of damage to my 951
this is the current state of my car, saving money to get it repaired currently, or actually thinking of doing the prep work myself when I get some free time. Will be adding some 968 style side sills and a AIR front splitter when the time does come to respray..enjoy 
the front...
the rear can thank my roomates jeep..ouch
the front...
the rear can thank my roomates jeep..ouch
04-02-2002, 03:28 AM
#4
Race Car
Sam, that damage isn't that bad really, are you equipped to do the repair..?
A used fender for the front can be had for around $100.00 and make that repair not really worth the trouble, but removing the undercoat to get the fender "unstuck" can be a bummer.
You'll need to cut it from the chassis with a sharp blade as it's glued to the body, where the fender attaching bolts run under the hood.
Do this correctly during the change, this adhesion adds to the quietness and stiffness of the chassis as a whole..!
Be careful if you purchase a used fender, cause as stated above they are hard to get off, and someone who just jerked it off probably did damage during the removal..
Far as the 1/4 panel, a tool called a "dent dawg" or similar device will allow you to pull the dent sucessfully after grinding to the metal without making a hole used by conventional slide hammers and dent pullers. The minimum ammount of filler then is required since you virtually remove 99% of the damage before filling..
These devices are capable of shrinking the metal also, in the event that you pull too far and expose a "high spot"...
BTW, be thankful your car is one of a few colors used for 944 that has no clearcoat (if original), which makes the blending of the next nearest panel, not necessary..
Cheers
A used fender for the front can be had for around $100.00 and make that repair not really worth the trouble, but removing the undercoat to get the fender "unstuck" can be a bummer.
You'll need to cut it from the chassis with a sharp blade as it's glued to the body, where the fender attaching bolts run under the hood.
Do this correctly during the change, this adhesion adds to the quietness and stiffness of the chassis as a whole..!
Be careful if you purchase a used fender, cause as stated above they are hard to get off, and someone who just jerked it off probably did damage during the removal..
Far as the 1/4 panel, a tool called a "dent dawg" or similar device will allow you to pull the dent sucessfully after grinding to the metal without making a hole used by conventional slide hammers and dent pullers. The minimum ammount of filler then is required since you virtually remove 99% of the damage before filling..
These devices are capable of shrinking the metal also, in the event that you pull too far and expose a "high spot"...
BTW, be thankful your car is one of a few colors used for 944 that has no clearcoat (if original), which makes the blending of the next nearest panel, not necessary..
Cheers
04-02-2002, 01:33 PM
#5
Race Director
Thread Starter
So youre saying to buy a used fender..would parts places pull them off carefully and correctly? Ultimately I would like to do the prepwork for the respray in the front of the car...both fenders/nose/hood. then let the body shop fix the rear (roomates paying for that) and repaint the car, maybe all-maybe just the parts damaged...
So..how hard is it to prep a car for paint w/o any knowledge or prior experience? I know that the prep work is really the most important part of a repaint, as for a body shop paint is the easy part (so Ive heard) and that all the work before painting takes alot of time and needs to be perfect. I dont mind spending hours and hours doing it myself to save some $$$ in the end.
whatta ya think?? is it feasible? what tools do i need?
thanks!
So..how hard is it to prep a car for paint w/o any knowledge or prior experience? I know that the prep work is really the most important part of a repaint, as for a body shop paint is the easy part (so Ive heard) and that all the work before painting takes alot of time and needs to be perfect. I dont mind spending hours and hours doing it myself to save some $$$ in the end.
whatta ya think?? is it feasible? what tools do i need?
thanks!
04-02-2002, 02:01 PM
#6
Addict
Lifetime Rennlist
Member
Lifetime Rennlist
Member
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Amherst, NH
Posts: 761
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hey Sam -
Ouch.
But - to answer your question on prep work.
It takes a lot of time, patience, swearing, dust, dust masks, primer, and above all sanding!
The idea of it is, and I'm going to paraphrase here (but email me if you want to discuss in detail) is that you need to make the surface that you're repairing as close to the original shape as possible. Then you fill it in with a small amount of body filler, and then let that dry.
Than comes the fun part. You sand, and sand, and sand some more. You get the repaired area slightly higher than the original, then you prime it, sand it, prime it, sand it, etc. The end result is that the area matches both the contour and shape of the original, and is undetectable with your eyes closed feeling the area.
There are a couple tricks here, like using two colors of primer during the process, and you end up working to a very fine sandpaper (like 1500+ grit) towards the end.
The prep process is the most time consuming process, and will make the difference between a car that looks painted and repaired, to one that looks original.
HTH!
Jay
86 951
Ouch.
But - to answer your question on prep work.
It takes a lot of time, patience, swearing, dust, dust masks, primer, and above all sanding!
The idea of it is, and I'm going to paraphrase here (but email me if you want to discuss in detail) is that you need to make the surface that you're repairing as close to the original shape as possible. Then you fill it in with a small amount of body filler, and then let that dry.
Than comes the fun part. You sand, and sand, and sand some more. You get the repaired area slightly higher than the original, then you prime it, sand it, prime it, sand it, etc. The end result is that the area matches both the contour and shape of the original, and is undetectable with your eyes closed feeling the area.
There are a couple tricks here, like using two colors of primer during the process, and you end up working to a very fine sandpaper (like 1500+ grit) towards the end.
The prep process is the most time consuming process, and will make the difference between a car that looks painted and repaired, to one that looks original.
HTH!
Jay
86 951
04-02-2002, 02:15 PM
#7
Addict
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Melbourne, Florida
Posts: 942
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Sam,
What a bummer!!! On the rear quarter, you might be able to push it back out most of the way from the inside with your hand. That is if it's not creased very badly. You would probably have to remove some interior panels thought.
Good luck,
Rob
What a bummer!!! On the rear quarter, you might be able to push it back out most of the way from the inside with your hand. That is if it's not creased very badly. You would probably have to remove some interior panels thought.
Good luck,
Rob
Trending Topics
04-03-2002, 01:54 PM
#9
Race Director
Thread Starter
yea..my girl roomate in her grand cherokee...I saw her walk outside, i thought for a minute- then bolted out the door behind her. I was about 5sec too late, she had already not looked behind her and backed right into it. the part im worried about it where the tow hitch hit the fender, it looks creased all to hell. im still waiting on her check..2 places quoted me 1300.00
I plan on getting both fenders/car repaired at the same time. thats why I need money for my upgrades and money to repair the front + her money for the rear. I might get a gt-racing rear bumper while im at too (only 180 bucks!)
I plan on getting both fenders/car repaired at the same time. thats why I need money for my upgrades and money to repair the front + her money for the rear. I might get a gt-racing rear bumper while im at too (only 180 bucks!)
04-03-2002, 03:26 PM
#11
Race Director
Thread Starter
yea..the euro one might have the thin black bumper strip in place of the two pads the us cars got. the gt racing one is just a flat panel that doesnt protrude from the rear as far and has no bumper pads whatsoever. looks awesome in my opinion. heres a pic of what I think is the gt-racing bumper (if not..its similar to this)
04-04-2002, 03:53 PM
#12
Pro
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Northern VA
Posts: 577
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
[quote]Originally posted by SamGrant951:
<strong>this is the current state of my car...</strong><hr></blockquote>
I would have a paintless dent removal expert look at that damage asap, especially the rear quarter. I have had LOTS of experience with dent removal lately with this one individual here in Northern Virginia. I can't describe the damage that he has repaired, in some cases within minutes, on my cars (750iL, 951, etc.), but it was absolutely amazing. Metal that is freshly dented can be repaired easier than an old dent. I would never prep a car for a respray if the damage could be fixed with paintless dent removal and some polishing compound. Find an expert in your area, not a wholesale guy. There's a difference. If you are anywhere near VA/MD send me email. Good luck.
<strong>this is the current state of my car...</strong><hr></blockquote>
I would have a paintless dent removal expert look at that damage asap, especially the rear quarter. I have had LOTS of experience with dent removal lately with this one individual here in Northern Virginia. I can't describe the damage that he has repaired, in some cases within minutes, on my cars (750iL, 951, etc.), but it was absolutely amazing. Metal that is freshly dented can be repaired easier than an old dent. I would never prep a car for a respray if the damage could be fixed with paintless dent removal and some polishing compound. Find an expert in your area, not a wholesale guy. There's a difference. If you are anywhere near VA/MD send me email. Good luck.
04-04-2002, 03:58 PM
#13
Pro
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Northern VA
Posts: 577
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
[quote]Originally posted by SamGrant951:
<strong>this is the current state of my car...</strong><hr></blockquote>
I would have a paintless dent removal expert look at that damage asap, especially the rear quarter. I have had LOTS of experience with dent removal lately with this one individual here in Northern Virginia. I can't describe the damage that he has repaired, in some cases within minutes, on my cars (750iL, 951, etc.), but it was absolutely amazing. Metal that is freshly dented can be repaired easier than an old dent. I would never prep a car for a respray if the damage could be fixed with paintless dent removal and some polishing compound. Find an expert in your area, not a wholesale guy. There's a difference. If you are anywhere near VA/MD send me email. Good luck.
<strong>this is the current state of my car...</strong><hr></blockquote>
I would have a paintless dent removal expert look at that damage asap, especially the rear quarter. I have had LOTS of experience with dent removal lately with this one individual here in Northern Virginia. I can't describe the damage that he has repaired, in some cases within minutes, on my cars (750iL, 951, etc.), but it was absolutely amazing. Metal that is freshly dented can be repaired easier than an old dent. I would never prep a car for a respray if the damage could be fixed with paintless dent removal and some polishing compound. Find an expert in your area, not a wholesale guy. There's a difference. If you are anywhere near VA/MD send me email. Good luck.
04-04-2002, 07:34 PM
#14
Race Director
Thread Starter
unfortunately im 4 hours away from my car right this moment..but I do have a great guy that was going to repair a few dents on the body. Hes done alot of porsches in our local PCA with amazing results. I wasnt aware they could handle such large amounts of damage though. Should I have him give it a go before I let the bodyshop at it, or will that possibly screw up what they planned to do?
TIA
TIA
04-04-2002, 09:23 PM
#15
Pro
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Northern VA
Posts: 577
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
[quote]Originally posted by SamGrant951:
<strong>Should I have him give it a go before I let the bodyshop at it, or will that possibly screw up what they planned to do?
TIA</strong><hr></blockquote>
Shouldn't make any difference. They use long steel rods of different sizes with a curved spoon shaped top to get behind the dent, and using leverage, move it back out. Experience is key here.
The guy I use has been doing it full-time for 7 years now and has trained people from all over the world in how to do it right. Two weeks ago he repaired a deep, 8 inch wide dent in a Bronco door for me. The vast majority of damage immediately popped out with a bang. (It was a fresh dent.) Then he massaged the rest right out. I paid $100. He also removed 4 or 5 dings on my 951 passenger door and a high spot on my hood for another $30 total. (BTW, the 944/951 has great doors for dent removal. The plastic vents are easy to remove and the access is easy.)
If somone charges you more than $350-450 for all your dent work, they better have a 100% money back guarantee because that is about the max from what I see in your photos.
Body shops generally curse these guys. Your insurance company can probably recommend a decent dent guy in your area. Or try the local Lexus or Porsche dealers to see who they use.
The reason I mentioned this is that it wouldn't make much sense to do body work and paint work to a good-looking Porsche when there may be another alternative. Good luck.
<strong>Should I have him give it a go before I let the bodyshop at it, or will that possibly screw up what they planned to do?
TIA</strong><hr></blockquote>
Shouldn't make any difference. They use long steel rods of different sizes with a curved spoon shaped top to get behind the dent, and using leverage, move it back out. Experience is key here.
The guy I use has been doing it full-time for 7 years now and has trained people from all over the world in how to do it right. Two weeks ago he repaired a deep, 8 inch wide dent in a Bronco door for me. The vast majority of damage immediately popped out with a bang. (It was a fresh dent.) Then he massaged the rest right out. I paid $100. He also removed 4 or 5 dings on my 951 passenger door and a high spot on my hood for another $30 total. (BTW, the 944/951 has great doors for dent removal. The plastic vents are easy to remove and the access is easy.)
If somone charges you more than $350-450 for all your dent work, they better have a 100% money back guarantee because that is about the max from what I see in your photos.
Body shops generally curse these guys. Your insurance company can probably recommend a decent dent guy in your area. Or try the local Lexus or Porsche dealers to see who they use.
The reason I mentioned this is that it wouldn't make much sense to do body work and paint work to a good-looking Porsche when there may be another alternative. Good luck.