Driving my car in snow/sleet conditions with nearly bald tires finally caught up to me.. I hit a patch of ice on an overpass and the car lost control and rammed into the guardrail a couple times before limping down on a flat tire. I'm going to need a new front reinforcement, bumper cover, both fenders (only the right one was damaged in the wreck, but an old lady hit the left one in a parking lot some time ago and drove off), and a hood. Probably a new headlight assembly or something of that sort. If the rim isn't bent and the steering or front axle weren't hurt, that should be the extent of my damages.

What would be the best way to get my car repaired? Aftermarket parts seem to be quite cheap but I question their quality; on the other hand, OEM parts are ridiculously expensive and would probably make the total cost of repairing the car double or triple what its worth. Junk yards locally seem to have a surpising lack of third gen parts, so I'm not sure what to do. I figure with the cheapest aftermarket parts I could find I'd be looking at like 800$ for parts and then 1-2grand in labor and paint? The car is black..

 

Do not go aftermarket. The specs are not the same and often times they use a thinner stamping. I did the same thing you did and damaged the same ecxact parts. I am in the process of buying panels right now. See my thread in this forum. Look for used parts. I have been in contact with some people and I can get every part I need for under $300. The logistics of these parts are what are keeping me from getting them. They are a bit far for a weekend drive. There are so many of these cars you should be able to get what you need fairly close to your location. You may also want to look at a whole car. Sometimes you can find 3rd gens with blown motors that sell for under 700 bucks. Many of them have good bodys but just don't hold any value. You will pay more for body work and paint than anything else. There is no point in buying NOS GM parts when there are so many of these cars out there. I am fixing this if this helps.



Repairing the quater panel will be your biggest cost. Try replacing the parts you can yourself to cut the cost of shop work. Bumpers, doors, and fenders are an easy bolt on. Just let a shop allign them before paint and finish.

 

Don't go with aftermarket. Find a junked car with some decent body parts and use them

 

well the driver's front pannel can be replaced... the door doesn't look like it was it, but the back half is the going to be a pain in the ***. You can either go with a skin (which from door to bumer, and bottom of the car to half of the sail pannel, and you would have to weld it into place) or you can always try hammering out the dents and using filler. Of couse you would still have to paint all the panels. I repainted my car when i had it outside and some bricks fell on it and it f***ed my car up just as much as your is. So i know your pain... sorry man.

If you really want to bring it back to looking good it won't be too hard, but just going to cost some time and money.

You can use junkyard parts b/c they will fit, but i didn't have any troble with my car. But for the back-half of the car i think it would be a pain to try to take that off at the junk yard. I'm all up for cheap fixes. but i'm more up for easy fixes

 

Man sorry to hear about your luck. Just made sure that when you replace all the panels that you get the body straight. Trust me black shows every flaw in the body!

ShiftyCapone - I see your in Lima Ohio . . . do you do to UNOH or do you live there. I go to school there, never saw your car so im just wondering.

 

is that your purple car in a few posts above?

whatever you do, do not go aftermarket. pannels are poorly made, wavy, thin, and rarely fit right. you'll be much more pleased with junkyard parts.

like everyone else said, that rear quarter is gona be the worst to get fixed. not sure on how much of this work you intend on doin yourself tho.

 

Hey Shifty, you really think used is the way to go? I am gonna get mine painted when I get everything else finished and I have to replace the entire nose minus the fenders. Buying a new hood b/c I want too. But anyway, someone decided to drill a bunch of holes in the nose piece just above the license plate, for what reason I'm unsure. Perhaps the car was getting warm(as thirdgen's do if you don't know how to fix it), and they thought they'd get more air to it. Who knows. But used parts from another car will fit better than aftermarket? I really don't want a mismatch of parts, especially b/c I'm getting an aftermarket hood. Thanks for any help.

 

I work in auto insurance claims and thought I would chime in. I have a 91 Trans Am that got hit in the drivers side door/quarter. I used parts from a Camaro/Firebird junk yard to fix my car. The thing with used parts is that they should be original to the car. OEM parts will always fit better than aftermarket, even if they are used. BUT they do have to be in good condition.

If you decide to go aftermarket..MAKE SURE you go with CAPA CERTIFIED parts. These parts are tested for fit, form, and function to meet the exact measurements as the OEM parts. EX. CERTAFIT is not CAPA certified. Our company uses a place called KEYSTONE for their certified parts. This place takes parts out of circulation if they find that they don't fit properly.

Anyway, just my two cents.. and I will post some pictures of my car... before, during, and after.

BTW...these pictures are pretty big.. so I posted them on yahoo. Let me know if this doesn't work!

http://f2.pg.briefcase.yahoo.com/red1991transam

 

Yes I do. I work for a company that needs to make perfect duplications of GM body panels and the there is a huge difference when compairing to the real thing. Unless GM certifies it or gives them the math data for the die they aren't close. They are typically thinner and the fit and finish is sloppy.

I am out of school and went to UD in Dayton. My car is not with me in Lima at this current time. I recently moved hear to accept a job and do not have any of my cars with me at this time. I have only been here 4 months but I have yet to meet any TGO locals yet. Hit me up sometime.