I just got the car a month and a half ago and one of the reasons I bought it was because there wasn't a dent in it anywhere. Now I have a damaged passenger quarter and it looks like it may have knicked the passenger door as well. Does anyone know of a good body shop in southern alabama or the panhandle of florida. I'd like to get the car fixed right and not have a quarter full of bondo.

 

Pictures? We can tell you what to look out for if we can see the damage.

 

It's almost dark out so I'll post some tomorrow.

 

That sucks! If you were in SW VA I'd send you to my body man. I have never known anyone who was better.

 

http://s591.photobucket.com/albums/s...t=P1000120.jpg

Here's one even though the lighting is horrible.

 

Well a better pic is going to be needed because on a white car its kinda hard to see minor damage from that angle . Secondly , that is no thirdgen

 

that sucks man. i had the same thing happen to my 95 bird 6 months ago. i was doing some tile for a friend and his wife said oh no, they hit your car. the 70s couple that lived across the street backed out of thier drive right into my driverside door.

 

Yes, its a 4th gen. I posted here because this is one of the bigger camaro boards and I figured I would be more likely to get a response.

 

If it's still light enough and if you can take one along the side they'll be able to see how deep the dent is.

 

Here are some pics of the damage. In the first pic you can see there is a crease in the metal by the wheel well. Not sure how they would get that out other then to fill with bondo. Looks like the the area where the molding attaches is pushed in as well.

 

The right way is to replace the quarter. If I recall, there is a seam where the sail meets the quarter anyhow which makes putting a new quarter on the car pretty easy.

Good luck with the insurance though. I have a white F350. Some lady hit my front right FENDER. The insurance company said its almost $5,000 in work. They are paying because its a recent truck. But for a 15+ year old car. who knows.

-- Joe

 

Thats hardly any damage at all. Any good shop should be able to do a fine repair on that. The actual body repair should be pretty much straightforward. And there's nothing wrong with a little body filler if it's properly applied.
A quality shop will remove anything that touches the paint when it comes time to repaint the damaged area and blending the door is necessary because the repair is right next to it. So an estimate will include loosening the rear bumper, removing the body side mouldings, removing the door handle and lock cylinder, removing the belt moulding and mirror, stuff like that.
Shop around, ask questions, tour the shop, see how things are done. It's unfortunate but it isn't the end of the world. Good luck.

 

You can use filler to make a whole new quarter, like a lot of repair shops do. Personally, I'd rather use a skim coat to hide seams and welds, or pits from heavy rust removal. When you start shaping things and apply filler in excess of 1/16" you end up having blistering bubbling and cracking a few years down the road.

Personally, I'd cut the quarter off and put a new one on. Just me.

-- Joe

 

Cutting the quarter off and replacing it would be pretty invasive for such a small repair. And it opens up all kinds of other issues like rust protection and seam sealing.
I've been working in the same bodyshop for 29 years. If a little filler in a panel was a problem I would have seen hundreds of cars come back for warrantied repairs. My experience is it only cracks if it gets hit again in the same place.

 

What is your temperature swings like? I see bondo repairs fail on average around here. Lots of people do it that way. Just not the way I'd do it.

-- Joe

 

What about checking out one of those "paintless dent removal" companies?
They may be able to work that small crease right out. It doesn't appear
the paint is broken so the scuff marks will buff right off with a bit of compound.

I doubt any insurance company is gonna spend the big bucks to fix such
a small dent without a fight.................

 

That can't be done by a PDR person for a reasonable price. It can be done, but the paint damage will still be there and the labor cost will be close to the that of a typical body shop. You could have a PDR guy "push for paint". He will lift the dent back to the point where a skim coat of filler can be applied and then repainted. It's basically the same thing a body shop would do prior to paint, so no need for a PDR guy!

 

Talk to one of your local body shops. that can be more then easily repaired by, them using a stud gun. using light filler.. and blocking and blending it in. its not the end of the world when it comes to paint on cars. you would be suprised how easy the process is to blend new paint with old paint.

 

Don't sweat it. You have very minor damage in an easy to repair location. As stated before, a little metal work with a stud gun, and just the lighest coat of filler will have the panel spot on. You also have the easiest color in the world to work with--white. Your shop will blend the back of the door and front of the quarter to make a nice color match with the rest of the side of the car. Rudy.

 

My g0d !! it was hit so hard it deformed the cars shape into something other than a thirdgen
That will be nearly impossible to fix.

 

Yeah, what Scott said!!! A good PDR man will make those little dings disappear in a heartbeat, then a skim coat and some paint blended in and you'll have a quality, long lasting repair. If you can't find a good PDR man, then the stud gun, some pingin' and dingin', and a glaze coat would achieve the same results.

 

You guys that are still using stud guns should check out a Lenco. So much easier and faster. I've been using one for the last 10 years and my old stud gun is just collecting dust. Stud guns still have their place, like when you put a row close together and use a clamp on them for heavier pulls but for things like that the Lenco uses wiggle wire and a claw. It's slick. A Lenco would work that damage out close enough to only need a light skim coat. end of commercial ... lol.