SWMBO drives a 1994 Pug 306 Sedan, dark metallic green (relevant).
Purchased by us nearly two years ago with genuine 14k miles (we knew the previous 'owner from new'), now with 26.5k.
A great B-road tool for me, as well as a 'get to work and shopping car' for the missus, totally reliable, and as mint as a 10 year old budget car ever will be: Always clean and polished inside out - including engine bay I will admit, where the engine, including alloy and plated parts, looks like it isn't even 10 months old, let alone 10 years - it gleams like a good'un.
You would be correct that we wish to keep the car, as ideally suited to second car purpose.
A few days ago however, whilst the Pug was the only car in the Missus's work car park, and with her having abided by my golden rule of 'park away from where the lazy ones park, and end of line if possible', it was dinged! A colleague of my wife reversed in to the side of it whilst turning round. "I didn't even see it" was the comment, though they have promised to pay for the repair. (Yes, we will give them the estimate first)
The damage starts on the front passenger door about 18" forward of the B post jamb, and reaches a maximum depth of about half an inch at the B post door frame. At this point, I guess because of the relative strength of the frame, the crease comes back out, cracking the paint, crosses over the B post, and then continues for most of the width of the rear passenger door in the form of a large dent with no sharp edges or creases. The latter looks lke it has been kicked fair and square by a yobbo's boot, and the rubbing strip is creased. No paint is cracked.
So bearing in mind on one hand that we wish both to keep the car and that we take pride in it, but on the other that it's worth £1,200 tops and any repair IS going to show when compared to ten year old dark metallic paintwork, well kept or not, what would other BRers recommend as the best course of repair, please?
My take is that the front door panel will either need filler or replacement because of the crease and the cracked paint, but a 'Dentmaster' type repair may be possible on the rear door. In other words, split the repair between a body shop with repaint, and home call visit without. Advisable, or a mistake?
Cheers!
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I had damage done to one of my old Cavaliers, caused by a motorbike attempting to overtake a car coming in the other direction before the car had actually finished passing me, resulting in a crease dent the whole length of the drivers door and a shallow dent in the rear door. Motorbike rode off without stopping. To cut a long story short, the car was approx 7 years old, light metallic blue paint, and needed a new door skin on the front and the dent beating out of the rear door. After it was repaired you couldn't see any difference in the old/new paint. Both doors were totally resprayed, and the front/rear wings blended in to match. 2 years later, still a perfect match. The trick is the blending in. They feathered the paint in on the wings mixing the old with the new, making it less obvious to the eye any colour shading difference. In other words, if you respray just the one panel, generally it won't match the one next to it, but the blending in is the key to a good spray job.
Depending on the repairer, you'll either get an excellent job done, like I had, or it'll stand out like a sore thumb.
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Thanks, DD.
Will try the bodyshop who repaired my V70 when a kid rode his bike in to it whilst parked up and just a few weeks old! Their first attempt was 90% right, and their second 99.9%. I can tell the repair only because I know where to look, and when the light is 'right' to do so. (intense winter sunlight from a clear sky)
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Someobdy (who should know) once told me that you cannot fill a door panel - as the filler falls off when you slam the door.
I merely repeat what I have heard!
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Well, I asked a local bodyshop with good reputation to estimate repair.
Remember that the damage is a small nick to the front nearside passenger door just in front of the 'B' post, and a somewhat larger bow to the rear door on the same side. No damage to anything structural. There is also a tiny (1" long) mark on the leading edge of the nearside rear wheel arch that was already present when we purchased the car, but which the garage has included repair of in the estimate. I can ask them to exclude this, but doubt it will make much difference to the bill.
Repair nearside:
Quarter panel
Front door
Strip & refit nearside:
Rear quarter panel fittings
Front door moulding
Front door fittings
Rear door moulding
Rear door fittings
Note: Re-use old plastic mouldings to ensure colour match with the other originals.
Paint nearside:
Rear quarter panel
Front door skin
Rear door skin
Costs:
Labour for the above: £618.80
Paint & finishing materials: £157.12
Parts price: £94.91
Anti corrosion materials: £5.00
Sub total: £875.83
VAT: £153.27
Total £1029.10
Bloomin' eck!
I had thought may be £400, but £1029?! Sure, the cost is the cost regardless of vehicle, and we want to return the car to the same condition it was beforehand, but it's only worth £1300 or so!
Methinks that my wife's colleague who did the damage will have heart failure when they see this estimate. To paint (pardon the pun) the picture in terms of their approach to motoring, they drive a very beat up prehistoric Volvo Estate, slowly and badly, by their own admission. A car is a necessary evil to get from A to B, as cheaply as possible. Bangernomics. Nothing more.
Perhaps we'll end up trying one of the 'Dentmaster' companies to repair the reat door after all (not possible on sharp crease to front door), if only to save a dispute with SWMBO's colleague.
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I would try to source a good pair of secondhand doors in the correct colour - not impossible particularly if you can wait a few weeks until the right panels turn up. A service such as partfinder should find something..306 doors are about £100 each I think.
As others have said, trying to match faded metallic paintwork is almost an impossible task and replacement panels is the cheapest and best option. Also the quality of rustproofing is as good as OE manufacturers effors and you dont have the risk of the paint fading/micro-blistering/poor adhesion problems developing that sometimes only occur months after the repair was made. Just a thought.
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Well, how did it turn out?
Still not resolved...
Second hand 306 doors in Oberon Green Metallic were glaringly obviously from another car, and liable to draw more attention than driving round with two dented door skins! I don't intend taking this option any further.
The cheapest 'new door skins' quote has turned out to be the £1029 quotation detailed above.
Only one 'paintless repair' company has proven willing to tackle the repair, which is pushing the limits of these techniques. They've (Chips Away) said it will need filling and painting as well as 'paintless' techniques, for which they will wish to be paid £940.
So, does this open up a fourth option?
Assess how much a dent to the front and rear left hand door has devalued the car by, add a small amount for the hassle, and accept a cheque. I'd then make it good as well as I can, and we'd live with if for the remaining year or so that we'll likely have the car.
The 306 is a 28k miles, 'M' plate, 306 1.8i SR Sedan, in otherwise superb nick: Well maintained paintwork, unmarked interior, spotless engine and engine bay where even the paper bar code labels are still white, nothing is broken or damaged other than the door skins, and it drives beautifully. I would hope therefore that it is perhaps worth £1500 or so as a PX, rather than the pessimistic £1200 I thought earlier.
Comments on this train of thought much appreciated as I will be speaking to the poor guy who did the damage shortly.
Cheers.
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Received the expected phone call just now.
To his eternal credit, when presented with the three options, the driver who did the damage elected of his own accord to pay the higher amount (£1029) for repair by fitting new panels.
I know he is a colleague of my wife, but it was still refreshing to have such an open and honest conversation with someone I've never spoken to before, and with the best possible outcome.
He's taken our e-banking details, and has promised to make the transfer before we book the car in for repair.
Some faith in human nature is restored!
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The conclusion...
I collected the car today, in perfect, intense, late afternoon sunshine to show up any paint anomolies.
The result?
Staggered beyond belief!
The repair is absolutely superb, with the most perfect colour and metallic flake matching that I've ever seen, since confirmed under revealing sodium lighting outside our house.
Blending in to the surrounding panels is faultless, there is no overspray on to, or under the edge of, windscreen and rear window rubbers, and no paint 'seams' in tricky confined areas. There are no new squeaks or rattles given that the doors were taken completely apart, shut lines are perfect, and the car was washed and polished for collection.
If I'm going to be really picky, there were a few spots of primer on the rear tyre sidewall, and one light buffing swirl mark on the front wing - original paint - I guess as part of blending everything in.
I know that the car was exceptionally clean and tidy when it went in, but even so, whoever managed to weave this magic on a ten year old car is a true craftsman. Because we chose to keep the original door rubbing strips as they have aged with the rest of the plastic trim, the only obvious sign of repair is the complete absence of light scratches in places like the door handle recesses.
I'm a very happy customer.
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