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Repair panels for rosted out rear wheel well

15K views 25 replies 9 participants last post by  Ron Hamperehill 
#1 ·
#2 ·
I'd think the easiest thing is a sawzall and a junkyard ;) Or form some metal yourself depending what is damaged (if it is the lip/wheel well area that would be a PITA to make out of sheet steel)
 
#4 ·
Does the German supplier happen to be Skandix? If so they have a US distributor @ www.skandix-us(a?).com (not sure about the "a"). if they have the panel in their inventory, they will send it to the US distributor on a special request through the US website..
Unfortunately they don't. I probably have to get it from Germany or fabricate myslf...

This is the panel from Germany...

 
#7 ·
OK, I repaired the rosted out wheel well ...

Here is my little story on the wheel well repair.. Hope you like it..

After not being successful getting a repair panel for the wheel well I decided to go with fiberglass. Following some pictures how I did the repair. I need to say that I haven't done this before so that might be something totally normal for some others... nevertheless I was proud how it turned out...

First the surprise: big hole after finding lots of old fiberglass ...


2. Reinforce with fiberglass and close the hole


3. Preparations for making a fiberglass mold using the existing wheel well
- Tape it up

- Use fiberglass mat and resin to construct the mold. Making sure it get's the form correctly..



4. Take off the mold and cut it to size so it fits the rosted out section..



5. Use fiberglass to put the mold in place..


6. Use filler and sand it down until it get's the shape



7. Prime it and paint it and be done...))

 
#10 ·
Here is my little story on the wheel well repair.. Hope you like it..

After not being successful getting a repair panel for the wheel well I decided to go with fiberglass. Following some pictures how I did the repair. I need to say that I haven't done this before so that might be something totally normal for some others... nevertheless I was proud how it turned out...
I think you did a brilliant job!
 
#8 · (Edited)
#9 ·
That looks rather decent, I must say.

Last week I did this to my 84 900 4 door..

View attachment 13486

View attachment 13487

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View attachment 13489

I will replace both doors and bondo the rest.

The car was pristine, so I MUST fix it.
If mine comes out as clean as yours did, I will not have to kick my own @$$.

I really want to though.
I really, really want to.....;oops:
Oh no..... I hate when that happens....
You should definitely repair. Just have the patients I sometimes lack...:)

Good Luck !!!
 
#16 ·
Thank you! I painted myself, but it took me 2 times to get it right (running paint ;oops:..). The paint no. 228 matched pretty good...:) Nevertheless I still got a little orange peel look which I will sand down with grid 1500/2000 and polish afterwards (found that on the internet..) but I need to wait at least 3 weeks to have the paint cure properly. That gives me time to work on all the other "non-working" stuff like A/C, dashboard lights etc...:)
 
#20 ·
Instead of cutting up your car, do as you see in this thread.
Fiberglass patch kits are available anywhere.
Fiberglass is easy to shape and is a lot easier than cutting and welding.
With a little patience(and some practice on something you don't care about), you might surprise yourself with the results.
 
#24 ·
Ahh I have been educated. I can see how the panel can be significantly weakened. Without crash testing cars like this, I'm not sure if it would affect safety. The crumble region is still going to absorb energy. Also, the impact would have to favor that side of the body. In the end it is still better than air and rusting metal.
 
#26 ·
Well looks like my apparently simple question prompted an interesting and useful debate. Thanks to those who replied and thanks for the link. In my opinion the wheel arch is structural though the 2 inches that I am concerned with might be marginal in the event of a shunt. However I think metal is always better than fibreglass and as I hope to keep the car (mind you the nearside floor had to be welded for the last MOT) I would rather obtain the correct replacemnt apnel or cut from the donor car which is beyond saving and wil lbe going to a scrapyard soon.
 
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