Help please removing creases /dents on door panels

[spiff]

Good afternoon from a sunny Mullion Cove Cornwall, snow has all gone : )

When I purchased our C5 it came complete with a couple of dents, hence the price of £200.

After your kindly assistance with the suspension problems the car is running fine, I am now tempted to have a go at its cosmetic appearance.

The body work is great apart from the passenger side door, rear door and wing.

I have seen various pieces of kit for sale on eBay, such as a curved weight that is held inside the door with a hammer used on the outside.

Also a long rod with a right angle at the end for pushing through the cable entry to lever dents out.

Have any of you most knowledgeable gentlemen any experience in removing creases such as these.

The filler on the rear wing was also done by the previous owner, it could also do with tidying up.

God Bless Spiff

[wurlycorner]

Oooh yes, that filler job is a bit rough
It would be worth asking for a price from a paintless dent removal guy round your way for the door crease.
However there's no getting around that filler if you want to smarten it up - that needs properly attacking (rubbing back/reshaping and then respraying). If you go down the route of a paintless dent removal guy coming out, it might be worth chipping all the filler off and seeing if he can straighten the panel behind it fairly well, leaving only a light skim of filler and re-spray needed (leaves you with less finishing work).

[xantia_v6]

Those creases in the doors are not going to be easy for conventional beating, nor paintless repair, due to the sharpness of the crease and the double skin and structural bits near the edge of the doors.

I would suggest looking for a good pair of doors in the right colour from a scrap car.

The rear wing really needs the filler knocking off to be redone properly, but it is the sort of job that takes a bit of skill and practice to get looking right.

I suppose you could practice your filling and painting skills on the doors, throw them away if unsuccessful, before tackling the wing.

[Pug_XUD_KeenAmateur]

Edd China of Wheeler Dealers gives a demonstration of what looks like a brilliant bit of kit for removing dents such as this from the outside, its basically a load of 'keys', a rod and puller.

Repeats available on Sky, the vehicle is a navy blue BMW 7 Series.

[spiff]

Thank you for that, unfortunately I am too mean to have Sky : )

We can receive 34 other satellites in the Clarke belt via 1.3 & 1.4 meter rotatable dishes, all for free.

Will do a search to see if it is available elsewhere.

Have been watching You Tube videos using glue pullers, they look a possibility.

Have any members used them ?

The wing though is going to require re-filling towards the top and sanding towards the bottom.

The only good point is the spray used was a good colour match : )

God Bless Spiff

[GiveMeABreak]

There's also this little gem:



There are also some of the glue pulling kits here:
Dent Removal Kits

[wurlycorner]

Thank you for that, unfortunately I am too mean to have Sky : )

We can receive 34 other satellites in the Clarke belt via 1.3 & 1.4 meter rotatable dishes, all for free.

Will do a search to see if it is available elsewhere.

It's shown on Quest, so is available on freeview, however there is no OD player for it anymore, so you have to wait for it to come round again.

It was a great bit of kit, but a) the kit isn't cheap, b) you also need an mig welder to operate it.

Was in the Ferrari 308 episode IIRC...



Yep, bingo;

[Eddie Nuff]

Why fanny around trying to pull something that isn't worth the time and effort. Rip all that filler out that some muppet threw in with a shovel, refill it properly, fill the scratch on the doors and paint.

Or better still pay a decent paint man £150 to do the whole side.

[Gibbo2286]

You must have some very cheap 'decent paint men' up the Eddie, most would want a grand to paint a whole side nowadays, there's a hundred and fifty quids worth of paint.

[spiff]

Thank you all kindly for the advice and links.

The car is 2003 petrol and has done 159000 miles, not sure how far petrol engines go nowadays.

No record of a second cambelt change and the catalytic converter rattles.

I should love to keep it, but really looking for a low mileage diesel auto.

I replaced the drop links which I got for free, the seals on the rear suspension ram and a height sensor.

None of this cost very much, the Lexica with laptop I purchased will be handy for the next C5.

Frequently when reading for sale adverts the seller has spent a great deal just prier to selling the vehicle : )

So nothing to loose and something to learn by having a try on improving its appearance myself.

God Bless Spiff

[dave]

So nothing to loose and something to learn by having a try on improving its appearance myself.

If I wanted to keep it, cheapest repair is used doors in the right colour then sand, fill panel, prime panel & get a cash in hand chap to do the top coat.

However your car will worth more in bits than complete car with a repaired body.

[Eddie Nuff]

You must have some very cheap 'decent paint men' up the Eddie

Used the same guy for over 25 years to the point whereby I won't even get my hands dirty on bodywork - it's not worth it. I've had five C4GP front ends done this past nine months, my own Volvo had bits done to make it look perfect, the Xantia in my sig had the roof and the hatch done (including removing the vynil wrap), and he's given me a quote for a full job on the XM which I'd be a fool to turn down.

[van ordinaire]

At those prices a short break in Yorkshire would pay for itself.

The place that did a good job, I thought, on the green Cherokee, fit & paint tailgate & back bumper centre section, paint the bumper ends and paint the bonnet & scuttle (replaced some time before but not an exact match) quoted me £400 to re-paint the STS bonnet, to deal with laquer peal & a bit of bubbling over ali corrosion.

[ekjdm14]

Agree, I'd find a couple of doors in the right colour (shouldn't be hard, looks like EYC silver to me, pretty common colour) then, if you want an invisible repair find a decent bodyshop to attend to the quarter panel. It'd probably work to your advantage quote-wise if you knock the bodgy filler off beforehand since they can then see exactly what they have to work with.

As far as modern petrol engines, '03 is around the time petrols began to once again rival diesels for reliability/longevity and I can see a well maintained one easily cracking 200-250k. On the cat rattle, how long ago was the MoT done and what were the emissions like then? it's possible it was cracked by thermal shock driving through water, what with the weather we've had the last year or so. It's something to keep an eye on, but if you do replace it I'd advise fitting a good used original item from a breaker rather than a cheaper aftermarket new one as the quality can be iffy.

Cambelt, when's it due/how overdue? just seen a decent kit on ebay for £90, that's an INA belt kit and Meyle water pump (Gates kit minus water pump was under £60) so not the end of the world if you can do it yourself.

[spiff]

Thank you for all the good advice.

Just added a couple of pictures taken today to show the overall condition.

It is such a shame as it is nice inside as well.

The interior was very dirty when we got it, but it cleaned up very well.

A case of two careful owners and one not so careful : )

Estate cars must often end up being used as vans : )

God Bless Spiff