Quarterpanel attachment/detachment

[Two Fowty]

I have severe damage to both of my rear quarterpanels on my 1990 240sx HB.

I am not going to deal with bondo, and a shop is too expensive. I am going to have to buy the panels and have a friend that weld's put them on for me.

What issues am I going to have? How do I get the quarterpanels off, and how do I get the new ones on?

Please provide detailed answers and any problems and issues that could arise. Money IS an issue here, which is why I'm not just taking it into a shop.

http://s544.photobucket.com/al...2.jpg

There is my photobucket. It only has 4 pictures, and they are all of the damage so just click the arrows to view them. The picture of the side that isn't that bad looking is the passenger side.
Modified by Two Fowty at 2:21 PM 1/19/2009

[n240sxfnatic]

you have to physically cut the 1/4's off and fix any damage underneath, then re-weld new panels, bondo and paint. Its a lot of work and I wouldnt do it if you dont have good welding skills or autobody skills.

[Two Fowty]

what do you mean bondo?

I get that I have to cut off the panels, but then shouldn't I just be able to weld the new quarterpanels on?

My friend is a good welder so I would have him do it.

[n240sxfnatic]

what do you mean bondo?

I get that I have to cut off the panels, but then shouldn't I just be able to weld the new quarterpanels on?

My friend is a good welder so I would have him do it.

bondo for minor imperfections, and yes you just cut and weld if there isnt structural damage underneath the quarter. If there is pull it out or do whatever to get it straight again and do what u gotta do.

[240-SRT-4]

almost all cars brand new off the floor have bondo on them. especially older ones. so thats no issue.. but yeah if you welder friend is good he should know how to work with metal and it's kinda common sence on cutting and welding the new one's on.. most cases you can overlay it mark it and cut and weld.. why not just do over fenders?

[roadboy240sx]

you need to show some pics, i thought mine was beyond fixing, and the body shop ( that i now work for) wanted $1800 just for one side and primer

i got myself a dent puller and some bondo worked out good

before

during and after

[Two Fowty]

bondo for minor imperfections, and yes you just cut and weld if there isnt structural damage underneath the quarter. If there is pull it out or do whatever to get it straight again and do what u gotta do.

And if there is structural damage, which might be, because the damage goes down behind the bumper, which is why there's a gap which you can see in the picture.

[Two Fowty]

my damage is significantly worse than yours man

[darens13]

maybe you should post up some pictures then.

[Two Fowty]

maybe you should post up some pictures then.

hence the link in my post.

[darens13]

hence the link in my post.

gotcha, it could be fixed, similar to roadboy240sx fixed his. gonna be a lot of work but worth it.

[Two Fowty]

gotcha, it could be fixed, similar to roadboy240sx fixed his. gonna be a lot of work but worth it.

well I don't know how to use bondo. My friend knows someone who does, but I mean, all the supplies to fix that damage would be more than just new quarterpanels wouldn't it?

I'm looking for the cheapest way to fix this. I have the painting covered, but fixing the actual damage is where I hit a brick wall. I do know someone who can weld good, so that is why I was leaning towards new ¼ panels.

[roadboy240sx]

hence the link in my post.

i see now, I say try to beat out the left rear buy the taillights out as much as you can and go with some over fenders. as far as you welder guy it depends on how good he is. there is going to be a lot of work no matter what.

and your pics

[n240sxfnatic]

You need new quarters bc overfenders wont even cover all that. Bondo is like $15 a gallon, its cheap. If you already have paint covered and dont wanna bondo urself have the person painting it do it.

[Two Fowty]

I dont want a wide body, and the person painting doesn't know how to bondo.

[nifares240]

you're gonna have to cut and weld then use the bondo or fiberglass to seam the metal together. looks like they attempted to fix the dents judging from the welded studs. I had a body shop welded my aftermarket sunroof when I got rid of it.

the quarterpanel is a unibody section...so there's no replacement other than welding a donated piece.

[heartofaskyline]

a shell is cheaper than new qp's.

[mixeds14]

dude if ur willing to do it right, it will take a lot of time to change ur 1/4 panels if u dont know what u doing, but i think it would be worth it at the end cause u wont have hardly any bondo... if ur tryin to do it the right way take out ur rear windows n drill out all your spot welds around the 1/4 that way it will come out all in one piece n put back on the same way it will save u a lot of headaches tryin to bondo it. or if u dont feel like taking the rear windows, just cut it a out about 2" below and overlap it then have ur friend spot weldit that way it wont warp up on u. but then u will have to use some bondo but it would be better the just bonding and using about 2 cans. if u have any ? email me an i can probably halp u out a little...

good luck

[silpena]

wait, he can paint but doesnt know how to use body filler??? it so easy to use. Just body filler and a hardener. For every golf size of body filler u use 1/18 of it size or better make a strip half way across the ball of body filler.

Are those all made from the old dent pullers?? Even if you can pull those dents out. Its gonna be a pain becuase the metal has to be streacthed so much that your gonna have to do some heat shrinking.

Does your freind know how to do plug welds?? if not then dont let him cut and weld a new quarter panel. Looks like where the qp meats the floor gotten damage, there are spot welds and seams around that area. You got alot of work man.

[placham]

Dent behind the door, looks like it can be pushed out from inside. Remove your rear interior panel, and access from there.And the back, might be able to access from inside the trunk.

And then bondo/body filler, primer, base coat, clear coat.

[E7-S14]

Don't use "Bondo" Brand.its crap.

just a word of advice

[silpena]

damn right its junk! use evercoat!!

[SirSilvia]

holy balls dude! it looks like that hole side was bashed in all to hell then someone tried to pull it back out and then pour buckets of bondo on it. after time it cracked and fell off. who's responsible for that? jesus.anyways, as long at you leave yourself an edge to weld the new piece on shouldn't be that hard. it will never be the same unless you welder friend is magic.

[blackbetty]

i think new quarter panels are around 300 dollar range. I cant remember. But yea you can drill or take a die grinder to the spot welds on your current quarters to remove them. Also you don't have to weld the new ones back on..... you can use an epoxy mixture which is much faster and saves time(forgot the name, quit bodywork years ago). Its kind of used like a caulking gun. I used an air powered gun though. YES the epoxy is strong as hell, don't be playing around with it. (although it takes hours to dry, they make different strengths for how long it will take to dry). Its supposed to be stronger than welds. So if you glue your buddies shoe to the floor.....it will stay there. If you get some on you, use laquer thinner to wipe it off. Make sure you clean the mating surfaces down to raw material before laying your beads down. Then just line up your panel and clamp it down. I mostly did truck bed sides, so it was a little easier. I just used a mixture of vice grips and c-clamps to get a good hold all around the panel to ensure it gets a good seal. I clamped about every 3-4 inches or so.

but since you dont have many cars to get done in a certain amount of time, you can weld it and take your time. What ever is easiest for you and your buddies.

[SirSilvia]

showed that pic to my 56 year old uncle and his 87 year old father (who retired as a master mechanic) and they both gave it an epic face palm and just shook their heads. definitely fixable but sooooo battered lol

[s13gebala]

why wont you just get overfenders, i think it would be simpler to cut that nasty panel off and stamp an over on and fix the rest

[Two Fowty]

if im gonna cut it off i might as well just put a normal one on though right? i mean, i assume ur suggesting a wide body, and that'd require me having wider wheels to not look gay which is an added cost. im looking to be cheap

[SirSilvia]

true but think of the weight reduction

[Kalypso]

why wont you just get overfenders, i think it would be simpler to cut that nasty panel off and stamp an over on and fix the rest

you can cover that completely with overfenders... seriously

[Two Fowty]

by overfenders, do you mean a wider body, like a wide body kit?