Rear Quarter Panel - Repairable?

[Aleman]

Hey R3v -

I've had my '90 325is for about 16 months now. The M20 is completely sorted, and the interior is slated for a freshen-up this summer. I've saved the bodywork for last, because metalwork and paint are skills that I just don't have.

The car came with this dent, and the PO said it happened when the car slid downhill on snow backwards into a tree at low speed. The impact hit kind of on top of the rear quarter just above the tail light. The rear valance appears OK, but the quarter panel buckled some just in front of the wheel well. There's a smaller dent behind the wheel well, too (you can see it right below the antenna in the last pic). Since these pics were taken, I've replaced the trunk lid, replaced the bumper impact strips, and reattached the bumper to the body, so it doesn't stick out like that anymore.

I'm trying to budget for the bodywork that will eventually get done and wanted your opinion on whether this panel can be saved or if it should be replaced. Any ideas on the labor time it would take to pull this out? Thanks!!

(sorry for so many pics - wanted to be sure you guys could see from the right angle)

[einstein57]

Your car is pretty plane jane. It will be a shit ton cheaper to buy another car in better condition then it will be to properly fix that fender bender and paint the car. Part out.

[Aleman]

Your car is pretty plane jane....Part out.

By California standards probably. For the NE, this is actually an exceptionally rust-free example. She's got good bones.

[einstein57]

Shipping is not that expensive. Buy a clean rust free car and have it shipped over. Still cheaper then just a paint job.

[///digitalme]

to answer your question, yes its repairable does not look bad at all..needs to be pulled, around here shops charge 150-250 to pull the rear without body work...

[BROKINBIMMER]

100% repairable. However, as others have stated, it may be more cost effective to part ways with the car. The cost of putting a new 1/4 panel on would easily exceed the value of the car.

Let me know if you need a ballpark figure to have it repaired at a reputable shop in Philly.

[SlamedIAm]

Parting out over that seems incredibly wasteful. I can't provide you with an estimate but it seems completely fixable.

[bimmer2288]

I would suggest going to a several local shops and get estimates from them. Nothing we say here will influence the opinion or cost estimate of the guys you'd actually have to work with out there.

[vert_this]

if you have to ask its gonna be expensive to fix, with the assumption you don't do bodywork.

The car was rearended and the quarter is buckled. You would have to have it pulled back out which requires a framrack (I know other means too), then it would have to be cleaned up and all other dents beat back into the proper position.

I know one of my 325's was rearended years back and it was like $2700 and I'm sure its no cheaper now, again assuming you don't do bodywork. It was the other persons fault in my case so they paid.

[BROKINBIMMER]

Professionally repairing that quarter would easily exceed $2k

[einstein57]

I bought a car that had receipts for a repair for a similar accident. Apparently a proper repair was $5,700 back in 95.

[Aleman]

Going back to the original question, most people agree that to do the job right, I should have the panel replaced, instead of pulled out.

As far as cost, I'll just have to shop around for some estimates. I really don't see how welding on a new quarter panel would cost in excess of $2k by itself, but then I have never worked in a body shop either. Maybe some of the higher guesses included the finishing work, such as re-painting the entire car.... In that case, I'd say $3500 is pretty reasonable if I do the paint prep work myself. Like I said, though - gotta shop around a bit. Thanks all for the input!

[Redfox]

Mine was smashed in by a deer and I had it pulled for $100. Shop around and see what kind of quotes you can find. You never know I was hit. Not worth parting the car out imo.

[mr.vang]

Track beater and but another nice one.

[BROKINBIMMER]

Going back to the original question, most people agree that to do the job right, I should have the panel replaced, instead of pulled out.

As far as cost, I'll just have to shop around for some estimates. I really don't see how welding on a new quarter panel would cost in excess of $2k by itself, but then I have never worked in a body shop either. Maybe some of the higher guesses included the finishing work, such as re-painting the entire car.... In that case, I'd say $3500 is pretty reasonable if I do the paint prep work myself. Like I said, though - gotta shop around a bit. Thanks all for the input!

The book time for replacing the quarter on an e30 is 18 hours which equates to roughly $900, not including the cost of the quarter. Obviously, this does not include painting the quarter, or blending the adjacent panels. That's why I said $2000 would be a ballpark figure...