ZZ3Astro

So I just fired the paint and body shop that had my Iroc. I brought it on monday afternoon and 48 hrs later I went to see it. They had it all apart and bondo patches everywhere. Of concern to me during this visit was that the left rear quarter had a lot of bondo where a body line was flattened in sideswiping hit and run last year. Above and below it, there was a high spot because the metal had to go somewhere. Using my amateur paintless dent removal skills, I reduced about 50-60% of what you see in this pic. Still a very evident high spot above and below, and of course no way to restore the sharp body line without a puller and some filler afterwards. I present to you the original damage:



I see this and I know the high spots MUST be knocked down. I would also prefer to use a spot weld dent puller along the sharp body line. Obviously it would be impossible to get it 100% without some filler. But I would certainly NOT just slather a bunch of bondo in and sand it to shape.

Would you?


They did:


You can see how they built it up with several layers leaving a high area along the planned body line. Is this the kind of body work I should expect on a $3700 paint job? That doesn't include any stickers, seals, emblems etc. Just body work and paint.

Thanks for any input. My car is now in pieces, including no windshield and I've got to get it out of their shop ASAP and find another or bring it home.

BTW it wasn't only this issue.. They kept changing their story on the type of paints they use and were telling me how bad those spot weld dent pullers were.. that there was foam inside my quarter panels that could catch on fire, that the heat ruins the backside finish of the panels, etc.

//<86TA>\\

iTrader: (14)

sound like a bunch of hacks, there is no foam, and yes the spot welds burns the primer on the inside of the panel, but its not a really big deal.

you are better off elsewhere.

Time2Fly

If all they did was fill with plastic I would get it ALL out of there and start over. Plastic that thick will crack within a few years.

ZZ3Astro

UnREAL!! I got the car back today. The hack tried to do some metal work. It looks like he used a crow-bar and hammer to push the dent out from behind. Now the quarter is ruined and cannot simply be pulled out. It will never be 'right' and will take a lot of filler to get it right. Ideally I would replace that section and butt weld a new one in. At this point I will just have to do my best with it and then bondo over it.

This is a pic of the inside of the quarter. You can see 50+ impact marks. He missed the body line by 2+ inches on some of the smacks.



I wish a picture could show all the high spots on the outside of this panel now!



Unless this is something different than they used in the rear quarter (same color and texture), then that is body filler ('bondo') over paint. A big no-no.

ZZ3Astro

Also they nearly completely re-assembled the car, including the door handles & door mirrors! Only thing left off was the nose, headlights and front ground effects.

Oh, and all this even though the windshield had been removed. Like I was gonna drive it without a windshield!? They even reinstalled the interior panels. Then they charged me $370 for the trouble.

juanillox8

iTrader: (7)

not really, they could of used metal glaze mixed with plastic filler, and what gives it the color is the hardener cream, and yes just plastic filler wont stick to paint but when mixed with metal glaze or glaze alone its safe over paint.

juanillox8

iTrader: (7)

may i asked how much they charged you for the complete job?

Edit: i just read again, my bad.

on the picture of the QT panel inside looks like a weld, is that what it is?

3rdgenfever

Like said before, get all that filler out. the quarter panel isn't ruined its still there isn't it. I am not defending their work by any means but metal work doesn't always leave the inside looking the best when done. use the stud gun and pull it out and then fill and paint. I know your pissed and i would be too if that was my car, (good thing i am a body guy). Also i would get most of my money back or at least try, and don't give them a second chance.

ZZ3Astro

Well it is ruined afterall..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VA9taE334rU

juanillox8

iTrader: (7)

just watched it and like 3rdgenfever said, is not ruined, just will need some metal working skill which means shrinking and pick hammers dolly spoon and a 2x4 piece of wood and maybe a stud gun

trust me is not bad a t all

ZZ3Astro

Well I'm glad to hear that.. I'm sure a big collision does a lot worse than this. I'm going to order a stud gun and figure this out on my own. Don't trust anyone around here any more.

juanillox8

iTrader: (7)

YUUUUUP good think i work at a shop and i know the people that works on the other body shops in the area so i know where to refer people to and where not to.

i

Bullydawg

iTrader: (7)

I am sure it can be fixed, but looking at the original damage (which would have been WAY easier to fix) I would be VERY angry. I would talk to a lawyer. They made it 10X worse.

ZZ3Astro

Taking matters into my own hands.. just ordered a DF-505ii dent puller. It's a weld - pull - twist unit. Since no one else can do it around here I figure I might as well make a niche market for myself

Works like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JY8K...eature=related

juanillox8

iTrader: (7)

are planning on getting into the trade or what? IMO i think you went over the board with that thing for a small dent, but if your planning on becoming a body man thats great, but you are running before crawling lol

ZZ3Astro

I've got two cars to do of my own at the moment (Iroc and wife's 86 monte carlo ss) as well as a friend wanting help with his. If I get tired of this thing I can get back a lot of my money on it. Even if I keep it, I'll come out cheaper than I was going to pay to have the Iroc painted.. not to mention the other things I had to buy to do the Monte anyway.

I like to hit the road running!

juanillox8

iTrader: (7)

Right on!!! . dnt forget to post pics of the progress.

3rdgenfever

wow nice!!!! i would have started with a stud gun and hammer/dolly...... but that certainly works too. also like someone stated it would have been a hell of a lot easier to do had they not touched it. we have one of those units as well, its an older one but works great. it can be used to stretch and shrink if used carefully. good luck man and try to discourage people from going there.

ZZ3Astro

Yep it has a shrinking tip with it. I almost went with a stud gun but after longboarding the area I found about a million low spots. I need to be able to pull all over the place. I'm still not sure how I'm going to work with that crazy line he beat in there. One thing is for sure, I'll get a crash coarse in pulling.

Tonight we tore down the door hardware, no more mirrors, handles, wipers or key cylinders. Also got the rear bumper and tail lights off. Tomorrow ground effects and search for a good deal on a bigger compressor, then I start with the DA to get rid of the 2nd paint layer from the previous repaint the car had.

3rdgenfever

sounds like your off to a good start, lets see some pics after your done.

ZZ3Astro

Lots of work so far. Not fun sanding with the DA though.. spent a lot of the day on panels and didn't get as far as I'd hoped.


Also found some bondo work on the middle and rear part of the front fender. Note bondo under where the door strike moulding was ground off. Might consider replacing this fender.


In addition to the beating the car took at the body shop, I found old damage on forward part of the quarter panel. It has about 20 holes from the old school drill style puller and a pretty thick layer of bondo. I ground that off and will try to bring that metal out a bit too.


Got a start on the right side.. note test patch on door showing previous repaint


Pile 'O parts

3rdgenfever

nice work, paint feathered pretty good it looks like. have you had a chance to use the machine yet? what color are you going with? back to black, now would be the time to change if you wanted a different color.

ZZ3Astro

Thanks. Car will be going back with the original color and appearance. I only wish I could find a set of mint original fabric seats and my mission would be complete! I just want a showroom stock looking and sounding car. One that happens to run quite well

So far the machine hasn't shipped and they haven't charged my credit card. I figured I'd have it by Weds at the latest. If I dont hear from them today I'm going to stop payment and order from somewhere else. It is possible they were closed yesterday I suppose.

I'm going to retire this thread and post updates in the progress pics thread:

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/body...roc-black.html