What's the best way to fix this?

[racer2086]

So my transition to Tampa this first month has been rough to say the least. The place we moved to wasn't ready, my 32 year old original windshield in my Mustang got smashed driving from CT to FL, and now this: tree branch falls on the E38. Dents and scratches galore.

The dents are pretty deep. The worst is the dent on the rail above the passenger rear window (really bad location to fix).

Looks like I'm going to have to go through my comprehensive.

How would you fix it?

One shop said just body filler and paint, although I would like them to push the dents out as much as possible. He seemed to think it wasn't possible because of the bracing in the roof? Also that the rail above the window is hardened steel? That quote was very reasonable though.

The other shop would push the dents out and use filler, but the quote was $2600

Anyone have pictures of the roof without headliner? Is there bracing in there or is all that easily accessible. May have to drop the sunroof cassette? Man what a bummer

[Dewart]

So my transition to Tampa this first month has been rough to say the least. The place we moved to wasn't ready, my 32 year old original windshield in my Mustang got smashed driving from CT to FL, and now this: tree branch falls on the E38. Dents and scratches galore.

The dents are pretty deep. The worst is the dent on the rail above the passenger rear window (really bad location to fix).

Looks like I'm going to have to go through my comprehensive.

How would you fix it?

One shop said just body filler and paint, although I would like them to push the dents out as much as possible. He seemed to think it wasn't possible because of the bracing in the roof? Also that the rail above the window is hardened steel? That quote was very reasonable though.

The other shop would push the dents out and use filler, but the quote was $2600

Anyone have pictures of the roof without headliner? Is there bracing in there or is all that easily accessible. May have to drop the sunroof cassette? Man what a bummer

Anything can be fixed,you just have to find the right person. Real f'd up though.

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[racer2086]

I'm so pissed off. And the branch didn't even seem that big. I also don't want my car totalled by insurance...

[clarkitect]

That BLOWS man. What a bummer.

I think fixing with filler wouldn't be a very good fix. Maybe get the dents removed PDR style and repaint. I assume the dents have scratches that definitely require paint?

Could also use something like a welded stud dent puller if there's too much bracing to get at it from under the headliner.

Really stinks for sure.

[asianvenom]

That blows dude...

[motion]

Bad luck. Hope the repairs come out to your satisfaction. That tree would be history.

[racer2086]

That BLOWS man. What a bummer.

I think fixing with filler wouldn't be a very good fix. Maybe get the dents removed PDR style and repaint. I assume the dents have scratches that definitely require paint?

Could also use something like a welded stud dent puller if there's too much bracing to get at it from under the headliner.

Really stinks for sure.

The scratches are weird. They don't seem deep, but I can't really get them out with my fingers. The problem is trusting whether someone actually pulls the dents when they say they are going to. Unless I get the PDR done ahead of the repair, but then I probably have to pay for that myself.

Bad luck. Hope the repairs come out to your satisfaction. That tree would be history.

Yeah, it would be, but I'm renting And apparently the county cares a whole lot about these oak trees.



Anyone have pictures of the inside of the roof without the headliner in there?

[NordmanMg]

All dents have to be pulled out before any bindi can be applied, if shop wants to do bondo right onto the dents, then it is very bad thing to do because bondo can shrink over the time and all dents will appear at some point

[XAlt]

Jamming bondo on top of a huge dent sounds like a recipe for failure.

[Mayorchuck]

I have some pics somewhere of the sunroof drain area but the ones in this link probably shows all I would have. The sunroof cassette takes up a good portion of what you will need to get to.

http://www.bimmerboard.com/forums/posts/479490

[e30luv318i]

Pull the headliner and pay a paint less dent guy to do the work. I had a small acorn dent on my roof and the guy got the dent right out. Ran about $100 for the work headliner isn't hard to pull. I'd do that and then get the paint work done

[Cosmic E38]

It's going to have to be stripped, and the dents will be pulled out with a dent puller/stud gun. No PDR guy in the universe will be able to make the roof 100% again. The metal will probably need to be shrunk too from stretching caused be the dents. The reason it will need to be shrunk is because once the dents are pulled out the roof will want to "oil can". This means that the metal will flex up and down easily. Once it is shrunken the metal will be tight again with no springy-ness to it. There will be a skim coat of bondo in places but it will be a proper repair, not just "cave and pave" with mud. This is probably an 6-8 hour job. Metal working is becoming a lost art. If you were closer I would tackle it. I worked as a body man for years. If you want to message me I can give you specifics on how to repair it yourself and have it ready for paint.

[racer2086]

I have some pics somewhere of the sunroof drain area but the ones in this link probably shows all I would have. The sunroof cassette takes up a good portion of what you will need to get to.

http://www.bimmerboard.com/forums/posts/479490

Thanks Mayor. It doesn't look like there is too much by way of bracing for the majority of the skin in the back there, but maybe that picture is deceiving. It definitely looks like the rail along the roof above the windows is not accessible, however, so that will have to be pulled out from the outside or filled it seems.

Pull the headliner and pay a paint less dent guy to do the work. I had a small acorn dent on my roof and the guy got the dent right out. Ran about $100 for the work headliner isn't hard to pull. I'd do that and then get the paint work done

I thought about this, since it is the only sure way I could know that the dents were actually removed before the filler/paintwork. But that may actually require I drop the sunroof cassette, also, which is a whole extra layer of work...

It's going to have to be stripped, and the dents will be pulled out with a dent puller/stud gun. No PDR guy in the universe will be able to make the roof 100% again. The metal will probably need to be shrunk too from stretching caused be the dents. The reason it will need to be shrunk is because once the dents are pulled out the roof will want to "oil can". This means that the metal will flex up and down easily. Once it is shrunken the metal will be tight again with no springy-ness to it. There will be a skim coat of bondo in places but it will be a proper repair, not just "cave and pave" with mud. This is probably an 6-8 hour job. Metal working is becoming a lost art. If you were closer I would tackle it. I worked as a body man for years. If you want to message me I can give you specifics on how to repair it yourself and have it ready for paint.

Now this sounds like the real way to fix it. I wish I could find someone to do it this way.

[Doedie]

I had a paintless dent repair on a dent that was almost as bad as that one. It was in the door though, but it came out looking great.

[htrdbmr]

I feel your pain. I had 25 yrs worth of dents and dings repaired and repainted on mine at (don't laugh at me) MAACO on Anderson Rd here in Tampa. They did good work, and after 3 yrs. now it all still looks good.

[E90crazy]

Make shure dents are repaired with fiberglass not bondo it will be fine

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[Cosmic E38]

The dents should be pulled out to the point where a thin skim coat of bondo is used, like 1/32 of an inch or less. If you need fiberglass reinforced bondo to fill the dents than you didn't work the dent out enough to begin with. Fact. Strip the dents down to bare metal and pull them out. Once the dents are out use the stud gun without a stud in it to heat the area and instantly put a wet rag on it to shrink the metal. You'd be surprised to see the metal shrink back to its original shape.You can buy a stud gun from Harbor Freight, works great!

[racer2086]

Thanks, Cosmic. I did get your PM, I've just been busy and didn't want to bother you too late.

I've got 2 more places I'm going to check out and then have the Geico adjuster look at it. I will know more Friday.

If there's anyone on here within 2-4 hours of the Tampa area that runs a body shop, let me know.

[Harambe]

Looks like the trees gotta go.

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[racer2086]

So I have 4 quotes. All ranging. The highest would total the car, the lowest is unacceptable to me to not pull the dents. Despite the condition I keep the car in (which I think is excellent), the thing is worth less than $3k with the mileage. Yeah, the paint has 17 years of dings, and the seats could use a good cleaning but the rest of the car is perfect, down to the chain guides I did a year and a half ago. So sad these things are worth nothing, which means anything that happens to them is game over.

I think I'm going to go with the middle quote, which pulls the dents, thin coat of filler, and paint. The problem that the adjuster pointed out is that not fixing the chips and scratches on the quarter will show a lot when it is re-cleared. That got me wondering if the whole car is going to look weird having the roof and quarters looking new, and the doors and trunk old.

[clarkitect]

Perhaps you can negotiate a deal to get the whole thing painted? At least have them buff out the original paint. I'll bet it won't look weird too long anyway.

[shanecarmaster1]

+1 on that. I'd just get the original paint compounded and polished myself on the side, so that it matches the new work.

[Cosmic E38]

Go get a stud welder and angled die grinder from harbor freight. Pull the dents out and spread filler yourself. That way you can be as fussy as you want. Most shops will want to rush through it.

[racer2086]

I'd love to, but I just don't have the time to do such a thing, since I'm working my first job out of school. Plus, it is regularly 95 degrees in the garage here. I haven't fully ruled that out, though.

I will call the shop tomorrow and see what the options are. I'd like to see what they'd charge for a respray. I'm sure I could get them to buff it at a minimum.

[racer2086]

So respray is way too expensive. I'm just having the work done on the roof. The shop didn't even feel comfortable buffing the paint since it is old and does have wear.

They are going to fix the imperfections and stuff on my quarters when they do the roof, so that everything can get painted and the clear will be even. I think it'll probably look fine. Either way, the paint elsewhere is far from perfect, so whatever.

I dropped the headliner and dropped the car off yesterday. You could see the dents from the inside. Should be ready Thursday.