Collision Repair: Easy or not?

atr911 · 07-03-2001, 05:48 PM

Okay, here is the deal, my car is dammaged in the front passenger side.

it isn't too horribly smucked up but still pretty good.

Anyhow, I'm thinking about tackling this myself, can't be any harder than a complete engine rebuild, right? Is this a good idea or will I need WAY too many expensive tools to do this right? I'm replacing the front latch pannel, suspension pan and gas tank support. There is a support bar that looks like a 'C' that runs parallel to the ground just above the suspension pan that looks pretty heavy duty and is banged up.

Sorry about the vague explination, hopefully you'll figure it out.

Thanks for the patience and help,

Adam Roseneck

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1978 911SC 3.0
roseneck@cyberbeach.net

CEO · 07-03-2001, 05:59 PM

Hey, if you want to send me some pics I will let you know how hard it will be. I helped the body shop do the work on my 911. About 10,000 bucks worth of damage. I was there every day. I know I bunch about body work.
SO if you are interested let me know.
Ken

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Kenneth
Silver 81' Targa

Roland Kunz · 07-04-2001, 04:43 PM

Hello

Just a moment wasn´t your front pan rustet away ?

A engine rebuild is similar easy as a front end rebuild as long you have practice. Its hard to start from scratch.

Grüsse

Doug Zielke · 07-04-2001, 05:51 PM

A few years ago, I restored my Alfa Romeo (boat-tail) Spider. It was not accident damaged, but was extremely rusty. Almost all the metal had to be repaired/replaced. I could not have done a project of this scale without skilled help. The help came in the form of another Alfa owner who was also a body repairman. Rebuilding the Alfa's engine was much easier by comparison.

I hope the skills (and tools) I collected to do the Alfa will come in handy when I find the 356 I'm presently looking for.

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'81 SC Coupe (aka: "Blue Bomber")
Canada West Region PCA
The Blue Bomber's Website

TargaEuro · 07-04-2001, 08:40 PM

Sounds like structural pieces Adam. If so the car should be secured on a frame rack before any cutting of damaged sheet metal is done. Porsches are complex cars as we all know and are built to strict tolerances. Removal and replacement of structural pieces is not difficult to do its making sure you dont mess up the frame geometry is a major concern. If you know of a good bodyshop that you trust maybe you can get their opinion before you tackle something like this. Maybe others on the board can help too! I do paint and light bodywork and leave the heavy work to the pro frame specialist. You did e-mail me awhile back about some paint advise if I remember correcly but I never heard back from you. I hope this helps a little....TargaEuro

Panic Attack · 07-04-2001, 10:22 PM

Adam, it's not a big deal if you know what you are doing. Like TargaEuro says, Porsche's don't have much tolerance for a bit of cheat here, a smidgen of fudge there. Before repairs can begin, you must get it on the frame rack and pull the smashed part back as best you can. From this point, you need to check the factory frame specs (tolerance should be made within 1mm), measure all the angles; most frame machines anymore use lasers for an exact fit. So, do you have a plasma torch, welder, compressor, frame rack, lasers, chains, clamps or experience? If your answer to any of these questions is no, then I would leave this to the pros. If you choose not too, you will be frustrated to no end before you are finished, and if you wish to sell the present car in the future after you have completed repairs yourself, most buyers know what to look for, and you wont get away with anything; you have to do it right.

I don't mean to sound so meladramatic Adam, but if this car means anything to you, have it done right.

Roland Kunz · 07-05-2001, 11:23 AM

Hello

It all depends on the accident. Some will need a full rig some will require the P886 front end rig. Some can be done by messuring. The thing is you must have knowledge how to handle it and decide your way. If the front pan is bend then a full rig is on the way. If it just has a wrinkle the small solution will do it.

Best would be to go to an prof and help them on the "boring" things ( drilling out the spots stripping parts derust preparing the new parts ). However if you have more then one left hand you will not be helpfull slowing down the complete process or force more work due to misshappenings and better stay at home instead killing expert time. Or give some money to tech and explain you the things.

Grüsse