My Car Broke and needs fixing - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

steeleygreg · #1 09-02-2012, 04:09 AM

My 240D was rear ended the other day on the drivers side by a hit-and-run and I need to get this fixed. The drivers side bumper was pushed in and the trunk lid did not close. The trunk was pushed down as compare to the passenger side.

steeleygreg · #2 09-02-2012, 04:23 AM

I asked the body shop to stretch and re-align the trunk so that it would close correctly. Looking up what parts may be involved, I suspected that the bumper shock needed to be replaced. Upon picking up the car, the body shop owner stated that the frame rail was extremely rusted and had been bent. I asked him about the bumper shock and he stated that it was fine. My original assessment was to remove the dents above the trim rail with a hammer & dolly. What you cannot see is that the trunk floor pan aft of the wheel arch which is welded to the fender is rusted and ripped also and beyond repair.
The plan was two fold. First was to remove the dent above the trim with a hammer & dolly. The other was to cut out the dented portion below the trim and replace with metal from a replacement panel.
My question is that although the dent can be made to look new, what other issues could it have caused to the unibody ?

Stretch · #3 09-02-2012, 05:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steeleygreg

...
My question is that although the dent can be made to look new, what other issues could it have caused to the unibody ?

The impact that caused the dent and the process of straightening the body will have caused work hardening within the body panel. You might find that certain parts of the panel are harder to encourage back into their original shape.

My concern would be the edges of the panels though, where they are joined together. If you imagine a rivet in failure mode being pulled through metal sheet the same could have happened for the spot welds. Take a good look at the panel seams. If you are unsure about the integrity of a joint remove the seam sealer to check properly.

If you see any seam sealer that looks like it could do with being refreshed - now is a good time to do it. The long term integrity of the structure is very much dependent on the protection of the seams. If rust sets in between the seams (especially in your climate and mine) you can kiss good bye to the car. Think water management!

steeleygreg · #4 09-02-2012, 03:52 PM

Took a trip to my favorite tool store, Harbor Freight and picked up a slide-hammer for removing dents. Problem was once I started it started raining.
Well, due to the entire east coast is blanketed with rain from isaac and the fact that it started raining while removing the antenna motor, I wasn't going to start with the sunroof motor for from reading you have to remove the headliner and disconnect the cable. Didn't want the get rain in the car. Well, there is always tomorrow...

steeleygreg · #5 09-03-2012, 08:08 PM

Had some success

First I tried the slide-hammer. It didn't work as expected. I guess the metal was a little thick, or as Army suggested hardening within the body panel. So I had to work on another plan. I did and it worked. Using some long strips of hardwood and aluminum plate I had in the garage I setup a system to pull the dent out. Not sure if this was the best method, but it worked.

Stretch · #6 09-04-2012, 02:30 AM

So dolly and hammer next then?

steeleygreg · #7 09-04-2012, 06:17 AM

Correct. To get proper access to the top of the fender, I need to remove the sunroof motor. To do so requires releasing the sunroof cable. That project will get done this week.

Stretch · #8 09-04-2012, 07:43 AM

I'm sure steeleygreg's seen this already but just in case others haven't

PeachPartsWiki: Sunroof Repair

PeachPartsWiki: Sunroof Conversion - Power to Manual