Front End Collision Repair

[kev]

I had a thread going on this but it is in the 'Items Wanted' forum.   Pulling it over here.     

My son had a mishap with my driver CQ, so I'm in the process of repairing it.  

 

Copying over what was in the other thread:

 

The start:

 

Pulling the cosmetic stuff off:

Still unable to pull it into the garage bay due to a lingering other project...thanks to a parts supplier who can't seem to know how to count to eight.   Thus, that bay is tied up for another week until this last bolt lingers its way through snail mail.  Not really applicable to here, but if anyone owns a European car, avoid ECS Tuning.  I've utilized them three times now for parts on my kid's audi and mini and all I can say to summarize the experiences is; 'incompetent'.   

But anyways, I wasn't letting my Saturday go to waste.  So, I started assessing this damage in the driveway and got the cosmetic parts carefully pulled off but retaining the functionality of the engine operation...for I don't want to have to push this thing into the garage next week.   In all, the frame is indeed bent but it could be worse.  The damage is very localized.  As far as underhood parts, it did kink my oil cooler lines and my airbox is a bit bent up.   Radiator definitely has a twist to it being bolted to the core support plus noted very small leaks on both the inlet and outlet areas.    But that is about it besides everything that has to do with that headlight is smashed hard.    

I have some leads from members here on many of the cosmetic parts...thank you!    Next step is to get this in the garage and pull the radiator and everything in that corner such that I can start to assess the best way to bend this frame back and start to repair the core support area.    Again, if anyone knows of one of these things laying in a junkyard in PA or MD, or happen to have an old parts car in their back yard that they wouldn't mind taking a sawzall to a bit, please let me know.    As of now, I'm going to try to straighten as much as I can.   I've been very successful in things like this in the past.  

Also, haven't had a chance yet to assess my own parts stash.  My garage is a mess.  If anyone ever pulled a clutch out of a Mini Cooper, you know how much has to get removed in the process!  I got parts laying everywhere between that car and the front end stuff pulled from this car.   

 

 

 

 

 

Starting to assess/rebend the frame rail:

 

I'm plugging away on the repair...well actually only worked on it one day but it is coming along.  

Some pictures of it cleaned up and everything out of the way...yes, I even pulled the engine. 

The good part is that it is very localized.  The rail bent where it should have and didn't seem to deform anything back from the kink.   

 

With some fabricated steel to use as a prybar and some heat on the kinked area, I was able to get it much closer after only a few minutes of prying.   

 

 

 

 

In all, I have a bit to go both vertically and horizontally but I'm getting close.   I believe I'm fighting the crinkled core support and surrounding sheet metal when it comes to vertical.  Thus, I'm going to work on pulling those areas out a bit before going back to levering in rail downwards some more.   

As far as horizontal, I'm struggling to get the leverage without pulling the car off the jackstands.  I'll have to put it down on its wheels to work it some more but, at the moment, I have the car very level so I want to do as much as I can before taking it off the stands.   

I did mess with it about an hour more after these photos were taken and got that kink mostly pulled out.  But after working for 8 hours straight (including pulling the engine, etc.), I figured it was time to give it a rest.  Leaving the garage a pig-sty due to exhaustion and forgot to take more photos.    I probably will have to make some cuts with the whizz-wheel to do the final tweaks in the end but I'm trying to get it as close as possible by lever bars and pulling.  

 

Also, meeting up with a member tomorrow to hopefully acquire the rest of the bolt on parts needed. 

[kev]

Latest update.   I hit it pretty hard this weekend.   

Started with pulling out the core support to release some pressure on the rail.   Made up a quick bracket to attach to my slide hammer...which worked incredible!

 

Pictures stopped for a while as I worked like a dog.  Put the back of the car back on its wheels so I could put some leverage on the rail without pulling the car off the stands.  This allowed me to bend the rail back in the horizontal direction.   Vertical was still an issue, so I carefully removed the sheet metal that holds the header panel that is welded to the rail..plus removed the outer most one in the process.  This allowed me to pull the rail back down in position.   

Here are some photos of the body panels mocked up with the frame rail closer in position ( I still had to pull it down a little more after this mockup), core support straight, but with those two sheet metal panels removed:

This corner is still a bit ugly at this point but the core support is straight.  

 

 

 

So next step was to add back in those two sheet metal pieces.  Again, I'm missing many photos but I spent some time with the hammer/dolly/etc. to reshape them.  Also bead blasted them.    Re-mocking them up:

 

I have since tacked everything up.

It's getting there but I still am working on the gaps a bit.   The gap between the fender and the hood on the passenger side is still too wide for my liking, which I believe is actually due to the replacement fender.   The gap between the header panel to the hood is still a little off, which I believe is being caused by the outermost sheet metal panel (the one that was the most mangled from the hit). 

And the bumper still needs a little tweaking.   It almost looks like it is a bit off center..like the drivers side bent a little from the hit (although I see no kinks or anything).  I'll put the laser level on it next time and assess.   

 

 

 

 

[kev]

I'm still on the hunt for a passenger side marker light.  I can't believe I don't have a spare of my own.  I found three drivers side ones!  

I do want to try to find new oil cooler lines, for the hit kinked them a little bit.  Worst case is that I make up my own braided lines.   And the air can is a bit deformed, which I probably will be able to straighten but is very low priority at this point.    

Once I get the gaps finalized and everything welded solid, I'm going to attempt to restraighten the original steel bumper support.  It is basically rust free and I really would like to see if it is salvageable (but it is bent pretty bad).  As seen in the photos, my spare is a bit of a rust bucket.  

 

 

Also, can you believe that is the original hood that I haven't even touched!   By carefully pulling the mangled body panels off, it sprung back.  The passenger side corner is sitting a little high, but I believe I can correct it.  I'm hoping to retain this thing.   I have an available spare (would need to take 3 hour drive to pick it up tho) but it isn't black.  With the cost of paint nowadays, I prefer not to paint the underside.   I eventually want to put my spare 83 hood on this car, but not until after my kids are out of the house and no longer driving this thing.   So rather put the effort into that one in the future.  

 

[psu_Crash]

Impressive work Kev!

I played hell trying to get mine straight and get the passenger headlight to open/close smoothly and line up close. I can't believe you were able to pull that rail and get it so close without cutting and welding it up. Factory fenders were not made equal. Putting new to me fenders on mine did not line up well at all compared to the beat up stock fenders, which I later found out had been cut and rewelded to fit the terrible frame repair done way before me. I got rid of the hard lines for the oil cooler years ago and went with -an fittings. No regrets. 

[kev]

Thanks!  By drilling out the spot welds and removing that piece of sheet metal shown in the photo above, the one that is bare steel, it allowed me to bend the rail easily.   Also enabled me to reshape that piece of sheet metal on the anvil with a hammer/dolly.    I did fabricate a brace for my homemade lever bar such that when I pried, it transferred the load right back on the area that was kinked.  I forgot to snap a photo of this.   

A member is hooking me up with the marker light, just need to find the time to drive out to his place and pick it up!    But hoping to work a bit more tomorrow on the gaps.  Maybe get far enough to start working on the original bumper support.   I'm getting anxious to do a full front-end mockup with all the parts to verify fit up before moving into paint prep.   

My original goal was to do this so well that you'd never know it was hit.  But being that I didn't have replacement steel for the core support, etc., I'm not sure that will be fully possible.  But I'll get it such that it passes the sniff test...as in, with the hood open, I want it good enough that you would really have to look in detail to see evidence of the impact.   Wish me luck, haha

[kev]

Weekly update:   Spent a few hours on Saturday fine tuning my gaps.   I really didn't have to do much with the 'structure' here, I just spent some time adjusting everything.  

Pulled the bumper off so I could work the fender, headlight, header panel, and hood.    Found that the plastic inner fender was messing with me a bit on the fender, so go it out of the way.  That allowed me to adjust it into position and get a good fender to hood gap.   I will admit that I did open up one of the mounting holes on the header panel to get the header to hood gap more consistent...it is still slightly off.  I could cut a few spot welds and try to pull out the sheet metal but I'm worried about further effects of doing this.   So, I opened up the one hole slightly to get it within a 1/16"

For the hood, a little grabbing and twisting by hand plus a small rubber tap hammer on the one corner did the trick...It's sitting real nice now!  

And yes, I was able to acquire a black headlight cover for the passenger-side.  Actually, got it from the same member whom I got the headlight assembly from.

I know I said it before, but these bare steel sheet metal pieces are the original mangled ones which I was able to reshape!

 

Then it was back to the bumper.   The yellow tape shown, and the yellow tape on the header panel was the measured center.   Last week, I thought the bumper was off center.  Turns out the old remnants of the mitsubishi symbol on the header was not on center..creating an optical illusion that things were off.   Measuring where they should be and verifying with the laser level gave me confidence in this.

Although my bumper mounting holes aligned perfectly, the passenger side gap to the fender was tight, where-as the drivers side was pretty wide.   Most likely because the rail is still slightly pushed in.   I quickly made the conclusion that I'm probably not going to be able to pull that out without ruining other things, I simply opened up the outboard holes of the bumper support by 1/16" diameter.   This allowed me to adjust it in really well.      

Again, confirming level and with my laser level.

Green line is my laser level...wicked close for a plastic bumper cover

 

 

So, next up was a full front-end mockup.   Still haven't picked up the passenger side marker light, but mounted everything I had, including the hood latch assembly.  I will say that I had to add a 1/16" shim to the hood latch.  It was latching a little high at first.  Could probably bend down the bracket slightly to address this, but the shim did the trick.

Again, laser level confirming everything.  

This gap is so much better:

Same with this one.  If anything, the passenger side is slightly larger now..which can be addressed on final assembly.   forgive the broken marker light that is just lying there, angled.   

But holding the broken marker light in place, I don't see any issues.   Of course, will double check it once I get the replacement light.  The replacement fender is missing the plastic insert to screw the marker light to...I'll pull that from the damaged fender.  

Gaps...not perfect but pretty good given the situation.  I still will do some adjustments later on during final assembly.

I never even touched this headlight..I might eventually push it back just about a 1/16"

 

Haven't done anything to this spoiler besides bolt it up.  The collision tore a few of the mounting tabs but it isn't affecting anything.   Unfortunately, one crack on the passenger side.  

 

I know I said last week that I was going to try to restraighten the original bumper support.  After looking at it further, I think that effort will be futile...it's too bent up.  I may have to cut my losses on that piece and focus on patching up my spare.  

 

 

 

Next steps:  Going to try to get the marker light some time this week and verify it fits well.  From there, everything gets pulled back off.  Have a couple welds to do on the more outboard piece of sheet metal and up at the core support.   Have to grind down all my plug welds and then it is making everything in the engine compartment look visually better.  Again, I backed off on my original goal..I'm not going to get all of this perfect but I want to make it such that the accident isn't noticeable when you pop the hood unless you really start looking close.     

I do need to test fit the headlight motor assembly..for I used one of the mounting holes as a spot to slide hammer the steel back into position.   Plus have to see if I can bend back my air-can and verify alignment.   

As to paint preps of the body...I originally wanted to spray the entire front clip and passenger door (kind of continuing my respray efforts that I started last year).   The passenger door, drivers fender, and hood have many door dings but are original paint.     But now that I see everything, I believe I may just paint the off-color parts and get it back to the condition it was.   The replacement fender, header panel, and bumper cover have no issues at all..meaning it should just be a good sanding, prime, and spray without hardly any filler.   

Well, I'll probably fix that crack in the spoiler and respray it along with the bumper.  But all the other black parts will probably stay as-is.   The grill has two little imperfections (can see them in the close up above), probably from how it was stored for years.  Really easy fix but will require a respray...I hate painting these grills and probably will just let it be for this effort.    

 

 

 

[kev]

Some more updates.  

Spent a few hours working on the final welding/grinding in the engine compartment.   I must have test fit the outer body panels 50 times by now...maybe more!   I did run into an interference when I put the black plastic on around the headlight.  It was hitting the outermost sheet metal slightly, just enough to rub it a little.   Not the biggest deal but being that I only had it tacked in position, I made sure to address it.   I popped the tacks and spent some more time reshaping that panel.   Plus, with that out of the way, I was able to grind down my welds on the other panel easier.  Also, the bolt on the core support for the headlight motor wasn't lining up the best.  A couple minutes of work with the slide-hammer resolved that.     One thing I'm learning well....test fit, test fit, test fit!   Test fit everything, even the smallest part when it comes to a repair like this.  Don't want to find issues when everything is all painted and looking good.  This is the time to address all of these things, when it still looks ugly haha.

This is the ugliest visual of the repair but given the state it was in, I am very impressed I got it bent back and everything lines up.  

Although, this is the most noticeable spot of the repair (easily seen when you pop the hood).  I got the rubber bump stop functional again (not exactly like it was stock but it works).   I need to make this look a bit better.  I did some welding to build it up and grind it smooth(er)

 

I applied a little Duraglass on a few of the areas to help mask the repair some more.  And spraying a coat of quick primer on everything.   Still have some work to do to make everything look good before paint, but it is really close now.   

I also reshaped my air can.  The one tab on the body was bent too which required some manipulation but I was able to reshape it without drilling out the spot welds and rewelding.  

Still have a little sanding to do on the frame rail (mainly just the rolled edge), but the Duragalss took care of the ugly remnants of the 'kink'..hammer marks, etc.  I'll also put some seam sealer back in before final prime/paint.  i did make a custom nozzle to prime the inside of the frame from where I applied heat.  I'll apply paint there too and then follow up with some further treatment when it is all done to inhibit rust in the future.  

I still have to play with this a bit.  Will sand it a little more and get out the body putty..Duraglass is a bit hard to shape the contours.  I want this looking better than what it does currently.  

[techboy]

 Nice work kev. More importantly I'm impressed with you patience.

[kev]

This weekend's progress:   

It doesn't look like much but here is the result of several more hours of work.   Basically using some filler to smooth things out.   Mostly focusing on that upper right core support that will be most visible when you pop the hood but also putting a little on the frame rail and even on the front sheet metal supports to just mask the crinkled steel a little bit.    Also applied seam sealer and did a thorough washing of the engine compartment.  

Next up is epoxy primer and then paint.  My concern now is actually matching the paint.  I'm worried BC/CC will put too much of a shine compared to the rest of the engine compartment when is more of a dull black.   I'll start with my black epoxy and see how it looks.  May just BC the top of the core support with serbia black but not use clear.   We shall see, that is next weekend's project.   

Also, pressure washed off the 'new' body panels to start into the paint prep.   May first focus on the engine compartment and getting everything under the hood back together and getting the car running again.  I could definitely use the garage space that is being occupied by all of the parts from this car.   My other conquest is pretty much trapped in the garage and I haven't yet been able to take it out of winter hibernation as a result.   

 

This rail is pretty darn straight now and there isn't much Duraglass or filler in there!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

[kev]

This week's progress:

Got the affected areas of the engine compartment in epoxy primer.  The first coat laid a good satin finish, but I added two more coats heavy which resulted in some gloss...typical for the primer I use.   Normally this is a good thing, but I was trying to get more of a satin look to match the rest of the compartment.  I wanted to get the epoxy nice and thick though such that it does its job.  I drive this car, it isn't a garage queen like my other cq, so I want the coatings to be durable.

Still debating if I'm going to leave it as-is or lay a thin coat of just Serbia Black base (with no clear).  

 

That's as far as I went this weekend because I put my attention on my blue cq and got it going for the season (not bad because I did both of these in the same day).   Although, I did compare the core support on it to this car (not sure why I didn't do this prior).   In all, I probably should have spent more time on that corner to get it looking a bit closer to stock but I'm not fussing with it anymore at this point.  Everything lines up and the repair isn't too obvious.   

 

 

 

[kev]

Time for another update on the weekend's progress:

I think you all probably know that I can't leave things alone, haha.   I scuffed up the black epoxy.  Some of the filler work I did had pin holes in it (as expected because it was such a quick job), so I used a little glaze putty to fill them.   Then reshot with serbia black BC.  No clear, for I wanted it to have a more of a satin look to match the rest of the engine compartment.     

I think it came out good, although I still need to unmask to see how close it really is.  

 

I still don't like that corner, but I really need to accept it for what it is...for I'm not going back now. 

Sprayed the headlight bucket as well, which use to be burgundy.   The bracket on the left was bead blasted to bare metal, two coats of epoxy and two coats of BC.   The bucket itself was just a quick wipe down and one coat of BC (It's fully hidden but didn't like the burgundy overspray on it)

 

 

And while I had the spray gun out, I decided to work on my project that was in process prior to the collision..refurishing my spare set of 7/8s.   I had these all polished up over the winter but needed the insets painted.   I really do wonder if the accident would have ever happened if I had finished this project earlier (with new rear tires on).  

Really curious to see how these look after removing the tape...I haven't touched them since, just letting the paint cure well.

 

 

 

[techboy]

I love Starquest wheels. One if the few production cars that IMO came eith the perfect set of wheels.

[tux]

On 6/19/2025 at 4:08 AM, techboy said:

I love Starquest wheels. One if the few production cars that IMO came eith the perfect set of wheels.

I agree, but I kind of wish 17” and 18” were a thing in the 80’s.  Then they would be extra perfect

[kev]

Not too much to show after this weekend, although worked on it about equal time as the last few weekends.   Just starting to assemble the engine bay.   This alone cleaned up my garage a bit.   I'm very happy on the color.   A little road grime in a few months will match it all well haha.  

I did find a ding in the blue fender.  It's actually pushed outwards, most likely some minor damage from being in storage for years.   Fully fixable but I was really hoping the body panels would have been as simple as sand, prime, paint.  But good thing is that the header panel is looking that way.  

 

So, the big question..if you poked your head under the hood now (not knowing any of the history of this car), would you notice that it was hit?  

 

 

 

 

I have since swapped that rusty horn out with the original.

 

 

These are probably the most interesting of the weekend results..unmasking the wheels.  And this was simply unmasking, I still need to do the final polish which probably will wait until I mount the tires.

Example 'Before' photo (well after paint stripper):

 

And 'After': (the rim on the left is the same as the one above...which actually was an easier rim because it didn't have curb rash.  I forgot to take photos of the initial start on the rear wheels, which had a lot of curb rash and were in overall worse condition)

I was really debating the color of the insets...going with a more original gray vs black.   Black really does pop on a black car but my goal on this particular car was to retain it stock (although, I have been slowly deviating from this).   Obviously, I chose gray.  It is an early 90's Honda Pewter Gray, paint code NH-537M, if anyone is curious.   Looking forward to seeing them on the car.  

 

Speaking of retaining it stock, I believe I made the decision to yank out the A/C system.  There was absolutely no freon in there.  This car originally was an automatic which has the second condenser...which is mangled up good, someone hit a curb or something in the past (most likely the main source of the leak but I'm sure all the seals and crimped hoses really need to be repaced).    I'm not looking to try to revitalize the A/C system at the current time and being that a good portion of it was removed for the repair, I'm going to leave it out and open up the engine bay a bit.   Of course, I'll save and store the parts if my mind changes in the future.  

 

[LizardKing]

What hit? 🤷‍♂️

 

Looks good from here! 

[kev]

On 6/28/2025 at 4:10 AM, LizardKing said:

What hit? 🤷‍♂️

 

Looks good from here! 

Thanks!

 

 

No cool photos this week, because I wasn't doing body work.  I put the engine back in it.   Figured everyone has seen tons of pictures of that.    

The full engine bay is almost back together.  I'm in the process of cleaning up my replacement radiator.   I was contemplating having it professionally cleaned but the internals of this thing are looking good.  I can also tell that it has been worked in the past...pretty easy because there is a metal tag on it from the radiator shop that did the work haha.  I believe it has been re-cored.   I'll finish that up this coming weekend and hopefully will turn the key to make sure everything is operational.    

Then it is on to paint prep of the cosmetic panels, as well as some rust repair in my replacement bumper support.   I ordered the paint products on Friday; more epoxy, base, and clear.   Still need to buy some new vinyl decals but that can wait a bit.  

 

techboy,

Rummaging through boxes in my garage for something and ran into a set of oil cooler lines!    So, I'll bring yours back next time we meet up.   Thanks again!

 

kev

[kev]

Some more progress.   I had really hoped to get more done this weekend, but my garage was so hot and humid (my mini-split system died over the winter..which was planned to be replaced this past spring if this accident didn't happen).  

 

So, here is what the car looks like currently.   The car is functional and I took it out for a drive a week or so ago.  Have also driven it out and into the garage bay a few times since.   BTW: when I connected my wiring in the engine bay after the engine install, I inadvertently didn't connect the ground that goes to the EGR valve for the ECU system.  It was close enough to have contact to fire up the engine, but then it arced.  I literally saw the arc to the fuel filter....scary!!!   It blew out the brown fusible link and shut the car down.   I couldn't believe the amount of smoke emitted from that little fusible link!    Took the time to clean up all three grounds pertaining to the ECU system (the one on the EGR, the one behind the igniter box, and the one up in the passenger side corner by the airbox).  And a new brown fusible link from DAD...fixed!    I also had a leak on my primary inject o-ring...adding to the scare of the electrical arc to the fuel system!    So, got some new injector seals from DAD on the same order...fixed!

 

  

 

I'm really happy how the core of the actual 'car' came out.   Now it is on the cosmetic stuff.

Focus has been mainly on the bumper support.  This is my spare bumper support that I got off a parts car I had back in 2003.  It has been sitting on a shelf since.   But, as always, there is rust.   The lower flange was rusted pretty good with some internal rust.  I cut it open and removed the 'outer' sheet on the lower pinch flange...for there was barely any remaining from it.    Did a good blasting and used some scrap sheet to restore the lower flange.   Tacked on stainless washers and nuts to restore the bolting features.  I really 'should' do further patchwork on the structure where it started rusting through, but I don't think I will.  Going to put it in two coats of epoxy primer.   Then will either use fiberglass to seal up the holes or seam sealer.  My goal is simply to keep it from rusting further.  

 

After some cutting/grinding:

 

After blasting:

 

After restoring the lower flange:

 

After a good 'bath' in rust convertor:

 

 

I had a goal of finishing this car by July 28...for I scheduled my yearly state inspection that day (it expires in July).   Not sure I'm going to make it.  I still have to finish this bumper support and then get on to the repairs to the front spoiler.  After that, it is sanding down the bumper, header panel, fender, marker lights and paint prepping them.  I already know I have a ding in the fender than needs to be addressed and I'm sure I'll find some other minor areas to putty.   Lots of prepping and will need primer, probably twice in the process.   Then BC/CC followed by wet sanding/buffing.     Too much for two weeks, especially with only working a bit on weekends.    I may slap this thing back together just enough to get it through the inspection.   I don't like lapsing the state inspection, for I 'could' make this road worthy in just a few hours if I had to use the car.  

 

[kev]

Another good day of progress:

Put the bumper support in epoxy primer:

 

Then it was off to the front spoiler.  Due to the accident, there was a crack on the passenger side bottom.  Plus, there were cracks on the mounting tabs on the top.    So, I used a plastic welder to repair.   Noting that these bumpers are polyurethane which does not melt.   So, using polyurethane (PUR) rods and a heat iron, you basically 'glue' it back together on both sides.   How it will hold the test of time?  I'm not sure, this is the first I used it, but it should last better than just fiberglass resin.    

 

Aluminum tape on the outside to hold everything in position:

How it looked on the inside:

Cleaned and notched:

and the PUR 'glue'

Outside prepped:

Glued

Sanded:

 

 

Some more up at the top:

 

 

Prepping the spoiler for some flexible body putty:

 

After putty and sanding with 220grit

The entire spoiler sanded with 400 grit and ready for primer

 

Also prepping the bumper cover for primer:

Couple other things I did that I didn't photo:

* Plastic welded the tab back on my original driver side marker light (that was ABS, it welded great).   One thing less to paint black!

* Fixed two small blemishes on the grill using the flexible botty putty.  

 

I had hoped to work on it a few more hours on Sunday but I huge, and I mean huge, limb broke off a tree in my yard and crashed down...I was literally under it, with both my dogs, 15 seconds before it fell!   I watched it crash down just barely missing a combination of my house, my garage, and my deck!   Talk about lucky.    So...my Sunday was spent cleaning up that mess.  

 

Next up will be

* Putting some fiberglass resin on the inside of the bumper support in an effort to mitigate, or at least slow down, future rust

* Prep the fender, header panel, and passenger marker light.  The fender will need some body putty to fix a ding.  I'm hoping that is it and it is as easy as just sanding everything down.

* Putting everything in epoxy primer.

 

 

 

 

 

[techboy]

Crazy work as usual kev. Your dedication to this car is noteworthy, and the crazy thing is this is really just a secondary driver for you - not even your main build!

[kev]

Thanks techboy!

 

Made very good progress this weekend!!!

In order of what I said I was going to accomplish next:

Adding fiberglass resin to the bumper support:

I did just that, used just some cheap Bondo brand fiberglass resin and fiberglass mesh sheets to cover up where the most corrosion 'was' on the inside of the bumper support including the holes that formed during blasting.  And brushed resin on all of the lower parts well.   Goal wasn't to increase structural durability but rather to simply try to keep it from rusting out again.   I'm hoping that with the combination of the removal of the pinch welded double flange on the bottom, a thorough blasting with black beauty, two thick layers of unreduced epoxy primer, topped with the fiberglass resin, and two more coats of 10% reduced epoxy over top does the trick.

This was after application of the fiberglass resin

Header support and fender prep:

Took the header support to bare metal.  I deduced that this thing was originally black but someone sanded it to bare metal in the past and repainted it white.  White paint wasn't thick which makes sense on all the rock chips that it had.   It sanded down with the DA very easily.  Couple very small dings from the larger stone chips, which I will fix later on.

Fender was a bit tougher.  Was originally white with two different blue resprays.  Took a bit of sanding with the DA.  I didn't go quite as far as full bare metal like I did on the header panel.  I kind of wish I did after seeing it in primer.  I'm going to have a bit of blocking to do on this part.   Also found one previously filled ding which I sanded out and will redo in addition to the ding I saw when it was still blue.   

 

Epoxy Primer:

From here it was clean clean clean in preparation for epoxy on all of the parts.   I like to lay epoxy before I do any filler work.  That is also recommended by the primer manufacturer.  For anything I do add filler to, I will come back with a further reduced epoxy as a sealer before BC/CC.  I'm trying to avoid build primer on this car.  I didn't use it on the other panels I painted a year or so back and it came out really good.   I find that higher build primers really help with blocking but make everything prone to chipping easier.   

I reduced this epoxy by 10%, I have found over the years that it lays so much smoother by doing this.  And such a mild reduction doesn't impact the coating thickness as much. 

 

Prepped and ready: 

In epoxy:

 

including some more epoxy over the fiberglass in the bumper support

Doesn't look pretty but all of this is covered.  The backside of the bumper support looks really good. 

The rocker panel cosmetic panel wasn't needed due to the collision but mine has several dings in it including a larger one from the bottom.  Figure I'll prep/paint one of my spares while I'm spraying.   I'd actually love to paint some more panels of the car but I'll live with just this one additional part for now.

Not too fond of how this fender came out.  I can see the effects of not taking it down to bare steel.  Hopefully this blocks out decent.  Being that I'm not planning on using build primer, this may lead to a lot more sanding to get it all smooth.   We shall see how it goes, worst case is that I have to buy a quart of build primer.  

 

 

Assembly:

Might have recalled that I had a previous goal to have this car finished by today...because I had my yearly state inspection scheduled.   Well, it's not done...BUT, I wasn't missing the appointment.   My aim is to keep this car fully road worthy in case I need it.   So, everything got bolted onto the car last night.   But, all of these panels will be final painted off the car...so much easier, no masking, no overspray, etc.   This assembly was just to get the car through the state inspection, and I guess as another test fit prior to paint.   I'm very happy with the gaps, hood could you use a slight tweak but may live with it.  Each time I try to fine tune it, I end up spending an hour on it because I make it worse.   

Might be wondering why I put on the spoiler just to support the state inspection?   I like to spray BC/CC with the bumper and spoiler together and on the bumper support, as an assembly.   I really don't like installing these items together and on the support after BC/CC.   Realizing that I will have to do some masking on the bumper support if I care about overspray (which I tend to indeed care), but this is assembled for good...at least for this project.

 

With all of the test fitting I did to date, I still ran into a snag on this assembly. I go to put in the new passenger side fog light assembly and realized that my new one is from an earlier model car with the wrong electrical connection.   Simple fix, for I just reused the wiring from the mashed in one, but it goes to show you the need to test fit as much as possible including plugging everything in!  Also, never discard the old parts until you are fully complete and happy with the results of the project!

Tested all the lights and horns...SAT!

 

 

Inspection:

Took it to the shop this morning for the PA state inspection and it passed no problem.   Also had the enjoyment of driving it around for a while to do some errands because I dropped my Jeep off for inspection right after it (both were due in July).  Enjoyed driving it again, for it has been several months now.  Even got a few people come up to me commenting on the car, despite these panels still in primer!    Although, it is 95 degrees with like 99% humidity today...not the most comfortable with a black car with black leather interior and no A/C.    Normally not a big A/C person but was very happy when I picked the Jeep back up this afternoon haha.  

 

 

From here, the panels will come back off the car for further paint prep.  The plastic panels appear to only need a wet sanding with 400/600 and be ready for paint.  The metal panels will need some filler in a few places.  It's very minor, so hoping to just use polyester filler for most of it.   Then blocking them out with 400 wet and will spray a further reduced epoxy overtop and reassess.  If happy, I'll go 600 wet and they will be ready for paint.    

Getting close to my most dreaded part..spraying BC/CC.  I enjoy bodywork but hate painting.  Just so much that could go wrong when it comes to spraying and it's not like I do this all the time.   I learn so much each time I do it, but my skill is far from that of a professional.  Plus, it's not like I have a paint booth or anything.   And I always just plan to wet sand and buff/polish afterwards regardless.   Even on my best spray, there is always some type of imperfection to address.  

 

 

 

 

 

[techboy]

Glad the car passed inspection kev!! Congrats.

[kev]

On 8/2/2025 at 7:15 PM, techboy said:

Glad the car passed inspection kev!! Congrats.

Thanks.  Although in my haste to get the car to the inspection, I rushed things a bit.   Started working on that fender on Saturday.  Within a minute of block sanding, I realized that I had my work in store for me.   DAing with 80grit and NOT taking it to bare metal, when it had three layers of paint on there, was not a good idea.   Should have spent the time to come back with 220grit and taken it to bare.    Because that is essentially what I had to do this weekend, but I did it with 320 grit wet and a LOT of blocking.  So, a bit of rework and wasted epoxy.   I basically used the epoxy as a guide coat.  Did find one additional low spot that will need filler in the process...which was a positive.  The rest though...a setback.   Oh well, things happen.  Better to make mistakes now, prior to final paint.   

Didn't take any photos.  Was feeling very much under the weather this weekend and didn't do anything additional.   

 

Also, the car isn't running the best.  Erratic idle, bit choppy acceleration.   O2 code is not going away.  Think it may have died, for my cheapo narrowband O2 sensor is acting erratic as well.   Although, I don't have a t-stat in the car at the moment because I put some cleaner in the system and will be doing a good flush.    Will need to address this soon, perhaps after I get the body panels blocked/wet sanded smooth.   

More to come...just not enough hours in a day to keep up with everything in life.  Doesn't help when I get some type of bug and am laying in bed for the better portion of the weekend.   

[kev]

Been a bit since I posted an update.   Unfortunately, I haven't been working on this car too much the past few weeks but have been doing a little.  

Here is how far I had to block the fender down to get it smooth.   Wet sanding this with 320 grit....took forever but I didn't expect to have to go so far.   Last time I use 80 grit on a DA without taking it to bare metal..that is for sure.    

 

The remnants of the black primer show the low spots and areas of attention

 

After the first round of body filler.  I believe I'm using Evercoat Rage Extreme...which is the same that I used on on the previous body work on this car a year or so ago.   I used to use Evercoat Rage Gold.   This stuff sands a little easier and has less pin holes but not sure which I really like better...they both do the job.  

After the second round.   I did add some filler to the front of the fender where I couldn't 'feel' a depression but with the way it was sanding, I'm pretty sure I had a minor low spot.   So, I added filler and blocked it well.   Filler was rough cut with 80 grit, then shaped with 180 grit, and then over with 220 grit.  Went over the full fender again with 220 grit....yes, negating all of my 320 wet blocking but I need this primer to stick.

The rocker panel trim had some dings that needed to be filled as well.  For the header panel, I had a few very minor small dints resulting from stone chips.  Of which, I used  polyester filler, Evercoat Glaze Putty.   I didn't feel that these needed the Rage Extreme filler.    

 

Lots of cleaning up and then back into epoxy primer

 

After letting it dry for a day:   I'm pretty happy with it.   The fender is looking good.  I nice wet sand with 400 grit and it is ready for BC/CC.    

Same goes for the rocker panel trim.   Although I missed a very little ding on the header panel which will need some polyester putty.   But then a wet sand with 400 grit and they should be good to go to BC/CC as well.

Close up of the header panel...if you look hard enough, you will see the ding.

 

As for the plastics:  I started to wet sand the bumper and it is coming out nice.    I believe I'm down to  400 grit wet sand on everything and I'll be ready for paint.   The summer is almost over, and I really want to get these parts painted before the temperature starts to drop (due to the clear activator that I bought).   So, I have high hopes of wet sanding/cleaning everything and then painting this weekend!   Wish me luck!

 

[kev]

I had a very productive holiday weekend in terms of working on this car.   I completed all the wet sanding and paint prep.  Fabricated a support to spray the bumper assembly and front fascia, and put the components in BC/CC.   I also performed my coolant flush on the car itself and put back in the t-stat...which cured my drivability issue.   

 

 

Some photos:

Staging for paint following completion of final wet sanding with 400 grit and then 600 grit

 

In base (PPG shopline serbia black 2 coats):

 

In clear (SPI Universal clear - 2 coats)

 

One very minor run (picture is fuzzy)

 

Reflection:

I'm very pleased.  This was probably my best spray to date!

I took the time to clean clean clean everything.   Got my garage fairly well clean as well, although there is a lot of junk in it.   Two box fans in the far windows...the opposite windows open/screened.   Wet the floor prior to both BC and CC.  Tyvek suit, etc.     

The homemade support to mount the bumper assembly, header panel, and grill worked incredible!   $10 of 2x4s and a few quick cuts with the miter saw..clamping it to one of my existing rolling carts.   It really made life easy when it came to spraying.   

Upped my pressure to my gun by a few psi's (41 psi).  Dropped my tip size down to 1.3.   Reduced my fan size per a recommendation on youtube.    I use a devillbis GFG-670 plus gun, btw.  It's 20 years old but works great on clear.   I should have opened my material up a hair more but it worked well.   Most painters set the material to full trigger and throttle as they paint....I'm not good enough for that yet.  I set my material based on some test sprays and pull it to the stop on each pass.   

The result...no sags, minimal 'factory-like' peel, very minor dust (expected given my 'booth' conditions), with one very minor run on an edge (shown above).   Run is an easy fix, but given how this paint laid out, I'm NOT going to wet-sand/buff.   Which is an absolute first for me.   It looks too good as it is.  Six months invested in this project, I'm going to move forward instead of potentially creating new problems.   If that run bothers me after assembly, I'll address it.  But given the state of some of the untouched body panels, like the hood and passenger door (riddled with door dings), I'm fairly positive this little run and a couple little dust in the paint will not draw any attention.  

 

I washed the car off such that everything is clean for reassembly.  Next weekend, I plan to bolt everything on the car.    I ordered new vinyl decals from MKS this morning.  Hopefully those arrive by the weekend.    I also want to consider removing the existing decals on the other fender and hatch and replace with new (not a rush).    

Also ordered new rear tires this morning to finish my project that was started before the accident...putting on my spare 7/8s, of which I did the paint work on during this accident repair (photos earlier in the thread).   

 

kev

 

 

[kev]

 Assembly:

This was the first time I had removed the passenger rocker panel cover on this car.  I was kind of worried that I'd find a rust hole or something.   But, in the nature of this car, it was great!  Minor surface rust at the overlap joint, as usual.   Cleaned that up and coated it.  

But from here on out, it was the normal assembly...of which I did like 30 times by test fitting along the process.   

That original black headlight cover looks a bit out of place now....of course I polished that up before the end of the day

Gluing on the rubber strip on the grill.   I stopped assembly at this point for a bit as I let this dry

 

 

Next up were the new rims:

I purchased new tires for the rear, last week, but I am reusing the fronts...for they only have a couple thousand miles on them and are like brand new.   

I have had a harbor freight tire changer now for several years.  I had used it to change tires on my utility trailer and other projects with steel wheels.  Worked good for those applications especially in that this thing was only like $35 originally.    But, it would mess up alloy and aluminum wheels.   So, I did what I really enjoy doing and modified it.   Beefed up the bead breaker mechanism with longer and thicker pipe and reinforced breaker.    And I added a homemade duckbill attachment (well, the duckbill itself was bought from amazon for like $10...plus some clamps and roller bearings which were also cheap, aluminum centering bushing, and some scrap steel).   

Removing the tires from the front rims:

Bead breaker worked amazing!

And the duckbill worked flawlessly!

And installing the fronts on the refurbished rims...:

The duckbill mod is so slick.  Just walked the tire on the rim!

The rears took a little more 'oomph' to install just because the tires were brand new compared to the fronts, but still were installed with ease

 

Then came balancing.   Cheepo amazon bubble balancer.   It was hard to see the bubble at times but a flashlight helped.  Used stick on 1/4 oz weights on the inside of the wheels.   Worked well for what it is.  Definitely not as precision as a spin balance but does the job:

Photo looks like it was uncentered but it was my camera angle.  

Can't believe how simple it was to tackle this!  No driving to a tire shop, paying $35/wheel, arguing with the guy not to use lip weights, worrying about him marring the wheels I put so much effort into restoring..etc.   

 

 

Decals:

While I was working on installing the tires, the mailman shows up and delivered this!

 

I went to work removing the existing decals on the hatch and drivers fender.   One of those $10 vinyl decal erasers and some polishing with the buffer....

This hatch and rear spoiler is still OEM paint!

 

And installing the decals.  Used the 'wet method'.   Installing and squeegeeing them smooth. Leaving the application paper on until they dried.

After a half an hour or so, I peeled off the application paper.  The header panel decal was the hardest being that it had the small letters and there was one area that kept lifting.  It took two minutes to do all the paper on the rest but about 20 minutes of finesse getting the front one off.  

Also, installed the grill...didn't show photos of that...it's two screws.