Poor Old Z

TaffZee

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Near Llangollen North Wales
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Z4 3.0 SE
Well my Z4 has not survived the winter months, just noticed that both doors at the bottom are starting to bubble, been to get some quotes to see if they can be repaired and only just picked myself up off the floor, where do they get the prices from!
What to do now? it is a shame car runs like a watch and except for the doors is in pretty good nick, and just replaced Discs, Pads, Callipers, Back Plates, brake pipes, wishbone, track rods, tie rods and various other bits and pieces on the front end, bubbling is only minor but its going to get worse, do I tackle it myself, pay a ridiculous price for the repair £500 per door (and no one would guarantee the work) Find a couple of second hand doors plenty of Black Sapphire metallic doors around but getting a damage free door over the internet is going to be hit or miss, or just get rid of the old girl.. Might just get the wet and dry out and give it a go, what's the worst that could happen.
 

t-tony

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Torksey Lock,Lincoln, England
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E89 Z4 23i Auto
Well worth having a go yourself Jim. I am surprised to hear that they corroded though. I’ll be giving mine a good look from under the door now.

Tony.
 

TaffZee

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I was a little surprised Tony, never noticed them before the corrosion is not where you would expect to find it, its to the rear of the door where the line begins to sweep up, nothing behind the corrosion no box section it looks like the crimp of the skin to the frame is the cause?
 

Kenny101

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British Zeds
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May 19, 2019
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Location
Essex
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1.9
Has it creeped onto the inside of the door ?
 

Kenny101

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1.9
Personally i think 500 a door is steep.

was he blending the Quarter panels and sills for that price or just repairing the doors With no blends ?

where i work doors start around the 200 mark up depending on the damage

and i wouldn’t give a life time warranty on the repairs either , in my opinion the only way to guarantee it would be to replace the doors
 

GazHyde

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Looks just like mine Jim, but the paint on mine is rough anyway. Really needs a full respray but may treat the worst and wrap it again - and worry about it again in a few years time :D
 

TaffZee

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Personally i think 500 a door is steep.

was he blending the Quarter panels and sills for that price or just repairing the doors With no blends ?

where i work doors start around the 200 mark up depending on the damage

and i wouldn’t give a life time warranty on the repairs either , in my opinion the only way to guarantee it would be to replace the doors
Yes he was talking about blending the wing sills and quarter panel in, wasn't asking for a life time warranty, was asking for some sort of guarantee that it wouldn't break out again within 1 year, I wouldn't mind paying £500 a door for a proper repair i.e. rusty metal removed and a new piece of metal being welded in, but for them to just fill it and then spray it not worth the money even if the were going to blend it in.
 

Ianmc

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The M44 Massive
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Z3s don't behave like this; cheaper metal on the Z4.:whistle:
 

Kenny101

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British Zeds
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See i could not guarantee any length of time to a customer, it would be a guess.

ive done lots of rust repairs in the past that have lasted years And some that have lasted weeks.it really depends on how bad it is ? if its just surface its more likely to last for years to come

but no body shop is going to make promises Against rust/corrosion because it would mean doing the job again for free or even multiple times !!

Also having someone cut and weld new sections is not gonna be cheap either and i wouldn’t do it to my own car Its just not worth the time or money when it comes to removable panels
 

Kenny101

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Points
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Location
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And just wanted to add that including the blending i would say the quote was fair . If he was just repairing the doors then 500 a side is alot

Id be charging
200 door
100 quarter blend
100 sill blend

480 including the VAT
 

GazHyde

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Z3s don't behave like this; cheaper metal on the Z4.:whistle:
But then they made the side sills out of plastic, so ours don’t rot out like the Z3... swings and roundabouts :D
 

t-tony

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Also, if you’ve ever had the arch liners out of a Z4 you’ll find that they don’t trap and store crap behind the wings and sill ends to make them rot out.

Tony.
 

Nodzed

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Cant bin the car for that, trouble is once the rot is there repairs are only going to be a plaster, it will come back that's why they wont guarantee the work as they know the score. As said above I would look for some good second hand doors. Maybe worth having a conversation with @Sean d see if he can advise on the best DIY options?
 
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