Armchair estimates: Soluna hit by motorbike

[ClareQuilty]

A day or so ago my Soluna was hit in the driver's door by a rather reckless fellow driving in a thunderstorm holding an umbrella in front of his face. He must have seen nothing as he drove directly into me at full speed without braking or slowing at all. Almost funny, but now I have a hole in my door:

Anybody have something similar fixed? I'm looking for armchair guesses about how much that might cost. The power window still works, though it is very slightly slowed down/binding as it passed the pressed in part of the door metal. I won't be able to afford to fix this for several months, so I'm also curious what would be a good method of temporarily sealing the small hole in the door (to prevent rain getting inside and onto the electric window motor).

(as an aside, I was quite often hit far harder than this back in the States by large automobiles and sustained no damage at all.. testimony I suppose, to the difference between a 70s full sized American automobile and a 1990s Japanese one! )

[Tywais]

For a temporary fill just get some silicone caulk.

[WarpSpeed]

Water gets inside your door all the time, it won't harm your motor, the motors are sealed and not on the bottom of the door so no immersion will occur, on the bottom of the door there are drains to allow water to escape. What will harm your motor is rolling it up and down if it's binding and straining to get past the dent too often and it will burn it out and you may end up with it not rolling up one day so refrain from using it as much as possible. I would not even repair something like that I'd request the shop locate a donor door and just repaint it to match your car if you're not lucky enough to get one the same color. But that would be the quickest best fix overall IMO.

[ClareQuilty]

Water gets inside your door all the time, it won't harm your motor, the motors are sealed and not on the bottom of the door so no immersion will occur, on the bottom of the door there are drains to allow water to escape. What will harm your motor is rolling it up and down if it's binding and straining to get past the dent too often and it will burn it out and you may end up with it not rolling up one day so refrain from using it as much as possible. I would not even repair something like that I'd request the shop locate a donor door and just repaint it to match your car if you're not lucky enough to get one the same color. But that would be the quickest best fix overall IMO.

Thanks WarpSpeed for the advice. I was hoping for a patch-up job in the, oh, maybe 2,000-3,000 baht range. I'm guessing a new door would be more than that... Just thought they could pull it out a bit, press out the crease, spray and buff it a little, and of course Bondo the hole... I'm really looking for the cheapest possible fix here - the old car is a good one but its only a 60,000 baht machine.

[wooloomooloo]

What about the insurance?

[ClareQuilty]

What about the insurance?

What insurance?? 60,000 baht cars typically only have 'liability insurance' - coverage for the other motorist, not for your own car!

[guzzi850m2]

As Warpspeed said, find a 2nd hand soluna door, should be very cheap.

Never mind about the color, it's a 60K baht ride and you wont notice when you drive it anyway.

Also easier to spot when parked, ah the blue soluna with the red (or whatever) door, it's mine and it's special

[NeverSure]

^^What others said. The leak is nothing as the door is designed to get water in it from the window glass and drain it out the bottom. The bottom has drain holes. Everything important is sealed.

As for the dent the door skin is toast. When metal is hit like that it stretches and won't go back into position unless an expert body man uses heat and shrinking techniques on it and it's beyond that from a cost/benefit perspective.

In the West they might put a new skin on that door which can be bought. If you look the skin on the door is folded over onto the inside and spot welded in place. Those spot welds can be drilled out, the folds straightened and the skin popped of. However with a car that old another used door would cost less. Having the door painted and your upholstery switched out is up to you.

[IMHO]

2,000 Baht per panel for beating and painting, but as noted, this one likely needs a new door skin. No ideas - it all depends on availability of used drivers doors, and what color they are now

PS: are you sure this only happened a day or so ago? There's a lot of rust there already...

Edited June 5, 2015 by IMHO

[IMHO]

What about the insurance?

What insurance?? 60,000 baht cars typically only have 'liability insurance' - coverage for the other motorist, not for your own car!

Also, you can't get 1st class insurance for cars this old

[DavisH]

What about the insurance?

What insurance?? 60,000 baht cars typically only have 'liability insurance' - coverage for the other motorist, not for your own car!

Also, you can't get 1st class insurance for cars this old

I'm not sure of the age of that car, but my 2004 honda is in it's 11th year and this is the first year I can't get 1st class (we got 2+ now).

I think that panel looks pretty bad, and a panel shop may opt to replace with with another door and respray it the right colour. This is a very common car and I'm sure they can find a door for it. They could fix the door, but you don't know what the outcome will be and how it will look.

I beat up the bottom of my suzuki badly and they replaced in a new panel, which I'm grateful about as I don't want it full of bog.

[Rotweiler]

Ummm.. Not necessarily true. Our 11 year-old Corolla has 1st Class and has had since we bought it.

Also, you can't get 1st class insurance for cars this old

[stevenl]

Ummm.. Not necessarily true. Our 11 year-old Corolla has 1st Class and has had since we bought it.

Also, you can't get 1st class insurance for cars this old

Thanks for pointing out the exception that proves the point.

[Wiggy]

I'm surprised you saw the motorcycle coming at all with that window tint!

[WarpSpeed]

Water gets inside your door all the time, it won't harm your motor, the motors are sealed and not on the bottom of the door so no immersion will occur, on the bottom of the door there are drains to allow water to escape. What will harm your motor is rolling it up and down if it's binding and straining to get past the dent too often and it will burn it out and you may end up with it not rolling up one day so refrain from using it as much as possible. I would not even repair something like that I'd request the shop locate a donor door and just repaint it to match your car if you're not lucky enough to get one the same color. But that would be the quickest best fix overall IMO.

Thanks WarpSpeed for the advice. I was hoping for a patch-up job in the, oh, maybe 2,000-3,000 baht range. I'm guessing a new door would be more than that... Just thought they could pull it out a bit, press out the crease, spray and buff it a little, and of course Bondo the hole... I'm really looking for the cheapest possible fix here - the old car is a good one but its only a 60,000 baht machine.

Well then do nothing because your concerns are addressed. Except for the window going up and down and the aesthetics of it. Now it has battle scars, they'll be more cautious around you now.

Edited June 5, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[ClareQuilty]

PS: are you sure this only happened a day or so ago? There's a lot of rust there already...

Yes, just a couple of days ago.

I'm surprised you saw the motorcycle coming at all with that window tint!

I didn't, not until he was about 3 feet away. I really hate tinting, particularly since I do about 90% of my driving at night, but what can you do?

Well then do nothing because your concerns are addressed. Except for the window going up and down and the aesthetics of it. Now it has battle scars, they'll be more cautious around you now.

I think regardless of the 'stretching of the metal' it could be made to look slightly better by pulling it out a bit (which would also, importantly, free the very slight binding of the window), putting a bit of bondo into the hole, spraying a similar color (with a spray can?) and buffing a bit would make it look better, even if in fact the metal is all screwed up. I'll wager a Thai would be able to 'fix' it in this way, and I think for me that would be a LOT better than just leaving it as it is.

On my '93 Honda Civic, the mechanic who fixed the engine also fixed (for no additional charge!) a slightly smashed up right front: he did charge me for a new parking light, but then built up around it with bondo, spray painted it and buffed it a bit, no extra charge. It clearly looks "jury rigged" and not original, but its a huge improvement over a smashed in hole. In my mind, this kind of "poor man's" patching is the most apropos way to deal with superannuated vehicles: it shows more self-respect and respect for the poor old vehicle soldiering on its its decrepitude than just driving it totally wrecked, but it also shows a certain realism - the car is never again going to 'look good' in the standard of the dominant paradigm.

[WarpSpeed]

I was speaking more about throwing good money after bad. My thoughts would be not to throw good money into a crap, half job for temporary result and just the mere aesthetics of it and just save it until I could get the job done right for just a little more, but that's me..

Edited June 5, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[casualbiker]

Get a 2nd hand door to replace it if you want it to look nice... If you don't want to spend the money get a cheap shop to pull the door out a bit so its not binding and drive on.. And for the tint, change it for some more up to date modern tint. About 3,000 baht for your car.

[wow64]

Just put am umbrella out the window so it will cover the hole... Or chewing gum.. Perpermint flavour should match the colour.

Get a door from a wrecker... Like the guys have said... Nice and cheap... But not as cheap as gum.

Sent from my c64

Edited June 6, 2015 by wow64

[NeverSure]

I think regardless of the 'stretching of the metal' it could be made to look slightly better by pulling it out a bit (which would also, importantly, free the very slight binding of the window), putting a bit of bondo into the hole, spraying a similar color (with a spray can?) and buffing a bit would make it look better, even if in fact the metal is all screwed up.

It won't pull out unless the metal shrinks. Think of someone putting bubblegum in his mouth and pushing it out with his tongue getting ready to blow a bubble. The gum stretches a lot. That's what happened to your door. Just like the gum, the only way to put it back flat is to shrink it back into position.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line and your "line" is now far too long. It's not going back anywhere near to decent looking unless professional and tedious heat shrinking techniques are used.

The way a body man straightens a panel is to reverse what happened. That's really how they look at it and how they plan it and proceed. In this case he'd have to reverse the stretching because right now there's far too much metal to push straight.

Edit. Believe it or not, if the metal was shrunk the panel would automatically go back almost straight. As it shrunk it would begin to pull on the edges and return to the shortest distance between two points and some hammer and dolly work would finish it. The real problem is the stretching right at the crease.

Edited June 6, 2015 by NeverSure

[ClareQuilty]

Edit. Believe it or not, if the metal was shrunk the panel would automatically go back almost straight. As it shrunk it would begin to pull on the edges and return to the shortest distance between two points and some hammer and dolly work would finish it. The real problem is the stretching right at the crease.

^^^^

This is very interesting! I wonder if they might attempt that in Thailand? I mean given that they tend to do things 'labor intensively'. I know I see a lot of old cars with obviously repaired door panels quarter panels: that is, the metal is back in place but it looks a little bit squiggly or wavy.

Edited June 6, 2015 by ClareQuilty

[MESmith]

Didn't the guy on the mc with the umbrella offer to pay?

Duct tape is great

[lostinisaan]

You can have my old webcam for free, attach it over the hole, of course after you've pulled that door's skin a bit out with your feet.

Please don't tell me that it's the same car that was overheated not too long ago, please.....

BTW, is the moped driver still alive?

Edited June 7, 2015 by lostinisaan

[Lancashirelad]

I would think that a new door skin for one of those is a fairly cheap item.

[casualbiker]

CQ.. Just get the door pulled out so the windows not binding then some aluminium tape over the split and a rattle can spray over. Won't look beautiful but for about 500b (or less) you should be a happy bunny!

[ClareQuilty]

Please don't tell me that it's the same car that was overheated not too long ago, please.....

No, this Soluna is my 'good car'. It was a Honda Civic that overheated - its been fixed up and running great now for a couple weeks, I drive it often. Really should've used it that night as it has much less of that awful window tinting.

BTW, is the moped driver still alive?

Well we buried him pretty deep, so it seems unlikely...

But seriously, the poor fool just got up and went on his way. I didn't even bother to get out to talk to him - just peered at him through the hole in the tinting. My passenger got out and exchanged a few words with him, said he was wearing a helmet, nothing broken.

[casualbiker]

Personally. I would get that tint changed ASAP.. IT'S dangerous!

[ClareQuilty]

Personally. I would get that tint changed ASAP.. IT'S dangerous!

Yeah that's on the ASAP list for sure, for when I have the money to spare for it. Say 3-4 months from now! Ah, the life of a teacher...

[Banzai99]

Good luck CQ, you could do with some.

[ClareQuilty]

Got an estimate on fixing the Soluna door - that is, fixing without replacing it. He quoted 3,500 baht... any idea if this is reasonable or not?