Replace Fender-Help

[scaumster]

Hey folks,

I recently (my wife re4cently lets get that straight) got in an accident and smacked the heck out of my front passenger side fender. I am hoping to replace this fender myself with a fender I will get of car-part.com. How easy is it to do and how do you go about removing the fender? Has anybody got a fender replaced professionally and how much did they pay?

Thanks,

Scaumster

 

[Crazy D]

Hey folks,

I recently (my wife re4cently lets get that straight) got in an accident and smacked the heck out of my front passenger side fender. I am hoping to replace this fender myself with a fender I will get of car-part.com. How easy is it to do and how do you go about removing the fender? Has anybody got a fender replaced professionally and how much did they pay?

Thanks,

Scaumster

First off ... that sucks...

As far as removing the fendor your looking at acouple of things (I have to replace mine too)... you have to take the following out:

Head light / Bumber / Lower Passenger side skirt (this is the b**** from what I've heard)

I've taken the headlights and bumper off before...so its not a big deal. The fender has screws on the top side / inside and at the edge of the door. Your looking at about 3 hours total work...

Its not that hard... but a second set of hands makes the job easier. I personally don't pay for things I now I can do... just take your time.

Good luck.

 

[protegeMHARK]

Hello

If You Looking For A Fender , I Can Hook You Up ...coz Im Working At Usautoparts ....=d

 

[protegeMHARK]

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b331/familaramark/858252373l.jpg

 

[Crazy D]

Replaced my fender in about 45 minutes...

Here's a breakdown... if you use this read the full thing first so you have a better idea.. and maybe even go over it at the car if you never done any of this before.

Need to take the bumper off by taking the 2 top screws of the top center

Next Take all the screws of the bottom (about 8 - 8mm) plus 2 bolts (10mm) that are located in the center behind the black protector (remove the protector too - about 4 more screws) - Leave this for now, you'll have come back to it


On the side your replacing the fendor take of the under cover (that black plastic thing (lol2) - this has about 8 clips all over the place... just look around (1 is located in the inner corner under the skirt...)

Once the cover is off... in the upper inside of the bumper (under the headlight) you'll find 2 screws on each side remove those...the bumper also clips under the headlights (so push up a bit and out) ---unplug the fog lights and BUMPER OFF


Now, your from headlight has 3 clips...take those out... you will also see 3 bolts 1 top, 1 bottom front and inner front (take those off - I think those are 10mm too) - Headlight off

Fendor.... has a bolt in the front easy to spot... 3 on top and one within the door (need to open to see it) There will also be 2 more by the bottom skirt...

ok... now if you havn't done this yet you most do it now... Sit and drink a cold one... if you alread started drinking from the start...YOUR THE MAN

Going back to the fendor... on the inner bottom side by the skirt you'll feel a clip... this is the clip that holds the skirt to the fender, with your hands or pliers grab and push towards the outside of the care (towards you) the skirt will pop out....

Fold your side mirror (its easier to take the fendor out upwards with out scratching it)

Take your time (put the beer down)... once this if off, do everything again- Just backwards make sure you have more than a 6 pack when you start.

Other than that, it's easy...2 sets of hands would have done all this in about 20 minutes.... I also suggest you jack up the front and use a drill with a 8mm and 10mm socket.

Hope this helps

 

[pasadena_commut]

On the side your replacing the fendor take of the under cover (that black plastic thing (lol2) - this has about 8 clips all over the place... just look around (1 is located in the inner corner under the skirt...)


the bumper also clips under the headlights (so push up a bit and out)

Two minor comments to help the uninitiated.

Some of the clips holding the fender liner are the nylon type where a central nylon screw spreads apart the flanges of a nylon "socket". Sort of like a plastic Molly bolt. On several of mine the screws were partially stripped and would turn all day with a screwdriver but not come out. If you have some of those stick the point of a knife or small screwdriver under the head of the "screw" part and pry it up slightly. This will let the remaining screw threads engage and then you can unscrew it normally. Once the central screw is out the "socket" part can be pulled out with your fingers or a pair of needenose pliers. Mazda used some bizarre size for this clip and only the dealer had exact replacements. Pep Boys and the like carry this type of clip but not in anything close to the right size.

The clips next to the headlights that hold the corners of the bumper cover are very fragile. Look at the manual (see the sticky at the top of this thread for online versions) to see how to unhook these the right way. If you try to yank the bumper cover off any which way there is a very high likelihood that the clip will break. These can also break if anything hits that spot on the bumper cover hard enough, for instance, a bump from a shopping cart would probably do it. They are easy to replace if broken but the dealer will probably have to order them.

 

[katapaltes]

I meant to post this months ago when I got my fender fixed after getting helpful info from this thread. I posted this comment one other place before finally finding my way back here, so please forgive the double-post; just trying to share:

EDIT: Whoops. Add $65 for shipping to everything here - forgot that.

(2003 Protege5, black mica) I got side-swiped by an SUV who couldn't see my lil' car below his window sill. Guy was nice enough and apologetic and had good insurance - so no worries. Body shop wouldn't do anything less than a 100% repair for $3000 (mag resurface, blending, scratched plastic repair, etc.) when all I needed was the fender replaced and painted to match. Looked around and found good reviews for "theonlinebodyshop" on eBay. Their original quote was $290, painted to match. I know, I know, pre-painted sounds scary, but they had good reviews.

They couldn't get me that price as every time they ordered my part they got one without the turn signal light hole. (They tried three times to get an inexpensive part on my behalf without my asking - nice folks.) Anyway, they offered to get me OEM and it was only $110 more, so I got that, and with it my turn signal hole (and probably a better part, fit, and finish to boot). At their request, I sent my gas filler lid in addition to my paint code for best match. Got the fender shipped back very well packed, color is awesome, and only two or three *tiny* imperfections. If I'd put it on myself and settled for no turn signal, it would have been $290. I got OEM so it was $400 + $150 for local installation by a professional on his own time who did a great job. So total cost was about $550 and result is awesome. I also hear metallic paint is hard to match, but these guys nailed it. (The body shop guy who installed it was impressed.) They packed the fender really well when they sent it.

More notes: The pro who replaced the fender in my driveway only took one side of the bumper off, not the entire bumper off. Before he arrived, I had bought one of each of the easy-breaking brackets mentioned above as "clips," but he didn't need them because they didn't break.

Cheers,
-Katapaltes