Damn Christmas tree stand fell from garage shelf and put this nasty ding in my showroom 2003 Silverstone. My assumption is that bondo+Silverstone touchup won't work because of the metallic, so I'll need to re-paint the entire panel, and even then will probably not get a perfect match to the rest of the car. Would it be possible to transplant the entire fender panel from a wrecked Silverstone? The new panels are cheap but I think only primed. My guess is that panel transplant is nearly impossible but I'd appreciate the opinion of someone with experience. Thanks -

 

If you take it to a body shop that knows what they are doing they will be able to tint the paint to match and blend it where you could never tell the difference. It would be a lot cheaper to repair than to replace the whole quarter panel

 

Possible for PDR and minor touch up paint on that high spot where the paint chipped off.

Good luck

 

Thanks- I thought about this but the area is double-walled so there is no way to get behind the dent with tools. Will look into this option further, though.

 

Oh, that is painful to see. I would at least give PDR a try first. I've seen a couple of PDR guys work their magic on quarter panels. They can usually access that area by drilling a hole into the door jamb. I've also been told that that area can be accessed by removing the tail light too.

 

A good body shop can blend the fender and match perfectly. Find a highl rated body shop in your area and ask them what they think. You could possibly do PDR but it will never look perfect if that's what you're going for

 

Transplanting another painted quarter would be impossible. It would have to be welded in and that would mean painting. A body shop can pull those dents and blend the whole thing. A good shop can make it look like new. The problem with most body shops is time = money. They want to get your car done so they can move on to the next car. Just let them know up front that you expect exceptional work and will pay extra if they take a little extra time and get things perfect. This is most important when they are matching the paint. Get them to spray a few test panels before they even start on the car. Look at the panels with them to find the one that matches the most.

 

Thank everyone for all of the good advice- this site is a great resource as always(I just decided to renew my paid membership after many years). I'm going to pursue this with confidence that I'll get satisfactory results- making the point that I'm willing to pay for excellent work is a very good idea, as is the test panel suggestion. I think it might be best to just go ahead and paint the entire quarter panel in any event.

 

To get a good blending, they will most likely paint the whole quarter and onto the door.

 

Theres a massive high spot in that ding from the seam weld. I would love to see the final