My 2013 Rallye Redline had rust in one of the quarters. I thought I would try a repair. This car was purchased last year with front end damage as seen in my avatar. I did a write-up about repairing it. It's the Challenger SE performance and modifications sub-forum. I'm a total amateur especially when it comes to body work. I thought I would share my attempts with my fellow enthusiasts and maybe encourage others to just give it a try. After getting this car on the road, I noticed bubbling paint in front of the rear passenger side car and knew there was rust. Last month (February 2024), I decided to take a closer look. At the time, I was also repairing my parking brakes and had the rear up on jack stands. After tapping it with a hammer, the the rusty area just crumbled. I had heard that the sound-deadening foam behind the quarter panels made them prone to rust because the foam traps moisture. In my case the foam was very damp.
I checked online to find a patch panel, but could not find one. I then started checking salvage yards. I found a salvage yard about an hour away with several Challengers and they were willing to cut a section of the quarter panel for me. I chose a car that already had some damage so it would be cheaper ($100). The area I needed was undamaged. After dark, the yard hand had finally finished removing the section I wanted (lower section from wheel to door). I took delivery in the dark and did not notice that he had damaged the section I needed until I got it home. Oh well, I'll straighten it best I can and there will be body filler anyway. I drilled out the spot welds and trimmed the section I would need for the repair.
Cut out more of the rusty quarter and drilled out the spot welds. I did apply rust treatment to the internal structure (POR 15). Trimmed both the quarter panel and my patch panel to same size (approximately) and started my welding. I was using a cheap Harbor Freight welder that I borrowed. I have next to no experience welding. I played with the settings and managed to get a few booger tack welds, but was mostly blowing holes in the repair. Eventually, I got it enough to hold everything in place so that it felt solid. I then used a flappy disk to ground down the welds. By the way, I had the interior panel removed and fire extinguisher ready to go. As an aside, you can see a line of beige body filler around the repair area. Apparently, there had been a previous repair prior to my ownership.
Since my welding was disappointing, I decided to reinforce the seam with fiberglass and resin. After the fiberglass, I sanded it smooth and then added body filler. My initial sanding was with a DA electric sander. More sanding. Added glazing putty. More sanding. Sprayed primer and did more sanding. Did a final primer coat followed by light sanding. At this point, I felt like I was ready to apply the color coat. There is a rocker panel cover that installs at the bottom of the quarter. Since that area had a complicated shape and was hard to sand, I did not try to make it look good.
I used color-matched spraypaint that I purchased off of Amazon. I also purchased clear coat from the same seller. I know spray paint is not ideal, but I figured I would spray a couple of coats and do some light, wet sanding and some polishing. I was pleasantly surprised by how glossy, the finish was. Of course there is a little bit of haze in the transition area from my freshly applied paint to the original paint.
Final thoughts: I spent about $300 for the repair: quarter panel, paint and sanding supplies. I think a body shop would have charged around $1500 - $2000 for the same repair. Of course, their repair would be close to perfect. My car is a daily driver that already has scratches and rock chips. I wanted it to look good from 10 feet away and was not looking for perfection. Would I do it again? I'm not sure. I was so uncomfortable with the welding process and results, I would rather have someone else do that part. It definitely saved money and looks better than bubbling paint.
That looks pretty. One concern I had was the structural strength of the rusted stuff below the surface. There is spray-on rust stopper/reactant/kill that is made by a few people that you can use to cheaply stop rust from going so fast. I would advise using that stuff on any rusted spots you find anywhere as a "not gonna replace you, but, hey" step to take.
Too bad, been there DONE that 2 years ago. Lucky I had great body man. Cut out, new steel. Did great job. All because weep holes were covered over by sound proof foam. Others-- please watch for this and get it fixed ASAP.
Nice job, I'm impressed! I've done a little body and paint work in my time, and it's not easy at all. And running a MIG welder if you've never done it is kinda tricky, too. I'd say you did alright for a beginner! Sometimes sheer determination can make you successful!!!
