Mk3 Cavalier Owners Club | Vauxhall Cavalier Dot Com

I am intending to add this to all the other interesting WIP's. I have spent such an amount on the engine and exhaust that when it turned out that there were some real nasties concealed underneath the bodywork, I've little option but to try to do something about restoring them (rather than re-shelling which was one of the original suggestions). Pics to follow but I have just put up in Wanted a request for replacement rear quarter panels. I have tracked offside panels down in Germany but have yet to find an economical way of getting one or other back to UK. If anyone has any bright alternative ideas I'd appreciate being pointed in the right direction!

have you tried ringing auto vaux?

Not on this occasion but I think I've got their no somewhere (along with many others that didn't help previously) so no harm in following up now, tks. I kinda got the impression then that there were some suppliers that were more into used and others more into new parts, then "original", non-original ... it got complicated. Replacement panels is a different ball game to sourcing a rear axle!

I tried ringing autovaux a while back , they managed to track some down from abroad but it was going to be a fortune for each panel . I managed to find one through the forums thankfully but I still need an osr .

I'll bear you in mind if it comes to getting them shipped from Germany .. I suspect that getting anything shipped to north of Watford doubles the cost.

Price in uk is around 275 a quarter in the uk if the dealers will order them in. Try the Coventry vboa day (i may take a trek down not sure yet) they often have various panels for sale.

Telegram Sam wrote:I'll bear you in mind if it comes to getting them shipped from Germany .. I suspect that getting anything shipped to north of Watford doubles the cost.

Cheers Sam , ill keep my eyes & ears opened for you too matey

Autovaux will, by and large, start searching for panels in the same way that you would; dealer enquiry followed by online search. What you need is van + other people's orders to cover costs = trip to Germany. Look forward to seeing more pics of the ol' girl though, get some pics of the work you've had done to date, be nice to see it as it stands and progress thus far.

Is it me, or lately is everyone selling theier mint SRi's on ebay. Been loads of white early ones come up.

They do look really retro and cool. So lets hope this one gets saved.

Mine isn't mint (yet) - nor for sale on eBay! - but this is not for lack of moral support from the Club. Might be that I could get 2 o/s panels from different people in Germany and split the transport costs

Horse trading with hauliers from Germany is progressing happily though the improving level of quotes is still above what I had anticipated. If I was to go for a second offside rear quarter panel - for one of you lot - as things stand it would cost around £210 including delivery to UK. This is still quite a bit above what I would pay for a single panel. Whether or not I pursue the haggling depends on the level of interest from readers of this post.

It's still a bit steep IMO but I think the best quote I got last year was £260 so any saving is a blessing

I agree that it's top end but I just don't know what padding there's in the quotes after 3 - 4 days for the market to work. If it's not out of the question I can see what further haggling can achieve.

I've said it before but I'll say it again. For those kind of prices, if you're talking multiple panels, then I'd be hotfooting it all the way to Deutschland and securely packing them in the back of my own/hire van. If the difference was a few quid then maybe not, but if it's mega money then I would be heading across the channel. Then again, it depends on the urgency. You will always find this stuff closer to home, if you have the time to look/wait.

1 - 2 panels, timescale not infinite, required north of Watford ... I haven't done the calculations but I wouldn't be jumping at the prospect of Herz-ing it from here to Wuppertal and back. It would be different if the panels were freely available here. And/or if it was a Cav OC multi buy.

Telegram Sam wrote:Horse trading with hauliers from Germany is progressing happily though the improving level of quotes is still above what I had anticipated. If I was to go for a second offside rear quarter panel - for one of you lot - as things stand it would cost around £210 including delivery to UK. This is still quite a bit above what I would pay for a single panel. Whether or not I pursue the haggling depends on the level of interest from readers of this post.

That's a good price considering how rare they are. Why can you use wheelarch repair panels

Everyone I've spoken to tells me you get a better result for less hassle if you replace the complete rear quarter panel. But if I can't get a near side rear quarter panel I may have no option but to go for the wheel arch repair on that side.

Headache to replace.

btcctroy wrote:Headache to replace.

It's time consuming but less chance of panel distortion. And having seeing the previous repairs, I dread to think what is under all the filler, what has been exposed isn't pretty.

Just take the interior trim panels and look its going to be pretty obvious whats going on

Telegram Sam wrote:Everyone I've spoken to tells me you get a better result for less hassle if you replace the complete rear quarter panel. But if I can't get a near side rear quarter panel I may have no option but to go for the wheel arch repair on that side.

No way, why on earth would you do that, get a set of full magnum arches, think I have a spare near side outer arch and an inner arch for the offside.

You have not put any pictures on here or have you ?, so its difficult for anyone to make any comment !!

Gaz wrote:Just take the interior trim panels and look its going to be pretty obvious whats going on

Agreed.

Gray16v wrote:

Telegram Sam wrote:Everyone I've spoken to tells me you get a better result for less hassle if you replace the complete rear quarter panel. But if I can't get a near side rear quarter panel I may have no option but to go for the wheel arch repair on that side.

No way, why on earth would you do that, get a set of full magnum arches, think I have a spare near side outer arch and an inner arch for the offside.

You have not put any pictures on here or have you ?, so its difficult for anyone to make any comment !!

Pics now uploaded to Flickr "visible to friends" (that's you lot). Trying to sus out how to get urls to display in this thread ...

First the nice pics
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pics_2/8520155446/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pics_2/8520155446/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pics_2/8519040409/
Now where it gets nasty
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pics_2/8520147308/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pics_2/8519029321/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pics_2/8520146420/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pics_2/8520145510/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pics_2/8519028471/
I hope these are visible, or if there is a better way

Links not working for me ?