So, the ''98 SL2 I just bought has several cracks in the left front fender, and one on the driver side door.


I see fenders pretty cheap on eBay ($70 shipped) but no doors, at least not real cheap. I''ll probably get a fender and rattle can color + clear coat.


For the door, I''m thinking I can pull off the door skin, epoxy some aluminum behind it, Bondo if needed, sand down, prime + color + clear. Not real concerned if it''s 100% color matched.


Does this sound reasonable? Or does the flexing of the skins make it unlikely that this kind of patching will hold up under hot and cold temps due to different expansion rates?

Sound reasonable?, not to me .... Edited by: sw2cam

care to elaborate?

How would you repair a door skin? Or would you not attempt this?

Thanks for any info you can provide. I''m not familiar with repairing fancy plastic.

Why not replace it .......... comes off and it''s as easy as changing oil.

Mostly due to cost and availability. I''m replacing the fender, passenger side mirror, may do the timing chain just as a preventative measure (slight noise, haven''t ruled out the accessory belt/tensioner yet).

It would actually be less </span>work just to replace the door skin (plan on taking it off anyway to do the repair and paint - thanks again to Low Saturn''s website) but haven''t seen one at a low/reasonable price. Patch and paint should run under $20

Try your local junkyards. $70 is way too much for a Saturn body panel. They can be found for way less and already in the correct color.

I checked a few local places - fenders are either more ($75) or not available. No door skins (I can buy a whole door for $125).


AFAIK, there are no pick''n''pull type places around here (central MI)

That sucks. Those type of parts go for $20 here.

Yeah, cheapest fender I''ve seen is on eBay, $40 + $25 shipping (new, primed), and no door skins at all. I''ll be out of town tomorrow and I may have time to check out a junkyard there... I would love it if there were pick-n-pull places nearby, it''d be like being in a toy store :)

No pick n pull''s in central MI? Open up those yellow pages and start dialing. I lived in MI for a little while the pick n pull yards are out there.......