I have a rusted driver side front fender for a 1998 Max that I received two quotes for "new" fenders.

One was $75 - I was told its the same as OE

and the $45 was from Taiwan.

Can't seem to find a junk yard that has used fenders, but was told fender replacement was better solution than doing a body repair.

Are these fenders worthwhile or just sheet metal junk?

 

well, not to be an ****, put it this way... "you get what you pay for"

sometimes high priced things aren't as good as low priced items, and vice versa, i can tell you now, the taiwan fender is probably sheet metal junk... and what was the 75 dollar fender? from the stealership?

 

He said OE like, not OE. Extremely doubtful it's from the dealer, considering even Courtesy lists the fenders as over $200.

 

I had 1 on my '96, no fitment problems at all.

 

complete hijack . . .

so i found a scrappy max and buddy is letting me rape it before he junks it friday, 30 bucks for a rust free drive side fender.

life simplifying question: do i need to jack up the car/remove the wheel to get it off? the fsm is vague, is it simply a few bolts connected it to the front bumper and some under the hood? Do i need any extensions? I'll have a 20 minute window to grab it and i've never done it.

 

There are bolts under the hood, connecting it to the front bumper, and bolts right by the door hinges. Take a look at your own car (or just pull the fender off tonight) to get the idea.

 

theres also 2 bolts underneath holding it in place underneath by where u jack up the car

 

So was it solid? I am keeping my car maybe two years and more so it may be worth it.

The other thing to do do a half-assed body work myself every 6 months.

 

www.car-parts.com This may save you from even having to paint it.

 

Awesome site.

Thanks!

 

OK one wreckers is offering $75 for a used one.

Wow, its 40 miles away, mostly highway driving to check and see if it doesn't even have rust on it.

The $45-$75 aftermarket one seems more tempting

 

It was infact very solid. The only ding I got was when a cab driver hit it, and it still held up pretty well.


I'm sure the dent could have been popped out, but I already had another 1, so I just replaced it.

 

Thanks, I'll go with the aftermarket for $45. The other prices quoted were $69 and $75, so its a good deal.

The body shop wants $250 for the job and recommeneds that the driver's door also be painted because the blue colour is metallic so the colours blend for an additional $50. Is that extra blend necessary?

 

Man $250 seems a bit overpriced to paint a fender. I got my front bumper, fender, and gas tank door painted for $300. I didn't have mine blended even though its metallic. Its not "necessary", but it depends on if you want it to look "perfect" or not.

 

yeah 250 is an awful lot for just painting a fender... make sure you check around

 

I will shop around, but hey I'm in Canada, we don't get the great deals you guys down there get.

 

as always, you get what you pay for.

like oem = arftermarket

probably both made in taiwan/korea/etc.

the problem (not a huge one) with aftermarket is they almost always require some fitting. refinish also runs more becuse there is more prep work involved than painting a used, good condition, oem fender.

 

I found one on car-part.com which worked fine. In fact, it had a few scratches which match the rest of the car...

If you get an aftermarket painted, consider that the paint on the rest of the car has faded, and they may not match. A junkyard replacement will probably have a similar fade.

 

Surprisingly, mine required no modification. I guess I was lucky.

 

Anybody finding reasonable paint prices? I found a local importer doing fenders but the painting is killer at $140 per.
http://www.dnhautoparts.com
Our local body shop wants $150 per fender for a straight paint & clearcoat. I'm trying local yards for used but so far everything here in Chitown has the same bottom front rust as mine.