Battousai

Hi,

yesterday i had an unfortunate incident happened to my RX 350. I found a pretty good size dent on my passenger side panel that could caused by another car door.

I was wondering if i can strip that side panel and replace it on my own (where can i get one), or do i need the dealship to replace it for me and how much.

thx

tfischer

I'm not sure what you mean by "side panel" (do you mean the door itself?), but it sounds like you need to consult a body shop, not the dealer. That would be my first stop. They can tell you there if it can be repaired or if the part will have to be replaced.

RX_brain

I believe you meant the side molding that run on both front/rear doors. I'd check with the dealership for the part or ask them if they can fix it for a reasonable price.

salimshah

If it is the cladding (lower 1/4 of the door), then you have couple of options. Get is repaired at a body shop, or buy a new one form dealer. On 99 Rx they would come pre-painted [due to fading or lot variation the new cladding can be 1/2 a shade off ... only detected by decernable eye with the right lighting].

One can remove or lets say make it less obvious by painting over with the touch -up paint (dealer item). Keep in mind every day you park the vehicle in a parking lot, there is a chance of getting one more door ding. So I would not reccomend rushing out to buy a new piece.

Salim

Battousai

yes it is one of those door molding on the 4 doors, It is located 1/4 way down on each of the door, which is there to "protect" any dings to the door.

The material is cladding like, as it is soft and easy to make a ding on it.

salimshah

It is the cladding then.

The reason the material is soft, is that can absorb minor bumps without getting permanently deformed (metal skin would). Small to medium gouges can be repaired (hence my suggestion to take it to a body shop). Most of the gouges just need camaflog (form far the scratch does not scream out) ... in this case you just apply the touchup paint.

Price out the cladding form the dealer. Installtion requires a 10mm socket and can be done by a novice DIY.

I still stand by my advice of trying to live with it.

Salim

RX_brain

Since it's a dent, I'd take to the dealership and ask for a quote. If it was just a chipped paint (most do), I'd say touch it up and live with it. Bigger dealerships have their own body shops, others may have a third party bodyshop. You may get a better deal if you go directly to their body shop. Look our for yourself, be careful where you park your car. Goodluck!