I have no idea how it happened, I purchased the van with it, although I didn't realise at the time, see below for explanation. I have 3 reasons for wanting to repair (PDR) rather than replace...
- Cost
- Colour Match
- Availability
Cost: This is a van I have purchased from a salvage auction, the damage I could see from the listing was light fire damage. Whilst you have to purchase from these auctions with your eyes wide open accepting it is always a gamble, I have already had a few expenses that I really didn't expect. I have had to replace the windscreen, cracked most likely from the heat, but not mentioned in the auction listing anywhere. The headlights were both damaged, not something you could see from the listing, this is just one of those things, but still an expense I didn't expect. Finally we have this dent in the bonnet, it wouldn't have been mentioned specifically in the listing and looking back at the original auction photos it is virtually impossible to see if the damage was already there or has happened whilst being in storage/transit.
Also, as anyone who has sourced the parts for a facelift will know, these are sought after parts with prices reflecting the demand.
Colour Match: I have had to replace a front wing with one from a salvage vehicle, its close, but I don't think its perfect. As for having it repaired at a body shop, whilst I would expect them to get a decent colour match, I've had a few attempts trying to get a good match, both just via paint code and by taking a part to a paint factors and getting it colour matched and its still not that close. Now this could be due to metallic grey being difficult to apply which a body shop will likely find easy, or it could also be that Indium grey is a difficult paint to match. With that said, I have a part which is the perfect colour match, its just got a dent in it.
Availability: As mentioned before, the front ends of the T6/T6.1 seem to be in high demand, probably even more so for the bonnet as it is shared between the 2, so as far as I can tell, there aren't many to choose from, certainly none in Indium Grey. The ones I have seen usually also have other damage that needs fixing. I actually already have a brand new tongyang bonnet as I was intending to facelight my T5.1 (which this T6 is now replacing), but I want to stay with OEM parts on this van, plus I would still have to get it painted.
So I'm trying keep costs as low as I can, whilst doing the best thing for the van. I didn't buy it to flip it, so its not as though the additional costs are eating into a profit margin, at the same time I don't want to end up spending the same on this van as if I had bought one that didn't need a repair.
Slightly long winded reply, but hopefully that explains why PDR is my preferred solution. The dent isn't preventing me from using the van, so I'll live with it until I can get it sorted.
! I think you will be better off with Dellmasive's solution.
