Last month we left our 2005 SLK 350 with the rusty front wings repaired, mainly because you cannot buy new ones for love nor money. The rust is caused by a mud trap, and it was only in one localised area with the offside wing being much better and not requiring any new metal.
This month we are doing the final repairs and painting and we’re reminded once again how expensive professional body repairs are when done by a proper bodyshop to the high standards we require – there are plenty of places that would have tacked a plate into the wing, skimmed it with filler and painted it – that would have lasted six months until this coming winter saw rust pushing the filler out again. A complete waste of time (and money).
As it is, this restoration job with the front bumper repair cost us £1862 with VAT. The paint alone costs just over £300 and you have the hours and hours fighting the old bumper off, stripping it, the hours involved in making repair sections, welding them in, filing, rubbing down, painting. To illustrate this, a
