'64 Front Fender

[Kevin Morris]

A previous owner struck something, damaging the left front fender on my '64 coupe. They tried to repair it by slicing off the front 1/2 of the old fender and then patching on the front 1/2 off of another '64. This created a seam above the wheelwell opening. At first it was not visible, however the previous owner said that over time the seam has gradually become more apparent. I have the paint #'s and samples, yet the paint on the car is 13 years old, so it may have faded over time. Does anyone have any suggestions on:

1) How to better repair this fender

2) An approximate cost to repair the fender

(I am assuming replacing the entire fender, but not the entire front clip)

3) A reputable body shop, specializing in Corvette fiberglass work, in the

Midwest (I live in the St. Louis area).

Thanks, Kevin Morris

[Wayne W.]

Re: '64 Front Fender

This depends on where and how it is cut. The original front-end had a seam that ran the whole length of the front-end about 1 1/2" above the line of the wheel opening. That seam is normal. the front park lamp corner panel made up the front of the side and the vent or gill fender panel made up the rear part.They join about 1/4 of the way back from the front of the wheel opening with a verticle seam. If your front was cut within any of the boundaries of these panels the repair wouldn`t be too hard. But more likely they sliced it up into the top surrround panel,.probably over to the hood and forward to the head lamp bucket. If this is the case the repair becomes harder and more expensive. To repair it correctly so that it is more or less undetectable you would have to replace the surround panel and all of the sides including the bonding strips. If you are not concerned about underside looks, fiberglass repairs could be made that would be good on the outward side and if done correctly they will last pretty well. That type repair is much cheaper but is not as good as replacing the panels. Its imposible to give a figure on this without seeing the car, but say if you had to replace the surround and one side $2K would be a likely figure a complete assembled front installed about $4K. Not including painting and other incidentals.