Hello,
I got the 1995 850 Turbo Sedan that I had posted about. Its awesome. There are a few cosmetic things I would like to get fixed. On the front fender, there are 2 monor "dents". They didn't break the paint, and I can feel them from the inside of the fender. Also, under the passenger side break light in the back, there is a golf ball sized dent that made a small chip in the paint. I wonder if these two things will be expensive to have fixed?

Also, the molding that runs from each side of the windshield, all the way above the doors to the back window is i bad shape. I think it used to be grey paint/trim, but now it is all chipped off and discolored. With these three things fixed, and a good buffing/waxing, the car would look awesome.

How much can I expect to pay for such a job?? Just a general guess.

-Thanks

 

I just posted this on the 'Body work' thread, in this forum.
Use a soft pineboard (1x2), rounded off at the endand pry or press gentily. Take your time, try not to push the whole dent out at once. Push to hard, and you will dimple it. I've done this a few times on other cars with pretty good success.
For the break light dent, you may have to take off a panel to access it. (Maybe a modification to the tip of the board to get to the dent)

Take the trim off(carefully), sand and repaint it, then apply a good clear coat. (I like Martin Seymour at NAPA)

 

And to add to the side mouldings, many people have had good results with "KIWI" Shoe Shine. Kiwi was an Australian mfg but is now owned by an American company, the last time I heard.

Or, someone has gone wild and used a heat gun on the mouldings, and also has had good results but the majority of the successful people seem to have used Kiwi.

As to bodywork, I would either follow Eric's advice or let pro do it ($$$ of course). Bodywork is a form ofart and as far as I know, American body work technicians seem to be the best in the world; Germans seem to come pretty close, no info available on other countries. I once had my Accord's fender done and the result was impeccable.


JPN

 

The KIWI shoe dye is good for the bumpers and the rub strips along the sides. However, it will not do any good for the trim along the top of the doors. Been there, done that, and it didn't work.

 

Hi JKS2,

Did you mean the side mouldings, or something else? If you did mean the side mouldings, I will edit my previous post for being inaccurate.

Thanks,


JPN

 

The side moldings, to me, are the 1 1/2" or so strips running down the sides of the doors and the front and rear fenders. Those do take the KIWI shoe dye well. The strip along the top of the doors, on my sons 850, which I assume are the ones that channel water off the roof without letting it get in the cabin, are the ones I was talking about that don't take the KIWI dye at all. There may be something that will work on those but I haven't tried it yet.

 

The strips on the roof on either side. You have a couple options.

1. Purchase new ones from Volvo for $150 each.

2. Purchase some paint and paint them.

3. Purchase some electrical tape which some guy in Alaska did and it worked well he said. I would assume that it could vary depending where you are located.

 

As for those top rubber strips, just strip off the rubber, mask it off and then prime and spray paint it. Should hold up pretty well if you prep it right.

 

Hello,
Thanks for all the Replies. Sorry I didn't respond earlier, my internet was on the fritz, haha. Anyway, yeah I was talking about the moldings on top on either side. They seem to be metal, but about 90% of the grey paint has flaked off, and the rest is all metal, and discolored. I actally did consider electrical tape, or some other kind of tape. I may do so in the mean time, and then have them painted next year. I would like to get a new clear coat for the car, it's structerally really good, but the finish is far from mint.

-Thanks

 

Have you tried claying the vehicle. This wont bring the finish back to showroom but it really can help an older car.

 

[quote]ORIGINAL: jks2

The side moldings, to me, are the 1 1/2" or so strips running down the sides of the doors and the front and rear fenders. Those do take the KIWI shoe dye well. The strip along the top of the doors, on my sons 850, which I assume are the ones that channel water off the roof without letting it get in the cabin, are the ones I was talking about that don't take the KIWI dye at all. There may be something that will work on those but I haven't tried it yet.


Hi JKS2,

Thanks for your reply. Yes I was referring to those Swiss-made, ABS-plastic side mouldings that run on the sides of the doors & fenders. As to the roof strips, I have not tried anything so I cannot comment.


JPN

 

If you're considering clear coating by a paint shop, a simple and fairly inexpensive thing you can try first yourself is to pick up a random orbital (not rotary - that will leave tell-tale swirls on the surface) buffer meant for car duty, and use first some light rubbing compound and then some polishing compound. Just do one panel, say the trunk lid first. If you like the results, you can finish with some paste wax, also on this machine. You can probably do this for about $50.

 

As far as those roof strips that peel on the 850, get some from a 98 S70 and two problems will be solved. They will not peel and they have a lip so that rain will not come off the side of the window into the drivers side door if the window is down. They just pop right out and new ones pop right in. Real easy.