Beetle 09 rocker panel damage

[Hifty]

Hi all,

Hoping for a spot of advice...!

In my current situation of having to reject my recently purchased car (that's a whole other story...), I've been fortunate to be able to borrow my mums car for a few weeks (an '09 1.6 Beetle no less!).
Unfortunately I've gone and hit a flippin' rock and made a real mess of the rocker panel.



Thankfully it's only the rocker panel and there doesn't appear to be any damage to the door, though it can't be opened currently...

Ideally I'd like to keep this off the insurance and so been out to some bodywork shops. I've had 2 quotes, one for £580 and another for £900...! Both said it would need to be replaced and the labour involved is why the price is so high. From research, it sounds correct..

However, my mechanic knows a welder and has said he would be able to fit it for £150 if I was to buy the part, then all I'd need to do is have it painted. Whilst I trust my mechanic, I'm a little concerned that it could be a bit of a bodge job - something I definitely don't want to do to my mums car.
I realise it's welded straight onto the chassis - any potential issues with me getting this chap to weld on a new panel? My mechanic assures me he's a highly skilled welder, but wondering if there are any potential issues he hasn't thought of.

Also does anybody have the part number for the passenger side rocker panel for an 09 beetle? I've found one online that is telling me it's £15... But that seems waaay too cheap..

Cheers all

[anonymous-user]

That is cheap for the sill panel. Are you sure they haven't listed an air cooled Beetle part by mistake ? The listings do tend to get mixed up sometimes.
I'd go for the proper body shop repair as IIRC the wings need to come off to do it properly. There may be some rust in there that will need repairing too.

[Hifty]

Thanks Graham, not sure - it was me that found the part online, but it does seem too cheap...

https://www.buycarparts.co.uk/blic/7922419

I'm really struggling to find the part number - any ideas?

I've been to a few body shops; some are telling me it can't be fixed, the cheapest quote I've had is £580...
I might give this guy a shot, he seems fairly confident and my mechanic tells me he's a fantastic welder.. My thinking is if I buy the part and he can't fit it - I just won't pay and I'll have to go through insurance. If he does a good job, I've saved myself a good few hundred £££.
It might be a bit more hassle, but worth it if I can save a bit of cash without detriment to the repair quality..

[PositronicRay]

Visit welder, find out if he's confident he'll make a good job of it and price, price up genuine part, and a body shop to respray. It probably won't be a lot different to the fig you've been quoted.

It's your mums car, do it properly.

[paintman]

Does your mother know yet?

[anonymous-user]

PositronicRay said:

Visit welder, find out if he's confident he'll make a good job of it and price, price up genuine part, and a body shop to respray. It probably won't be a lot different to the fig you've been quoted.

It's your mums car, do it properly.

This really. The welder will have to pop the wings off to do a proper job, then put them back on when he has finished. Then the painter will have to take them off again to paint the sill properly. Do the right thing by your Mum and get a proper job done.

[Hifty]

Thanks all, you're right - I didn't realise it was such a job just to get access to the panel.

I certainly don't want it to be a bodge job and it's sounding like it just will be more hassle than it's worth to save a few quid.

Think I'll just own up and get it done properly..!

Thanks all.