Has anyone here ever done or witnessed the disassembly or repair of the quarterpanel-door frame stamping that makes up the side of the coupe? (Sorry if you have.... that means you might have had a sudden metal reshaping event occur to your baby.) On the sides of the roof, where the roof stamping joins the left and right quarterpanel-door frame stamping, we have a 1/2 inch wide filler strip that runs the length of the roof. That body color painted strip is bounded by a rubber "liner" which is probably part of its securing method. (?) One of those strips on my car has lost large chips of paint, down to the primer. Some of the chipped areas wrap past the edges of the strip and disappear under the rubber liner. I was thinking that to repair it properly, the filler strip should be removed from the roof, stripped down to bare metal, and properly repainted. My problem is, I can't figure out how that painted filler strip is secured to the roof. With the hatchback raised, you can see the end of the strip, it wraps down into the door frame. I tried some gentle prying, but it wasn't really budging, and I didn't want to pry so hard that it suddenly released for a few inches and kinked. I was wondering if it is glued in, or held with clips, if there is some special tool to pry it out, or if you just yank it out, bending the crap out of it, and replace it with a new one.....
Any insight into this little piece of bodywork would be greatly appreciated.
Joe

 

I have the same trouble . . . . A rock ding more like a crease in the rail. . wonder if that pc could be chromed.

 

Whoa! On a black coupe, that might look very cool..... (chromed, that is)..... just have to figure out how to remove it!

 

I know one other crossfire that has that issue as well.. it was repainted under warranty.. mine is chipping / peeling in the same manner and same location, but out of warranty..

 

I may be completely wrong on this but I got the impression from the service manager that the similar strip on my 300 is pressed into the rubber seal underneath it. Pressing it in forces the rubber against the sides to stop water going under the rubber into the panel joint.
The rubber seal has a slit down its length and the metal part wedges into it to expand the rubber seal.
That was my impression, maybe right or wrong.

 

i havent installed it yet but i just took it out of the package for you, pasanger side.

the blue strip looks to have a glue pad under it, im guessing pry up from the back and work it outward (kinda like the door opening) and there is the tab to pull out when you get to the front, just a guess tho, i haven't looked it up.

 

more pictures

 

Nox, onehundred, thanks for responding.

Needswings, thanks for the photos. Have you experienced the same problem, prompting you to buy new pre-painted strips? One spot on mine has now gone past the primer, down to what looks like a galvanized finish. I guess a galvanized finish would make sense if M-B has determined that this part is particularly succeptable to trapped moisture corrosion. But it is also fairly difficult to keep paint adhering to zinc. I only have the problem in one of my strips, but will the other one eventually chip also?? Hmm. If you would, please leave a post after you do the replacement, and let me know if it is possible to remove the strip without destroying it. Thanks.

 

If this strip is held in place by adhesive, I wonder if it can be removed intact using a heat gun?

 

pulled it off today, open rear hatch, pry up, once you get a few inched up it tilts away from the car outwards. see attached pics. it is a metal strip and non magnetic, aluminum is my guess. yes we got new ones due to the same issue, paint flaking off. the old one came out just fine without being destroyed.

 

Thanks much, Needswings! Aluminum! Of course! I'll post back if I am as skilled/talented/lucky with removing mine. I hope to reuse them. Just in case though, how much do new ones cost?

 

bought it last fall, no idea on price, it came already painted tho, part number is in the pictures. you can have my old one if ya want to cover shipping.

 

Anyone know if there are ANY mounting holes, threads, or bolts under the rain gutters?

 

If you mean the 1/2" wide strips each side these are a push fit and with a sticky strip at each end. they are pried up from the back, carefully.
I do not believe there are any fasteners underneath, they are just to hide the seam.

 

Yes this is what I'm talking about. I realize the strip itself isn't held down by any fasteners. Just curious if there are any fasteners under the strip?

 

Now Rob is into body repair...lol

you the man....pm me about the tank, I forgot to ask about today when we talked...lol

OK, back to body panel work 101....

 

I just received my roof trim today, but their not straight they are bent. Do these need to be straighten ? Thanks

 

See post #7, they are bent in those photos. I guess it's depends how much yours are bent.

 

I am having to replace my driver side drip rail. I am thinking about keeping the old one and having it reworked......just in case parts start getting hard to find.

 

Is it possible to separate the two pieces and wrap the metal piece with chrome tape and reassemble them again? Covering the whole thing may be a bit shabby. It would certainly be cheaper than replacing the whole part.
That would be a mod that certain chrome fiends would like and I think it would look sharp too.