Damage to the valance and fender of my daughter’s VW TDI
Posted By RichC on November 27, 2011
Most Volkswagen Jetta owners have experienced the “low front valance” problem with their cars (probably other models too) … be it a bump in the road, steep drive or the infamous parking curb. In my daughter’s case, it was a parking curb with the steel hold-down rebar protruding way too high and catching enough to give the entire valance and bumper a good yank when she backed out. Low and behold the damage was more than just snapping off the valance.
The “yank” pulled the bumper cover, tore the valance in half and split the front fender where rust had weakened it at the top of the wheel well. My project for the Thanksgiving day weekend was to shore up the valance (added aluminum backing with airplane rivets), refastened the valance with small stainless steel bolts and nuts to the bumper cover, added a new reinforcement for the cover and added new metal and body filler to her fender. Unfortunately there wasn’t enough time to do much more than prime the repair … still it is sturdy and should prevent any additional rust. (thought of my friend Jacob who owns my old TDI and was “just” dealing with a similar rust problem this past week)
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