Z71 Flareside Repair
- 2002
- GMC
- Sierra 1500
We get this kind of stuff a lot. People try to piece parts back together with rivets or (more common) zip ties. The urethane panels on the Chevrolet and GMC Flareside (Stepside?) panels get cracked ALL of the time. Sure, you could get some aftermarket Chevrolet or GMC Z71 stepside replacement panels for around $450 to $500, but you know how well aftermarket parts fit, right? Even an OEM truck bed side panel will set you back around $700 or $800.
This customer brought his bedside panel in because he wanted the OEM fit without the OEM price. So, he brought it to the experts at Encore Bumpers. Granted, it is not a bumper cover, but when "plastic" bumper covers first came out in the 70's they were ALL urethane. In fact, many late model bumper covers are still made from urethane. Since we have been restoring urethane bumper covers for years and years, we knew the techniques and which materials to use to restore this broken "flareside" panel.
Here is what we had to do:
- The rivets were drilled out and removed.
- The individual pieces were bonded together (temporarily) with an instant glue.
- The cracks were ground out to accept the urethane welding rod.
- The repair area was rough sanded so that the flexible filler that we get from Polyvance would bond well.
- The filler was sanded smooth and it was primed with a eco-friendly, waterborne primer surfacer from Polyvance.
The customer took the part to the body shop to have it painted (we don't do that) and the results looked great. Another happy customer for Encore Bumpers.
