About this kind of part: wings and quarter panels
A wing is the panel over a front wheel, bolted to the body so that it can be replaced without cutting. A rear quarter panel covers the back wheel and on most cars is welded into the body shell, which makes it a very different job. Both are steel or aluminium, both carry the arch lip that takes the worst of the road, and both are painted, so a replacement either arrives in the colour it was sprayed when new or needs spraying.
Why people replace one
- A collision has creased the panel, and a crease in a pressed curve cannot be pulled out to a finish that will take paint without showing.
- Rust has started along the arch lip or behind the liner, which is where salt and grit collect and where a panel rots from the inside out.
- A long scrape down the side will need more filler than a replacement panel would.
- Aluminium corrosion has blistered the paint, which happens where an aluminium panel has been repaired with steel fasteners.
- The panel is sound but has been pushed back on its mounts, and the gaps to the bonnet and the door can no longer be set evenly.
Fitting it
- A bolt-on wing comes off at a row of bolts along the top, inside the arch and behind the bumper, which usually means taking the bumper cover and the arch liner off first.
- Mark the bolt positions before slackening them. The gaps to the bonnet, the door and the light are set at those mounts and are far easier to find again than to set from scratch.
- A welded quarter panel is a body shop job. It needs cutting, fitting, welding, sealing and painting, and it is not a home repair.
- Fit the arch liner and its seals back properly. A wing with no liner behind it rots from the inside and the new paint will not save it.
- A panel is supplied in primer or in its original colour, and a matching finish needs the paint code from the car's own identification plate.
Making sure it is the right one
- Match the part number. The two sides differ, and a facelift commonly changes the panel while the outline looks almost the same.
- Check the material. A steel wing and an aluminium wing exist for the same position on some cars, and they take different fasteners and different repair methods.
- Compare the openings: a repeater lamp aperture, a sensor hole, a trim stud pattern or a washer cut-out differ between trim levels on one model.
- Count the mounting points and compare their positions with your own panel before buying.
What to look for in the photographs
| A |
Part number — Stamped or on a label on the inner face, usually near an upper mounting flange. |
| B |
Arch lip — The folded edge around the wheel opening, inside and out. This is where rust begins, and a photograph taken from outside will not show the inner face. |
| C |
Mounting flanges — The row of bolt holes along the top and inside the arch. Check the metal around them is flat and not torn. |
| D |
Openings — Apertures for a repeater lamp, a sensor or a trim stud. These vary by trim level and are part of the match. |
| E |
Panel surface — Look along the panel at a shallow angle rather than straight at it. A ripple or a shallow crease shows in a raking light and disappears in a flat one. |
| F |
Material — Steel or aluminium, and any sign of blistering where the two have been mixed. |
This section describes wings and quarter panels parts in general. The numbers and the photographs above are this part.
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