Hi all,

as the restauration of my S3 V12 was coming along nicely, I had a lot of ready painted parts standing against a wall, behind the rolling body of my jag.

Today, our apprentice was manouvering a car in our workshop and wanted to drive backwards onto a car lift.
Instead, he had the car in DRIVE and gunned the throttle.....right into the rear of my Jag.
The Jag was parked in gear position 1 (automatic) and was pushed into the parts.
Bonnet, Front right fender, sunroof panel all destroyed beyond repair.
The bonnet and fender are readily available, but the roof panel is not.

Does anyone know of an available sunroof panel (AKP465) that I could buy?
I am desperate, as I will not be able to finish the car without the sunroof....

HELP ME!! PLEASE!!

 

do you mean the Sunroof Panel for a Series 3 body?

easy to find, someone here will have one, if not, let me know.

 

Yup, the metal outer panel, that's what I need...

 

WHY would Anyone want to reverse onto a lift?
I'm Very glad no one was injured, but how is a lowly apprentice going to make this right?

This gives me a queezy stomach just thinking about it.
(';')

 

It is a " table lift " (looks like two motorcycle lifts next to each other).
They are design to hold vehicles in both ways.
Sometimes it is more handy to reverse the car onto the lift, depending on the side of the car we have to work on....

 

I found a complete sunroof and bonnet with a parts broker.

Al be it, a steal for a total amount of $ 200,-

 

1. Yeah, probably the demand for them is limited !!!


2. Only an apprentice could find a way to bust a sun roof???


3. I'll bet that if the apprentice still has a job, that the messiest of tasks will find their way to him!!!


But, it seems you have it under control, and this bump along the way will remina only a bump, but now overcome.


Carl

 

1. unfortunately demand is near zero at times. That is why nobody stocks these parts in larger numbers.

2. The apprentice was in a hybrid Kia at the time, couldn't hear an engine sound and assumed the engine was off. He only has his license since a month so no experience at all. Never drove an automatic before too, so it was just simply to much for him. The car is standing in a corner of the workshop, with all the ready painted parts against the wall behind it. The day before i had been fitting a new radio and left the shift lever in the "1" position. That is why he was able to push this car forward into the wall and parts. Had it been in "P", probably I would be looking for a new gearbox as well...

3. The apprentice still has his job, as he is learning to become a panel beater. He just created his own crafts exam ;-) He is a very much OK guy, eager to learn, never afraid to do some dirty or difficult job, never sick....so fire him over this? Don't think so....


The bonnet I received was a junker...rusted completely through below the head lights.
The sun roof was in better condition than my own before i restored it, so that's ok.
I managed to find a mint bonnet and right front wing in Berlin, Germany, which should be on their way to me right now.

In the meantime, work continues on the two rear doors (paintwork) and the rear valance that got knocked in about 10 inches......luckily the fuel pumps didn't get damaged....

 

Here some pictures of the damage....

 

That's a real hit mate......best of luck with it.

 

That hurts just to look at.

 

nah...nothing a good body shop can't fix.
Probably we will not even need to replace the valance...

 

1. You are a good guy, to keep the "kid". I hope he responds in loyalty. A teaching/learning experience, oh yeah. Way back I worked during my college years at a full service station. My boss was outwardly tough, but under, a really good guy. In later life, we became friends. A very busy day. Lift busy. I was assigned and oil and filter job, a 46 Plymouth, using the big floor jack, and a "creeper". Up it went, out came the oil. Down it came. Did the filter thing and added the oil. Moving right along...... Fired it up to check for leaks. Oh, @@#%%#@#, bump,. bump. I had put the jack on the oil pan, not the front cross member. The sump and the crank were colliding. Not horrible, but enough to make a big noise.....,


Boss said. "Fix it". I did. I dropped the sump. Bumped out the dent. Put it back together. Solved, lesson learned as well.


2.The guy down the road used to mess with Morris Minor "woodies". I was at the local "drug store" in my Jaguar. I got out, and to my surprise, the space beside me that had been empty was now occupied. My neighbor in a Toyota Hybrid. Me, "that thing
is too quiet. He, "yeah but, it is very clean". Unlike my Jaguar, huh? A short debate followed. Me. Lesson earned. Must be more watchful. My bad ears and super quiet cars are a mismatch.


Carl

 

Hi Carl,

haven't we all made mistakes and learned from them?
The kid is really motivated and will be one heck of a body repairman one day in the very near future. He is still in school, but I am thinking of offering him a work contract for indefinite time.

On the second part: We work on those hybrid things a lot. Beside from being a genuine pain in the *** in terms of safety procedures (making it currentless takes a complete hollywood screenplay in most cases), they are not as clean as their environmentally conscious drivers think.
The batteries alone are more pollutive in production than our Jaguars during their entire lifespan (in exhaust fumes AND oil loss)....

Don't think the current types of electrical cars will be the real future.
I for one, don't like them at all. They are too quiet, to complicated, potentially unsafe in case of a crash etc etc....

Something with liquid hydrogen or CNG / LNG / LPG in combination with electrics will be the solution, if you ask me...

 

Ah, that's terribly disappointing but it seems you are taking it well. I've learned through similar misfortune that if it's valuable it's stored out of the harms way.

Seems like it would also be a great opportunity for your apprentice to learn some panel beating skills on the back end. Showy bits I'd leave to the professionals though.

 

That was my argument with my neighbor. One foot print by my Jaguar at the time of it's
production, decades ago. Years of service and still going. And no Lithium battery issue.
Merely, far more common lead/acid. Far more easily dealt with in a clean and safe fashion. I think I "won" that one. His 'fleet, a newer Asian pickup and his Hybrid. Oh, my neighbor next to me now has a Toyota Hybrid. Hers. His an Asian SUV... Got mad at his GM SUV!!!!


But, one AM, I was going down the road in the Jaguar. He flagged me down. A bit agitated. late for a dental appointment. No crank from his SUV. He got out his jumpers. The Jag idled. Hooked up and my big 140 amp alternator cranked that RAV 4 in to life.....


Pleased to be of assistance. He and spouse are good folks.


Carl

 

I though putting the parts aside, against a wall with 2 tons of British steel in front of it would be safe enough....have been taught differently now ;-)

Luckily the structural damage is limited to the rear valance only. The rear wings are just as straight as before, everything measures up just perfectly, except for the rear cross beam. But that can be pulled out or replaced quite easily. The floor panel is undamaged...

 

I have been active in the damage repair business for twelve years now. Before that I was involved from the side, as my dad took over this business in 1979.

Is it arrogant to say that the "They don't build 'm like they used to" is actually very true?
Sure, a lot of crap was produced in the 70's, 80's and 90's. But also a lot of very fine high quality cars. Preserving such a specimen for the future for me has far more value than just the monetary value of these cars.
The gain will come eventually. Now is the time to preserve those specimens that are well restorable. In a few years all others will be gone forever....that's when people will finally realize how well made these cars actually were. Hand crafted every inch of the way, too expensive to build already in the middle of their production runs. No new car today, not even the new Jaguars or Rolls Royces, will live as long as these magnificent old Cats....