atomicskiier01

I had a nice little run-in with a curb today and put a HUGE scuff in my rocker panel. I was wondering if anyone else had removed theirs and had to have it painted before, and how much I might be looking at to fix it?

ford4v429

theres a guy on ebay selling saleen/roush takeoffs for like 50-80 a pair- new parts w/factory paint...better than a repaint, and very likely cheeper too. you can pop them off yourself fairly easily- but its a bit of a tug of war...expect some sore fingers [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif[/img]

I had mine off, theres like 8 'christmastree' plugs in the bottom that pull striaght down- tight as heck, grind a notch out of the jaws on a old pair of channellocks to grab beneath the heads without destroying(they are in wide slots to allow grabbing from 2 sides)- expect to slam your hands into the ground when they pop out- very tight...if you have a buddy with a lift it would be much easier- I just had mine up on stands, maybe a foot of clearance beneath.

behind front tires are 2 pin retainers- use a small screwdriver to pop the center pin up, and they just pull right out.

now the fun part...theres like 10 hidden snap clips holding them up top, no way to get ahold of them that I could see- I put some ducttape above mine between cover and steel part of rocker to prevent scratching if rubbing too hard, then pulling out and down on front edge, kinda tug fore/aft till the clips pop free- both sides of mine came easy except for rear three- I think as the cover gets more angled, they tend to 'hook' tighter...once past halfway, I ran ductape around front, loosely taped from top of fender so it could swing out without risking dropping it and scuffing it up, then had to take a tiny long screwdriver, taped shank so as not to scratch paint, and while pulling out, reached back in and pressed the stuck 'ear' in enough to unclip one side- then rock fore/aft again, and it pops right out. putting back on is too easy, just pop everything back in, only takes a minute to reinstall.

heres a pic of the hidden top clips-

you'll note theres a round hole in the end of those hidden clips- and quite a few drain slots under the rocker once the covers bottom fasteners are pulled off- if you can get the car up on a lift where you could look up from underneath, I think a piece of wire could be pushed into the hole to release the clips too- just without being able to see, I didnt want to risk scratching up inside there... if your old cover is trashed anyway, just have someone help hold it so it dont snap back and scratch the car and rip it off...as long as takeoffs have the clips, and you dont need to worry about not breaking them, just yank them out- they'll break, or break out of the cover side, but either way, you wouldnt really need them...good luck [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif[/img]

atomicskiier01

Thanks for the tips, it's a great write-up. Can you post a link to one of the ebay auctions? I went to the dealer this morning and they wanted around 270 to do it b/c the some of the scratches were really deep and they'd have to fill them. I am going to try a couple more places around town to see if I can get a cheaper estimate.

ford4v429

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(atomicskiier01 @ February 25, 2006, 6:34 PM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'>
Thanks for the tips, it's a great write-up. Can you post a link to one of the ebay auctions? I went to the dealer this morning and they wanted around 270 to do it b/c the some of the scratches were really deep and they'd have to fill them. I am going to try a couple more places around town to see if I can get a cheaper estimate.
[/b][/quote]

same guy here-

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mustang-200...041244295QQrdZ1

I talked to him a month ago, he said If I came up too look thru could pick any I wanted- some might have small scuffs, etc from handling...he said he had like 500 sets. if ya need sparte tires, hes got oem zero mile gt takeoff 17x8 wheels with the pirellis for 500 bucks too- I think replacing the tires will cost more than that. He's somewhere in michigan/indiana, close enough I'm gonna take a drive up one of these days to get some stuff without getting hit for big shipping, and associated damage...If I recall, rockers were like 50-80 a pair...seemed like a good guy- dont bother leaving voicemails- he gets too many calls, said better to email, or keep calling till you get him to pick up. hope he can help ya out.

poldrv

I inquired at Ford Parts as to the price it is $98.00 in Canada for one side. In the USA it is probably 20-25% cheaper.

ford4v429

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(poldrv @ February 25, 2006, 7:02 PM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'>
I inquired at Ford Parts as to the price it is $98.00 in Canada for one side. In the USA it is probably 20-25% cheaper.
[/b][/quote]
painted?

atomicskiier01

Even if it is not painted, it would still be cheaper than having them repair and then repaint mine. Could I just order one of these from the parts desk at my dealership? And same question here, do they come painted?

Original Sin

Hey Ford4v......I had a good laugh reading your version of taking the rockers off. I've done mine a few times, smashed the ground with my hands a few times, it just doesn't seem to get any easier the 2nd time around!! I found the trick with the white clips (as per your photo) was to just shut my eyes and yank from one end (I do back to front) to the other with short, sharp tugs. One by one, they release. The sound is awful, like the rocker and clips are breaking, but they're not.

atomicskiier01

Kevin (05stangkc) pointed me towards a contact at Saleen and I am getting 2 brand new take offs for a great price!!! Thanks Kevin!