i have a 1999 dodge ram 1500 extended cab that needs some panels fixed. what is my best bet? should i repair or replace the body panels? pm me on here.

 

Can you post pictures? Body work options aren't black and white. There are a LOT of ways to fix something and it totally depends on how bad the damage is and to what part or panel.

Show pics or at least carefully describe what you're dealing with in detail.

 

my passenger side cab corner is alot worse then the drivers side.

 

picture of my passenger side cab corner

 

drivers side front fender by the door

 

Okay good pics. Is this a daily driver? Something you'll have to drive while you work on it?

Anywhere the rust has gone through the panel, a patch panel can be bought and you can cut out and replace an area of rust. Common areas like cab corners have lots of after market support.

Areas where the rust hasn't eaten through are a little easier. The paint still has to be stripped off and the rust removed down to bare metal. Filler is then applied and sanded down to match the rest of the panel, and painted to blend with the surrounding paint.

The fender 'might' be easier to replace if you can find a good red fender. I have a badly dented driver's fender and I bought a black replacement free of damage. It's a simple swap, no painting, no filling, and dent is gone. Deals can be found too...I got mine for $60.

I know patch panels exist for that fender tail too, but that to me is more work than replacing the fender.

So there you have it. Three different approaches to your three different types of damage. Good crash course for you if you've never done body work before.

 

the whole front fender has to be replaced. i pulled the fender flares away enough to see and the fender behind the fender flare is completely gone so that should be an easy fix just find a fender the same color as my truck. the way it looks it is only 5 bolts holding it on correct?

 

Probably more than that... and it think the inner fender well is attached to it as well??

 

The fender that you 'see' is welded to the inner fender which basically makes up the entire wheel well. It's quite large and there are lots of bolts and things to remove on the inside. It took me about an hour to remove the fender from the donor truck.

Just try to find a red Ram being parted out on Craigslist or in a local salvage yard and just get the whole fender. You can buy the outer replacement panel but that requires you to drill the old panel off of the welds and re-weld the new panel.

 

thank you guys.