duetto wheel arch replacement

after a great holiday in our van we would like to replace the wheel arches can anyone recommend a place within 100 miles of Milton Keynes?
cheers
peter and jenny

jennyandpeter wrote:after a great holiday in our van we would like to replace the wheel arches can anyone recommend a place within 100 miles of Milton Keynes?
cheers
peter and jenny

Hi Peter
I believe Dutto (Ian) went to the A/S workshops in Willersey to have the wings and other metalwork replaced on his van last year and was pleased with the work, several of the forum members have used the workshops and including myself have been very pleased with their work and prices.
Ring Mark Burdett  01386853511

Thanks will give them a call tomorrow .

I second A-S workshops. They did an excellent job in replacing / re-sealing our top windows for our Duetto (on a MK5 Transit)

As Peter said DMR did the work on my Duetto.

Just spoke to DMR cost about £1000 plus parts, will get a few more quotes first. I would imagine A/S would be more expensive.

Just rang A/S they said they do not do repairs on metal vans! 

will try a few local places next.

You didn't say if it was front or rear arches wheel. Front could be done by any competent body shop. The rears get tricky due to the amount of interior you have to remove to safely carry out any welding due to fire risks from other materials, insulation carpets ect. My friend who is a professional welder wont do rear arches on motorcaravans because of the fumes from the insulation if it gets hot.
When the work was done our van I  think they removed some of the furniture and carpets. 
Good luck with youre quest to keep another Duetto rolling.

We would like to replace all 4 wheel arches if possible but repaired would be ok if it cured the rust.

If it softens the blow a little the repairs to our Duetto  cost a lot more than you have been quoted  so far. If you look back at what we had done by DMR they did the repairs rather than giving us a horrific quote to get rid of us.
We thought DMR offered a good service by keeping us informed of progress and simple things like giving me a lift to the station to get home made a big difference.

Actually I think £1000 is pretty reasonable for that - there's a lot more metal than just the bit you can see, plus it all has to be painted. I guess that's an estimate as it's pretty much impossible to tell exactly what you'll find until the job is started. Sorry to say, but Transits of this era are prone to serious rust, plus it's 20 years old.

If you want to keep the costs down you could consider removing and remounting the interior stuff yourself. If you present it as a van then a local bodyshop might well do it but go on reputation really; ask around, especially jobs that people have paid for rather than insurance work. Naming no names, but there's a bodyshop local to here which gets all the insurance contracts and their work is shockingly bad.

To give you an idea of the parts costs, plus remember there's paint on top:
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Hello it's a big job  but  the parts are cheap have a look Under the carver cascade if there is some rust a citroen ax door is perfect for the curve  i took a lots of pics of the job on mine if you want some pics i will send you some

That would be great thanks

PASCAL wrote:have a look Under the carver cascade if there is some rust a citroen ax door is perfect for the curve

Parts availability will have changed since I had mine done around 3 years ago, but definitely worth checking availability of pattern parts before messing about chopping up doors from French cars!

IIRC the correct panel only cost about £12 when I had mine done (at the time you could get both the complete panel including window frame and also as a "half panel" which is just the lower half).

JennyandPeter

Are you prepared to travel 110 miles? If so.....this guy, Ian Taylor, comes on the highest recommendation. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

He's spent his entire life in body work and there is absolutely nothing Ian doesn't know about the profession. A highly skilled craftsman specialising in all types of bodywork, Ian is best described as a fanatical perfectionist. I've had work done by him and the end product is simply staggering. 

He would no doubt give you a rough quote over the phone but to get an exact figure would naturally need to see the van.

If you did decide to use him, transport to and from your locality is a piece of cake. Stoke-on-Trent rail station is just a short bus ride away from Ians bodyshop and trains go direct from Stoke to M/Keynes.

JennyandPeter

Sent you a pm.....check your inbox!

Van booked in to be sorted by Ian in 2 weeks time , will post pictures before and after for those with similar problems
this is the worst wheel arch  [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] 
rear door [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] 
rear arch [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Nothing too bad but worth doing properly

The "worst" wheel arch actually looks quite nice!   I think Ian is going to enjoy working on your van!

Knowing the time you both spent restoring the paintwork back to it's former glory, i have no doubt after Ian has finished with it you will have a mint condition Duetto! 

Looking forward to seeing your "after" pics! 

Hiya your Wheel arch are not too bad like your doors on mine it was a big job and my friend thierry replace the 8 parts Inside and outside  and the big panel Under the carver cascade our winter  job is to put some new rear doors  , i bought all the parts on transitcenter.pl  the parts are cheap and the delivery was fast   the duetto is a really good motorhome  very reliable and i love it

Van going in Monday I will be leaving Ian a camera so he can document the progress , will keep you all posted

jennyandpeter wrote:Van going in Monday I will be leaving Ian a camera so he can document the progress , will keep you all posted

I won't be far behind you as i need to sort a date with Ian over mine which needs a small patch 'sorting'! Will look forward to seeing your results! 

I have just looked at the photos of the wheel arch problems on youre Duetto. I noticed the rusty mark on the door sill as you must have. I did an MOT on a builders van with a similar mark on it. The rest of the van was tidy and it caught me out when I put my foot on the step and the plastic step cover came away causing me to bash my shin on the edge of the step. After the swearing went away I looked were the step cover should have been to find a large hole and I could see the inside of the sill. It did fail the test, if only for a barked shin .
  I took the covers and trim off the steps on my Duetto and brushed on lots of Waxoil because the water from the screen runs into the steps or behind the door seals.
 I think some one should draw a map to show the know rust areas of our trusty vans .

Dave 418 wrote:  I think some one should draw a map to show the know rust areas of our trusty vans .

If i was any good with computer graphics that would be useful Dave. Highlight the hotspots! 

The hidden ones are the worst, such as what you mentioned (step cover), but also the flitch panel at windscreen bottom hidden by the plastic trim cover and inner wheel arches....hidden by the battery tray/s and insulation. Most other areas such as outer arches, doors etc are visible.

I am having a think about other rust nasties on Transits. The front cross member were the radiator sits on. Worse if the radiator has been leaking because the cross member fills with coolant. Inner wings and chassis legs around the suspension mounting points and were the front cross member joins the chassis legs. N/S sill under sliding door, mostly on site vehicles not motorhomes. Rear spring hanger front mounting point, under the bathroom. Damp carpet due to leaky shower. Rear cross member.
 The sad story when you fail a motorcaran is that the owner says it has hardly been used. Rust never sleeps and should be respected. It is not an issue when it is cosmetic but can be a killer in the wrong places.
  I have sadly witnessed the results of a seat belt ripping out of its mounting during an RTA. When I look at a vehicle for purchase I have a thinking of it may be  tidy but is it safe.
 My Duetto had no unsafe rust on inspection but it caught me out after two years. Yes it cost me a lot of money to have the repairs done but when I sold it I felt it was as safe as it could be for the next owner.
I really must get out in our Rienza before I want my Duetto back, I miss it.

Dave 418 wrote: I am having a think about other rust nasties on Transits. The front cross member were the radiator sits on. Worse if the radiator has been leaking because the cross member fills with coolant. Inner wings and chassis legs around the suspension mounting points and were the front cross member joins the chassis legs. N/S sill under sliding door, mostly on site vehicles not motorhomes. Rear spring hanger front mounting point, under the bathroom. Damp carpet due to leaky shower. Rear cross member.
 The sad story when you fail a motorcaran is that the owner says it has hardly been used. Rust never sleeps and should be respected. It is not an issue when it is cosmetic but can be a killer in the wrong places.
  I have sadly witnessed the results of a seat belt ripping out of its mounting during an RTA. When I look at a vehicle for purchase I have a thinking of it may be  tidy but is it safe.
 My Duetto had no unsafe rust on inspection but it caught me out after two years. Yes it cost me a lot of money to have the repairs done but when I sold it I felt it was as safe as it could be for the next owner.
I really must get out in our Rienza before I want my Duetto back, I miss it.

I like to think a good MOT station will pick up on any approaching rust on the underside (x members, spring hangers etc) and warn the owner with advisories. The majority of the body panels should be easily spotted.

By far the worst i've seen though on one van i owned was the inner wheel arch which was only picked up on when i renewed the battery. So bad that the tray had rotted and on lifting the battery out there was a gaping hole big enough to stick your arm through! A welder managed to rebuild it and it's testament to his welding that van is still on the road today! The same guy also did my lower screen flitch panel when that came out along with windscreen when having a new screen fitted.