well done holden.

[Mbro]

why the hell would you design a car that if it has a sideimpact the whole side of the car has to be replaced!
had a decent prang but it was definatly repairable. but as the "holden bullshit law" states you have to replace the side.
this means the roof must be replaced also.
check mate indeed.

[Rufys]

Ummmm... Less panels is a GOOD thing!

Stamping the whole side of a ute from one piece of aluminium was actually BIG news when the VE ute was being developed and subsequently released.

[Mbro]

EDIT: its a race ute.... this is just weight reduction.... lol -.-

[Reaper]

1. the body structure is stupidly strong. Your chances of surviving an accident is a ton better than it ever has been before.
2. 1 pressing is cheaper for Holden to manufacture the car - I'm surprised that car is being fixed at all. Anything that has had the A or B pillar damage is often bin material as a certain W427 owner recently found out.

Reaper

[jatsvl]

I am pretty sure it is NOT alluminium.
but any way.

http://iagresearch.com.au/index.php?...=186&Itemid=40

and for all others.

http://www.iagresearch.com.au/index....d=30&Itemid=40

[Rufys]

I am pretty sure it is NOT alluminium.

LOL!!! I'd love to know what you think they are...

There's a lot of plastic these days, sure. But the panels ARE aluminium.

[walkahz]

Far out im shocked that they decided to repair that thing..... thats a huge job!

[Mbro]

LOL!!! I'd love to know what you think they are...

There's a lot of plastic these days, sure. But the panels ARE aluminium.

i dont have to use an alliminium welder to weld it tho.

[Bravotwozero]

LOL!!! I'd love to know what you think they are...

There's a lot of plastic these days, sure. But the panels ARE aluminium.

I would have said mild steel not aluminium. BMW X5 has plastic bonnet and front guards so it isn't all that crazy.

[Mbro]

xtrail has plastic guards.

[franck]

would have to agree with mild steel, the only car body in that i know of in aluminium is the honda nsx. ....anyway looking at that ute looks like a decent impact!

[Mbro]

would have to agree with mild steel, the only car body in that i know of in aluminium is the honda nsx. ....anyway looking at that ute looks like a decent impact!

nope wasnt decent impact at all...... was equivelent to a medium hit with a sledge hammer. but because its past a certain point you cant weld it there. so they replace the side, most of the time the car is written off but this one wasnt.

[franck]

thor has been playing with his hammer again! well at least you wont have to worry about colour matching the beast will look brand new again when completed

[Wombles]

Thats insane! Guess its a new car so its still under half the cars value to repair it.

[wraith]

Wouldn't it suck if the color wasn't quite right. Just barely visible but still different. Like the old Ferrari's that were hand painted :P

[hi_ryder]

if i were an insurer id be charging drug money to insure these utes... we had one at my work with damage near the taillight so we only had to change the back half of the quarter instead of doing the above pictured thing. every time your quarter gets dinted you gotta chop the car apart.

[jatsvl]

LOL!!! I'd love to know what you think they are...

There's a lot of plastic these days, sure. But the panels ARE aluminium.

Lol! go upto one with a fridge magnet, pressed mild steel sheets. aluminium is to expensive.

[Gaming Warrior]

As someone that works in holden spare parts those side panels are dirt cheap. We sell about 1 a month of the ute side panels, and until recently every second one that turned up was damaged. They can be brought as a full side or as just the outer skin(even cheaper), I think I have also seen then come in sections but the price different wasn't huge, probably easier just to replace the whole side. I also wouldn't bitch to much, my sisters Hyundai is a single panel for both sides and the roof, wraps right over.

[hi_ryder]

its the reason why id never buy a european car, every time you have a prang your waiting a months for parts. even the captiva and epica and all those are just daewoo's with holden badges. theres people out there that think they are buying holdens, only to also wait ages for parts from overseas.

then you buy a new ute made right here in australia only to wait a month + to get your car back just for a dent on your quarter cause they have to strip to down to a shell and cut the whole car apart. i wouldnt want it after some work like that. id sell it a soon as it was back on the road, get something that hasent been fiddled with...

[Mbro]

As someone that works in holden spare parts those side panels are dirt cheap. We sell about 1 a month of the ute side panels, and until recently every second one that turned up was damaged. They can be brought as a full side or as just the outer skin(even cheaper), I think I have also seen then come in sections but the price different wasn't huge, probably easier just to replace the whole side. I also wouldn't bitch to much, my sisters Hyundai is a single panel for both sides and the roof, wraps right over.

um its now illegal to use just the skin........ holden doesnt sell it anymore. maybe its just vic tho

[Calaber]

Reaper mentioned earlier that the VE is impressively strong. It was deliberately built to have a massively rigid body shell and one way of ensuring that rigidity is by reducing the number of panels required to complete a bodyshell. Multiple panels create potential weak spots throughout the body at the joins. The more rigid the bodyshell is, the better the car handles, due to reduced body flexing and the stronger it is in an impact. It's not just a method of keeping manufacturing costs down (as I have mentioned in other threads, facelifts are much more costly with single side pressings than separate panels, because the whole side panel and associated internal bracing needs new dies - how much do you think that would cost?)

If Holden now only sell side panel assemblies, rather than just the external panel, that would be to ensure the integrity of any vehicle which had been repaired. Remember that Holden designed the VE for export as well as the domestic market and the vehicle has to remain competitive on markets far more demanding than ours. Structural integrity is essential to ensuring the vehicle's long term durability and safety are not comprimised.

And as an afterthought, single side pressings are nothing new. Jap and Euro cars have had them for many more years than Holden.

[Not_An_Abba_Fan]

A car is designed with the safety of its occupants in mind, not how easily or cheaply it can be repaired. If you survive an impact who cares about the car? It is a car.....it can be replaced, it's just a thing.

[monkeys437]

^^ +1 to that.

Cars can be replaced, peoples lives cannot. Don't worry about repair costs, that's what insurance is for.