Umm... Am I screwed? Rear Shock problems.

[Richard99]

I think the safest repair is to weld a short piece of metal strap to the underside of the break in the tower. The strap will span both sides of the breakout.

The OP will probably not do the repair and a shop won't attempt it for liability reasons. Not familiar with Nivomats but if the OP has them I don't believe a strap would be sufficient to handle the load and stress put upon it.

I've thought about the strap idea for the P2 strut mounts. Would have 3 legs and padded center straddling the center of the strut with the legs bolted into the strut mount. This would help restrain the upward motion of the strut and when the mounts rubber breaks it would keep the strut from hitting the hood. Would probably prolong it also.

I think though it might put many cheap strut mount manufacturers out of business, which wouldn't be a bad thing.
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Agreed, safety and liability are way too big of a risk here to attempt. Time for a new car!

[850oldschool]

A sophisticated modern body shop could weld in a section from a donor car.

[abscate]

If the shop owner is named Michael, John, Patrick, or James he won't do it for liability reasons, and go back to his spreadsheets and putting in his hair product.

If the shop owner is named Ahmed, Vladimir, Pavel, or Igor he will say

"i fix you" and be done in 30 minutes.

[850oldschool]

I rent workshop space in an industrial building and the shop next door rebuilds totaled cars. The driveway is littered with sections of cars which were cut apart with an abrasive wheel. He welds them in to fix the damage and sells the cars.

The guy who runs the shop is named Hakim.

[JimBee]

No question, it's a dicey repair for a DIY'er. If the car otherwise is in good condition and the owner is willing to spend some bucks to keep it runnable, then it's worth an attempt.

Look at the thickness (thinness?) of the sheet metal that forms the tower. The contour of it gives it strength, especially when the load is distributed across two points. So rebuilding one side to redistribute the load as originally intended probably could be done safely. Ask any guy who builds dirt track stock cars that are really just about stock—sure, no problem.

I wouldn't attempt the repair on another owner's car, but like 850oldschool says, considering how a reputable body shop with highly skilled techs can slice off crumpled parts and splice in replacements so seamlessly that the joint on the inside is hardly visible, they can do anything. They could probably do the repair with one hand while eating lunch with the other.

[abscate]

Whenever I start to think I’m talented I see this guy start with an I hit it silver and make this bowl. Allowed tools, a hammer.

[scot850]

Just remember the 'plastic' gas tank is close by as is the fuel filler pipe depending on which side is bad!

Neil.

[volvolugnut]

My opinion: A collision repair shop that works on replacing unibody sections can do this without problems. They may need parts from a donor car. A shop that throws on bondo and paint would not be a good choice.
volvolugnut

[ashlee2319]

Update:

Got quotes from two shops and I got $260 and then $300 ish (told em that was my max).

The shop I’m going with has a metal fabricator right next door so they are going to make a mold or something like that.

Oof.

[MoVolvos]

Update:

Got quotes from two shops and I got $260 and then $300 ish (told em that was my max).

The shop I’m going with has a metal fabricator right next door so they are going to make a mold or something like that.

Oof.

For a mold and replacement it sounds too cheap. Besides you don't know how that material is tempered. Best to remove that section and have a donor part weld it in. With that you can also weld a few small braces here and there for added strength.

If you have Nivomats that's a no no but if you just have shock absorbers you might be able to get away with the shop making a metal mold. Regardless, check their reviews if you can find any or if the shop is approved by insurance. Some little shops have great craftsmen but more so are not good at all.
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