Passenger door damage - repair or replace?

[brg2290]

Hi all. Here's my issue - my car 2013 Nissan Leaf, black, with damage to the right rear door panel. I've explored a few options, here are some details:

Paintless dent repair - $350 - $400 to get the door panel to "90%"
Regular auto body shop - $1100 for dent repair and paint
Used door (correct color) - ~ $700

Pros and cons:
Paintless dent repair - cheap but not perfect
Auto body shop - close to perfect but not cheap
Used door - close match to original at medium cost

Concerns:
Paintless dent repair - will I be happy with "90%"?

Used door - This option seems to have the most variables. I have tools and have done a fair bit of work on cars. I have a good workspace. I don't know how well the paint from a 2015 will match my car. I don't know if the electrical for the door is a plug and play setup, or if the interior door panel will have to come off to make electrical connections. I don't know what is involved (or if it's even possible) to get the door lock to work with my keyfob).

Please share thoughts on choices and any issues I may have overlooked.
Thanks.

 

[estomax]

Used door will be your best bet in my opinion, if you are at all handy. I am not sure of the Leaf, but it might be as simple as removing the interior panel, then popping off the outer door skin and replacing it with a skin from a donor door. unless your door frame itself is damaged also. (you said PDR will get you to 90% so i assume door skin is the only damage (cosmetic)). with newer VW/Audi the outer skin comes off, haven't dug into my Leaf that much yet. Quick look in the FSM says you gotta replace the door as a whole though.

The plugs come off inside the door from the window switch and speaker and then you can pull them off with the rubber grommet through the door. Definitely a job you can do in your driveway.

i am quite sure the paint code on 2015 is still the same as 2013. to confirm, check with dr colorchip website to see touchup paint part number for the two cars. i know with white they don't match through the years (that's what my car is..)

Marko

 

[aluminumwelder]

bondo
seriously, leaf is ugly already anyways.
It's not like you drive it because it looks cool.

 

[erco]

bondo
seriously, leaf is ugly already anyways.
It's not like you drive it because it looks cool.

Terrific comment. Thank you for taking the time to share your valuable insight. Solid gold. Really. Can't wait for more. So excited.

 

[brg2290]

Hi, and thanks for the input. Latest update is I will be having one more paintless dent repair guy look at the car for an estimate. The tech has years of experience and he is well reviewed. Will update on my end when I have more information. Meantime, anyone else have experience swapping out a door, making the electrical connections and getting the lock to work with the key fob?

 

[goldbrick]

I've swapped doors on my ICE vehicles to get rid of door dings. If you can find one at a junkyard for a reasonable cost, it's usually not hard to just unbolt the door, swap the electrical connections and bolt the door back on. I don't have any experience with a Leaf but a quick glance at the door hinges should show you how easy they would be to access. Then it's just a matter of popping off the door liner on the inside and removing the window regulator etc.

A few things to keep in mind if you go this route is that the paint may not match exactly if one of the cars was in the sun more than the other or even if they just came from a different batches of paint. The door alignment is usually not an issue since the alignment is usually done on the hinge itself, not the bolts that hold the door to the hinge. There may be rivets (plastic or metal) or one time use clips behind the door panel that could complicate matters but I would assume you could buy replacements at your local Nissan dealer if needed.

Bottom line, I haven't done this on a Leaf but I have done this on other cars and it wasn't a tough job. YMMV.

On my cars the key fob communicated with a central locking controller that was matched to the fob. The doors were simply told to lock/unlock by the central controller. I'm not 100% sure but I would assume the Leaf works the same.

 

[brg2290]

On my cars the key fob communicated with a central locking controller that was matched to the fob. The doors were simply told to lock/unlock by the central controller. I'm not 100% sure but I would assume the Leaf works the same.

Hi goldbrick. All good information, especially the key fob info. If this is indeed the case (and it seems logical to me), then it eliminates one of my greatest concerns with the door replacement approach.
Thanks for posting.

 

[aluminumwelder]

Terrific comment. Thank you for taking the time to share your valuable insight. Solid gold. Really. Can't wait for more. So excited.

at least I offered a viable cheap easy fix, unlike your sarcastic jack a*s comment that offered nothing positive. when you point a finger look at the 4 pointing back to you.

 

[glenc]

@brg2290, did you end up replacing the door?
I am in a similar boat: I need to replace my passenger front door (white 2013 Leaf). I found a suitable door on eBay from the seller "morrisroseauto" for a very good price (around $500 with shipping).

If you replaced your rear door yourself, would you tell me some how-to details, please? I believe I can do the labor myself, but I have never done such a job before.

 

[Nubo]

We've used PDR a few times now and the results have exceeded my expectations every time going from gnarly damage to practically undetectable. It depends on your desires but I'd say 90% is good enough for a 2013 and if you get a skilled tech you may get much better than that.

 

[goldbrick]

I've never worked on my Leaf (one of the reasons I bought it) but I've swapped doors on several other cars. It was straight-forward and just involved un-bolting the old door, disconnecting one or two electrical plugs between the car and door and then installing the new door.

A few things to keep in mind are

- There are sometimes unusual bolt heads on the doors. I think I needed 'triple-square' bit drivers one time and hex or torx bits on othes.

- You will need a helper or a lift to hold the new door in place so you can get it attached. Doors are heavy and trying to line up the holes and get the bolts started isn't trivial.

- If you have window tint the new windows may not match. It's usually fairly easy to swap windows or just get the new window tinted.

- Don't cut any wires. The door wiring can almost certainly be disconnected near the hinge but if not, open the door panel and undo the harness before removing the door.

 

[LeftieBiker]

You will need a helper or a lift to hold the new door in place so you can get it attached. Doors are heavy and trying to line up the holes and get the bolts started isn't trivial.

I used to get around this by using a straight-backed chair as my assistant. Try to find one the right height before you start. My door-swapping days were in the Seventies and early Eighties, so I never had to unplug anything.