95-99 Maxima rear quarter panel?

Does the 4th generation Maxima has a REAR quarter panel, or is it an integral part of the unibody?

Mine was hit recently, and I'd like to know if it can be replaced as opposed to repaired.

Thanks guys,

Reply to
Tu* Houston
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Just based on visual inspection it's a unibody.

Dave

Reply to
David Geesaman

They haven't made cars with bolt on rear quarter panels for a very long time. It's replaceable, but you need to weld it on.

Reply to
JimV

JimV scratched out in the sand

Yeah, my '98 got smashed from behind about two years ago. They imported two new rear quarter panels and welded them in. (I also got a new front/rear fender assy. and a new trunk assembly.) The body shop showed me how they do it. It is a unibody, but there are weld points where the different panels are put together.

Just be sure to insist they use Nissan parts. In my case it took an extra three weeks for the shipment to arrive, but I figure it is worth it. Also remember to have them blend in the paint. They can never exactly match the paint, but if they blend it in (feather?) then you'll never notice.

Reply to
filesiteguy

Thank you, filesiteguy. That's the same information I got from local Nissan dealer. Each panel itself costs $415.

Were you happy with the body work on your 98? Did the weld show at all?

Reply to
mynetsig

snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com scratched out in the sand

Yeah, I was happy with the work. I do have a minor rattle in the passenger door, but I've just been too busy/lazy to take it back.

There is no visible sign that the rear of the car is new, except if you look under the rear bumper, you can see the paint is newer than under the front bumper. (Only the front fender was replaced in the front.)

My only gripe was that I got stuck renting cars for three months. After being given - in short order a Toyota Tercel, Ford Focus, Saturn LS1, and a Chevy Impala (which had steering probs), I yelled at the manager of the rental dealership and he gave me a Buick LeSabre Custom to drive. Since it was on the dime of the other guy, I didn't mind too much. Total rental - $2700. Add that to the more than $12,000 they spent fixing the car, and I wonder why the didn't just total it and get the salvage. (I did try to convince them.) The car - at the time - was worth roughly $12,000 blue book and $15,000 according to State Farm.

Reply to
filesiteguy

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