Ruined Passenger Side Side Skirt - I'm Dumb

[ZaChickster]

Ok, I'm an idiot.

Was driving son to get some ice cream after a good game and as I turned into a parking lot I've been in dozens of times I got my GT350 hung up on the curb. Took the turn slow but too tight and toward the right side of the entrance. Center hung under the passenger side door between the wheels. Couldn't go forward, couldn't go in reverse; just spun the passenger side rear tire in the sandy gutter. Didn't want to light both tires up and launch into a crowded parking lot or back into the street. Embarrassing as hell. Thankfully there was a group of young guys there who were willing to give my car a push as I feathered the clutch with the wheel cranked in reverse and got the car off the curb. Doesn't appear to be any serious damage (aside from my pride).

Now with that context I've got some questions.

Composite side skirt is messed up and probably needs replacement (see photos). I've spent the last hour searching and I can't find the part number and cost of OEM factory replacement parts. Any ideas? I've seen adds for Anderson Carbon Fiber replacements but ~ $1100 for something I might scratch up again seems a little steep. I'm not totally against the idea of CF replacements but would it really be worth it? I obviously scratched the hell out of the body colored metal parts down there too. Should I do anything about that? Worth getting professionally repainted? We get snow here in Colorado but no salt.

The car is my baby but it is no garage queen as I daily it when there isn't snow (literally get groceries in it all the time).

Thanks folks.

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[pilotgore]

Ok, I'm an idiot.

Was driving son to get some ice cream after a good game and as I turned into a parking lot I've been in dozens of times I got my GT350 hung up on the curb. Took the turn slow but too tight and toward the right side of the entrance. Center hung under the passenger side door between the wheels. Couldn't go forward, couldn't go in reverse; just spun the passenger side rear tire in the sandy gutter. Didn't want to light both tires up and launch into a crowded parking lot or back into the street. Embarrassing as hell. Thankfully there was a group of young guys there who were willing to give my car a push as I feathered the clutch with the wheel cranked in reverse and got the car off the curb. Doesn't appear to be any serious damage (aside from my pride).

Now with that context I've got some questions.

Composite side skirt is messed up and probably needs replacement (see photos). I've spent the last hour searching and I can't find the part number and cost of OEM factory replacement parts. Any ideas? I've seen adds for Anderson Carbon Fiber replacements but ~ $1100 for something I might scratch up again seems a little steep. I'm not totally against the idea of CF replacements but would it really be worth it? I obviously scratched the hell out of the body colored metal parts down there too. Should I do anything about that? Worth getting professionally repainted? We get snow here in Colorado but no salt.

The car is my baby but it is no garage queen as I daily it when there isn't snow (literally get groceries in it all the time).

Thanks folks.

Ouch! Well, it sounds like you’ve purchased yourself a story that you can laugh about for years to come

Is the damage to the skirt visible when viewing the car from the side, or only underneath? If only underneath I don’t know that I’d worry about it. I don’t have a part number, but if you took it to a body shop for an estimate I wonder if the estimate would include the part numbers. A ford dealership parts department can also provide you with a parts number pretty quickly. Might be worth stopping into a dealership or making a call.

For the painted portion, is it just the pinch weld area that got scraped? If so, I’d wipe off the area with isopropyl alcohol then paint the damaged areas with a color correct touch up paint/clear kit (brush on) and be done with it. Quality kits, or kits from ford are in the $20-$30 range. The sooner you can coat the metal the better, even if there’s no road salt in CO being used.

Thanks for the story and best of luck!

 

[Nfs1000f]

You may want to consider getting yourself some jacking rails which will prevent this from happening.

 

[TonyNJ]

You're not an idiot. We've all messed up. I absolve you of this unfortunate blunder. Your car will be back to perfect condition in no time.

Try to avoid that area again. You don't want to have you face that group of people that saw you get hung up and had to help you. It will reignite al these feelings of shame again.

 

[NGOT8R]

Take your VIN to the dealership and they will be able to pull up the part number for the skirt, as well as order you a can of color matched touch up paint in aerosol form. In the meantime, I’d get some sandpaper (maybe try 400 grit), sand down the areas that got scraped, really good and even scuff the paint on either side of the scrape, then shoot a couple of light coats of rust inhibiting primer on and follow that up with your color matched paint. Finally, reinstall the new skirt and you’re back in the game

 

[br_an]

The part you're looking for is in the body moulding category on parts.ford.com (if you open this link you'll need to enter your vehicle details and choose a local dealership parts department).

If I'm looking at the right thing it's about $800 from Ford.

I could be way off on the part number there but it's the general category you're looking for. Good luck!

 

[loco_GT350]

Bummer to see this. Honestly it doesn’t look too bad. As was mentioned by pilotgore, if the damage is only underneath then I am not sure I would worry about it beyond getting the exposed metal taken care of.

If you decide to roll with keeping your existing rocker molding it looks like you will at least need one rocker molding retainer fastener.

You can find the rocker molding trim part numbers as well as any of the other needs pieces at this link:

https://parts.autonationfordwhitebe...350r--5-2l-v8-gas/body--exterior-trim-pillars

I am not suggesting you need buy from this dealer, I just provided it as a reference so you can at least find the part and part numbers you are looking for.....

 

[Demonic]

The guy who scuffs his car while spending time with his son isn't an idiot. A guy who messes up his car trying to show off to his buddies or randos at a car meet is an idiot.

 

[stanglife]

The painted part is attached to the skirt so you need to remove and replace that - I believe it's body rivets.

 

[ZaChickster]

Wow, thanks everyone. Put question out at night in mountain time and have the early birds on the east coast answer it a couple hours later. Now to figure out how to tackle myself (not much of a DIY honestly). If the OEM parts are ~$850 then do I just do an extra $300 for Carbon Fiber (chrome of the 21st century)?

 

[stanglife]

CF is a different animal. If you had it and then this happened, it probably would have been a mess. CF looks great and is stiff but it does get damaged. Not my first choice for lower panels, for sure.

 

[pilotgore]

Wow, thanks everyone. Put question out at night in mountain time and have the early birds on the east coast answer it a couple hours later. Now to figure out how to tackle myself (not much of a DIY honestly). If the OEM parts are ~$850 then do I just do an extra $300 for Carbon Fiber (chrome of the 21st century)?

The brush on touch up paint is idiot proof…. It’s almost exactly like nail polish and doesn’t need to be perfect. No taping or masking off required. You just need to cover the metal so it doesn’t rust, and it just needs to look good from 6 feet away. I’d consider doing the paint asap…. The sooner you cover the bare metal, the better your outcome.

 

[barstowpo]

I did the exact same thing in my 2004 GTO the day after I bought it. It was way more obvious on the GTO.

 

[Cobra Jet]

If the damage is only superficial and under the rocker out of sight, me personally, just leave it as is. To spend over $800 on a part that has no visible damage from the side of the car or even if standing next to it - not worth it.

I don't even see any damage to the pinch weld from your images. So a slight crack in the bottom of rocker molding under the car may seem extreme to you, but again if the damage can't be seen next to the car or by means from looking down the side or direct on at door - don't sweat it.

 

[Greenerict]

Found it at my dealer, $550

2015-2020 Ford Mustang Rocker Molding FR3Z-6310176-AB | Varsity Ford (varsityfordparts.com)

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