# It was my fault, GRP repair?



## leseduts (Jun 3, 2008)

We took the Carthago out for a run yesterday. 
When we got back home I reversed down the side of the house and clipped the overhang. Heavens only knows what I was looking at in the mirrors but it was not the gap between the house and the gate post. ( No it was not alcohol induced, I do not drink). The parking sensors did not change to a continuous beep.
Anyway, I luckily hit the wooden soffit board and the bottom ridge tile. The tile has made a small hole in the GRP. on the rear top of the MH. It is not on the roof, but the back panel.
Can we repair it ourselves or do we need a specialist to do the job? If so has anyone any suggestions for a repair in Yorkshire, please.


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## HermanHymer (Dec 5, 2008)

Sorry not to be posting a helpful response - just wanted to sympathise. There's only one thing more annoying than dinging your own vehicle - that's when someone else dings it and leaves without leaving a name or an apology. 

Just had my (new, scratchless) car gouged on the back rear panel while it was parked. Some people have no idea how to reverse out of a parking place!!!

Luckily got it fixed cheap... and beautifully, I wish you the same kind of luck, leseduts. Still an annoying waste of money.

C'est la vie. The sooner its fixed, the sooner you can forget the experience.


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## listerdiesel (Aug 3, 2012)

You could repair it yourself, but to make a decent job of it you'd need it professionally painted anyway, so I'd suggest you talk to your dealer who will probably know someone.

Peter


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## coppo (May 27, 2009)

Premium motorhomes south Yorks.


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## powerplus (Oct 6, 2014)

hi merry christmas

if its a small hole just fill it with a smidge of body filler to keep the eliments out

you could contact a mobile dent repairer they will be able to do it easily it will not be expensive and they should get it to match
they specialise in small dents and scratches and on panels and plastic bumpers

a lot of garages call on them for small jobs as they have the equipment to mix and spray a couple of thimbles of paint

let us know how you get on

barry


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Not sure how far you are up in North Yorkshire but our body shop in Darlington is excellent and they are not expensive (about £40 an hour I think). http://mwilsoncogarage.co.uk/

Tell them Barry Dobson with Hank the Tank sent you and you expect a discount.


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## Mrplodd (Mar 4, 2008)

Ask your local coach company who does their repair work. They will be well experienced and vastly cheaper than a "specialist" MH repairer. 

Trust me

Andy


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## Zebedee (Oct 3, 2007)

Crafty suggestion from Plodders! :wink2:

Depending entirely upon where the hole is and whether it's on a flat area of panel, you could try a bit of lateral thinking.

If you can't hide it, don't try . . . get something like a rigid plastic badge or logo, about 3mm thick, and fix it over the hole with Sikaflex. If the looks are acceptable to you this is by far the cheapest and easiest way to fix it, and don't worry about water ingress if you use Sikaflex. It sticks like _you-know-what_ to a new blanket!!!!

Good luck

Dave


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## Mrplodd (Mar 4, 2008)

Not so much crafter as personal experience!!

I did some damage to the rear panel of my Autotrail a few years ago. I was pretty sure it would need a new rear panel and that it would, without a doubt, be to an insurance job. At that time I was doing a bit of driving for a coach firm so the guys in the workshop suggested I visit the local company that did all their coach repairs (same sort of construction as. MH)

So I duly went along and asked them to give me an estimate, after much sucking through the teeth the guy gave me a quote for LESS than my insurance compulsory excess!! REEESULT!!!

Andy

The repair was totally invisible as well.


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## Zebedee (Oct 3, 2007)

Noted Andy, and tucked away in memory for if/when I bash our van. Only common sense really, but I hadn't thought of it.

Anything with "Motorhome" in the title quadruples in price straight away, and as you implied, coaches get bashed fairly often so you would expect their repairers to be well practiced and good at fixing!!

Thanks. A really useful tip. :smile2:

Dave


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## nicholsong (May 26, 2009)

Foe 'lesduts'

I do not know but your Carthago paint job was originally a 'powder-coating' like our N+B Arto. If so it makes it more difficult to get an exact colour match.

Just check with whoever you ask to fix it.

Geoff


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## leseduts (Jun 3, 2008)

Thanks for all your input.


It has stopped raining long enough for us to get a ladder out and have a proper look. 
We have a crack about an inch long on the top edge of the rear corner pillar and a small chip off the GRP. As a temporary measure we have duck taped over the crack..


I still cannot believe that I have managed to hit the overhang. Every delivery van driver gets told about it, and we watch them in and out. Himself tells me that he was yelling at me to stop. 
Luckily we never argue about vehicle accidents, because that is what they are, accidents and we have had very few over the years.


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## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

Posting a picture might help with suggestions, as for covering it up, our latest van had a GB sticker on the front over cab bed window, yup, months later when I decided it looked tatty and needed to be removed, there is a big crack only just smaller than the sticker, I tried to find another window but it was a special it seems.

Also found an amber reflector on one side only, yup, another ding disguised.


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## KeithChesterfield (Mar 12, 2010)

I did a bit of damage to the bodywork and the thought of Main Dealer prices filled me with dread.


After a bit of online searching I found that repairs to GRP and respraying are a large part of boat and dinghy repairers work.


A local small boat business, we are about 70 miles from the nearest coast, had a look and sorted it out at a fraction of the cost of a Dealer.


A temporary repair should be okay for you but long term bodywork repairs to your pride and joy (I mean the MH!) would probably be better done by an expert.


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## Landyman (Apr 3, 2010)

From Carthago Owners UK:-

DMR in Doncaster are an official accident repair specialist approved by Carthago. They can source parts directly and fairly promptly.

DMR Motorhome Body Repair Specialists
Plum tree Farm Industrial Estate 
Harworth
Doncaster
DN11 8EW

01302 711377

These people have been used by a number of Carthago owners and have been given good reviews.

Richard.


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## Zebedee (Oct 3, 2007)

Dare I say it?

Yes I dare . . . if you can afford a Carthago you can probably scrape together a few quid to get a little hole repaired! :wink2:

_(To be fair though, Leseduts is about the only one *not *to have mentioned the cost!)_

Happy New Year

Dave :smile2:


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## leseduts (Jun 3, 2008)

Zebedee said:


> Dare I say it?
> 
> Yes I dare . . . if you can afford a Carthago you can probably scrape together a few quid to get a little hole repaired! :wink2:
> 
> ...


 Buying it emptied the bank, but we have no kids and we cannot take it with us. I do not mind paying a fair price for a good job, but as mentioned previously the word 'motorhome' seems to add £s to the price. I am sure we could take it back to the dealer, but as they wanted £600 plus for 2 fog lights I am not going down that road. We shall ring around the local coach repairers after New Year is over.


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## Zebedee (Oct 3, 2007)

leseduts said:


> Buying it emptied the bank, but we have no kids and we cannot take it with us.


I know what you mean.

A couple of years ago a pushy double glazing salesman commented that we must be quite well off if we could afford the motorhome. _(Cheeky git would have lost the sale even if we wanted new windows!!)_

_"You're too late young man!"_ I said. _"We *did *have a few quid *before *we bought it!!"_

Dave


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## nicholsong (May 26, 2009)

Zebedee said:


> I know what you mean.
> 
> A couple of years ago a pushy double glazing salesman commented that we must be quite well off if we could afford the motorhome. _(Cheeky git would have lost the sale even if we wanted new windows!!)_
> 
> ...


Same with boats.

My boat cost £23K MH £27K. My house is worth North of £1M so why do they look at the boat or MH and judge one's wealth? Probably because they cannot see the Carribean holiday the family of four went on to Sandals which cost far more than a year's MHing, including depreciation:wink2::laugh:

Geoff


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