My 250SE is now repaired and better than ever

After the impact with a Kangaroo, my 250SE Cabriolet is back on the road and better than ever. While the damage didn’t look that bad at first, the repairs required were extensive. Unlike when you hit another car, A Kangaroo is ‘softer’ damage that isn’t as apparent to the naked eye. It would be the same for hitting a Deer or other medium sized animal.

As outlined in the article linked above, there was a fair amount of body work required on the car. In addition, we required a good used headlight, the grille repaired and re-chromed, a NOS grille […]

250SE crash repair update – paint

Today I went by to check out how things were going on the 250SE crash repair. Last week the panel work was nearly complete and the car was almost ready for pant. The paint was just done yesterday so it was good timing to take a look at the car. It’s looking really good!

The front chassis, wing and bonnet are now all painted and they look perfect. The leading edge of the bonnet got a few scratches from the Kangaroo’s head. the area of the wing just to the left of the grille took the brunt of the damage. […]

W111 Kangaroo damage repairs

Back a couple of weeks ago, I hit a Kangaroo in my 250SE. I’m Insured through Shannons who handled the claim well. Surprisingly, impact with an animal does not impact my premium. The car is now with All Classic Car restorations in Brookvale, and I’ve popped down to take a look at it a couple of times. All Classic also did the repairs to my Citroen a couple of years ago.

As part of the process, I helped them track down some parts. The grille shell will need to be repaired as they are no longer available. The two door […]

Citroen DS crash repair, pt 5

The DS is now repaired and is in the process of preparation for paint. Not only did work need to be done to fix the damage from the crash, but previous repairs had to be put right too. The paint that was previously on the car was not well prepared. The car was not rusty, but there was minor surface rust under the paint that was preventing it from looking that good. There was also previous accident damage, as can be seen on the front wing.

I found a photo of the car with this damage when I purchased it […]

Citroen DS crash repair, pt 4

The DS is almost ready for paint. Most of the work has been on the doors and rear wings. Both rear wings are pretty much ready and the doors are not far behind.

There are a few areas of the car that are still having minor repairs done, such as this corner of the roof.

Of the red colours available for the DS, the two we can find on the computer are 411 Rouge Carmin and 423 Rouge Massena. I need to make a final decision and I am leaning towards Massena (left). Carmin is more striking, […]

Citroen DS crash repair, pt 3

The doors have now been removed from the DS to prepare them for paint. The DS makes this easier than most other cars as the panels are all unstressed and fairly easy to remove. It also makes a colour change easier as the underlying chassis is black and its only the removable panels that have colour.

The doors were in pretty good shape. They had much better paint than the wings and the boot/bonnet. There were a few older dents and so on and a bit of filler, but no real damage. At some point in its life, the […]

Citroen DS crash repair, pt 2

The repairs to the DS continue to progress well. The crash damage is now repaired and the new parts I was able to get for the car have all been fitted and seem to fit well. They will now be removed for painting.

The restored bumpers and NOS bonnet look great! It looks like a car again. The reproduction undertray and number plate panel also fit well and will look great once painted.

The old bumpers now lie twisted on the ground next to the car, having taken the brunt of the impact.

The car seems to […]

Citroen DS crash repair, pt 1

Back in September last year, I unfortunately crashed my DS. Since then, I was able to track down a NOS bonnet, some good used bumpers and other parts and strip the rear of the car. The cars paint was faded so instead of having the repairers match faded paint, I will pay extra to repaint the whole car. My current plan is to change the colour of the car from Rouge De Rio (Rio Red), a 1971 colour to Rouge Cornaline, which was offered in 1969 and other years. The Rio red is almost and orangey red and I prefer […]