Fixing my Jeep

Here is what happened ...
On October 5th of 2004, we had a hail storm. Read more about the Great Hail Storm of 2004. It just so happened that my Jeep was parked in the middle of it all. My Jeep faired surprising well and now that the insurance has paid out, it is time to start the healing process.

The money to fix my Jeep
Like the other thousands of people in Socorro with hail damage, I had to get in line for an insurance adjuster to appraise the damage to my Jeep. It took nine days of waiting and in the end, everything worked out fine. The damage to my Jeep was appraised at nearly $6000 and after they took out my deductible, they wrote me a check for almost $5700. The only catch was that the check was in both my name and my loan company's name.

Dealing with my loan company
Since I have a lean on my Jeep, the loan company has a direct interest in how my Jeep gets fixed. They would prefer I take my Jeep, and the insurance payout, to a body shop to have everything fixed. I suggested that they let me fix as much as possible and I would invoke the use of a body shop as needed. They accepted my suggestion. That is what is nice about dealing with a credit union. So off I go ...

Here is a quick link to a gallery containing all the before and after shots of my Jeep during the healing process.

Now it is time to spell out the damage to my Jeep. The following was written in the order I believe the damage to be repaired.

1. Initial replacement of broken, yet required items
Immediately following the hail storm, my Jeep required a few small items to make it fully functional again. These items include a new gas cap and (2) new light bulbs.
Before and after pictures.

2. Repair the passenger tail light and replace both front signal lights
Repairing the passenger tail light was simple. A hail stone had struck the top of the housing and cleanly broke out a portion of the top. Super glue was used to bond the broken piece to the housing. The tail light now looks near perfect and the fine line surrounding the broken out piece is only faintly visible, if you are looking for it.
Before and after pictures.

The front signal lights are each a complete housing and must be replaced as a unit. The good news is that they cost less than $20 each. During my next trip the Jeep dealer, I will purchase a new set.
Before and after pictures of the drivers side and passengers side.

3. Replace hood and cowel vent cover
Both the hood and cowel vent cover (or what ever you call it, the piece of metal between the winshield and the hood) are damaged beyond repair. That means that both items will need to be replaced. Doing some searching, I found that the cowel vent cover can only be purchased from a dealer in unpainted form. The cost should be under $100. The hood can be purchased from a dealer but the cost is a little hight at $435. Quadratec.com has the hood for $280 + $85 S/H = $365 but shipping time is 2-3 weeks.

Both items must be painted and I am currently looking into that.
Before and after pictures.

4. Repair hardtop
This is where I plan to save a lot of money. The insurance company payout includes the funds for a new hardtop but I plan on trying to repair mine. There are three issues that need to be addressed

1. The inside of the hardtop has several small splinter areas in the roof. Pictures
2. The top of the roof has two cracks in the fiberglass. Pictures
3. The top is 5 years old and has faded some. Everywhere a large hail stone hit, the oxidation was off, leaving light and dark spots all over. Pictures

I plan to address each of these issues with the following plan of attack

1. Have the inner roof Rhino Lined. This will not only create a new surface void of the splintered areas but also help reduce the noise in the cab. I have actually been contemplating doing this for some time, just for the noise benefits. Now I have a reason to follow though with it.
2. Repair the cracks in the fiberglass. One nice thing about fiberglass is that it can be easily repaired.
3. Repaint the hardtop. I am actually rather excited about this part. Since the hardtop was already fading, a new paint job will really make it look nice, and I can change the color. Instead of the dull old tan that almost half of all the Wranger ship with, I want to match it to the forest green in my seats. Again, not only will this make the hardtop look nice, it will also make my Wrangler unique because they don't offer a forest green top.

5. Dent repair on fenders, winshield frame, etc.
This is my lowest priority due to the rather minor damage that was left by the hail. The dents are very light and hardly noticable. I plan to visit a paintless dent repair buisness at a later date and have the majority of them fixed.