Wheel Arch - any guide to remove?

Hi all,

Went to visit some family on Friday and when I got back to the car I noticed that the rear wheel arch on one side had "popped out" at the rearmost section. (so most of it's in, just the rearmost part is sticking out.)

Looking at the surrounding paint/trim etc it all seems perfect and undamaged. The even more strange part is that the actual wheel arch trim appears to be undamaged as well (the bottom part has what looks like a "n" bit which I guess is supposed to clip/keep it into place.

A forum search refers to a post by mark_n but couldn't find which one it is. Can anyone point me to a link, or where I can get instructions on how to repair it? Was thinking of just popping it back in, but don't want to make it worse.

Thanks,
Nathan

(12-10-2013 04:37pm)RR_fan Wrote:  Hi all,

Went to visit some family on Friday and when I got back to the car I noticed that the rear wheel arch on one side had "popped out" at the rearmost section. (so most of it's in, just the rearmost part is sticking out.)

Looking at the surrounding paint/trim etc it all seems perfect and undamaged. The even more strange part is that the actual wheel arch trim appears to be undamaged as well (the bottom part has what looks like a "n" bit which I guess is supposed to clip/keep it into place.

A forum search refers to a post by mark_n but couldn't find which one it is. Can anyone point me to a link, or where I can get instructions on how to repair it? Was thinking of just popping it back in, but don't want to make it worse.


Thanks,
Nathan

The blue coloured clip that holds the plastic arch to the body rests in what you call the "n" piece. This then just pushes into the body. The clips on the rear arches are more delicate than the fronts so, but the arches themselves are quite tough allowing you to pull and move them quite a bit to get the holes and clips lines up. When you put the arch back in just make sure the lug at the bottom of the arch is clipped behind the plastic joint at the top of the bumper to make sure you get the correct fit.

Yes, I replaced the wheel arch after someone dinged it with their car door; those clips are delicate and are difficult to remove without damaging them. If all else fails, you can get a new one for very little money, certainly no more than £20.

Always a good idea to remove trim parts with a plastic pry tool which minimises the chance of damage.

Since you say yours is undamaged - which must include all the conical shaped press studs - it's just a case of aligning the stud with the hole and pressing it firmly home with the flat of your hand or, if you have one, a gentle tap with a rubber mallet which is what they use in the factory.

(12-10-2013 07:01pm)BFGEvoqueMan Wrote:  The blue coloured clip that holds the plastic arch to the body rests in what you call the "n" piece. This then just pushes into the body. The clips on the rear arches are more delicate than the fronts so, but the arches themselves are quite tough allowing you to pull and move them quite a bit to get the holes and clips lines up. When you put the arch back in just make sure the lug at the bottom of the arch is clipped behind the plastic joint at the top of the bumper to make sure you get the correct fit.

Thanks for all the input - gave it a shot and it looks good as new!!

Great

Mark_n, do you know where I can get spare blue bits to pop my wheel arch back In? Furthermore the parking sensor is not working anymore as the wires were torn so may also need a new sensor fuse.