Help sourcing body parts...

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Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Mike Roberts » Tue Jan 31, 2017 20:15

Hi to all,

I've not been very active of late, but by way of introduction - I'm the proud owner of a 1994 Cappo from new and it still puts a smile on my face every time I open the garage! Or at least it did until recently, when an unfortunate incident resulted in some major damage to the front bumper.

So I'm here seeking advice from SCORE - how do I go about sourcing replacement body parts (such as the bumper!) for a 23 year old car? My local Suzuki garage, while very polite, were not jumping over themselves to help.

Can I have the plastic bumper repaired? It's scratched and torn in places and most (if not all) of the bolt lugs, which hold it to the car, have cracked. Does the technology exist?

If not, are there reliable routes to source a second hand bumper from within the UK? Or further afield? Someone suggested it was possible to view Japanese auction sites direct from the UK and obtain spares relatively cheaply - but it sounds risky/complicated - does anyone here have experience?

Does anyone know of an available undamaged bumper which I might purchase?

Any help/advice would be very welcome - thanks in advance!

Michael
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Ian Linden » Wed Feb 01, 2017 10:13

Hi Mike,

Sad news, but there is hope.

The most helpful Suzuki dealer is Levois of Colchester, and they give SCORE 10% discount. Worth a try.

I haven't bought anything from Japan, but the shipping costs of a bumper would be severe, and there would be VAT on top. If you want to investigate, I suggest an email enquiry to JP-CarParts.

The items on Japanese auction sites are mainly aftermarket "deep skirt" bumpers.

There are a few 2nd hand on EBay at the moment. One in Biggleswade is only £40 - could be your best bet.
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Murray Betts » Wed Feb 01, 2017 21:12

As Ian says, I was perusing ebay yesterday and looked at used Capp bits and there's quite a lot of stuff at present, including a couple of front/rear bumpers, front wings, rear wheel arch repair panels etc. I did notice some new old stock headlamps at around six hundred squids each 8O
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Chris da Silva » Sun Apr 09, 2017 05:23

Hi Mike. Maybe I can help.

Cappos were never officially brought into Australia (that's where I am!) and finding parts for my one are even more dire than in dear old Blighty!

But there is some good news! I managed to get a contact name in Japan who sources hard-to-find [Japanese] car parts there. He is Jesse Streeter (http://www.jessestreeter.com), an Aussie who has set up shop in Japan specifically for this purpose. I got a few items from him in the past and he's very reliable! All you need to do is to send him the part numbers and he'll get back to you in a few days time with their availability. (I only use him for parts which the main dealers here can't supply.) All parts are priced in Japanese Yen (JPY): Jesse deals only with all Japanese marques; so you'll have to let him know what car it's for when enquiring.

I usually pay [for my parts] by cash over the counter at a branch of his bank because he has an Aussie bank account; but I'm not too sure how this can be done from the UK....maybe an on-line cash transfer by internet banking?

His method is very simple: there are 2 payments to be made... one for the parts and another for the shipping by courier. How Jesse does it is to order up all the parts required by his customers [as a bulk delivery to his premises] in the course of the week; and then he packages up each order individually for each specific customer, ready for despatch. The first payment is to pay the parts suppliers separately; and the second (a few days later), shipping by courier to the customer. OK, it's a little messy trying to describe it in words; but this method works just fine!

If you ordered up bulky items such as the front bumper or body panels, I suggest having them delivered straight to the body repairers instead of to your home address. (That'll save you loading up your car and taking them there yourself; unless, of course, you really want to .... ) :)

Hope this helps.
Last edited by Chris da Silva on Mon Apr 10, 2017 12:09, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Mike Roberts » Sun Apr 09, 2017 07:32

Hi Chris, and all others who have posted help for me via the forum - much appreciated.

Certainly, I think the info about Jesse and his business will be of great interest and use to all Cappo owners, especially us in the UK. I'll be looking him up for sure.

Thankfully, the repair of my Cappo is complete now. After searching for a replacement bumper on line, I was initially disappointed by the condition (and prices) of the available stock - they appeared to be in worse condition than my own one! So I started looking for alternatives - namely plastic repairers - and struck lucky; Steve Edwards has a web site (steve-edwards.com) explaining how this might be achieved - and he turned out to be 1/2mile from where I'm based - coincidence or what!

Steve explained that many plastic parts can be repaired, provided there is donor plastic of the exact same type available. Small repairs may be achieved by removing bits from hidden parts, but larger "plastic surgery" (the pun represents a good description of the process) is best done using a spare part.

The damage on my bumper was unfortunately the wrong type for repairing - consisting of torn material, and spiderweb cracking; straightforward cracks and holes can be fused or filled, but jagged, deformed, stretched and torn plastic needs to be cut out, removed and replaced - and therefore could be costly in time and ongoing structural integrity. In the end, I bought another bumper, which was damaged and in poor condition, but which could be repaired more easily, using sections of my own original as the donor part.

A couple of weeks later, Steve was able to fit my Cappo into his schedule and less than 2 week after that - good as new! Bent brackets straightened and powder coated, radiator checked, and the bumper repaired, painted and refitted (after some small, but delicate, frame adjustments). Very happy with the results and I would recommend Steve to anyone!

Many thanks again for all the help

Michael
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Ian Linden » Sun Apr 09, 2017 09:06

Very good to hear, Mike 8)
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Chris da Silva » Sun Apr 09, 2017 13:49

Hi Mike. Not a problem - delighted to assist another club member whenever I can! 8)
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Murray Betts » Mon Apr 10, 2017 10:08

Excellent news about the repair, and also useful info on who can supply what services. :D
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Chris da Silva » Mon Apr 10, 2017 12:04

Hi Murray.

Murray Betts wrote:I did notice some new old stock headlamps at around six hundred squids each


600 squids???? For a headlamp??? Are you kidding me?? 8O 8O
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Ian Linden » Mon Apr 10, 2017 19:38

With new parts for Cappos so rare, I guess people charge what they think they can get.
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Re: Help sourcing body parts...

Postby Chris da Silva » Tue Apr 11, 2017 02:13

For comparison, try getting a quote from Jesse and see what comes back. But I'm sure it won't be 600 squids!
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