Fender Rolling to Fit Larger Wheels

[Kirk]

I FINALLY got around to rolling the fenders on my 2000 S. I went home for Christmas and picked up the necessary tool for this precision job - an aluminum baseball bat! I am glad to report that the whole thing was a huge success. I used a heat gun to thoroughly heat the paint before rolling and I got zero cracks in the paint on the surface. Inside the fender I tore up the paint with the bat, but I'm not really concerned about that. I probably made the paint too soft with the heat gun, but I was also pressing and rolling pretty hard with the bat. I got the fender lip pretty darn near flat!

I'm taking the car into a body shop tomorrow to get some side skirts installed, so I won't have a chance to test it this week. If this fender rolling didn't take car of my rub issue, then I'll have to go back and get an alignment again and get the rear camber pushed from negative 2.0 to 2.5 or so...

So if any of you guys want to roll your fenders, the baseball bat method does indeed work on the Boxster. Just take your time and use some heat to soften the paint.

Kirk

[dcporsche99]

Cant' wait to see the pictures!


EDIT: I was trying to imagine, but I could never have imagined this! It's actually a neat tool!! So here's a link for the others on "fender rolling" -

http://mazda6tech.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=17&Itemid=1

[djomlas]

there are pleanty of how-tos on how to get this done, but the safest way is to get a rolling tool
i know that bmwcca rents them for free, and other places as well...much safer than a bat....

either way, make sure that you heat up the are in order not to crack your paint, they you did more damage than good.

and as for the value of the car...what the hell man?

[boxs2000]

Have you thought about having your alignment adjusted (more camber) to keep the rear from rubbing. I would try that first because I had my fenders rolled before on my GTI and it worked but it also made the lip weaker because the edge that was put on it for strength was rolled in and it warped after awhile.

[Kirk]

Originally Posted by boxs2000

Have you thought about having your alignment adjusted (more camber) to keep the rear from rubbing. I would try that first because I had my fenders rolled before on my GTI and it worked but it also made the lip weaker because the edge that was put on it for strength was rolled in and it warped after awhile.

I already rolled my fenders, I did that last night. But yeah you're spot on - if the fender rolling didn't give me enough clearance, then I'll get it aligned for more negative camber in the rear.

Kirk