2008 Chev Silverado 2500HD Body Rebuild

[Grizzwald]

Hey Everyone, I have a 2008 Chev Silverado 2500 HD Duramax 4x4 Crew ShortBox that I have owned since new and has reasonable mileage with a good drive line & interior but the body is starting to show quite a bit of rust. Had a Central Alberta shop complete a body repair estimate and they came back with $15K for replace/repair/paint and thought that was a little steep?

Anyone have any sense of what kind of cost range a guy should expect for this type of repair? Any places in Central Alberta that you would recommend to complete the work?

Really don't want to get rid of the thing to move to the DEF & emissions crap, just want it to look decent and for the body repairs to last. Appreciate any info provided.

 

[NoBrakes!]

my dad had hail damage repaired on his 14 dodge 1500. replaced and painted fenders, hood, repaired roof, maybe tops of doors too. It was 9k

If you're around Edmonton, PM me for a good shop to use.

 

[Jobu]

You can line-x the whole truck for around $6k in black, it'll be pricier if you want a paint match or specific color. I had a very good experience with Armaguard in Edmonton, not sure if they have a central ab location. Plus linex is pretty invincible, it'll last longer than the rest of the truck does.

 

[pfi572]

Is box in good shape ? If not shop for a newer one in good shape as will be cheaper then repairs in old one and last longer .
Up to 2013 I believe are the same for the HD’s ?

 

[Bnorth]

$15k seems reasonable depending on how much rust repair. Trucks are big that's a lot of prep hours and paint materials.

 

[rebel]

Watching this one. My 08 looks like hell and I dont want to upgrade. Only has 398k. Compared to buying a new one 15k isn't terrible. I'd do the line x but wife is pushing against it

 

[ABMax24]

I looked into the same on an older duramax and decided I was just better off to sell it and replace with newer. $15k either gets you a nice body on your truck or a niceish body on a newer more modern truck. Also if the body is that rusty what about the frame and all the mechanical components underneath?

Duramax's aren't that hard to delete either. Model years up to '17 are fairly easy, after that it gets pricey and more complicated.

 

[pfi572]

^^^^^
This

 

[vodoo103]

You can line-x the whole truck for around $6k in black, it'll be pricier if you want a paint match or specific color. I had a very good experience with Armaguard in Edmonton, not sure if they have a central ab location. Plus linex is pretty invincible, it'll last longer than the rest of the truck does.

Line-x will be a temporary fix. The rust will eventually peel it off from behind. (Speaking from experience)

 

[vodoo103]

I was quoted $7k just for re-doing the box-sides. $15k is probably accurate.

You can find cheaper, but I would be worried about quality. I would be choked if I did a bunch of work and it all started falling apart 3 years after putting in the effort.

 

[Jobu]

Line-x will be a temporary fix. The rust will eventually peel it off from behind. (Speaking from experience)

When they did mine they ground all the rust out before applying the line-x. I'm fairly curious about your experience, I'm about to put some more linex on the bumpers. What can you tell me about what happened with yours?

 

[pfi572]

When they did mine they ground all the rust out before applying the line-x. I'm fairly curious about your experience, I'm about to put some more linex on the bumpers. What can you tell me about what happened with yours?

My findings is the rust is usually coming from behind .
Don’t see and then there it is bubbling under the liner material . Would waste my money on it ? IMO
Surface is easy to clean up but when it’s coming from behind ? Not so much .

 

[GreyGhost]

Hey Everyone, I have a 2008 Chev Silverado 2500 HD Duramax 4x4 Crew ShortBox that I have owned since new and has reasonable mileage with a good drive line & interior but the body is starting to show quite a bit of rust. Had a Central Alberta shop complete a body repair estimate and they came back with $15K for replace/repair/paint and thought that was a little steep?

Anyone have any sense of what kind of cost range a guy should expect for this type of repair? Any places in Central Alberta that you would recommend to complete the work?

Really don't want to get rid of the thing to move to the DEF & emissions crap, just want it to look decent and for the body repairs to last. Appreciate any info provided.

No that’s actually what it would cost. Paint and labour have gone up enormously. Do you need box sides, rockers, and front fenders? Those chevs have places where you can stick hose through and clean out the back side of the box side. Considering a full repaint is in the $24k to $30k depending on the work and prep needed.

 

[Grizzwald]

Thanks for the feedback so far, everyone. Truck definitely needs new box sides (or new box) as well as new front fenders. Some rust on tailgate, as well. Cab is not too bad but is showing signs...

Buddy did a Line X spray over on a 2011 Chev Silverado and it has peeled and had some rust come through from the back.

Was thinking to upgrade to later model year as an alternative, however, other later model Chev trucks I have had in my fleet have had similar showings and I am thinking it is just a matter of time before you end up back at the same place. The LMM platform is a decent product for what I am using the truck for (occasional fifth wheel and travel trailer towing or sled/quad hauling on a deck) as I am running a new F150 as a daily driver and just don't see the need to spend a bunch on a new(er) HD truck at the moment.

Sounds like the $15K is in the realm, from what i am hearing.

 

[GreyGhost]

Thanks for the feedback so far, everyone. Truck definitely needs new box sides (or new box) as well as new front fenders. Some rust on tailgate, as well. Cab is not too bad but is showing signs...

Buddy did a Line X spray over on a 2011 Chev Silverado and it has peeled and had some rust come through from the back.

Was thinking to upgrade to later model year as an alternative, however, other later model Chev trucks I have had in my fleet have had similar showings and I am thinking it is just a matter of time before you end up back at the same place. The LMM platform is a decent product for what I am using the truck for (occasional fifth wheel and travel trailer towing or sled/quad hauling on a deck) as I am running a new F150 as a daily driver and just don't see the need to spend a bunch on a new(er) HD truck at the moment.

Sounds like the $15K is in the realm, from what i am hearing.

You definitely should be able to find a good box that was taken off. I know you are in Alberta but you should check SGI salvage for used fenders and box because you might find the exact colour which is a bonus. I forget the salvage yard in Redcliff but he was fussy and had good used body parts.

 

[LUCKY 7]

try checking out car-parts.com great site

 

[LUCKY 7]

I meant car-part.com

try checking out car-parts.com great site

 

[vodoo103]

My findings is the rust is usually coming from behind .
Don’t see and then there it is bubbling under the liner material . Would waste my money on it ? IMO
Surface is easy to clean up but when it’s coming from behind ? Not so much .

Yes - mine was fixed on the surface before Line-X, but rusted out from the back eventually. Once there was enough of a pin hole for water to get in from behind, the freeze / thaw cycles started pushing off the Line-X, which made the pocket larger and larger. Eventually had to poke holes in the line-x for the water to drain out of the bubbles and stop if from pushing off. Just a big rusty zit.

If you go with the Line-X route, make sure the drain holes are not closed off. If your tailgate and body panels can't drain properly, they will rust out faster.

 

[Legend14]

It’s probably a good idea ,if you had the means, to cut all the paper thin metal out of problem areas (fenders rocker panels) and weld in heavier gauge plate before linex, but I know from experience that welding on vehicles is time consuming

 

[GreyGhost]

It’s probably a good idea ,if you had the means, to cut all the paper thin metal out of problem areas (fenders rocker panels) and weld in heavier gauge plate before linex, but I know from experience that welding on vehicles is time consuming

Using a tig definitely helps! Mig can pull and stretch the tin or getting everything resistant welded