My wife ran our Mazda 3 (2016) into a pothole (or perhaps a sidewalk) and the rocker panel bottom took a big hit.
See picture - it's bent inwards by perhaps an inch or so.
The car runs fine, though.

We saw 3 mechanics and they had different views about what to do. So we are very confused!

#1 said, let's bend it back (perhaps?) and repaint. but no need to replace. 700$
#2 said, you have rust, you need to replace. it's hard, because the panels are welded, you need to take it apart, get rid of the part rusted, re-weld - 20 hours labor, 2400$.
#3 said, since you don't use the car that much, it's best to do nothing, the rust will progress but very slowly. perhaps in a few years you will have a hole in the panel, but that is not dangerous.

what do you think? we were planning on keeping the car about 4=6 more years perhaps.
we don't drive much (~8K miles per year, mostly in the city).
we're in Chicago, so rust is a concern. if we don't do anything, will it become a problem? is there a point of doing what #1 recommends?

thanks a lot for your help!

 

If you can get a screwdriver in through the rusted areas to bend back the rocker panel to some approximation of where it should go, that would be my approach. Not elegant, but quick and certainly cheap.

 

Why not do some rust prevention? Sand it down on both sides..and paint those small panels black. Do not spend $2400.. not worth it.

 

First auto body shops are where you should be going for the estimate repair. But that is an area that is not easy to do a simple repair. However you can do a DIY cover up. After sanding and sealing the damage you can easily in about 2 hours install side skirts.

Type in Mazda OEM side skirts and/or side skirts Mazda (you year).

Here is examples.:

Fits Mazda 3 Axela Hatchback 14-19 Side Skirt Extension Lip Rocker Panel Spoiler | eBay

For Mazda 3 Hatchback 2004-2021 78.7" Side Skirts Rocker Extension Panel Lip BLK | eBay

 

Welcome to the forum

 

What he said!