Anyone know about auto body repair?

[JohnnyRingo]

8. Do you ever plan to sell the car?

if so, fix it right.

Buying a car with rusty bullet holes is a deal killer except in certain neighborhoods where it may be a status symbol. Kidding aside, with a bad repair job you'll have to repeat the story for every potential buyer and the price will plummet accordingly.

If you plan to drive it "til the wheels fall off" and absolutely don't care what it looks like, put duct tape over the hole. Bondo does not fill holes and will fall out with time, but a body shop can weld a steel patch under it and fill it in.

Tell the body shop your situation and how you have to stay within a budget on out of pocket money. Many shops just assume the insurance is covering any expense and that you don't care. They can often find a solution to the problem by finding a used door at a scrap yard or patching it as I pointed out above and still turn a decent profit. A reputable shop has incentive to do this because they know you'll be back for every new job and you'll tell your friends. If your body shop is inflexible, ask around and find a better shop.