Quarter panel corners, Faux body lines?

[timmycharger]

Ok, Im expecting the hate to pour in from the purists but Im at a point where Im not turning back to redo anything.    Long story short, both quarters, rear valance, and corners were replaced with Year One sheet metal about 7 years ago or so. As you can see in the below pic, the lines are there where they should be. I didnt like how the corners lined up on the other sides (not visible in pic) so I welded a sliver like many have all done. The finished product looked less than spectacular so I ended up putting a small coat of filler over both corners, smoothing them out.

Fast forward to current time, when this Spring I will be doing the final blocking and hopefully painting and now when looking at other Chargers, i think the corners will look funny without the lines.  Since there is no way in hell Im re welding anything, my choices are leave it as it is, or I have heard of folks carefully scribing in a line where the joint used to be. Im not trying to hide any rust or rot, everything is brand new metal, this is just cosmetic but Im curious as to what folks would so.  Thoughts?

[myk]

I hate those seams; I don't know why everyone holds so much value for those areas of the car.  People act as if those seams make the difference between a pile of junk or a respectable car.  True story: I specifically instructed my body shop to fill those seams and smooth it over and THEY DIDN'T!  The shop owner told me afterward that a Charger done properly will have those seams visible!  Why?!  Who the hell cares.  They're ugly gaps that looked like a backyard mechanic didn't have the skills to shape one solid piece of metal to form the rear of the car.  Why the factory did it that way I will never understand. 

If I were you, I would fill those seams and forget about them because they're ugly!   

[bill440rt]

It's your car. If you like the lines, keep them.
You could sand the filler off and start over again from there. NOW is the time to do this. Once it's painted it's all over. If it bugs you now it will REALLY bug you after it's painted. 
Personally, I do not like the smoothed over look. Maybe on an extreme custom or restomod it'll fit the theme, but on a "stock" appearing body I prefer the lines.
Your car, your call.

[Troy]

It's not that hard to carve them back in. Most of the time when I see them filled in I immediately think "clueless body guy" or "full of Bondo". If you leave them filled and ever try to sell the car you'll probably need to explain. If you, personally, are bugged by the lack of lines then that's what matters most.

Do I think they look half-finished from the factory. Yeah. Will I remove them from my cars? Not a chance!

Troy

[tan top]

  I would cut them back in with a old haxsaw blade    !

[Bobs69]

I hate those seams; I don't know why everyone holds so much value for those areas of the car.  People act as if those seams make the difference between a pile of junk or a respectable car.  True story: I specifically instructed my body shop to fill those seams and smooth it over and THEY DIDN'T!  The shop owner told me afterward that a Charger done properly will have those seams visible!  Why?!  Who the hell cares.  They're ugly gaps that looked like a backyard mechanic didn't have the skills to shape one solid piece of metal to form the rear of the car.  Why the factory did it that way I will never understand. 

If I were you, I would fill those seams and forget about them because they're ugly!   

It helps the owner live in denial.  Denying that there was ever any work done to their car and nobody could tell the difference.

[moparnation74]

It is your car and your personal choice.  What ever you do, it is correctable.

Personally, I like the lines over the cleaner look.

[timmycharger]

Great feedback guys, definitely food for thought. I couldn't find any pics of someone who scribed in lines, but have several shots of untouched ones as a guide. I have several of my own car post metalwork for reference. I have a few more months to stare at it but its one of those things you know you have to deal with sooner or later in a project. The Year one corners were crap but I had nothing else to work with so I may be able to sand off the rear part, but the quarter side was uuuugly.  

[Dino]

Get some strong duct tape and stick them on the corner and quarter creating the gap you want.  Overlay more duct tape on each side so it's nice and thick.  Take an angle grinder with a thin metal cutting blade and make light passes until the groove looks like you want it.  You may have part metal sticking through the filler but that's okay.  If it's mostly filler after the cut then run some sandpaper through it to round the edges, if it's mostly metal use a file.  Very easy to do and you can touch it up with filler if you mess it up.  Use some cheap spray can primer to quickly shoot over it to see f it looks alright.  Just make sure to remove it before you apply the good primer.  Most common is that you need to make the groove wider than you think and the coat of primer will clearly show if you need to do this or not.