What's the deal with this lower rear corner panel?

[breakfastofchumpions]

I bought this rear lower corner panel for my mk3 SWB, and offering it up to the van, it appears to be too short. Here it is being held with the rear seam lined up with what's left of the existing panel on the van, and the bottom seam contours lined up against the new inner panel that I've fitted:

signal-2025-10-12-215740.jpeg

As you can see, it appears to be an inch or two too short for the swage line and for the wheelarch lip to meet up. I wondered whether the mk4 / mk5 SWB are a different length behind the rear wheelarch to the mk3 (similar to how the mk5 LWB is different), but the sticker on the panel does state that it fits all of them.

Does anyone have any idea why this might be the wrong length? Or have I placed it wrongly somehow?

[MinorMatt]

They should all be the same...

Dodgy pattern panel?

[breakfastofchumpions]

Well it's a possibility I guess. It's made by Klokkerholm - I don't know whether they're any good, it is nicely galvanised.

Although, seen as the rear outer arches have been done badly, I'm wondering whether they've been fitted too far forward?! Crazy as that sounds.

[sportscott]

From my experience none of the repair panels fit properly, unless OEM, I just cut out the bit's I need from them.

[breakfastofchumpions]

From my experience none of the repair panels fit properly, unless OEM, I just cut out the bit's I need from them.

Yeah, I guess I have no choice! It's annoying, because the whole point of buying a panel for this section was to have the swage line properly pressed along the full length.

[sportscott]

I'm in Poland and Klokkerholm are produced here, nice material, galvanised but never fit. It's a shame that it's difficult now to post pictures but have replaced quite a bit of bodywork on my Van, just rotten around the edges really. Bought two new front wings but just cut the wheel arch out as didn;t want a 1cm bigger gap allround, as though it would have been easier to replace the whole wing. Done the tailgate to half way up the swage line and it fitted nicely other than one side of the swage line was too short. It's frustrating but just keep telling myself it's a 29 year old van ffs and it's good enough.