Pulling or removing a very small dent

repoman0

Diamond Member
Jun 17, 2010
4,480
3,322
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Anybody out there tried removing your own dents before? I found a couple really small ones on my new (to me) car -- thinking about giving it a try. They're too small to bother taking to a shop at the moment, and possibly too small to risk making them worse on my own, so asking here first. Here's a pic: there are two, roughly in the middle of the frame. You can tell from the swirl in the reflections.

B8YipjL.jpg


I bought a cheapo dent removal kit with pullers and a hot glue gun on amazon already. Even if it's better to leave these two, I'll probably have use for it sometime soon :rolleyes:

Also, does the hair dryer / dry ice trick actually work? Seems like if the metal is deformed, it won't want to just pop back into place ...
 

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
57,426
7,613
126
I don't know a thing about it, but I'd be leery of pulling dents, especially small ones. IMO, it could weaken the paint, and you'll have a worse problem than a dent. Take that with a pound of salt, cause I don't care about cars. If it's an appearence issue, I don't care. Rust=problem. Dents, not so much.
 

TridenT

Lifer
Sep 4, 2006
16,810
45
91
One of the few things I would actually take my car to a professional for is for a dent removal specialist. It's not super expensive and they'll likely do a better job than you.
 

Zivic

Diamond Member
Nov 25, 2002
3,505
38
91
find a reputable PDR person in your area.. don't mess around with those dings unless you want to pay a professional more money to fix your mistakes. couple dings like that should cost you 100 bucks or so..... if you want them repaired don't be cheap
 

WhoBeDaPlaya

Diamond Member
Sep 15, 2000
7,414
401
126
Dry ice worked for me when I fixed my old 98 Cavalier.
Then again, it was a 98 Cavvy in the rusty Midwest, so no skin off my back if things went sideways ;)
 

repoman0

Diamond Member
Jun 17, 2010
4,480
3,322
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You guys are right -- no pulling. I watched a few videos of the process and it's not something I want to try for the first time on a decent car. I should have practiced on the car I just sold.

The dry ice trick is a possibility though.. don't see how that could screw it up more.

The other solution is to just not look at that part of the car because it's barely noticeable :p especially with the roof rack in place.