While driving around your vehicle on the open road, it is virtually impossible to miss all debris on the road, potholes, items flying out from other cars, or some dings and scratches along the way. This is just par for the course when driving a vehicle. Even if you are as careful as humanly possible you can’t always account for everything you will encounter on the road.
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No matter how your car got that dent in the car, the next thing on your mind should be how can you get it out safely, quickly, and efficiently? You might first look to a mechanic or auto body shop, since they know more of what they are doing and they can do it quickly. However, the price quotes can be especially high, especially for just a cosmetic fix in your car. If they need to remove the paint first, you might even see prices like $200 to get the dent out of your car.
Instead, save yourself time and money and do the process of getting dents out of your car yourself. There are various ways to get a small ding out of your vehicle at home without causing any further issues, like ruining your paint, and you don’t need to be an expert mechanic to figure this out on your own.
However, keep in mind that not all of these methods will work for your particular car. You need to determine what the make, model, and year of your car is, so you can figure out the best way to get dents out of your car. Your mileage may vary depending on where the dent is, and what kind of body panel, hood, or bumper material you have, like whether it is aluminum, steel, or fiberglass.
Use a Plunger
The first way that you can work on getting dents out of your car is by using a plunger. Not only is this a versatile tool for home and cars, but you can get small to medium-sized dents out of your car in almost any location. All you have to do is first splash some water on the plunger and the dent on the surface of your vehicle, and then start pushing and pulling the plunger until the dent pops out of place.
Use Boiling Water
Another common “tool” that can easily be found in houses is just water – you heard us right, that’s how simple this is. We know that reversing into an object is potentially the most lucrative and easiest way to get rid of a dent and get rid of it fast. For plastic bumpers, it might be difficult to push out the dent because of how stiff it is – what now? Solve the problem by boiling some water and throwing it on the dent to start in getting the dent out of your car.
As soon as you have poured the boiling water on the dent or the ding, reach behind the bumper and try to pop the dent back into place. Due to the high heat of the water, the plastic should be more flexible and make it easier to put back into place.
Hair Dryer and Compressed Air
Another popular method that is quite easy for car owners to use without a lot of time and effort is using two common household products – a hair dryer and compressed air. First, start by heating the car dent with the hair dryer turned on to the highest setting, in which case will expand the plastic of the car. As soon as the plastic is hot enough, take the can of compressed air, flip it upside down, and spray the same area that you just heated. Since the cold temperature of the compressed air will mix with the hot air of the hair dryer this will cause the plastic to contract, and cause the dent to pop out, making it easy getting the dent out of your car.
Dry Ice
Furthermore, an additional method that you can use in getting dents out of your car is dry ice, which can be primarily used to get out small dents from your vehicle. Make sure when you do this method that you are protecting your skin and using gloves, so the dry ice does not come in contact with any exposed areas. Hold down a piece of dry ice on the dent and rub it around until the dent pops back into place.
Although it might take a few times when you apply the dry ice for the dent it pops back into place, it should eventually pop out, as long as the dent isn’t too deep or too severe. You can try heating the dent first, with a hair dryer, and then apply the dry ice to the area.
Vacuum Cleaner and Pot
We know that suction can easily get a dent out and pop it back into place. Suction is an easy way to get out a dent, but you need to find a dent puller that has enough power to pop the dent out of place. If you can’t find one, or don’t want to spend the money, you can use your own by creating it! All you need is a pot or a bucket, a vacuum cleaner, and some sticky heavy duty tape to get the dent out of your car.
Make a small hole underneath the pot, tape the pot around the dent, and put the vacuum cleaner over the hole under the pot, and turn on the vacuum. If the dent is not too shallow, the suction should pop out the dent, helping you in the process of getting dents out of your car.
Hot Glue, Wooden Dowels, and Screws
Make sure that when you use these tools you do not enhance any damage in your car – we know that you want to try to do the process of getting dents out of your car yourself to save money and time, but make sure that you are not putting yourself or your car at risk for further damage by worsening the dent of the paint. A safe way to take out big dents in your car is by using various wooden dowels, screws, and a hot glue gun.
You can do this method by placing two nails on each side of the dowel and putting the hot glue on the bottom side. Place the dowels in the spaces around the dent, and repeat the process until you have fully covered the area. Once the area is covered, let the dowels dry, and then pull out each one individually until the dent is gone.
Long Metal Rod & Knockdown
When a dent happens in your car, no matter where the dent occurs, the metal goes inward, the surrounding edges of the dent in your car go upward, and the result is an interesting shape that requires a foolproof method to get the dent out of your car. This means that popping the dent out from underneath might not be the best solution to your problem.
By working on both sides of the dent and not just focusing on the bottom, you can possibly more effectively get the dent out of your car. If you use a combination of a long metal rod and a knockdown or tap down tool on the top side, you can work on both sides of the dent and help in getting the dent out of your car.
Specialty Tools or Dent Removal Kit
Although you might need to purchase a special tool for this and you might not already have this in your house, you might need to use a specialty tool if none of the above methods have worked for you. Try a suction cup dent remover tool that is specifically designed for getting dents out of your car.
Furthermore, there is a wide variety of dent removal kits that are available on the market for purchase. Depending on what kind of dent you have will depend on what kit you buy. Some options are better for small dings and dents, and some are better for more extensive damage.
Hammer Out The Dent
Although you might be a bit wary of using a heavy duty tool on your precious car, another method to knock out this dent from your car is to use a hammer to ding out the dent. Make sure you use a rubber mallet hammer and not a typical building hammer when doing this process.
Choose the hammer and the dolly, the curved piece of metal used to shape the sheet metal, depending on the size, shape, and location of the dent in your car. If the dent is bigger, you will need a bigger mallet and dolly to cover the entire dent. Select the dolly that closely resembles the shape of the dent.
Place the dolly on top of the dent and then use the rubber mallet hammer to gently form inside against the dolly. Start hammering from the deepest point of the dent, or the center, and gradually work your way through the dent. This can remove the dent and help you to get the dent out of your car.
Dent Removal In My Car
If you do not want to try one of these do it yourself options by yourself without any supervision by a mechanic or auto body shop workers, then you might find that you should bring your car to a local shop so they can fix it themselves.
If the car has no paint damage, the paintless dent repair is generally very affordable and done very quickly and efficiently. Depending on the mechanic’s skill and reputation in your community, you should expect to pay around $50 to $120 for a 1-inch dent when getting the dent out of your car.
Usually, the base price increases depending on the size of the repair and the location of the dents. A 12-inch dent might usually run you about $160 to $450 depending on the variables like the location of the car dent, the car’s make, model, and year, and the mechanic who performs the work and how they specialize in the car.
If you are looking for traditional dent repair, this is more of an old school and less innovative way of repairing dents. The traditional removal is more tedious, more time consuming, and might not be as long lasting as other options of paintless dent repair. If you have repaired your vehicle, this enhances the process of the repair, makes the price a lot higher from the mechanic, and the overall cost might lower the sale value of your car.
Further, another reason that paintless dent removal is the best way to start the process of getting dents out of your car is that it is more environmentally friendly. There are no chemicals that are released into the environment and might influence an eco-friendly car owner’s decision.
Paintless Dent Removal Advantages
The paintless dent removal is an alternative way of repairing a dent, which usually involves repainting with additional body work. This method is better than the traditional method since it is less invasive in your car and can show less evidence of any work done over time. Along with taking less time than other body work, the paintless dent removal repair requires some extra planning before carrying this out to get dents out of your car.
The advantages of paintless dent repair is that the process is less expensive, it can almost always be done on the same day as you bring your car into the shop, and it works especially well for small dings and dents. Along with this ease of use, the paintless dent repair also works well for larger dents and helps you in the process of getting dents out of your car.
Along with the ability of paintless dent repair to work for different sizes of dents, this method can make sure that your vehicle retains the paint on your car, keeping the price of your car high, and lowering the total price of the repair process.