It’s probably happened to you. You come out of the store or restaurant and notice a door ding or dent that you didn’t notice before.
What should you do next?
Assess the Damage
If the damage looks fresh, you could contact the police to make a report of the incident. If the damage turns out to be more serious, an official report of the incident will help with a potential insurance claim for auto body repairs.
If the damage looks minimal or nothing more than surface scratches or barely-there dings, it may be something you can repair yourself.
If the damage goes beyond the surface and the dents are deep or there is paint damage, it may be a bigger job than you can manage.
DIY Solutions
Scratches
If the damage is minimal, rubbing or buffing out scratches can be a fairly easy fix.
While assessing the damage, run your fingernail across the scratched area. The best-case scenario is if the scratch feels paper thin and your fingernail doesn’t snag on the damaged area. In this case, the damage probably doesn’t go much deeper than the surface clear coat.
The scratch can be rubbed out with a commercial scratch removal kit. These products are not much more complicated to use than waxing your vehicle.
Dings and Dents
There are several things you can try to straighten out minor dents and dings.
Hot and Cold Air Method
Heat the dent with a hair dryer set at its hottest setting. When the metal is very hot, spray with cold compressed air.
The combination of hot and cold air makes the flexible hot metal contract once the cold air hits. This may be enough to cause the ding or dent to pop out.
Suction Method
Either buy a suction tool designed for pulling out dents or use an everyday household plunger. If using a regular plunger, soak both the plunger and the dented area with water so you get the right amount of suction.
Place the plunger over the damaged area and keep suctioning the dent until it pops out.
Hammer Method
Hammering out a minor ding or dent is possible with a couple of special tools.
A rubber auto body hammer protects your paint while making the repair. You’ll also need a curved metal tool known as a “dolly” to make sure that when the dent is hammered out, it pops back into a shape that matches the rest of the vehicle.
Commercial Dent Repair DIY Kit
There are kits available to help with DIY dent repair. Read the directions thoroughly before beginning and while using the kit, adhere to all steps as outlined. Be careful as DIY kits can create DIY results if you’r not sure what you’re doing.
Call the Professionals
If the damage goes deeper than the clear coat, is too large an area or the damage is more extensive, it’s better to hand the job over to professionals at an auto body shop.
Body shop technicians have all the tools and training to restore your vehicle to like-new condition, even if the paint has been damaged.
Conclusion
Attempting to try your hand at DIY repair of surprise dings and dents may be a great option for very minimal damage.
When the damage is more extensive, visit Downtown Auto Body in Rohnert Park for professional auto body repairs at competitive prices.
