How To Repair Dents In Cars

A dent in your auto never makes a good impression.

Read on for our advice to help remove signs of bumps to your bodywork.

Are at that place common paring locations?

Although dents tin occur anywhere on your bodywork, some areas are more decumbent to prangs than others.

If y'all want to bank check your auto for any irregularities, pay close attending to:

doors – It's easy to swing doors open into closely parked cars or other obstructions when you're non paying attention. Make sure you check all the fashion to the lesser of the door where high kerbs might have left a mark.
bumpers – Designed to minimise the bear upon of collisions, bumpers are ane of the first places affected by motoring mishaps. Take a look at the front and back of your motorcar for any dents that might demand work.

How much do dent repairs cost?

Repair costs depend on a number of factors:

the size and depth of a dent
its location on the panel
the brand and model of the automobile
access to the back of the dent (areas obstructed by crash bars and other parts will need more fourth dimension to ready)

Repairing damage yourself may work out cheaper but should merely be undertaken if you're confident about taking on the job. Bodywork specialists tin charge anything from £36 to £200 per hour for their expertise. The average toll for bumper repair comes in at £60 per hour.

Checkatrade offering some guidance on what to expect:

Service	Low range	High range	Average
Bumper repair	£300	£one,320	£810
Dent repair	£220	£450	£335
Paintless dent repair	£90

If repairs aren't possible or they work out too expensive, you might want to consider ownership replacement parts. In most cases, its best to visit a trustworthy garage for a automobile service to appraise if the damage tin be fixed.

Can I repair a paring myself?

repair-dent-myself

Yes, merely y'all'll demand to brand sure that the damage isn't too all-encompassing first.

Measure the paring and bank check that it's no bigger than three inches in diameter and that information technology's shallow, likewise. If the marker appears on a curve or a contour in the bodywork, a DIY arroyo probably isn't the all-time idea. Y'all'll also need to be confident most working on your auto and accessing the dorsum of panels.

Now it's time to choose your method. Our step-past-footstep guides below highlight some of the best ways to get the job done.

If you notice the idea of a DIY fix too complicated, a body shop or RAC canonical garage will exist able to help.

Remember, damage to the paintwork will have to exist repaired separately.

How to repair a dent with a hair dryer

Pilus dryers may be amend suited to salons than garages, but with the right technique you might be able to salvage cash on bodywork repairs.

Once y'all've assessed the impairment and decided you're confident almost repairing the paring yourself, you'll need a few things:

a make clean soft cloth
a can of compressed air
a pilus dryer
insulated gloves

Step i – Ensure you tin can access both sides of the dent. This could mean opening the bonnet or reaching underneath the car.

Step two – It's time to plug in the pilus dryer. Concur information technology between five and 7 inches away from the afflicted area on a medium heat setting. After two minutes the panel should be malleable enough to motion on to the next pace.

Step three - Pull your gloves on and gently printing the edges of the paring to examination for motion. If the panel feels stiff render to step two and use the hair dryer for some other minute or so.

Step four – While even so wearing your gloves, take the can of compressed air and requite it a good milkshake. Plow information technology upside downward and spray at the paring. It should take no more than a infinitesimal for the dent to pop back into shape.

Stride five – Take your fabric and wipe any liquid residue abroad. Task done.

Top tip: If this method doesn't piece of work equally planned, you tin can repeat the steps for better results. Effort leaving a solar day betwixt exposing your machine to extreme temperature changes.

How to repair a dent with a plunger

It may look hopeful rather than applied, only with the right approach a plunger can provide enough suction for dents to pop out of place.

Be warned, this method should only be used on plastic parts of your automobile.

You'll need:

the plunger
boiling water
a clean soft textile
insulated gloves

Step one – Cascade the humid water over the dented area. This volition soften the surface and make it more malleable.

Footstep two – Place the plunger over the dent, ensuring it's fixed into an air-tight position and pull.

Step three – If the dent hasn't popped out of place try pushing it from behind, while wearing gloves.

Step four – The damage should have disappeared thanks to your plunging and pushing efforts. But wipe the surface dry with your cloth.

Height tip: If you demand to repeat the steps over again try waiting 24 hours before exposing your motorcar to extreme temperature changes.

How to repair a dent with a vacuum cleaner

This method relies on the power of suction and is best used on apartment surfaces to help create an airtight vacuum.

Yous'll need

a bowl or bucket with a pocket-sized hole in the lesser
a powerful vacuum cleaner

Step i – Cover the whole of the dent with the peak of your bucket or basin in the same way you would exercise with a plunger.

Footstep 2 – Use your vacuum cleaner to cover the hole in the saucepan/bowl and plow information technology on.

Pace iii – Listen out for a pop confirming that your bodywork has returned to its proper position.

Top tip: A powerful vacuum cleaner could brand all the divergence. Effort hiring a professional person model if your everyday appliance isn't up to the task.

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How to repair a dent with dry water ice

This method uses extreme changes in temperature and you'll demand to wear protective gloves.

You'll need:

aluminium foil
dry ice
a pilus dryer
insulated gloves
masking tape

Starting time by repeating steps one and two from the hair dryer method higher up.

Pace iii – Fix aluminium foil over the dent using masking tape to protect your paintwork.

Footstep 4 – While wearing heavy-duty gloves, option up a block of dry ice and rub it across the foil. You should hear the console pop dorsum into place in less than a minute.

Footstep 5 – Remove the foil and marvel at your handywork.

How to repair a dent with gum and wood

If you want to fix a larger or oddly-shaped dent, information technology could exist fourth dimension to draw for the gum gun. This method is effectively almost creating handles to pull the dent out of place.

You'll need:

wooden dowels
screws
a glue gun
a drill

Footstep one – Test the gum gun on an inconspicuous area of your car to check if information technology won't damage your paintwork.

Step two – Have the wooden dowels and drill two screws at one end and at either side of the cylinder-shape to create handles. You'll demand one 'handle' per square inch of the impairment.

Pace three – Heat the mucilage gun and utilise the adhesive to the end of the dowels without screws. Fix your customised dowels on and around the dent so they announced once every square inch.

Step iv – Go out for x mins to dry. You lot might want to use your trusted hairdryer at this signal.

Stride 5 – Pull the handles outwards and the dent should follow. Repeat the steps if necessary and experiment with placing the dowels in different positions.

Step half-dozen – Remove the dowels and wash away any leftover glue.

Meridian tip: Effort fixing the dowels to the edges of the damaged surface area beginning before working your way into the middle of the dent.

How to repair a dent with a repair kit

dent-repair-kit

Ownership tools specially made for the job might be the virtually constructive approach of them all.

There are 3 principal types of dent repair kits:

Pulling – These kits utilise the aforementioned principle as the wooden dowel technique and piece of work past gluing tabs to the dent and pulling.
Tapping – Some kits apply metal pens designed to tap the paring out of your bodywork. They usually come with a range of heads to fix all kinds of damage.
Pushing – Alternatively, y'all could option upwardly tools designed to push dents outwards from the dorsum of a console. The kits usually supply different-sized rods simply they don't come cheap.

Information technology's of import to read the instructions provided and if y'all don't feel confident about taking on the task you can e'er contact an RAC approved garage for assistance.

How to fix a dent on a door panel

Car door panels are typically thinner than other parts of your motorcar. This makes them easier to paring only they are easier to remove for repairs.

Use a screwdriver to detach any wiring or control panels in arm rests, you'll probably demand to popular open screw covers to unfasten everything.

When you pull the door panel away, try to continue the plastic canvas from the door frame completely apartment. That fashion it can exist used again.

Once the panel has been removed, try pushing the dent from behind to pop your bodywork back into its rightful place.

Should I repair a paring myself?

The decision to repair a dent yourself depends on a combination of things:

Extent of harm – modest dings should be like shooting fish in a barrel plenty to fix yourself but more extensive harm volition probably need the assistance of an adept.
Budget – rates for bodywork specialists greatly vary, in fact, yous could pay between £36 to £200 an hr for their help.
Conviction – even the simplest repair chore can seem out of the question if you're not comfortable making repairs yourself, in which case yous should arrange for professional help.
Time – sourcing all the tools and materials tin can take a while, especially if yous shop around for the all-time bargain. That'due south before you've even started to chief the techniques for a high-quality repair task.

If you're unsure about how to practice the job yourself, an RAC canonical garage will be happy to help restore your auto where possible.