Dents

[4evrwyntr]

Apparently, my car is in a high risk area. Since I last posted about the body, it's been a fender dent and a massive dent in the hood. It looks like someone dropped something large and heavy on my hood and then dragged it off. If the dent (which isn't really so large) wasn't on the hood, I would have maybe disregarded it; but being on the largest smooth panel ... ARG...
Anyway, is there any advice one of you can give about self-repairing a minor dent; or shuold I just give up and take it to the shop

[vincentwashere]

what kinda dent is it? have u used the plunger? if u cant. just pound it with a hammer, u probably wont get it perfect and you might even crack some paint doing it. so u probably should just bring it to the shop if u cant take a plunger to it.

[4evrwyntr]

It's a small indentation (sharp), no cracking of paint, center of hood (not windshield) - enough to feel (about half a centimeter deep at it's lowest point, and approximately an inch to an inch and a half long. I have a small mpeg vid camera, maybe I'll shoot it so you can see it.
I've never dent repaired stuff before - what's the "plunger" exactly? I think I know what you're talking about, but I don't own one. Where is the best place to get one?
And hammering; you mean ball pein hammer from the underside, right? I have this black thing underneath my hood (it's soft and cushiony; my e36 318 didn't have it), should I hammer through that or remove it?
Anyway, thanks for responding, any answers to my questions would be THOOPER.

[sto150]

I've used the 'Ding King' on my door panel dings with some success. I think it's less than $20 at AutoZone or one of those type stores.

[vincentwashere]

ok that doesnt sound plungeable. get the insulation (blackthing) out from under the hood. then use a hammer and hit the dent, while having something solid and flat on the other side. u might want to wrap the solid thing with a cloth so it doesnt fuk up the paint. hit softly and slowly so u dont screw up.

[4evrwyntr]

looks like I'll have to take a hammer to it... I couldn't find a "Ding King"; the only thing I found that didn't require embedding screws into my vehicle's body used glue.
I don't trust glue.
Anyway, we'll see how it looks after I smack it a couple of times. Thanks for the tips. Stupid birds. Or whatever hit my car.

[Gator]

Originally posted by 4evrwyntr@May 27 2005, 08:04 AM
looks like I'll have to take a hammer to it... I couldn't find a "Ding King"; the only thing I found that didn't require embedding screws into my vehicle's body used glue.
I don't trust glue.
Anyway, we'll see how it looks after I smack it a couple of times. Thanks for the tips. Stupid birds. Or whatever hit my car.

[snapback]348301[/snapback]

Why don't you try one of the paintless dent removal firms. They charge $125 a panel around here and they really do a wonderous job removing small dents without having to repaint.

[4evrwyntr]

Originally posted by Gator@May 27 2005, 09:48 PM
Why don't you try one of the paintless dent removal firms. They charge $125 a panel around here and they really do a wonderous job removing small dents without having to repaint.

[snapback]348438[/snapback]

Hmm... anyone you would recommend? Seriously, are there any good "firms" worth noting? What should I look for? Sorry about all the questions. Like you guys, I only want the best for my car.
I wonder if the dent decreases my drag coefficient...

[Gator]

Don't know about the ones inyour area. Dent Wizard has Chicago locatons. http://www.dentwizard.com/locationsusen
One is at a Mercedes dealership so they are probably good but maybe more expensive.. Call around and look in the Yellow pages or search the Internet for paintless dent removal.