Have you ever walked out to your car after a grocery run and found a fresh dent in the door? You can feel your heart sink. Whether it’s a minor ding from a runaway shopping cart or a more significant crease from a parking car, damage to your vehicle is frustrating.
It’s easy to look at a small dent and decide it isn’t worth the hassle to fix immediately, but the truth is that modern repair techniques have made fixing dents way more accessible and affordable than ever. Keep reading to take the anxiety out of the situation and learn how car dents are repaired!
Types of Car Dents
Before a technician picks up a tool, they have to assess the damage. The specific characteristics of the impact—such as shape, depth, and location—will help them figure out a repair strategy. Here are the common types of dents professional collision centers encounter.
- Dings: Dings are the most common, but the least severe, type of damage. They usually happen in parking lots when another car door swings open and hits your panel. These are typically shallow and don’t damage the paint, making them excellent candidates for quick, non-invasive repair methods.
- Crease Dents: A crease dent is when an object drags along the side of the vehicle, creating a fold or line in the metal. Because the metal is stretched at the bottom of the fold, these are more complex to repair.
- Round Dents: Round dents look like a shallow funnel or a bowl. They’re caused by round objects impacting the car, such as hailstones or baseballs. Because there are no sharp edges, these are easy to repair.
- Sharp Dents with Paint Damage: These occur when a sharp object impacts the vehicle with significant force. This creates a deep, focused dent and almost always breaks the paint surface. These require more extensive bodywork and refinishing.
- Multi-Point and Collision Dents: In more serious accidents, the impact can create complex distortion across a panel. There may be no single point of impact, but rather a warped area. For a deeper dive into identifying these issues, you can read our guide to car dent repair.
Fixing a Car Dent
Once the damage is assessed, a professional technician will select the appropriate repair method. This is a careful process of restoring the vehicle’s structure and appearance. Here are the primary methods used in professional auto body shops today.
Paintless Dent Repair (PDR)
When the paint is unbroken
Paintless Dent Repair (PDR) is the preferred method for dings and round dents where the paint is unbroken. Technicians use specialized metal rods to access the back of the panel and gently massage the metal back into its original shape.
This method is highly effective because it keeps the original factory paint intact. It’s also faster and more affordable than traditional bodywork.
Dent Pulling & Stud Welding
For more severe dents
If the technician can’t access the back of the panel or if the dent is too severe for PDR, they may use a stud welder. This tool welds small metal studs into the depressed area of the dent. Once the studs are secure, the technician uses a specialized tool to grip the studs and pull the metal outward.
Hammer and Dolly Repair
To smooth the metal
This is a classic metal-working technique used to smooth out the metal after the initial pull. A dolly is a heavy piece of formed steel held against the back of the panel, while a hammer is used on the front. The technician carefully hammers the metal against the dolly to flatten high spots and raise low spots.
Body Filler & Refinishing
For a flawless finish
Once the metal is as straight as possible, there may still be microscopic imperfections. To ensure a flawless finish, the technician applies a thin layer of body filler to the repair area. After applying the filler and a hardener, it is sanded down until it is perfectly flush with the surrounding surface.
Paint Blending & Clear Coat Repair
The final touches
The final step for any invasive repair is painting. The technician must blend the new paint into the surrounding panels so there is no visible line where the repair ends. Finally, a clear coat is applied to protect the paint and give it a glossy finish that matches the rest of the vehicle.
Cost of Dent Repair
One of the first questions car owners ask is, “How much will this cost?” Let’s find out.
Factors That Influence the Cost of Dent Repair
The price is primarily driven by the following:
- Labor Time and Materials: A simple PDR job might take an hour, while a collision dent requiring stud welding, filler, and painting could take days.
- The Location: A dent on a flat door panel is easier to fix than a dent on a body line or a panel made of aluminum, which is more difficult to work with than steel.
How Much Does Dent Repair Cost?
This also can vary:
- Small Dings: These typically run between $50 and $150 to fix. This affordability is largely thanks to Paintless Dent Removal (PDR), which cuts out the cost of paint and filler materials.
- Medium to Large Dents: These require conventional repair and can range from $300 to over $1,000, depending on the extent of the refinishing work needed.
Does Insurance Cover Dent Repair?
Comprehensive and collision insurance usually covers dent repairs. However, you must weigh the cost of the repair against your deductible. If the repair cost is $400 and your deductible is $500, it makes more sense to pay out of pocket. For larger damages, filing a claim is often the best route.
Why You Should Repair Car Dents
It’s tempting to leave a dent alone, especially if the car is older. However, immediate repair is key to preventing yourself from running into big trouble in the future.
- Prevents Rust Formation: When a dent damages the paint, it exposes the bare metal underneath to moisture and air. This inevitably leads to rust. Once rust begins, it spreads quickly beneath the paint, turning a small cosmetic issue into a major structural problem.
- Avoids Long-Term Paint Failure: Even if the paint looks intact, the stress of the dent can cause microscopic cracks. Over time, water seeps into these cracks, causing the clear coat to peel and flake away, leaving your car looking patchy and worn.
- Protects Resale Value: Appearance matters when selling or trading in a vehicle. Visible dents suggest to buyers that the car was not well-maintained. Fixing dents before selling typically offers a high return on investment by maximizing the car’s value.
- Ensures Safety Features Work: Modern cars have sensors and foam absorbers hidden behind bumpers and panels. A dent might look superficial, but it could have damaged these safety systems. Repairing the dent ensures your blind-spot monitoring and impact absorption systems are fully functional.
Trust Valley Collision for Your Repair Needs
If you need collision repair in Salt Lake City, count on the expert team at Valley Collision. Our shops in Salt Lake County and five other locations throughout Salt Lake Valley have achieved I-CAR Gold Class Certification.
The Gold Class® recognition is the highest role-relevant training achievement recognized by the collision repair industry, a distinction that only 20% of car repair shops currently meet. Contact us today to learn more.
