The appearance of your car can be ruined by dents no matter how small it is. To help maintain the car, you’ll need to quickly fix the dent. Car dents, especially smaller ones, can be easily fixed provided there is no significant paint damage.

Getting a professional to provide car dent repair can be expensive, so you need to purchase the appropriate tools and do it yourself. In this blog post, you will learn everything you need to know about repairing car dents. So let's get started!

Repairing Different Types of Car Dents

There are four basic types of car dents. They include small and large dents in metal, and small and large dents in plastic. The process of repairing these different types of dents differs. The repair process for each of these dents is as follows:

Small dents in metal

Use a microfiber towel to wide down the area. Do this to ensure that no particulate will cause a bad seal. Use the glue gun provided in the repair kit to heat the glue. Apply one or two teaspoons of glue to the point of dents that is deepest.

You should attach the bridge puller head should to the gun. In about 4-8 minutes it should be completely dried. As soon as it is dried, slowly turn the dial of the bridge puller to pull out the dent. Detach the bridge after the dent has been removed. Use the heating gun to remove the leftover glue. There you have it, you have fixed the dent!

Large dents in metal

Heat the dent using the heat gun dryer. Attach the suction dent puller after it is warm to touch. Use the puller handle to pull out the dent. Switch to the bridge puller once you have reduced the dent's size.

Use a microfiber towel to wide down the area. Do this to ensure that no particulate will cause a bad seal. Use the glue gun to heat the glue.

Apply one or two teaspoons of glue to the point of dents that is deepest. It should dry up completely in about 4-8 minutes. Slowly turn the dial of the bridge puller to pull out the dent once it is dried. Detach the bridge after the dent has been removed. Use the heating gun to remove the leftover glue. Your car should look great now!

Small dents in plastic

Heat the dent using the heat gun dryer. As soon as it is warm to touch, you should shake the compressed air, turn upside down and spray the area with ultra-cool air. The dent should pull out, and if it does not, you may need a suction dent puller. That is it, you are done!

Large dents in plastic

Use the heat gun dryer to heat the dent. Attach the suction dent puller after it is warm to touch. Use the puller’s handle to pull out the dent. To completely pull out the dent, you may need to heat the area again.

Any smaller dent that appears during the repair process may also need to be pushed out. By the way, check out our other blog post where you can find the best lumbar support for your car.

Causes of Dents to Your Vehicle

It is important for you to know the causes of dents in your vehicle. Knowing these causes will better position you to avoid these dents. If you can avoid dents to your cars, there will be no need for you to fix them. So, before we look at how you can fix car dents to your vehicle, let’s first consider the common causes of these dents. Below are the common causes of dents to your vehicle.

Leisure equipment

A misplaced kick of a ball by children playing together can cause a dent in your vehicle. When there is a single bad kick or throw, it can ruin your vehicle. So, ensure to always park your vehicle away from high-risk areas, where there is a high possibility of an accident occurring, maybe from those playing sports.

Car doors

The car doors of other cars can be opened carelessly and slammed into your vehicle car door. This may be intentional or unintentional. So, always try to park your vehicle away from other vehicles or in an empty parking lot to minimize the possibility of door-to-door damage.

Shopping trolleys

Shopping trolleys can cause dents to cars more than anything else. So, when you visit a supermarket store, you need to park your vehicle away from shopping trolley areas, as well as other cars to avoid unwanted dings and dents.

Hail storms

No matter how tough your vehicle may be, it can get ruined by heavy windstorms and hail. You may not be able to avoid hail storms all the time and so, it is a good idea for you to park your vehicle in a garage or a parking lot, especially if you have the opportunity to do so.

If you don’t have the opportunity of parking in an area that offers any shelter, your only option may be to leave the vehicle where it is. In such circumstances, all you can do is hope that the hail storm does only a little damage to the vehicle.

Fallen tree branches

Unfavorable or adverse weather conditions like windstorms and hail can disturb the general environment and can make a tree branch fall onto your vehicle. So, if you park your vehicle under a tree, be sure to check that the branches are healthy. Fallen tree branches can cause significant damage to your car’s paint as well as other nasty scrapes.

Road debris

When you are driving your vehicle on roads and highways, stones, garbage, and sticks can become airborne and fly unexpectedly from any direction to hit your vehicle. This can cause dents to your vehicle.

Whenever you are driving down an unpaved road or when you encounter any roadwork, consider rerouting yourself and finding another way of getting to your destination. Roads under construction are sure going to be used by other drivers and therefore, road debris may get catapulted into your car by these other vehicles.

Tight parking spaces

Parking your vehicle in a tight parking space increases the possibility of it getting dented. You can hit something while trying to squeeze into this tight parking space. So, avoid parking your vehicle in a tight parking space.

When your vehicle is in motion and parked, ensure that there is plenty of room around it; this will help avoid any dents. Now you know the commons causes of dents to your vehicle, you need to try as much as possible to avoid encounters with these causes. If after making efforts you still observe dents in your car, how do you go about fixing these dents? This is what we’ll be looking at next.

Best Methods to Fix Car Dents

You can fix car dents yourself or get a professional to do it for you. If you wish to fix dents yourself, the best option may be for you to get dent-removal kits. Later in this guide, we’ll consider some dent repair kits you can get for your vehicle.Dents on your car can be removed by following any of the methods below.

Dry ice pops out method

You can release the dent on a car using dry ice. This can be done just by rubbing ice that is dry on your car. The dent will pop out doing this. This method requires that you wear protection on your hands while repairing.

Contraction, compressed air, and hairdryer method

This method uses the infusion of cold and hot air. The dent will pop out on its own as these two come together. Cold compressed air causes contraction of the plastic, while the use of a hairdryer causes the expansion of the plastic.

Plunger suction method

This method is very efficient for small dents. With relatively easy, you can plunge on side panels or doors. With the suction that you will create, the dent gets lifted out. Cup plunger is the most appropriate tool for this method. Avoid using flange plungers; they will not produce the much-needed suction that will help get the dent out.

Boiling water pliability method

Vehicles with plastic bumpers are more pliable to releasing dents. The car dent on the car's bumper can be removed if you apply boiling water to it. This way, pushing the dent out of the plastic will be easier.

Step-by-Step Guide for Fixing Car Dents

The first place you think of after getting a dent in your car is a repair shop. However, you can get the dents out yourself using the right tools and following the right steps.

You do not need to spend too much money trying to fix a car dent. The steps below can help you successfully fix dents in your car. The repair may not look like a job done by a professional, but it will make your car look less-horrible.‍

Step 1: Clean and prepare the car before filling it. After cleaning, you should wash the car. This will allow for the wet spots to dry.

‍Step 2: This is the stage where you remove the paint. You should begin by removing all paints around and inside the dent. You can use 24-grit paper to do so. To sand the car, you will need a80-grit sandpaper. The entire dent should be hand-sanded. Feather and rough up the paint around the edges of the dents with the same sandpaper. Proceed to use a clean rag and a wax remover to clean the entire area. Use a tack cloth to wipe.

‍Step 3: Go ahead to mix the filler. In a curve-like manner, spread the filler on the mixing board. Then take it out and fold it over. Do this over and over again until the color of the filler is consistent. Make use of a mixing board to mix the filler. Ensure that you do not use a scrap piece of cardboard to mix the body filler.

‍Step 4: You should apply a tight cloth to the spots. Press some scooped filler into the rough metal. Make sure that a “tight” coat as you spread the filler. This will wet the bare metal and causes air to be expelled from the scratches.

‍Step 5: At this point, you can add more filler. To fill the dent, the wiping should be carried out on a layer of filler. This layer of filler should be a thicker "fill coat"‍

Step 6: To make sure that the repair is glazed and shaped, make use of sandpaper again. The filler should be sanded so that it matches the contour. Do this using the 180 and 80 grit sandpaper.

Proceed to feather the edges of the filler. Continue until you get to the painted edge. Applying finishing glaze is next. You must do this to the entire patch and before sanding.

Firstly use 180 grit and paper and then 320-grit sandpaper to do the sanding. You should first spray and then paint the patch primer. To give your car a fresh look, make use of a car paint sealant.You can also learn more about this process, if you check out the following video:

You can use the steps above to fix car dents yourself. Also, you can fix dents yourself using car dent repair kits. Why should you buy a dent repair kit and what are the best dent repair kits? We’ll be answering these questions next.

Reasons You Should Buy Car Dent Repair Kits

Car dent is not something anyone wants, but these things happen. If you have not thought about it before, here is why you should consider buying car dents repair kits.

Cheaper repairs

Car dent repair kits are a cheaper alternative to professional repairs. If the car suffers little or no paint damage, there is no need for you to visit a repair shop. You will find kits for various sizes of dents, including tiny, medium, and large dents. With a repair kit, you only need to spend just a fraction of what a repair at the shop would cost you.

Easy and convenient

It is very easy to fix car dents with the right repair kit. The best dent repair kits come with detailed and easy-to-follow instructions. With these instructions, you can easily fix dents on your car without damaging your car’s paint.

Boost your car’s resale value

Dents are factors that can reduce the resale value of your car. By using the best car dent remover, you can boost the resale value of your car. You can learn how to improve your car’s resale value using paintless dent repair here.

Environmentally friendly

When doing any bodywork on the car in the workshop, technicians are more likely to use power tools. You can use this kind of tool to add paint primer and sand the damaged area.

But you do not have to deal with toxic and harmful chemicals if you have the best car dent repair kit. Getting the job done with a dent repair kit is safer and cleaner. If you would like to get a dent repair kit, check out our reviews of the best car dent repair kits on the market here.

Final Thoughts

It is never pleasing looking at a car with dents on the body. With any of these blemishes, your car cannot look its best. The do-it-yourself steps mentioned in this guide can be used to fix dents in your car.

Also, you can easily fix dents using dent repair kits.In fixing dents, you do not need to be in haste. You need to carefully manipulate the dent into place, not snap it. A steady approach while you work on the area that needs repairment will help to avoid slippage. Remember, any slip may cause additional damage to the car.

‍