When your vehicle's body becomes dented from an accident or crash, whether it be serious or simple, you most likely will want to repair it to restore the condition of your vehicle. Here are three methods you can use to remove dents from your vehicle's body.
Method #1: Dry Ice Method
Some vehicle dents are simple and not as extensive as others, and you can try this method to smooth them at home. Quickly cooling the area of metal on your vehicle where the dent has occurred can cause the metal to shrink and contract, which often pops out the dent and smooths it back into place. You can use dry ice for this method, which you can find at most grocery stores. Be sure to wear protective work gloves while you handle dry ice, as the ice can burn your bare skin if it comes into contact with it.
Apply a piece of dry ice onto the dent on your vehicle. Rub the dry ice around and over the center of the dent. Continue rubbing the dry ice until you hear and see the dent pop back into place. If this does not work, you can try the next method.
Method #2: Hair Dryer Method
Another method you can use to repair dents in your vehicle involves applying heat to the dent, then quickly cooling it. This also uses the technique of contracting the metal on your vehicle after applying heat, which expands the metal.
First, run a hair dryer over the dent, directing the warm air onto the dented vehicle body until the vehicle's metal is heated up. Next, turn a can of compressed air upside down and spray it onto the dent. The compressed air will spray out freezing cold and should pop the dent out of your vehicle.
Method #3: Professional Stud Welding Gun Method
If your vehicle has a more serious or extensive area of damage, you can use a method that professional body shops use to straighten the metal. A stud welding gun welds metal pins onto the body where the dent is, then you use a slide hammer to pull out the pins and straighten the dent. You need to do a little prep work first, but it can give you a more complete repair. You can get a stud welding gun at most auto shops.
First, sand down the area of the dent where you will be welding the 1 1/2-inch long metal pins onto the body of your vehicle. The welding gun needs bare metal for the electrical current to weld the metal, so you need to remove the paint and primer. The area where you will attach each pin needs to be at least the size of a quarter, larger if the area of damage is greater. Insert a metal pin into the end of the stud welding gun and press the nozzle of the gun until it connects with the vehicle metal to create the connection and make the weld. Repeat this process over the area of damage, attaching the pins as close as one inch to one another.
Allow the welds to cool, then use a slide hammer to pull and bend each pin outward to smooth out the dent. It is recommended to smooth the dent on your vehicle in reverse order of how the dent was created. This means that you should straighten the outside damage on the dent first, then work your way to the interior of the dent. This process restores the metal body back into place in a natural way so you don't bent and cause additional damage to your vehicle's body.
After you have the dent removed and the body repaired, use wire cutters to cut the pins from the body and smooth any remaining nubs with a metal grinder. Be careful that you don't heat up the vehicle's body too much with the grinder, as this can warp the body and cause extra damage. If there are still any wrinkles or puckering on the vehicle, apply some auto body filler to the area, allowing it to dry according to the package directions. Smooth the auto body filler after it has dried with fine-grit sand paper. Now your vehicle is ready for you to prime and paint the area of repair.
If you're unable to repair damage to your car on your own, contact an auto body repair service like Custom Kar Tops for professional assistance.
