What is paintless dent repair, and can it fix my dent?
Paintless dent repair (PDR) pushes a dent back out from behind the panel with specialized rods and tabs, so the factory paint stays on the car. Nothing is sanded, filled or repainted. Tony Motors Collision in Indian Trail offers PDR for drivers across the Charlotte metro when the damage allows it, and conventional dent repair with paint when it does not.
When PDR works, and when it does not
PDR is usually the right call when all of these are true:
- The paint is not cracked, chipped or flaking at the dent.
- The metal is not stretched, and the dent has no sharp crease.
- The back of the panel can be reached, or the dent can be pulled from the front with glue tabs.
- The dent is not right on a panel edge or a heavily braced area.
Door dings, shallow parking-lot dents and most hail dents fit this description. A dent that broke the paint, a deep crease along a body line or a panel pushed in by a collision does not. Those need conventional repair: the metal is pulled and shaped, filled where needed, primed and painted in our booth to match the factory color. Sometimes a panel is too damaged to repair and replacing it is the better option. The estimate tells you which of these applies before any work starts.
Removing big dents from a car
Size alone does not rule PDR out; a large, shallow, smooth dent can still come out without paint. What decides it is the paint and the metal. Big dents from a collision usually come with stretched metal or broken paint, so they are handled as auto body repair or, after an accident, as collision repair, including a check for hidden damage behind the panel.
Hail damage repair
Hail leaves many small dents spread across the hood, roof and trunk lid. When the paint survived, PDR can take them out panel by panel and keep the original finish. Where hail cracked the paint, those panels are repaired and refinished. Hail claims usually fall under the comprehensive part of an auto policy. We work directly with all insurance companies, most often Farm Bureau, Progressive, State Farm, National General and Allstate.
Scratches and chips around the dent
If the dent came with scratches or chips, PDR alone will not hide them. Light surface scratches can sometimes be polished out; scratches through the clear coat or down to primer need the area refinished. See our auto paint service for how panel painting and color matching work.
Dent repair estimate
Every dent is different, so the price comes from looking at the car. Drive in to 109 Sherin Ln, Indian Trail during business hours for a free written estimate; it takes about 10 minutes. If you want an idea first, send photos through the form below or call (704) 618-8755 for a preliminary estimate. When the dent needs paint, typical prices are on our auto body repair cost guide.
We do not offer mobile dent repair: the work is done at the shop, where the lighting, tools and paint booth are. If the car cannot be driven and we are doing the repair, towing is free. Paint work carries our lifetime paint warranty, and parts and labor carry a lifetime limited warranty.
