ding repair on the cheap?

Hey, I got a racquetball sized ding in my rear quater panel. No paint cracks or chips, just a good ol fashioned dent. was gonna try a heat gun and a rubber mallet from inside the trunk trick and pray for luck, but then I found this...anyone ever tried these methods? Text (w/vids) from: http://www.diylife.com/2007/08/01/how-to-freeze-dents-off-your-vehicle/

• Solid carbon dioxide (dry ice) - I'm sure you've come across dry ice at some point in your life. It's readily available (your local grocery store probably carries it) and is great for freezing all kinds of stuff, from ice cream to warts. To remove a dent from your car with dry ice, simply apply a chunk to the center of the dent, and hold it there for up to a minute. Every so often, lift the dry ice to check on the dent. It may take several tries, but the dent should eventually pop out. Once that happens, allow the area to warm up, and then clean it off with a terry cloth.

• Liquid carbon dioxide - If you're not too crazy about the idea of handling dry ice, liquid carbon dioxide might be a little more user-friendly. If you have a fairly fresh can of compressed air, you have more than enough liquid CO2 to complete this project. To release it, simply turn the can upside down and aim it at the dent. Before you do that, however, warm up the dent with a hair dryer for roughly a minute. This will help the sheet metal relax and expand, but then, just before the dent starts to doze off into a peaceful slumber, you'll jump in with your can of liquid carbon dioxide and freeze it to death. Spray the entire dent, then step back and watch the magic unfold

Just call a PDR guy.

Either of those methods can potentially crack the paint and then you're looking at a much more expensive repair. They sometimes work on a larger area dent - like a panel that's pushed in - but this one sounds smaller and I doubt the freeze method will work.

CoryB wrote: Just call a PDR guy. Either of those methods can potentially crack the paint and then you're looking at a much more expensive repair. They sometimes work on a larger area dent - like a panel that's pushed in - but this one sounds smaller and I doubt the freeze method will work.

Ditto...at $75 or so for a reputable shop, that's cheap for the most likely repair to work IMO.

Bryce

Rubber mallet with a small hand towel to spread the impact should work from inside. You want something to absorb the impact so you don't leave a bunch of smaller dings. YMMV

My dad used dry ice (plus a blowtorch to heat the panel, it was winter) to repair hail damage on his truck. Worked good, but obviously destroyed the paint. He was planning on repainting the truck anyway.

I did not have good results attempting to use dry ice (plus hot summer sun) to repair hail damage on my ex-gf's Taurus...it took out some dents, but not all of them, and it didn't entirely fix the ones it did pop out. It didn't hurt the paint at all, though.

My dad used dry ice (plus a blowtorch to heat the panel, it was winter) to repair hail damage on his truck. Worked good, but obviously destroyed the paint (he was planning on repainting the truck anyway). I did not have good results attempting to use dry ice (plus hot summer sun) to repair hail damage on my ex-gf's Taurus...it took out some dents, but not all of them, and it didn't entirely fix the ones it did pop out). It didn't hurt the paint at all, though.

I've had repair shops try the dry ice thing multiple times. It has NEVER worked.

The dent has to be 'shrinked' out of the metal. Whacking it with a mallet won't do that. Call a PDR guy.

Funny, I JUST read a great article all about PDR. Here's a link if anyone wants to see a good writeup... http://www.motoiq.com/MagazineArticles/tabid/59/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/8/Paintless-Dent-Repair.aspx

It will damage the paint, but a microtorch worked around the diameter of the dent slowly from the outside in; followed by a wipe with a damp towel should work, as long as there is no creasing. If you want, email me a picture or 2 of the damage and I can tell you for certain.

(Been doing body repair/refinishing since I was 7)

morbidmommaof2@gmail.com

Morb.

Since you were 7? Aren't there laws again that sort of thing? Or were you brought up in the gulag? (If so, my deepest sympathies.)