How To Fix A Dent In A Car

By: Laurel Moore

Break Studios Contributing Writer

Knowing how to fix a dent in a car can save you a lot of cash in the long run. When you take your car to the auto body shop to have a dent knocked out, they will usually find other things that need to be done to ensure your bill is as high as possible. Why waste money you don't have fixing a dent in your car when you can simply do it yourself most of the time?

Things You Will Need:

Car Dent Removal Kit (With a Plastic Adapter)
Metalworking Hammer
Super Glue
Body Filler
Drill
Grit Disk
Primer
Body Paint
Sandpaper
Wood Block

To fix a dent in a car, you will need to locate the center of the dent. Using a hot glue gun, glue the plastic adapter included in your dent removal kit to the center of the dent. It is important that you have the plastic adapter as close to the center as possible. Gluing the adapter to the wrong portion of the dent may cause you to end up repeating the process over and over.
Once you have glued the adapter to the dent, it is time to pull the dent out with the adapter. To fix the dent on your car, pull the adapter you glued to the center with the dent pulling tool that should have been included with your dent removal kit. Pull the adapter until the dent looks flat.
Now that you have pulled the dent out, you need to make sure that the dent is not going to fall back in as soon as you walk away. Locate the back of the dent and place something solid behind it to support it. You will need something sturdy enough to support the spot where the dent was while you hammer the front of the dent. While supporting the dent from behind, carefully hit the dent with a metalworking hammer.
Using a drill with a grit disk attached, sand the paint off the area covering the dent. You may want to remove the paint surrounding the dent as well. After removing the paint, fill the area with a body filler. Body filler can be purchased online, in automotive stores and in hardware stores. Allow the body filler to dry for up to an hour.
At this point, you have almost completely fixed the dent in your car. Your next step is to use sandpaper to sand the area where you applied the body filler. It is a good idea to wrap the sandpaper around a block of wood to make the process easier.
Once you have sanded the area, use an automotive primer to cover the area. Allow each coat of primer to dry before applying the next.
The final step to fix a dent in your car is to paint. Before painting the area, it is a good idea to sand the area one last time. Apply the paint with care and allow it to dry.

If you feel uncomfortable with any of the steps to fix the dent in your car, invite your friends over. Chances are, there is one among them who can knock this one out in no time at no cost.

Posted on: Jun. 20, 2010