Paintless Dent Repair???

[kliebss]

My friend attempted to back out my mini, stalled, and the car thrusted forward and hit the car in front of my Mini. This revealed a good size dent in my hood. my friend agreed to pay, so I got a couple estimates. Both repair shops claimed that since the hood is double paneled underneath there is no other way to fix it besides replacing the hood. The costs estimated at about $1100-1400, which I think is a bunch of horse hockey. I heard that paintless dent repair works great, but I am not sure if it's feasible to get underneath the hood. Does anybody know of a paintless dent repair shop in Los Angeles that could find if the dent is possible to remove???

Thanks a bunch

[2xMini]

My one experience with paintless dent repair was with my wife's car, that got hail damage. They removed the dents perfectly, but the paint started separating from the body in some of those spots a couple of years later. My guess is that the paint was either cracked from the hail, or from the process of dent removal. Now, MINIs seem to have softer paint (judging from the chips I'm getting on the hood) so that may not be an issue... but still, be cautious about this.

[kenchan]

depends on where the dent is. if the PDR tech can not feed his tool
behind there he won't be able to push the dent out. the other
tool, glue pullers, are only limited in wat it can do and only works
on factory paint finish.

your best bet is to talk to your dealer and see what their PDR tech says.

i was able to push a fairly decent sized dent on my MCS's hood from a
berry about a size of an apple falling onto it while i was going about
45mph through some wooded area. it was above the scoop so had plenty
of space to work my tool under there.

if it's towards the front it might get pretty tricky. i wouldnt be surprised
if they tell you to just replace it.

[enricosonic]

Could you describe it's exact location and size - or post a pic?

I had a half-dollar sized dent from a flying stone which hit just to the side of the MINI emblem under the scoop and it was completely removed but there are some access points surrounding that area.

[thulewx]

Mine's on the nose, very shallow but about 7" wide, 3" ekither sde of the emblem. I've removed the emblem and there are 3 holes + holes under the hood - been thinking of trying to repair my self with some well placed hammering onto something like a penny strapped to a screwdriver?
Do I dare?

[CR&PW&JB]

I doubt that homemade "tool" will be strong enough to push out that dent. And you're more likely to lose the penny between the metal of your bonnett.

PDR is not that expensive. Have a pro do it.

[kliebss]

the dent is pretty significant. It's about the size of three big fists, just left of the hoodscoop above the grill, and between the headlight. Is there hope?

[CR&PW&JB]

Originally Posted by kliebss

the dent is pretty significant. It's about the size of three big fists, just left of the hoodscoop above the grill, and between the headlight. Is there hope?

Might be tough, but doesn't sound impossible. Of course, you need a PDR expert to give you a definitive "yes, it's possible".

And it's impossible if there is even the slightest damage to the paint.

[twomini08]

PDR removed the dent from our 2008 MINI hood this afternoon. The hood is double walled behind the dent and he was able to reach it through existing vent holes. Thirty minutes and the dent is history. If you are looking for PDR in Houston, I recommend Houston Dent Professionals.

[kenchan]

yah, that aint going work...

[twomini08]

I stumbled onto these pictures last night. Here you will find before and after pics of a Mini hood repaired with PDR in Dallas. We have the PDR guys coming over tomorrow (Houston) to repair the hood of our new 08 MCS. Fishing pole fell from the ceiling storage rack - you can't win. Good luck.

http://www.metroplexmini.org/forum/s...1&referrerid=0