While washing my F56 last weekend, I was surprised to find damage to the front of my MINI. At first, I thought it had been damage while parked at the airport recently until I found pictures that showed that it had happened earlier. I appears that pushing the hood/bonnet down probably caused the dent, so be warned ... the metal on these cars is very thin and prone to dents.

Fortunately, one of the local paintless dent repair shops was able to make it like new for a very reasonable price.

Lesson learned is to be very careful when putting pressure on F56 body panels ... they're pretty soft.

 

Are you saying that occurred by closing the bonnet?

 

That's the best guess. MINI recommends dropping it ... pretty obviously why. I was probably the culprit, but I'm not a big guy and I do not slam things down, so it is fragile. The good thing is that it was repairable.

 

The PDR guy I used told me that BMW/MINI metal was very easy to work back into shape, which of course means it's pretty easy to get out of shape.

Thanks for the warning, I always cringe but let the hood drop.

 

It's perfect again, but it sure dented easily.

 

My sales person warned me that the hood is ALUMINUM!!!

 

Never PUSH down the hood when closing it. That technique went out when cars started being made with seat belts. Since gasoline prices have soared in the 90's, more and more body panels are thinner and some constructed of aluminum or composite of sorts.

I had a BMW Service manager push down on my R53 Bonnet one day to demonstrate the functionality of my struts...guessing you know what happened next....hello Mr PDR guy !

When closing the hood, keep it raised a few inches before it closes fully but just let it fall shut on its own....depending on your car's condition/age/lubrication of the latches you may have to hold it a bit higher than a few inches. With some practice it will become second nature.

 

Also, 12 ~ 16 inch drop, scary as it seems, helps the rather complex latching system lock in properly.

I was timid at first and thought my bonnet was out of alignment.

Then, before heading to the dealer, I re-read the owner's manual (though I will NEVER admit to reading directions before use). Anyway, a nice release and drop and everything is as it should be. No issues since.

But yeah, that's some thin, soft metal. Already had a visit from paintless dents R US for the front passenger door. He massaged a parking lot divot out of the lower door panel in about 15 minutes. Hundred bucks -- tricky location and real skill required.

 

If you drove up to Portland I could have hooked you up with the local PDR guy I use and you would have saved $50.

 

LoL!

Speaking of Portland, here's a shot taken last week of my nephew moving into his dorm at Reed. The Clubman he's unloading just returned from a road trip -- Bay area to Chicago then back by way of Hoover Dam and Vegas and then up Interstate 5 to Portland.