Every once in a while, we get a really gnarly dent that challenges our skills, makes us push outside of our comfort zone, and ends up on our “Wall of Pride”. (We don’t really have one of those, but if we did, this repair would end up there!)
So, Chuck reached out to us back in November to inquire about paintless dent repair, and to decide if the damage to his 2023 Nissan Altima was a candidate for our process of repair, and if the cost made sense to go this direction as opposed to taking his car to a traditional body shop for repairs.
Paintless Dent Repair is a process of putting damaged metal (either steel or aluminum) back in its original place. There are a lot of factors that go into determining if damage can be repaired using this technique. Trained Technicians use a variety of tools, long rods with special tips, and paddles to push and tap down the metal until there is no trace of the dent left. If necessary, technicians can also use Glue Pulling to repair the panel. This requires much skill, patience, and training to be efficient in the technique. One of the first questions we ask when someone inquires about paintless dent repair. Is the paint intact?? The reason we ask that is to determine if our course of repair will create more damaged paint or increase the chances of causing paint damage.
When Chuck called, he explained that his brand-new Nissan Altima had been the victim of a hit and run. He texted some pictures of the damage to the left front fender. Whatever smacked into his car hit it HARD! This was no door ding! I told him that I needed to have a technician take a look at his photographs, and I would call him back with an estimate and go over some options with him. Our Lead Technician Dave conferred with our owner, Gene Fetty on whether this could be repaired using paintless dent repair to an acceptable level. 
SIDEBAR: There are times when a 100% repair is not an option. In many of those cases, we can offer a “Make It Better” type of repair, that has a lower cost. Now, it has to make sense for both the technician and the customer. We need to provide a quality repair that we feel good about charging a customer for, and one the customer says, WOW! That looks great! Thank you!!
In Chucks case, not only was the dent deep, but the paint was a concern to us as well. When repairing deep, sharp damage on high metallic paint finishes, multiple pushes are required to straighten the metal. The reflection and surface of the paint can have texture and mottling. Mottling is a blotchy appearance, because the metallics are reflecting light at different directions and can happen during pushing metal. Texture is micro imperfections of the repair that can accentuate the orange peel.
We went over these concerns with Chuck and made sure he was aware of his options and that his expectations were reasonable, as far as how close to perfect we could get it, which was about 90%. He wanted some time to think about it, and he wanted to look into a traditional body shop repair. So, Chuck called us again mid January. He let us know he went to a body shop for an estimate, and It was over $3000, (Ours was $1500-$1700 for not quite perfect) and they were going to be painting, replacing, and have his car for at least a week. He decided that he would like to take his chances with us and see what we could do. We are so glad he did! (Spoiler Alert….So Is He!)
If you’re not sure of the difference between a traditional body shop repair and a paintless dent repair you can watch this short video explaining just that.
Chuck dropped of his Altima and was expecting it back within two days. Dave started on the repair by removing the fender liner for access. Then using a heat gun, he raised the temperature of the panel and pushed from behind with a 1 1/2″ rubber tip. After working on the bulk area of the damage, Dave used the curved centipede tab from KECO to apply lateral tension downward to release the tension of the crown (the buckle at the very top of the dent). 
With that tension there, Dave was able to push from behind and tap down the crown. (No plungers, dry ice, or boiling water were used in this repair!!) Mid way through the repair, Dave sent some progress pictures to Chuck to let him know how things were moving. 
You can see the bulk of the dent is gone, and the bodyline is put back where it should be. What’s left is the detail work. There is still a lot of wavyness showing. On to detail work…..
SIDEBAR: Many (most) of our first time customers and even repaiet customers will call us and say, “I have a dent that needs popped out” or “It’s just a dent you can pop it out”. 1. Dents do not “pop” out. 2. Repairing dents takes a lot of training, strength, dedication, and a great eye for detail.
After 2 days and many hours of pushing, tapping, and pulling, Chuck’s Altima repair came out GREAT! Take a look!
This came out so completely awesome. Chuck saved time, saved money, saved resale value on his car, and was really pleased with the results. This was definitely a case of undersell, over perform!!! If you have taken your car to another paintless dent repair shop, or body shop, that’s ok! Let us take a look and provide you with our assessment of the damage. If you need a body shop, we will send you in that direction. It’s always good practice to know all available options.
So, what are you waiting for? Give us a call or text at 724-554-1756. Visit our shop at 4699 Campbells Run Road Pittsburgh Pa 15205 for a free assessment of the damage on your vehicle. We are here to help YOU! Fill out a form on our website with some information about your vehicle and damage, and pictures of the dent, then we will put together an estimate and call you! You can watch this short video if you’re not sure how to get the best shot.
