djacks42 Posted March 30, 2004 Report Posted March 30, 2004 Our new (to us) Mk1 has got a saucer sized dent (not creased and not cracked the paint) in the driver's door. The dealer where we got it said his bodywork contact reckons on about Quote
Richmond Posted March 30, 2004 Report Posted March 30, 2004 It sounds as if it might respond to very hot water, if it's not too deep; it sometimes works. Quote
Ivor_E_Tower Posted March 30, 2004 Report Posted March 30, 2004 Most dents have resulted in the metal stretching, so they don't usually just push out. Try Dent Devils or similar mobile company who use special tools to rework the metal. If your dealer's contact is such a company, go for it because I think the usual price is in the region of Quote
djacks42 Posted March 31, 2004 Author Report Posted March 31, 2004 I had a little go with a sink plunger last night on the off chance it would work. I could pull the area out but it's 'wobbly' and flexes back easily. The problem seems to be that the door skin is quite thin and it has been stretched slightly i.e it's not going to 'pop' either way any more. I'll try the water idea, and if that doesn't work I'll leave it - it's hardly noticeable really. (I am discovering 1st hand that dark cars show dirt pretty darn quickly). Quote
Guest chrisH Posted March 31, 2004 Report Posted March 31, 2004 You lot seem to know about the 'hot water' trick, for the benefit for people like me, whats the hot water trip ???? Thanks B) Quote
Guest nimrod Posted March 31, 2004 Report Posted March 31, 2004 The hot water gently heats and softens the paint and the panel which allows it to flex a bit easier without cracking! its a trick used by VW Golf owners a lot when they trim their wheel arch lips back in order to get bigger rims under them without catching! the area is gently heated and then the arch roller is applied to fold back the lip! the end result is that the paint has stretched and not cracked meaning more expense B) Quote
Richmond Posted March 31, 2004 Report Posted March 31, 2004 You lot seem to know about the 'hot water' trick, for the benefit for people like me, whats the hot water trip ???? Thanks B)As well as the effects mentioned by Nimrod, in the case of dents I think that expansion of the metal may (if you're lucky) cause it pop back into shape. It works best on small closed volumes (which does not include car doors) where the expansion of the internal air forces the bump out. Hot water seems to work best on cars in v. cold weather; I suppose that the expansion is greater. One of those carbon dioxide spray jobbies used by plumbers can help. Since it appears that Ford make their cars from aluminium foil, I doubt that it will work at all; the entire door will probably soften and end up draped over the sill (a Ford 'Dali' to rival the Citroen 'Picasso', perhaps). Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.