First Class Detailing: Inside is just as important as outside

J

JonB

New member
I just had about 10 small dings fixed, car in my driveway, by a paintless dent repair guy. It took appoximately 1.5 hours. On the rear quarter panel, he first drilled a hole in the door jamb and used different steel rods to work out the dent from the inside. For the door dings, he used a hole that was already present in the door jamb. The job cost $150 and I think worth every penny. I don't have to look at my Mustang now that has 10 hours worth of detailing just to look and see a bunch of dings!



He left me a couple of rubber/plastic caps to pop into the drill holes after I use a little touch up paint on the drill hole.



If you have dings, and it spoils the perfection of your detail job, I highly recommend it!



H :up
 
I would say approximately 1/2 inch. Once it has the plug in, it just looks like one of the factory conduit holes that are in there already. You can't see it unless the door is open and it is really not something that draws any attention. It is WAY better than having a car full of dings and dents....



H
 
It's O.K. for newer cars I guess. But you could not have this done to a car that you would ever plan on being judged at an event. Well, I guess you could but it would cost you some points depending on the rules of the show.



Maybe it's just me, but the idea of someone drilling a 1/2 hole in my car is somewhat unsettling. :(
 
If you wanted, I assume you could better the plugs by using a filler material and paint process for the holes. Done well, I imagine they could be very hard to notice.
 
after pics...that would have been cool..dood...:) ...happy it came out great for you...so...he came right o your house...mobile repair...how did u find that guy....and what kind of guarantees are there if any...i mean i know if the dings are gone then they are gone..but just asking....

also...what was it like.,..i mean hes got the rod in there....did he kinda bang it...im trying to picture how he got any leverage with it....just being nosy:D
 
I know exactly how you feel abou the drilling, but in my case, my '98 Black 528 was caught in a hail storm a couple of weeks ago and it comes down to repainting at least 1/2 of the car or drilling a couple of holes in a door jamb. My plan is to replace the hood and trunk, paint the roof and let the paintless dent guys do the sides. That way there is no blending needed when they paint, plus I have hand painted pinstrips that would be impossible to match! State Farm gave me $7k to fix it so I'm going to try to make it right. I plan on keeping this car for a while and I'm more than a little anal about how it looks. But I do understand what you meant about showing the car. The plugs would definetly take off points!
 
Sorry, did not get before pics. But here is an after pic. There were 6 medium size door dings in the rear quarter panel...



H
 
I'm sold. The finish on my 98 civic is in very good to new condition if not for the annoying tiny dings in various quarters and doors. I'v been contemplating such and can live with the plugs. Did you use a national chain like dentwizard or a local independent? What system did they use? Thanks.
 
I called Dent Wizard. They wanted a minimum of $80 per panel and more depending on how many dings. The guy that did my car was an independent and charged a lot less (very little overhead). He is an ex-autobody shop repair tech. He took a course for $10 K which included the tools and went out on his own and says he has never looked back. Sounds like he makes $60 to $100 an hour depending on the job!



Basically, he drilled the hole and then used a few different steel rods which fit into the hole. The rods are bent slightly at the tip and have either pointy or dull tips for different types of dings. There is a handle on the end of the rod which he uses to turn the tip into the back of the ding. He then just worked the metal out from the inside, by leveraging, twisting, turning etc. He did also use a plastic tool and a hammer on the outside to push the panel back in if he pushed it out too much. It was kind of scary to watch that but I looked closely and there was no damage to the paint or Klasse. He said this is how everyone does this kind of repair....steel rods.



H
 
if u got the right tools...it can be done....good for you buddy....



ps....that is definitely the door jam of an Autopian...:D ....we all take it for granted because all our door jams look like that....but we all know what the average one looks like....:)
 
Yes, nice door jam (!) -- LOL --



And, FLONI, only an Autopian would have noticed the detailing condition of the door jam in the first place! ;)
 
we're all froot loops ya know...i forgot i wortethat....i need to take up needlepoint or sumthin....:D



ps...i figured froot loops was a kinda different way of saying we're all nutso...ive used that one a bunch of times already...:)
 
I'm a big fan of Dent Wizzard. They do a great job at a very affordable price. The drilled holes inside the door jams are really not much to worry about. They don't look bad with the covers and as others have mentioned you could just fill it up and apply some paint. Nothing to really worry about.



However, I was also interested in the fact that State Farm just seemed to cut one of the members a check for 7k. My All State Agent would insist on getting an estimate from a body shop place and will then pay them directly. Not that good in my opinion. Laters.
 
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Yes, very true and beautiful looking work. Welcome to TID FCD08.

If I were to ask some of my female customers they'd say it's more important! I just hate doing 'em.
 
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