How to Repair Car Dents and Scars?

[Michael]

Use a dent puller to suck out the dent from the outside of the car body. Remove the interior and use tools to pry out the dented area from the inside of the car body. Use a rubber hammer to tap it back into place and level it. For shallow scratches or stains (suitable for very light scratches and stains), you can use an eraser, toothpaste, or essential balm to remove small scratches on the car body. For small, slight dents on plastic car bodies, you can use a lighter with aluminum foil or a hairdryer to heat the area until it softens, then push it out from the inside with your fingers. For large dents on aluminum or metal car bodies, you can apply Vaseline to a plunger, place it on the dented area, and pull hard.

[MacAurora]

I fixed that small dent on my car myself using a suction cup. My grocery-getter got its rear door scraped by an electric scooter, leaving a fingernail-sized dent. I bought a $30 vacuum suction cup online, followed the instructions by first heating the paint with a hair dryer, then pulling hard while it was hot. It takes multiple gradual pulls—stop when it's about 80% flat, and the remaining mark is barely noticeable. If the metal is severely deformed, don’t force it; damaging the paint would be worse. Those paintless dent repair shops are pretty amazing too—watched a mechanic use hooks inside the door panel to slowly push it out, not even needing to remove the headlight trim. Of course, if the dent has chipped paint, you’ll have to go for proper bodywork and repainting—rust prevention is more important.

[VanGabrielle]

The key to dent repair lies in the location and size. Last time my car hood got over a dozen small dents from hail, I took it to professional paintless dent repair. The technician used custom levers inserted through the headlight gaps, working extremely carefully without even damaging the factory paint. However, roof dents are more challenging as they require removing interior headliners. For DIY attempts, I recommend the hot glue pull method: clean the surface, attach melted glue stick to the dent center, let it cool, then grip the base and yank quickly - works similar to a plunger. Note that dents larger than a coin diameter shouldn't be DIY attempts, and door edge repairs are prone to mistakes.

[SanEmerson]

Don't panic if your car gets dented. From my experience, repairing shallow dents is quite simple. You can buy a dent repair kit on Taobao for just over a hundred yuan, which comes with different sizes of pull tabs and a hot glue gun. First, clean the dented area, apply the heated glue stick, wait three minutes for it to harden, then quickly pull it out. Small dents can usually be restored by about 90%. The key is to have a spray bottle ready to cool the car paint at any time to prevent the metal from overheating and discoloring. If you see paint cracking or dents on the edges, don't attempt to fix it yourself—you must take it to a repair shop for panel beating. Last time I repaired a dent on the trunk lid, the whole process took no more than half an hour.

[McJulia]

When encountering a dent, first feel the paint. If it's smooth and undamaged, it's easier to handle. Freeze two bags of frozen food from your home refrigerator, apply ice to the dent for fifteen minutes to contract the metal, then quickly pour boiling water over the center point—the principle of thermal expansion and contraction can make the dent rebound by seventy to eighty percent. However, be cautious with chrome strips or plastic parts as they are sensitive to alternating heat and cold. Avoid this method if the metal is severely deformed—I learned the hard way when the dent rebounded and caused cracks instead. Nowadays, paintless dent repair at repair shops is quite advanced. They use a reflector to locate the dent and slowly push it out from the backside. Small dents can be fixed for just two hundred bucks, which is much more cost-effective than going through insurance.