Is dent repair service worth it?

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Vanrnr
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Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by Vanrnr »

I have a 2009 Infiniti ex35 to sell which has a pretty good dent in the fender, otherwise in good condition. The paint did not crack. Wholesale value is around $8-9K. A dent repair service will charge $350.00 to remove it, however my fear is that there will still be some residual evidence of the dent. My current thought is to trade it as is, and make the pitch that the dealer's shop can repair the dent with minimal effort. This is not town to sell privately in, so the car will be traded in.

My question is two-fold for those who have used such a service: first, we’re you satisfied with the results, and second, Is it realistic to think I will get the cost back with the trade-in? Thanks.
Dilbydog
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by Dilbydog »

We had a smaller dent removed from a side panel on our SUV. Curiously the impact / dent impacted a factory crease in the sheet metal. After the repair, there was zero evidence of the dent, it was an excellent repair. In our case I want to say we paid $50, but it may have been $75, and was money well spent. Will you recoup the $350, I don’t know. Given the age of the vehicle, I imagine the car will go straight to the auction, and doubt the dealer will spend any money to repair the fender in the hopes of selling it on their own lot.
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Doom&Gloom
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by Doom&Gloom »

1) Yes
2) No idea

I had a dent in a fender repaired about six months ago at ~60% of the cost of regular body work. The second biggest benefit to me was not worrying about a re-painted fender eventually fading from the sun so as not to match the rest of the car. The finished result looked brand new to me, but the guy who did it apologized for not being able to get it perfect. He said he could see a remaining imperfection that I could not even after he tried to show it to me. I would do it again without question.

The dealer's shop in your case will likely use the same service at only slightly less cost. When I took my car for an estimate, the dent repair guy was at a local dealership with several other guys he had recruited from other areas to repair the dealer's stock. Apparently they do that every several months. If I were going to be driving the car for a while, I would probably get it fixed. If not, I probably wouldn't bother unless I knew the buyer would make a big issue out of it.
Broken Man 1999
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by Broken Man 1999 »

I have never had a dent removed in that manner, but I have seen some on friends and relatives vehicles. The right person can work miracles.

So IF you can find the right person, you should be good.

I can't understand how they can repair the dent without ruining the paint, but apparently paint has some flexibility or property that allows such activity.

Around my parts this company gets a lot of good reviews, Carsmetics. Many of the reviews are for dent/ding popouts.

So, to answer OP's questions: Yes, a good body man can make your dent disappear. However, no idea what the repaired vehicle would bring when sold, vs not repairing the damage.

Broken Man 1999
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SmileyFace
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by SmileyFace »

The real question is when the dent occurred was it because the vehicle was in an accident? If there is an accident is on carfax, regardless of whether or not there was any damage that has or has not been fixed, the trade-in value will be reduced substantially.
daveydoo
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by daveydoo »

Vanrnr wrote: Fri Nov 17, 2017 10:19 am ...second, Is it realistic to think I will get the cost back with the trade-in? Thanks.
I have not done this but have considered it. Sounds like whomever you would be selling to would have access to this same service for less (volume discount at the very least) and would be better equipped to gauge the true impact on resale value. So I absolutely would not fix this to trade it in. The bigger question is whether you'd let the presence of the dent make you more susceptible to accepting a dealer's low-ball offer. I've had potential (professional) buyers look at some minor cosmetic damage and try to use that to justify an offer thousands below market. As long as you know that it's a cheap fix, then I think your negotiating power is intact.
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likegarden
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by likegarden »

It all depends on what kind of dent your car has.
1976 one fender of my Plymouth Duster got a wide dent from a truck touching it. I thought about for days , then hit the dent from the inside and it simply popped out.
Look at utube, which shows how car owners take out dents, i.e. with suction cups.
My wife had a dent in the rear bumper of her Camry. I used a hair dryer for 5 minutes, and with gentle help from behind it popped out.
Good Luck!
Billionaire
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by Billionaire »

I had it done to my Cadillac. The car was parked in the garage and my bike was leaning against the wall, fell over and put a dime size dent on the body right above the wheel. I think it cost $80.00. The procedure was called PDR (Paintless dent removal). The car was only 3-4 years old. Best money I ever spent. Still own the car.
runner3081
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by runner3081 »

You very well may not get the "money back" in a sale, but it will likely sell faster.
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Vanrnr
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by Vanrnr »

Thanks to those who replied.
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by abuss368 »

We used a local dent repair service many years ago and for the price they were able to work wonders. I was very happy and would use them again.
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htdrag11
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by htdrag11 »

IMO, you'll get killed with trade-in; I would not sink any more money to repair the dent.

In my heavily populated area, I would sell it at KBB's trade-in price rather than trading the car in to dealers, based on past experience. :oops: Now I just lease.

GL
soupcxan
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by soupcxan »

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Doom&Gloom
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by Doom&Gloom »

soupcxan wrote: Fri Nov 17, 2017 7:09 pm At $350 someone is trying to rip you off. PDR costs $150 or less.
Not necessarily the case.
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Helo80
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by Helo80 »

Have you contacted the shop and gotten their professional opinion on how it might look afterwards? They're the body shop, not us. They can see the dent, we cannot. They have the experience we don't.

You have an Infiniti. Odds are, it's not worth repairing as you'll get hosed in trade in anyways.
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jabberwockOG
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by jabberwockOG »

Get another couple of estimates. $350 is way too much. Call a coupl eof local used car lots and ask them for the name and number of the mobile touch up guy that they use. Even a large dent should be about $75-150.
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loves2read
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by loves2read »

FWIW--smaller dents like hail damage or for various reasons can sometimes be repaired fairly easily using dry ice--
I thought maybe this dent of that type

Dry ice is used by repair shops at times -- you just have to protect the surface of the car/paint from direct contact with the ice but apparently the cold causes contraction of the metal and allows it to rebound

Google has some sites...

You might also call your ISD and see if your district has a tech program for auto repair
Our district does--
The guy who runs the program might have good recommendation for quality repair==not his students--but he has likely local knowledge of various repair shops
LarryAllen
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Re: Is dent repair service worth it?

Post by LarryAllen »

At $350 you might break even but, as someone said, will probably sell faster.

Also, as others said, I think paintless dent repair is usually cheaper than $350 in my experience. I have used them many times and been very impressed.
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