No matter how carefully you drive a car, there will always be dings. However, ding repairs are simple and easy. You can follow the ding repair guide below and perform ding repair work in no time.
Ding Repair: Is It Necessary?
You might wonder whether dings and dents are the same on a car or not. Dings are classified as small dents that do not penetrate the paint or expose the metal underneath. Ding marks are typically up to 0.5 inches in diameter and do not appear to have effects on your vehicle’s paint.
Unlike dents, dings on cars are less severe damage. Dings are much more insignificant than dents. They often occur as a result of a collision with a shopping cart, a parked car door opening into your car, or possibly small debris thrown up while driving. Hail is also a fairly common cause of dings. Although dings are sometimes just small bumps, this mark can affect the overall appearance of your car. And because of a small thing, it is easy to be overlooked during a maintenance process by drivers.
Over time, unwanted collisions will inevitably occur. Whether it’s an objective or subjective factor, the car body will have slight dings. If you don’t want to waste money, car owners can apply the following methods to handle dings themselves and limit damage to the paint layer…
Car Ding Repair: 5 Tips to Follow
By referring to these tips below to give your car a better exterior:
Tip #1
Inspect the damage carefully. You can repair the ding without leaving traces of previous damage if the metal is not crumpled or bent.
Tip #2
Dry ice is effective against dings. Use a hairdryer to heat an area and push the dry ice against it. Hold it like that for a few seconds. The principle of this method is the same as pouring boiling water then cold water to cause a temperature change and make the plastic pop out and return to its original shape. Once the area is warmed up, gently push the ding from the inside or use a plunger to pull it out from the outside. This method may work for soft dings on plastic or metal surfaces. Follow this procedure over and over, until the ding completely disappears. Before touching dry ice, you must wear safety gloves to avoid injuring your hand.
Tip #3
A suction cup can remove dings and put dents back in order. Clean the area thoroughly before applying a suction cup. Remaining particles can damage the paint and disrupt the suction process.
Tip #4
Tapping is another way to rid your car of unsightly dings and scratches. A block of wood and a rubber mallet proportionate to the size of the ding can be used to put it back in place. Use a cloth or padding towel to wrap the device you are going to use.
Tip #5
Paintless repair is another way to eliminate dings without spending a lot of money. A mechanic will use designated tools to repair the damaged areas and restore the design to its smoothness and original appearance.
Although dings on your car are enough to keep you up at night, eliminating them is relatively easy. It’s a DIY job that is easily achievable. But if you find that the dings are more significant, seek professional help to remove them without damaging your car. Getting dings repaired at an auto repair shop shouldn’t cost you a fortune, though.
In cases where you cannot repair the dings yourself, take your car to the mechanic for help:
The steps for treating dings on cars still rely mainly on the thermal impact method.
- For plastic parts, the repair technician will use enough heat to impact the hardness and elasticity of the plastic to restore them to their original shape, then repaint the surface if there is damage.
- For high-hardness steel or aluminum parts, the repair will be complicated, requiring specialized equipment to restore them to their original shape.
We hope all these tips can help you handle this issue easily.