wheel arch dent

sheep911uk · Nov 7, 2007

Some nice person with i suspect a shopping trolley has put a horizontal dent in the rear wheel arch of my 944,as its double skinned is it possible to have the dent removed or will i be taking a trip to my local body repair shop soon?
Thanks

John Sims · Nov 7, 2007

Try your local Dent Devils. They have cunning tools to reach inside double skinned sections and ping dents outward.

sheep911uk · Nov 8, 2007

Does anyone have any experience of using them,im in Northampton does anyone have contact for a reputable one?
Thanks

John Sims · Nov 8, 2007

The Essex franchisee did a demonstration at one of our regional meetings.

He asked my son to hit the front wing of a 997 with a rubber hammer. My son thought he was kidding and asked me if it was Ok. He did hit the wing and then, because the dent wasn't pronounced enough, he was asked to hit the wing again.

Within 15 minutes the dent had gone without trace. The paintwork hadn't been split so no further work was necessary. It was almost magical to see.

Obviously the results are subject to the skill of the operator but one assumes they must have some sort of quality control in their training.

sheep911uk · Nov 8, 2007

Thanks i will look into it luckily the paint hasnt broken so that might be the best option.
Thanks

zcacogp · Nov 8, 2007

ORIGINAL: John Sims

The Essex franchisee did a demonstration at one of our regional meetings.

He asked my son to hit the front wing of a 997 with a rubber hammer. My son thought he was kidding and asked me if it was Ok. He did hit the wing and then, because the dent wasn't pronounced enough, he was asked to hit the wing again.

Within 15 minutes the dent had gone without trace. The paintwork hadn't been split so no further work was necessary. It was almost magical to see.

Obviously the results are subject to the skill of the operator but one assumes they must have some sort of quality control in their training.

Blimey - that's a good demonstration! Talk about putting your money where your mouth is ... do you happen to have the contact details of the franchisee in question?

Oli.

John Sims · Nov 8, 2007

Sorry Oli I don't but a Google or Yell.com on "Dent Devils" should do the job for you.

IIRC it was the Essex guy and the Company founder that did the demo.

Diver944 · Nov 8, 2007

ORIGINAL: sheep911uk

a horizontal dent in the rear wheel arch of my 944,

Hi Nick,

I work closely with the Northants Dent Devils guy. His name is John Anable (07889 014189) and he has been operating for over 10 years so really knows his onions. I've used him on my own car and also on my customers cars.

Non circular dents are among the harder ones to remove invisibly but give him a call and prepare to give him a very detailed description of location, length, depth etc and he will be able to give you a good idea over the phone how sucessful it will be.

sheep911uk · Nov 8, 2007

Thanks i have dealt with him before but lost his number,what is the cost of having a dent removed?

snarf · Nov 9, 2007

ORIGINAL: sheep911uk

Thanks i have dealt with him before but lost his number,what is the cost of having a dent removed?

Cost is £75 + VAT per panel - so you can get several dents removed for this. I had a dent removed from my wheel arch a few weeks back. Because it was impossible to get behind the dent a small plastic disk was glued to the paint and pulled out using a special tool. Took a few attempt because my Zaino polish was too slippy to grip at first but eventually completed successfully with no trace whatsoever remaining of the dent. They can be contacted on http://www.dentdevils.co.uk/ or head office 01206 751536.

morris944s2john · Nov 10, 2007

These guys can do great work, and I'm sure on the visible side of the panel take out dents without breaking the paint, but what about the inside of the panel where the tollis applied?- particularly in the inside of wing panels, doors etc where it gets wet, you could have broken paint there leading to rust problems in the future.

snarf · Nov 10, 2007

ORIGINAL: morris944s2john

These guys can do great work, and I'm sure on the visible side of the panel take out dents without breaking the paint, but what about the inside of the panel where the tollis applied?- particularly in the inside of wing panels, doors etc where it gets wet, you could have broken paint there leading to rust problems in the future.

In my case no tools were placed on the inside because it was inaccessible. But even if they had been what would have been the alternative, live with the dent? I guess if they can get tools behind a panel then it might also be possible to apply some type of rust inhibitor, even if its only grease on the end of a stick.

cococola · Nov 11, 2007

I used Dent Devils to remove a ding in my wheel arch front wing and they were fab and I didnt need paintwork which kept the cost down to under £60

John Sims · Nov 11, 2007

ORIGINAL: snarf

ORIGINAL: morris944s2john
....... you could have broken paint there leading to rust problems in the future.

Click to expand...

...... But even if they had been what would have been the alternative, live with the dent? ......

My thoughts entirely snarf. Either way the panel is damaged. You can't magically turn back time.

You could, of course, have the dented panel removed; but then subsequent welding on of the new panel is going to cause rust despite what the repairers might say. Or, DentDevils may (not definitely) damage the paint on the inside of a panel (or the paint may be damaged as a result of the dent) in which case several years down the line you may have to address it again.