Paintless dent removal on Model 3

[rainforest]

Something fell from a tree, or was thrown at my car, and it left this dent in my hood. Is this something that paintlesss dent removal can fix? How perfect can they get it?

The reason I’m not sure is because I can see that the model 3 hood has two layers of metal sandwiched together, making it impossible to access the dent from underneath.

And is the hood aluminum or steel?

 

[barjohn]

I would expect that it would look perfect when completed. I had a small dent in a door on my S and they completely removed it and I could not see that it was ever there.

 

[silentsnow31802]

I believe the hood is aluminum.

Ive used a mobile paint-less dent removal service to repair a dent similar to that on my Model S door in the past. They did an excellent job. Even knowing there was a dent before I can see no evidence that it was there. Aluminum carried a premium price with the dent removal.

 

[barjohn]

Here are two photos of the left rear door ding. The biggest challenge was that it was so close to the edge that some places wanted to drill into the door from the side to fix it. I found an artist willing to work at it and it took him about 3 hours but it was invisible after wards. Unfortunately, I don't have a photo of the side of the car after wards.

 

[Avid]

To my untrained eye that seems ideal for paintless dent removal. No crease, no paint penetration, and soft dimple dent.

 

[rainforest]

To my untrained eye that seems ideal for paintless dent removal. No crease, no paint penetration, and soft dimple dent.

Problem is that it seems like there is no access to the underside of the Model 3 hood. Two sheets of metal bonded together. Don't know how they would fix this.

 

[Avid]

Problem is that it seems like there is no access to the underside of the Model 3 hood. Two sheets of metal bonded together. Don't know how they would fix this.

I suppose only way to know is call someone out for a quote and find out how they plan to do it.

A guess would be epoxy glue, suction cup puller, and maybe some heat.

 

[barjohn]

The guy that did my door could not get to the inside due to the location of the dent but managed to fix it. It did take a while but it was sure worth the price of around $280 if memory serves me.

 

[Avid]

So of those guys are artist. The problem is finding them.

 

[JTesmod3]

Anyone have someone in los angeles who does it? Can you please give me their contact info. Thanks

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Anyone have someone in los angeles who does it? Can you please give me their contact info. Thanks

Someone suggested I use Yelp reviews, sorted by rating, for San Diego, and I was very satisfied with the result. There is another thread on here somewhere with before/after pictures.

Aluminum doors are not a problem, they are just REALLY strong compared to steel. Takes a lot more force (and a bit of modest heat gun (“sitting in summer sun” temps - will not burn fingers) application to make it more pliable.

 

[JTesmod3]

Someone suggested I use Yelp reviews, sorted by rating, for San Diego, and I was very satisfied with the result. There is another thread on here somewhere with before/after pictures.

Aluminum doors are not a problem, they are just REALLY strong compared to steel. Takes a lot more force (and a bit of modest heat gun (“sitting in summer sun” temps - will not burn fingers) application to make it more pliable.

How much did it cost you?

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

How much did it cost you?

$325. Not cheap. It seemed like going elsewhere (the other place seemed ok) I might have been able to get below $200, but I did not want to risk any drama. And there was no waiting and I watched the guy work so that added value for me.

 

[Matt L]

This is too easy. You can fix it yourself for less than $40. I had a similar dent on my trunk lid and pulled it myself. Using this kit. Give it a try.

BTW: that kit is on amazon for very cheap

 

[Uncle Paul]

Sometimes a paintless repair guy will need to drill a small access hole to get his tool inside and work the dent.

On a Tesla Hood they might need to drill a hole into the inner panel to gain access to the metal hood surface where the dent is.

 

[Pentium2004]

Something fell from a tree, or was thrown at my car, and it left this dent in my hood. Is this something that paintlesss dent removal can fix? How perfect can they get it?

The reason I’m not sure is because I can see that the model 3 hood has two layers of metal sandwiched together, making it impossible to access the dent from underneath.

And is the hood aluminum or steel?

View attachment 340910

Use a pops a dent from autozone. It comes with the hot glue and everything you need. Only $20 and it works great. I’ve used it for many different dents.

 

[Matt L]

Use a pops a dent from autozone. It comes with the hot glue and everything you need. Only $20 and it works great. I’ve used it for many different dents.

I think that’s a similar kit to what I posted. There is no reason to pay anyone to do this work

 

[Pentium2004]

I think that’s a similar kit to what I posted. There is no reason to pay anyone to do this work

You’re right. I’ve never seen that one before but it looks pretty cool. I’ll add that to my collection of tools.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

You’re right. I’ve never seen that one before but it looks pretty cool. I’ll add that to my collection of tools.

Yes, it is possible/likely this particular dent could be removed yourself. Was not possible for mine. It depends on how much stress you want to endure.

Let us know if you have success doing it yourself with one of the suggested kits! You may want to purchase one of the special lights for PDR - a “dent board light” - has a pattern of bars to emphasis the topography - to let you know when the dent is truly gone.

Off the top of my head I don’t know whether the trunk lid is aluminum or not (as compared to the hood). I know doors are aluminum, “quarter panels” are steel. If the material is different than the trunk it might make it more difficult to achieve the same result - aluminum is much stiffer than steel in the case of the body panel construction (presumably due to thickness). *Modest* heat (as mentioned above) makes aluminum more pliable. Might be useful to know if attempting to fix it yourself...

 

[rainforest]

Honestly, I would rather pay someone $150 to remove the dent properly. I think it takes a lot of experience to really make it invisible, and you need many different types of tools in order to do a good job.