Can you pop out a dent that has been repaired with bondo?

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jcolman

jcolman

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The top of my car has developed a dent in the top, almost like someone dropped a bowling ball on it. I ran a magnet across the skin and it's apparent that it's been repaired in the past with Bondo. I have no idea how it happened but I suspect that the bondo may have "sunk", if that's possible.

It's about 16" across and maybe 1/4" deep. Barely noticable but it's there. I'm reluctant to bang on it from underneath as I'm afraid that I could crack the paint.

I took the car to a Painless Dent repair shop and they want over $800 to fix it. I'd rather put that money towards a new transmission as I could live with the slight dent but if there's a way I can fix it myself I'm open to ideas.

Thoughts?
 
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You need to grind out the puck. It might be stretched and that's why it was filled.
 
Use chemical stripper, aircraft stripper to remove the bondo.
If you grind it you could grind through the metal.
 
If you are going to do any metalwork, you need to begin with complete metal. Plastic filler must be removed! Hamers and steel dollies need clean metal to stretch and shrink.
 
best pic I have

Z2mAIHZ.jpg
 
That's a very good picture and such a shame ..looks just like a bowling ball fell on it
 
jcolman said:
Exactly. Now how do I pop it out without cracking the paint?
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If something bent the roof support under the roof skin it can hold displaced metal down like that. You might be able to cut the glue loose from the support and the roof skin might just pop back up.
 
If the roof flexes back up with the bondo in place the bondo will crack and crack the paint. For $800 you could take it to a good body shop, have the bondo ground out and the roof fixed right with minimal filler and repainted.
 
You're gonna have to accept "whatever happens, happens" and just do it. That's the only way it'll ever be right again. You need to grind it all out and then straighten the metal.
 
  • When my 67 GTS was in F5 tornado and completely covered the roof was mashed in and one body man said I would have to cut roof off. We took all interior back out and I laid inside on my back and gently pushed up with my feet and it popped right back in place with no need for filler. Of course it didn't have bondo in it so I can't say what would happen on yours, Joe
 
With a dent that size, the brace inside would be bent i think. A careful push from inside is a risk, but maybe the lesser of other options. Dome light below the dent? May be able to go in through there.
 
To me, it seems like whoever repaired it the first time, didn't do it right by relaxing the metal. Any time metal bends to a point beyond it's elasticity, it stays or "remembers" where that point is. If they didn't reset its natural position, then even siting out on a hot day could do that. When you dent a panel, you stretch the metal. They should have shrunk the panel around the dent to "pull" it back up. There are loads of reasons it could have appeared but one thing is certain if this is an old problem that resurfaced. it wasn't done right to begin with...

So, what to do?

Well for starters, i think you should assume the paint isn't going to survive the process. if it does, bonus. Don't start our thinking you can fix it without damaging anything, assume it will get damaged, then try not to. I say it that way because if you start by trying to NOT mess up the paint, it might keep you from doing the "right" kind of repair and taking some shortcut that will only cause problems again. What's the saying? Buy once, cry once?

Is it single stage paint? If so, you might be able to get it fixed properly fairly reasonably.

Personally, I look at PDR like I so snake oil. I know somewhere someone will disagree, good for them. I've seen too many "bad" jobs from hail damage that are visible on a hot day. That said, there's probably someone who is a fricking metal working genius that can do it, but I've not seen/met/heard of that person. Small dent, maybe.... that dent? No...

Metal "moves" and stretches like playdough, that's why we get dents.... to fix dents, it needs to be moved back, with force...
 
yeah, looks like a big somebody stood on it. I dont know if you could push it back up from underneath or if it would stay up. Cut in a sunroof?
 
I'm very sorry your having this issue with a car you just purchased...I would be calling the broker that sold car and demand answers.....
 
Mtrhead said:
I'm very sorry your having this issue with a car you just purchased...I would be calling the broker that sold car and demand answers.....
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Believe me I've tried. I sent them a list of all the things that were wrong with the car when I bought it and all I got was crickets in return.
 
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