Amin Skaf

Well, thank you to all that helped me make the decision to buy my '14 E550C. Amazing car. Unfortunately it came with some blemishes. Some the dealer says they cannot take out. I have dings near the wheel well, where the metal is more solidified. The dealer said they could not remove them. Another PDR guy said he couldn't either. A third said, he could, but it would be difficult. Do you guys have any suggestions? There are about 7 dents all in the same area. My suspicion is dealer negligence or previous owner just didn't care. It's very unfortunate. Please let me know your thoughts or if you know someone good down in Southern California.

Abrown3mtg

front or rear?

If it is the front, compare costs to the PDR option with a replacement front fender which would be easy. If it is the rear, PDR is the more viable option. I would look for the most highly regarded PDR professional in your area and see if they guarantee their work so you don't end up paying for a failed attempt.

blegthbloo

I think the reason they say it can't be done (or will be difficult) is because it's on a crease. They tend to round out the creases when pulling out dents, so it won't look new, and may potentially even look worse/more noticeable after they try it. Also, I think paint on the creases tend to crack when doing PDR.

Amin Skaf

Their reasoning was they couldn't get to it because of the location. The dents are on the rear right side. On the back of the dent is a solid layer of metal, so they cannot access it from behind. The third guy indicated he could get them all, but it would be difficult and costly. There are 7 or so dings on this area, all around. Would it be just better to paint it?

belarus27

if you were gonna paint it , it aint gonna be any cheaper , depending how far they from each other , but the shop will still need to fix the dents atleast try to somewhat make them looks aite , use primer on those dents , then paint area where dents were , and even a wider area around , just to make sure the color matches the rest of the car... so its gonna be a lot of work and even more money.
.......i might be wrong tho.

designzio

I have a PDR guy who looked at my rear fender dents a few days ago. He said he would have to drill a hole into the door jam and advised against it.

He said even though he has white caps, buyers hate to see these holes. He also said that he cannot guarantee that they would come completely out being that they are on the body line.

belarus27

thats exactly what the PDR guy did to my ex Gf acura tl couple years back, drilled out holes , and fixed everything , and then they usually plug the holes with silicone or some plugs.
but you can even see it cuz its on the side and almost not noticebale unless you know its there.
and its prolly your best option , im sure u will like the results for the price.

armysoldier1073

You can try dry ice. I know you said it's on a crease, but might be able to get it to be less noticeable. May take a few tries to get desired results.

designzio

Just watched a YouTube video debunking the dry ice method. I have used the PDR guy many times before on a lot of different vehicles.

His hesitation for the hole in the B pillar made me have second thoughts as well.

Amin Skaf

Well it's been a whirlwind the last two months. I haven't even had a chance to really focus on the PDR.

The car came with a few things the dealer said they would fix....they did not until I raised hell. It stayed in the shop for a month. After 500 miles of driving, I noticed the symptoms of warped rotors and told them about this while the car was in the shop for a month. They "couldn't replicate". I took it to another dealership and lo' and behold...warped rotors. I had to take it back again so they could fix it. Truth be told, it has not been a pleasant experience and I will not be doing business with them again. I finally have the car back and am now on a mission to get this fixed without holes being drilled

Can anyone recommend any exceptional PDR guys or body shops that can tackle this issue. I'm willing to spend around $500, max, to get it right. Otherwise, I'll live with it.

Also, those that did get holes in their door jambs, can you send pics? I would love to see what it would look like. Thank you all.

designzio

My car came with bent rotors as well. I ended up replacing them myself. Super smooth now.

The local Napa auto parts had them for $93/piece for the cross drilled style. Didn't want to deal with the dealer BS.

AkaSigFreak

I had a sharp dent on the rear wheel arch on my old 08 C300 which was caused by a high-speed shopping cart. The dealership quoted over $2K for the repair. I went to a high-end body shop (lot filled with Lambos, Ferraris, Rolls Royces etc) and they referred me to their guy. The PDR guy came to my house and fixed that dent, another large dent on the rear door and another on my trunk lid for $200 in under one hour.

Airmousam

Based on very positive reviews might want to try this place in LA

http://www.superautodentbody.com

dieseldoc

Those dents are in a very difficult location to fix by PDR. They are going to require bodywork to fix. As far as drilling hole, most PDR guys who are good have equipment to take out the dent from the outside.

Airmousam

The dent guys I've used have all needed access from behind the dent

dieseldoc

I live in Dallas Texas. Lots of Hail. PDR is a big business. The guys have tools to go behind panel, but they also have tools to pull from outside especially in place like roof rails where they ordinarily could not get into. I just had a door ding taken out of my GLC. I have a real good guy with over 25 years experience take it out. He used a combination of working the panel on the outside as well as from the inside. He informed me they use outside techniques often on places where cannot get tool into.