A dent in your car's exterior is not only unsightly, it can also take away from the value of your vehicle. If you sell the car in the future, potential buyers might be unwilling to pay the asking price due to cosmetic damages to the car. If you are planning to fix a dent yourself, it is important that you avoid further damaging the car. Here are some common mistakes that can occur and what you can do to avoid them.
Failing to Wash the Car
One of the biggest mistakes you can make when it comes to repairing a dent in your car is failing to wash the car first. There are several reasons to wash the car, including that it is difficult to accurately assess the damage to your car's exterior if it is dirty.
Depending on the method you are using to remove the dent from your car, failing to wash the car can impact how easy it will be to fix it. For instance, if you are using the plunger method, it will be difficult to get a good grip on your car's exterior if it is dirty. The dirt can cause the plunger to slip, which could lead to additional damage.
Using Tools on the Finish
While removing the dent from the car, some car owners opt to place their tools directly on the exterior of the cars. Unfortunately, the direct contact with tools can sometimes prove damaging and result in more work than the car owners bargained for.
To protect your car, avoid touching the car with the tools directly. If possible, put padding between the tools and the car's exterior.
Skipping the Sanding
After removing the dent from your car, you might have to repaint the surface so that it matches the rest of your car's finish. A key part of painting is preparing the surface beforehand. Some car owners mistakenly believe that paint can hide any blemishes that are on the surface of the car. In actuality, the paint can highlight those problems.
Due to the effort involved to remove the dent, the surface of the car can sometimes require sanding before it is painted. If you skip the sanding, the paint will just fill the crevices of the rough edges and create a lumpy exterior.
To avoid the many possible mistakes that can occur when repairing a dent, consider having the car serviced by a professional auto body shop. Not only will the repair be safely done, but the work is usually guaranteed.
