Dents in Hood of Jeep

[Guest db99wj]

Was getting dressed this morning and my oldest son came in and said your Jeep got hit by a limb and is dented. I went out to find a limb, not huge, but evidently big enough to put four dents in my hood. One real bad one in the center, one not as bad but on the edge of the hood above the grill, so it is curved, and two smaller dents. Each has some, for the most part, surface scratches, and I got most of that out. Still some in there and will need some compound and a buffer, which I don't have.

They are very noticeable and I really hate it. The pictures suck. But they are what they are, might take some better pictures with my work camera. Not sure how to take a picture of something with such a reflexion.

The bigger one

Right above the grill

The Bigger one again

The pictures doesn't do it justice. I think the scratches will come out, the dents maybe.

You might say it is a Jeep, it is suppose to be beat up, but I'm not that way, I take pride in my stuff. Some play golf, some have motorcycles, some build things or have other hobbies they love, mine is Jeeps. I am not afraid to take it off road, and if I was going down a trail and did something like this, that is one thing, but not this, not this way.

Anybody have ideas about the cost of something like this?

What is the "Dent Genie" and Dent Doctor's of the world, what are their costs?

My deductible is too high on my insurance to claim this so that will not be a route that I take.

[AMSting]

Look for a replacement from a junkyard. Find the same color and just swap them.

I am a Jeep guy too, but mine are trail rigs. I wouldn't even notice that on mine.

[gregintenn]

I belive some, if not all of the dent guys use dry ice to pop out the dents. I understand it works well, but have no personal experience with it.

[Guest db99wj]

Look for a replacement from a junkyard. Find the same color and just swap them.

I am a Jeep guy too, but mine are trail rigs. I wouldn't even notice that on mine.

Yea, if this was an older one, no problem, but his is an 09 JK, that I bought brand new last year, only 17K miles on it!

Not many in the junk yards yet. Thought about an AEV heat reduction hood for it! $800 not painted!

I belive some, if not all of the dent guys use dry ice to pop out the dents. I understand it works well, but have no personal experience with it.

I've read about using dry ice. Interesting.

[EMTRN]

I have used dent genie in Bartlett before. I don't remember how much it was, but it was reasonable. This was in 2002 when he was just getting started so things may have changed.

[dats82]

I have seen a paintless dent repair man work at a body shop. He did not use dry ice. He had little probes and stuff to just push them out. I know it does not sound promising, but I was amazed at the dents he was able to remove. It is much cheaper than traditional body work. I think I would just call around to some shops in your area and ask if that is a service they offer. I have a passion for Jeeps myself, and completely understand your frustration with the situation. Good luck with it.

[kb4ns]

Been there and done that, bro. Luckily, the last one I dented up real bad was my squad car, not my personal ride. Hence the tree guys you saw at my house. Need their number?

Seriously, I hope you get the dents out. I know you're a little fond of that jeep...

[Guest db99wj]

My wife calls my Jeep "the other woman"

Its the neighbors tree, limbs over the driveway.

Blaaaaaaaa, between this and the f'n dishwasher....grrrrrrr!

[Guest manofsteel]

if you have comp on your ins it doesnt have a deductable. gravel on window ect.....well mine didnt but i do pay high premium!!!!!!!! also call your house ins guy worth a call.

[kb4ns]

Did you try talking to your neighbor to see if they would help you get it fixed (financially)? If it's their tree...

[Guest db99wj]

Did you try talking to your neighbor to see if they would help you get it fixed (financially)? If it's their tree...

Well this guy....well the city has probably been called over his 6 ft tall weeds in his backyard. Guys wife left him for the womens roller derby team. He's spiraled downward, well even further, and probably become a top level dungeon master. They were sword fighting, in full character one night. With that said, i am going to talk with my insurance guy Monday.

[kb4ns]

Well this guy....well the city has probably been called over his 6 ft tall weeds in his backyard. Guys wife left him for the womens roller derby team. He's spiraled downward, well even further, and probably become a top level dungeon master. They were sword fighting, in full character one night. With that said, i am going to talk with my insurance guy Monday.

[Guest db99wj]

No kidding, would not shock me if his stuff was put out on the curb with a sheriff deputy out front one day when I get home!

[Guest strelcevina]

Nooooooooooooo.....Beautiful Jeep...... Noooooooooooo

worst kind of damage.

expensive to fix little dent like that and such eye sore

[Mike.357]

wow sorry to see your bad luck db.

My truck while much older has dents on the roof from of all things hickory nuts. I have found that parking in the sun pops some of them out, but others are there to stay. I used to feel the same way about my truck as you do your jeep. I don't worry so much anymore, 180,000 miles does that, LOL

You might look into them "pop a dent" places. I talked to a guy here once and he said something about maybe 50 to 75 bucks per dent.

[leroy]

db:__________________

Had a similar problem with the 21 yr old's jeep (...his was a wreck---2000 wrangler...). As i remember, a jeep hood is two peice. The outer skin and an inner reinforcing liner. Fixing the hood "right" will probably require you to pull the hood off, dissassemble from the liner, repair the dent, reassemble to the liner, repaint, and reinstall on the jeep. It's almost impossible to find "junk" parts for a jeep --- too many jeep enthusiasts!! There is, however, a jeep junkyard up around Somerset, KY (...cant seem to remember the name--looked on the net, couldnt find it; but my buddy in the junk business complains about 'em all the time--they buy ever jeep wreck they can find...). For what it's worth; I could NEVER find any jeep body parts when i needed them!!

I would look around and see if could find a body man that was low on work to see if he would "moonlite" this job. Wish you were closer; next door neighbor is a great body man; work is slow now.

Good luck with your repair.

Kind regards,

Leroy

[Guest ADAM]

If it you have comp it is covered, insurance considers that an Act of God and is covered by comp. As far as the neighbor being responsible he's not unless the tree is dead. I had the same thing happen years ago to a car of mine, the neighbors tree fell on my car a totaled it, my insurance covered it, and when I try to pursuit it in a legal manner I learned real quick that I had no leg to stand on because the tree wasn't dead. As far as the dry ice it does work if there are no creases.

[Dolomite_supafly]

If it you have comp it is covered, insurance considers that an Act of God and is covered by comp. As far as the neighbor being responsible he's not unless the tree is dead. I had the same thing happen years ago to a car of mine, the neighbors tree fell on my car a totaled it, my insurance covered it, and when I try to pursuit it in a legal manner I learned real quick that I had no leg to stand on because the tree wasn't dead. As far as the dry ice it does work if there are no creases.

+1

I hit a deer a few years back. Insurance came out, took a few pictures then said get it fixed. It did not raise my rates at all because it was an act of god. I was actually able to work a something out with the insurance company so I didn't have to cover the deductible as well.

Dolomite

[Capbyrd]

Dent Genie in Xtreme in Bartlett was charging 120 per dent last time I was there.

And they don't use dry ice. They use rods designed to push the metal and will work it until it actually heats up enough to go back into its "memorized" location. They do wonders with their tools but can't do anything near creases. And they are kinda expensive.

[MCSCOTT]

This is where it pays to know a good body man. Talk to one if you know any, and if not see if you can find a friend of a friend and let them know you want to have it fixed but don't want to turn it in on your insurance. My '01 had 78 miles on it when I took it to WITC and slid backwards into a tree, caving in the whole passenger side rear corner on it. A friend of mine was good friends with the owner of a local body shop here in town. I told him my situation and he ended up fixing everything with perfect blending of the paint job for only $350.

Jeeps are suppose to have dents though, but I can see where you're coming from when you have one that's new like that. I finally gave up on mine though. Took it out about a week later and ended up with a dent in the rocker panel under the driver's side door. A week after that, a hail storm came and did $1400 worth of damage to it, and since I went back to the same body man he fixed the dent under the door with the charge built in to the hail damage price........About a month later I hit a log on a backroad that flew up into the exact same spot under the door. I decided to throw in the towel and just not get that dent fixed. Weird thing is, after having it nearly 10 years now it hasn't gotten a single other dent in it since, but I bet if I had that one fixed under the door again something else would happen soon after.

[Guest Daelith]

If any dent tech pulls out any dry ice or tell you he/she uses dry ice - get your vehicle away from there. They don't know what they're doing. They are known to use glue pullers for shallow dents though.

[monkeylizard]

From the pics, paintless dent repair (PDR) looks like a good candidate. That's the dent wizard/dent genie process. Mike.357's post about $50-75 per dent is about right. More than that and you're getting taken for a ride. The type of dent makes a difference. Think baseball dent vs. sharp object dent. PDR is good on the first, but can only mitigate the second. Call your Jeep dealer and ask who they use for their PDR work. You can also call your insurance and ask for a recommended PDR shop, even if you don't file a claim.

+1 on the dry ice. Run, don't walk.

[Guest db99wj]

My boss, who is a hardass business kinda guy, used the Dent Doctor here in Memphis, all his auto work is done by Holt Tire, which the Dent Doctor rents space from. I am going by in a bit to get an estimate. He should do me right due because of my bosses referral. My boss is not someone you want to piss off. He is deeply connected in the Memphis business world. Not that I won't get some other estimates. I sure hope it is $50 to $75. That would be much more better than I was thinking. I know an Autobody guy too. Will talk with him as well.

[oldogy]

Interesting thread. I have a couple similar dents in the hood of my Rubicon that I would like to get removed. I've thought of the dentless proceedure, just have not gone ahead with it. Let us know how this all comes down.

oldogy

[Guest db99wj]

The two small ones, and a third small one I didn't see, they can get out no problem. The big one and the one that is on the edge of the hood are problematic. The creasing in them could cause problems. He said they will be way less noticeable, but might not be perfect due the big one having the crease that goes down, and a part of the dent that is raised and the one on the edge being creased at the curve of the hood and limited access.

The going rate for a door ding, without paint is $75 here in Memphis. Due to my inside connections, another one I cam across doing some research, I got a better deal than that.