Automotive Dent Pullers: Do They Really Work?

As average car repair costs continue to rise—from 2021 to 2023, prices for services like dent repair and general auto maintenance have increased by 18%—lots of vehicle owners have taken a DIY route for auto repairs. You’ve probably seen the effects of this on the road, too. Duct-taped headlights. Cracked windshields secured by duct tape. Car bumpers held together with duct tape. (Lots of duct tape, basically.)

Of course, repairing a vehicle dent with duct tape isn’t going to do much. But many people will fork over $20 for a cheap dent removal kit or DIY car scratch remover, in hopes that it’ll prevent them from visiting a . While small dents can be fixed in a driveway, not all door dings and bumper bumps can be remedied with a dent plunger. In many instances, that retail car dent removal kit or suction cup plunger isn’t going to be your Superman. Before you perform your own minor cars-metic surgery, here’s everything you should know about vehicle dent pullers.

Dent Pulling: Fact vs. Fiction

Did you know that auto body shops have a term for car dents that aren’t repaired properly? Many technicians call these “friendly dents,” as they appear to have a little wave on the surface. After a dent occurs, these waves become part of the vehicle’s now-stretched sheet metal, and the only way to fix them is to use special paintless dent repair tools. Every other method is essentially just lipstick on a pig.

Plunger: 50/50

The plunger you find in your bathroom is meant for toilets, not cars. Although it’s possible for a plunger to fix a small vehicle dent, it’s not a great idea to try. The pressure that is created when you “plunge” can actually do more damage to small dents. In fact, if the dent already shows , that plunger could worsen the problem and hasten oxidation and rust.

Never use a plunger to pull out a car dent unless you really don’t care about making the dent worse—and if that’s the case, why bother at all? You could end up cracking your car’s bumper, even.

Dry Ice Dent Repair: Fiction

Trying to save a buck on automotive dent repair? You may have heard of using dry ice to pull out dents and other imperfections from your car’s surface. However, dry ice dent repair is largely a myth that’s been overblown.

Vehicle panels are stamped and rolled into shape. Once this occurs, those panels are difficult to disfigure without impacts. That is to say, if dry ice and excessive heat aren’t able to dent or disfigure sheet metal, dry ice and excessive heat won’t be able to revert panels back to their original form or condition. Force begets force, in this instance.

Do not try to use dry ice to remove a dent. Handling dry ice is very dangerous—you can instantly lose your fingers or hand if exposed to the gas!—and it won’t pop out a dent. If it comes in contact with nonmetal components, such as your seats or dashboard, it could even damage those components permanently.

Heat: Fiction

The same logic of dry ice applies to heat. Hairdryers or heat guns aren’t going to make metal hot enough to pop out dents or reshape panels. You’d need a commercial heating element to make any headway here, and that would be far from cost effective.

No, hairdryers aren’t likely to help you pull out a car dent on metal. You would require a massive amount of heat to make any metal pliable enough to remold. On plastic, precise heat can make it more pliable and easier to reshape, though applying a large amount of heat can ruin its chemical composition and make it even more prone to damage like cracking.

Boiling Water: Fiction

Like hairdryers, hot water isn’t likely to heat up metal enough for it to be pulled back in place. This may have a minor impact on plastic bumpers, though that will depend on the dent’s location, size and thickness. In any case, this has been proven to not be a very reliable car dent removal hack.

Compressed Air: Fiction

Canned air has many excellent uses—pulling out car dents is not one of them. Keep them around the house to clean your computer cases, fans, HEPA filters and other dusty items; just don’t rely on them to fix a car dent.

Glue Gun: 50/50

You can technically apply hot glue to a dent, insert a heavy pin and yank it with a dent puller. Once it’s been repaired, you can dissolve the hot glue with a heat gun and remove the pin.

There is certainly a downside to this dent removal tactic, however. Using this process, you may pull off paint and create “high spots,” which are raised areas that almost look like they’ve been dented from the inside-out. When this occurs, you’ll need a dent hammer and other specialized tools to tap it back into place. At this point, you might as well call the professional automotive dent repairers, as this can certainly result in an even worse dent.

Paintless Dent Repair: Fact

The only verified and safe way to pull a dent out is paintless dent repair (PDR). A dent requires gentle force—not chaotic plunger suctions—and precision in order to be fixed. And while PDR will cost more than any of these so-called DIY dent repairs above, it’s certainly not as expensive as you may believe!

What Determines the Cost of Car Dent Repairs?

Whether your vehicle has a zillion little dents due to hail or one large ding on its bumper after a fender-bender, you may be surprised to know that paintless dent repair is quite affordable, especially considering how quickly it can be performed. The cost of PDR is based on a variety of factors, including:

• Dent size – PDR works best on smaller dents, though fixing a large dent doesn’t necessarily equate to higher costs than several smaller dings
• Dent location – If the dent is somewhere difficult to reach or that requires removal, prices will increase
• Vehicle – Paintless dent repair is an affordable way to remove dents, though that will largely depend on the vehicle (make and model)
• Expertise – It’s always recommended to visit a collision center near you that’s licensed and certified to perform PDR, even if that means a higher invoice

Need a quote on PDR in Kansas City? Contact one of our McCarthy Collision Centers in Olathe, Overland Park, Blue Springs or Lee’s Summit to get a free estimate or request an appointment.

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