Question about hail damage

[txpat3]

My car took some pretty bad hail damage last year ($6k+ in damages). Basically every body panel, but the only thing that needed to be replaced was the hood. The rest was fixed with PDR. Came out of repairs looking brand new. Few pics:

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[Qcman17]

Minor update- Put in my claim today and I am covered and they are making arrangements at one of their approved centers that specializes in hail damage to look at the car and do the repairs there so hopefully it moves fairly quickly especially if it can all be done via PDR.

Just waiting on the call to bring the car into them. The car doesn't look too bad considering but if I had not got it under that roof I shudder to think how it may have looked. I imagine like Bonnie & Clyde's car at the end!

Updated pic of my car.......

 

[Qcman17]

My car took some pretty bad hail damage last year ($6k+ in damages). Basically every body panel, but the only thing that needed to be replaced was the hood. The rest was fixed with PDR. Came out of repairs looking brand new. Few pics:

Holy crap! No mine are nothing like that thankfully!

 

[thunderstrike]

I had the Paintless Dent Removal done on my Audi from hail damage. Body shops in town had the specialist came around after hail. They use special black light to see the dents and pop them out. In order to pop out some dents, they have to drill small holes (where you can't see them). Great repair without paint work. If hood or trunk is heavily damaged, they will remove it to pop out dents.

 

[MattMPA]

My local body shop friends have a PDR guy that comes out.

My '16 Police Interceptor Utility had a bunch of small spots and one sizable one in the hood. He got them all out. Just after this was done, something substantial hit the panel above the windshield leaving a dent. I figured there was no way to get in there. He removed the clip that retains the visor...and worked through the screw hole.

 

[sk47]

Hello; Had some serious hail damage to my car years ago. I managed to cover the glass so did not lose any glass. Some cars in the same lot had glass shattered out. Hail was around 2 inches or so at least. Had dents in every panel.
Had the paintless dent repair done and have been very satisfied for many years now. One thing tho. To get at the dents using the rods some of the interior had to be removed. The tech was good about that part.
However, there are places in the trunk and under the hood where support struts were used as a fulcrum. The leverage during the process left small places under the trunk lid and hood. From the outside I cannot tell the car was in a hail storm. Those small places are the only sign of the repair and are hidden from the outside.

 

[Qcman17]

A bit of a minor update the car was assessed today and the guys doing it were great! The guy loved the car and told me he would need to keep it for at least a couple of months. The plan is to do it all by PDR which I'm very happy about. I feel really good about dealing with these guys and trusting my beloved Mustang to them.

So just waiting on the insurance approval and a date to get her in and done.........

 

[Qcman17]

Update- Thx to all who helped me with this. The shop I took it too originally totally dropped the ball including not providing an estimate to the insurance after 3 months! I called the insurance and complained and they sent an appraiser to my house and a week later the car was in the PDR shop getting fixed.

She looks as good as new now but I had to take it back as they missed a couple of small dents the first time. Only took 15 minutes the second time to fix what was missed. I'm so happy no paint was replaced on the car due to this.

 

[Grimreaper]

Holy crap the red flags on some of the experience here...

Pdr takes few days to a week for entire car. Dont bring the car until they will start repairs. Very common for pdr shops to want the veh to ensure you don't get tired of waiting and go to another shop. Most will pile up their lot and spin the story its taking time etc.. cars do get stolen too. The trust some people have is beyond me.

Do not ever give your car to someone with out brick and mortar business either backing them or that they themselves own. Pdr by nature of needing to chase storms is gypsy esc. Warranty is a joke. Shut down the llc and start a new one. Lots of drug use/tweakers. There are some very talented guys out there that do great work but its not always one of the 6 flyers they shoved under your wiper blade.

The sales guys a usually freelance. Be careful. There is a lot usually promised to get you to hand over the keys. 100% commission. Have had them "enhance" the damage too. More expensive repair means bigger check. Especially if they are transporting the car for you to their shop or tent. Guy pushing the dents has no idea and sends insurance a massive sup. Or he himself is "enhancing" with shallow easy to push one's etc..

Never ever ever accept them drilling holes in a panel. Ever. This is not a proper way to gain access. Ever. That is a lazy ass way to fix something they are being paid very well for. The margins with 90% usually being all labor can be quite high. Most techs aren't working year round.

Glad it worked out op.

 

[Torched10]

Let it sit out in the sun and get good and hot. You might be surprised how many will pop back. I’ve seen this many times over the years.

If sun works would a hair dryer pop then,out

 

[Lgb0250]

If sun works would a hair dryer pop then,out

Probably not but give it a try. Some dents will just be too deep for anything to work on. The dealer I worked for many many moons ago used to get his insurance adjuster out as fast as he could after a hail storm so he could get his settlement before the sun had its chance to work its magic.

 

[Grimreaper]

It's going to depend on the dent size depth and location near any work hardening on the panel. Aluminum has little to no memory. Won't work there. Very flat panels like trunk on challenger might but underside bracing and any crown on the dent itself will likely not work with heat alone.

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