I had a bit of a mishap. I carried a heavy box around the 991 in my garage and lost my balance, steading myself against the rear fender.
When I washed the car last weekend I noticed I had actualy caused a palm sized minor indentation. Not too visible but if the light is right you can see it from certain angles.

I was not amused.

So I went to Google to find a nearby paintless dent removal outfit and noticed many links to people using compressed air (from a can) and a hairdryer to remove this kind of thing, in many cases far more serious dings.
There are also many links to stories identifying this as a hoax.

Well, hairdryer I got, can of duster from the next camera shop. Can't mess it up so why not try it ?

Before I continue, this method will only work for certain kinds of damage, it works better with newer cars (thinner panels) and there is a bit of techique as well.

So, using a suitable reflection I used a felt marker to line out the palm sized area and proceeded to heat up the area as advised with the hair dryer - get it nice and hot to the touch, about two minutes so we can be sure the metal is hot as well (and not just the paint).
Then with the can held upside down (important) remove the hairdryer and immediately soak the area with the can (don't wait, the metal will cool very fast). It forms an immediate layer of ice crystals. Give it 30 seconds or so and wipe off. Take care to spray ONLY the damaged area (you want the metal to contract here - not anywhere else). Mask it with some tape if it is a very small area.

Did it make a difference ? Not really. But I also read you need to repeat this a few times.

So I did.

After the second time - hey, this is doing something !

After the third time - can't see it anymore (It was evening in the garage with neon lights).

Just had another look in daylight. A tiny indentation is remaining - size of a dime, you can just make it out if you look at a reflection that passes the area. Almost invisible (you really need to know where to look to even see it with difficulty). I think another pass with the hair dryer and can is in order. Will do that tonight.

Anyway, success ! This almost sounds like a miracle cure and I can't quite believe the result but it is fixed. It's not going to fix anything that is creased or overlaps folds and edges but in this case I had an ideal location for this and it most certainly works.

So, a cheap and quick fix if it works, nothing major lost if it does not.

Do not use a heat gun (that is too hot and will damage the paint). Ordinary hair dryer. Mine has a "warm and hot" setting plus two fan speeds. I used "hot" and high speed fan.

Rainier

 

Thanks Rainier. I too have seen these videos and always wondered if it were true or a hoax. Good to get a real life experience that it in fact does works. How is the car btw, any issues after the fix or is it driving like new?

 

I wouldn't attempt anything like that with a hairdryer. There are too many "dent doctors" out there that can remove a dent like you described in under 5 minutes. The result is prefect. I've used them many times on my Porsches and Ferraris.

 

No issues at all. Drives just the way it always has. I'm very happy with the repair, certainly up to standards.

Rainier

 

Yes, I agree with you.
That was my next step. But I was curious if this would work or not. I have a bit of a background in metallurgy so I could just imagine that this would have a similar effect like massaging a small dent from behind to remove it.
Glad I did, I learned something and spent less time fixing this than it would have taken me must to get to the dent fix place...

Rainier

 

Great write up, I as many wondered if this worked and now know it does. Glad both you and the pcar are good. Thanks

 

Congrats on the fix. I admire your skill and bravery.

 

Just to finish this thread off.
Attacked the remaining tiny imperfection that was visible at certain angles in daylight yesterday with the forth pass of the hair dryer and freeze process.
It did not seem to improve it but I noticed that this blemish was gone when the panel was hot but reappeared after the cooling pass. I noticed this while looking at the reflection of the hairdryer over the spot.
So I tried again but only used the hairdryer this time and allowed it to cool on its own. This time it remained fixed.

A final check using a builders laser held at an accute angle confirmed a 100% removal of the dent with zero remaining indentation etc.

Nice to know for next time. Yes, big or difficult dents will go to the professionals - but for minor ones like this that lend themselves to this kind of treatment - it's just much faster to do yourself (and for me at least as involving as a manual gear shift )

Rainier