Dent Repair in Sioux Falls – Jeep Body Line Crease Dent Removal
Today we are remove a super sharp body line dent. Be sure to check out the repair video below! This damage was located in the drivers upper body line of this 2020 Jeep Cherokee. One big obstacle for this repair was the access to the backside of the damaged area. To access the back side of this dented area we have to go through the upper part of the door where the window channel is. This window in the drivers door is made up of Laminated Safety Glass this creates an issue because we cannot apply pressure to this glass because there is a high chance of the glass breaking upon applying pressure. Because of this glass being sensitive to pressure we then remove the door glass to access this damage. Does your vehicle have this type of glass and is this a factor for your repair?
First Things First – Computer Diagnostic Scanning:
First we start off by running a Pre diagnostic computer scan to set a baseline for the repair for any existing trouble codes the vehicle might have had prior to any work being done. Learn more about computer scanning here:
Once the computer system is checked we then can start the disassembly process, we first remove the door panel. From there we can access the glass track system and disconnect the glass from the window regulator, this then allows us the safely remove the door glass. From there we can then can apply a heat gun to the damaged area to warm the area up to insure the paint is safe when pushing this damage out. We keep the damaged area between 160-180 degrees fahrenheit. This makes not only the paint soft and allows the paint to move with he metal but also makes the paint not want to split or crack during the repair, this is the most important step of a repair like this, having the metal and painted area hot while repairing insures no paint damage. If we were to just try pushing the damaged area out it would for sure split making the repair ruined.
Tensions Are Rising
Once the damaged area is heated up we apply a Keco Lateral tension tool setup to the area. In a sharp impact like this when the metal is pushed in it can pull the surrounding metal inwards, so to reverse this we have the pull the metal back apart WHILE pushing the damaged area up. A repair like this is what sets the men apart from the boys, this is a type of repair many would mess up for not knowing these types of things or making this repair just an improvement not a full repair like shown. Once the damaged area is flattened back out we can start putting the vehicle back together, first reinstalling the door glass, then attaching it back to the track system and insuring it rolls up and down like it should, then we can reinstall the door panel. After everything is back together we then run another computer diagnostic scan called a Post Scan. This scans the computer system for any codes that might have popped up while doing the repairs, like disconnecting the door panel, door module or other electrical components, even disconnecting the battery prior to doing anything can set multiple codes so it is very important this step is done. Once the system is check out and cleared of any new codes it is good to go down the road once again safely.
Repair Overview
Hopefully this gives you a better understanding of the paintless dent repair process, dents do not just pop out or get removed by a few pushes especially damage like this and having the right technician and tools to do the job is a key ingredient to a successful repair.
Have you heard of pre and post diagnostic scanning?
Well today we walk you through the whole entire process around computer scanning and doing paintless dent repair.
Why Is This Necessary?
Diagnostic Scanning is often a required operation when working on today’s modern vehicles. This vehicle we are demonstrating with today is a 2018 Chevy Silverado. This customer purchased this vehicle brand new, it only had 7k miles on it when it came to us to have a dent removed. General Motors, the vehicles manufacture actually REQUIRES a diagnostic scan when disconnecting the battery. They also require it when disconnecting ANY electrical component on this vehicle. This is often a over looked process that many body shops, mechanics and paintless dent repair companies do not do when doing repairs on vehicles.
Here we walk you through the entire process of how this is done and specifically why it is done. We also show you how we go about gaining access to this dent in the left front door near the handle. We had to remove the door panel as well as the door handle assembly in order to make this repair. Once the dent is removed with paintless dent repair we are able to put the vehicle back together. From there we then run a Post diagnostic scan to ensure everything is in working order. We make sure to print off the scan documents and show them to the customer. When we showed this customer that his scans showed a fault code for the radio the said that the battery had gone dead previously. That was why the code was set in the first place.
The customer was happy that we did run a scan and bring this to his attention. A radio code is nothing serious but there are items like mentioned in the video, that can be a bigger issue if a fault code is set. Read more about scanning and other computer related information.
You might be asking yourself what does diagnostic scanning and dent repair have to do with each other? Isn’t that something a mechanic does?
Diagnostic scanning is nothing new to the collision industry, but it has in the recent years been brought to the attention of many shop owners as a way of checking components and confirming components are working correctly after repairs are made. The days of a shop simply turning on and off components to check if they work correctly is simply not the case any more. A simple task such as removing a tail light or headlight for even a light bulb replacement, then reinstalling the light and making sure it functions by turning the light on and off, are just not the way things are done anymore.
New Technology Advancements
Now with the advancements in the computer systems on vehicles, something like even a dead battery can also trigger and store diagnostic trouble codes, these codes will not always illuminate a check engine light in your dash. Once the system is hooked up to a computer diagnostic scan tool, the system can be scanned for hidden or stored codes and then the proper procedures can be taken to make sure that these systems are all in working order. These diagnostic scans are often REQUIRED to be performed by the vehicles manufacture as a way to make sure everything on your vehicle works properly and safely. We offer these services on top of doing dent repairs to insure the best repairs possible for our customers, keeping you yourself safe, your family, others on the roadways as well as your vehicle.
Scanning is just the first step in this system, next is recalibrating the auto driving systems in a vehicle, learn more about that here.
What does your vehicle manufacture say about diagnostic scanning?
Click your manufacture’s link below to see their statement on scanning.
