Dent in my roof that I didn't notice when I bought it.
- Thread starter Throwback
- Start date
philsey
New member
To me, the removal of the headliner and all that must go with it, and a GOOD matching paint job, require skilled work that I (pessimistically) see as potentially problematic. And I'd avoid if possible ... just me. Others will disagree.
You weigh things to make a decision, right? I'd take the dent over the repair ... just me.
sure74
New member
Not just you.
kernel.panik
New member
The whole roof has to be painted because metallic flakes don't lay down the same each time it is sprayed, hence the "blending". (that's what I was told, anyway) I wouldn't do it just because I've seen what dealerships can do when taking apart an interior of a vehicle and screwing it all up. Gouges, scratches, broken parts, etc. Had a new headliner replaced under warranty on a 14 corolla. They destroyed the driver's side of the interior, gouged the paint on the sill, scratched up the dash... it was horrible... They "made it right" and fixed everything, but the car was ruined in my mind... I don't mind a dent or scratch but knowing someone thrashed something just eats away at a very short fuse...
(end rant)
Get a Roof Rack, CB or Ham Radio Antenna and call it good!
philsey
New member
You seem to want to argue. I only offered my opinion. It's your car, your dent, your decision. Please let us know what you do and how it works out. You could get anywhere from a perfect job to a total CF.
1engineer
Moderator
There is no body shop out there that can provide a finish that is as durable and good as a factory finish. I would leave the dent as long as no paint was broken. I HAVE left dents before instead of getting them refinished by a body shop. I also used to do body work for a living....
I'm pretty picky about my vehicles, and I'm not the type to leave a dent alone, however in this case I might.
For starters, there's the headliner issue. IMO, body shop guys and mechanics pretty much are universally terrible at removing and replacing interior panels correctly. I was a car audio / security installer way back when, so this is a pet peeve of mine. It's not difficult to do, it's just that most of these guys don't care. The only thing they are usually worse at is wiring.
Case in point - I bought my wife a CPO BMW X5 last year. They had to drop the headliner to remove some filler strips on the roof that needed to be repainted. (Which I didn't know about until after the fact....long story.) I'm not exaggerating at all when I say that they reinstalled every single interior panel wrong. Broken clips, panels forced into place without the clips being lined up, panels put back on in the wrong order, lights not installed right, you name it, they f'ed it up.
The other issue I'd be concerned with is overspray. I can't recall ever seeing a body shop repair where they didn't get overspray on something....that also drives me nuts.
My first step would be try one or two more paintless dent repair guys to see what they say. Even if they couldn't get it perfect, I'd still rather an imperfect PDR repair over filler and paint.
For starters, there's the headliner issue. IMO, body shop guys and mechanics pretty much are universally terrible at removing and replacing interior panels correctly. I was a car audio / security installer way back when, so this is a pet peeve of mine. It's not difficult to do, it's just that most of these guys don't care. The only thing they are usually worse at is wiring.
Case in point - I bought my wife a CPO BMW X5 last year. They had to drop the headliner to remove some filler strips on the roof that needed to be repainted. (Which I didn't know about until after the fact....long story.) I'm not exaggerating at all when I say that they reinstalled every single interior panel wrong. Broken clips, panels forced into place without the clips being lined up, panels put back on in the wrong order, lights not installed right, you name it, they f'ed it up.
The other issue I'd be concerned with is overspray. I can't recall ever seeing a body shop repair where they didn't get overspray on something....that also drives me nuts.
My first step would be try one or two more paintless dent repair guys to see what they say. Even if they couldn't get it perfect, I'd still rather an imperfect PDR repair over filler and paint.
<<<<
Senior Member
I put myself in your situation and thought what I would do. Here is what came up from that thinking:
Lot of specialty shops that do this for dealers. I had one on Civic with no leaks or any issues. No need to repaint anything, dent will be cut out and you will gain custom sunroof. I'd convince dealer to pay for it and they probably will take you up on it. GL
Lot of specialty shops that do this for dealers. I had one on Civic with no leaks or any issues. No need to repaint anything, dent will be cut out and you will gain custom sunroof. I'd convince dealer to pay for it and they probably will take you up on it. GL
Throwback
New member
Excellent points that I had not considered.
Regarding the sunroof - No way would I go that route because I would never buy a vehicle with an aftermarket sunroof. At least at this point there is no penetration of the sheet metal.
This dealer shop did the repair work on my wife's RAV4 when someone backed into the driver door and smashed it in. It's a 2012 Classic Silver and the work looks factory. Granted, I don't have a trained eye in this stuff either.
Good thoughts on the second opinion on the PDR. I'll get on that.
Regarding the sunroof - No way would I go that route because I would never buy a vehicle with an aftermarket sunroof. At least at this point there is no penetration of the sheet metal.
This dealer shop did the repair work on my wife's RAV4 when someone backed into the driver door and smashed it in. It's a 2012 Classic Silver and the work looks factory. Granted, I don't have a trained eye in this stuff either.
Good thoughts on the second opinion on the PDR. I'll get on that.
HerT4R
New member
theres always monstaliner or linex to cover it over and never think about it ever again... just throwing out another option i was quoted $650 to get my roof sprayed with color matched better UV rated linex. I recommend it. But i also have my hood sprayed with linex so im probably bias.
Throwback
New member
I'm going to see what dollar figure the manager had in mind as compensation for me. Between the forum and folks I've spoken to today I've heard many more anti-paint than pro-paint opinions.
Depending on the dollar amount I'm thinking I'll turn around and put it toward a Gobi no-rise Stealth for hopefully a close to net-zero solution. Interested to see how he values his in-house labor and wholesale materials.
Depending on the dollar amount I'm thinking I'll turn around and put it toward a Gobi no-rise Stealth for hopefully a close to net-zero solution. Interested to see how he values his in-house labor and wholesale materials.
