# Fix dent on bumper



## new tech guy (Mar 27, 2006)

Hello folks,
I own a 2002 hyundai elantra gls 4door. Today driving back from church i was backing out of a parking spot and accidentally backed into the bumper of the car behind me, the other car fortunately had a rubber gaurd on its bumper so it was ok but mine was not so lucky. However, if the gaurd was not on the other car it could have been worse. The paint is intact but i now have a small dent on the rear bumper of the car and it fortunately is not cracked either. Is there any easy way to fix this or will i need the assistance of a body shop? The dent is relatively a small one but i would like to be able to patch it up without having to spend any money on it, i found a few tricks online for this where one person claimed to have fixed a bumper by heating the surface with a hairdryer then spraying the liquid from a can of compressed air onto the dent which made the bumper go back to its proper form. Is this a safe idea as i do not want to damage the paint either.


----------



## Drabdr (Nov 26, 2007)

Question... is this a metal bumper, plastic, or some kind of composite?


----------



## Frank4d (Sep 10, 2006)

I had this happen to a '98 Toyota Sienna... backed into a steel post at Walmart. I was able to remove the plastic bumper and push the dent out from the back side. On the Sienna the plastic was colored grey so no chipping or peeling paint to worry about.


----------



## new tech guy (Mar 27, 2006)

Drabdr said:


> Question... is this a metal bumper, plastic, or some kind of composite?


I beleive it is the fiberglass bumper, relatively newer car and this morning i realized how small the dent really was. I mustve been makin too much of a stink of it yesterday as i was frustrated about it. Also, the car color is gray all around exterior, so i do not think the bumper is painted, as well i dont want to make it look worse than it already is as i hear fixing those types of bumpers typically crack them.I would have to crawl underneath the car and look to see if i can simply take a rubber mallet to the dent.


----------



## whoten (Jul 13, 2006)

It may sound odd but applying heat with a hair drier or heat gun will somethimes help it pop back.


----------



## JohnWill (Oct 19, 2002)

You might also try a vacuum to suck it out. Got a toilet plunger handy? The heat before the plunging may help with this technique.


----------



## new tech guy (Mar 27, 2006)

Ok that sounds good, i dont even know if im gonna do anything right now as this morning i was slightly calmer about the incident and noticed how small the dent truly was, i really had to look this morning to even find the dent . If i try a hairdryer, how long do i heat the bumper before the dent pops out? Its cold around here now so i figure the hairdryer will have its work cut out . By the way, will the fact of it being near a crease (part of the body design) effect things a bit.


----------



## JohnWill (Oct 19, 2002)

Hard to know without actually seeing the dent. The heat may help in any case, but suction may be difficult depending on where the dent is.


----------



## new tech guy (Mar 27, 2006)

I will try to get some pictures up of it towards the end of the week, just tied up with things mon- fri so its hard, i figure i can try the heat theory despite the cold weather at some point this weekend as i plan on cleaning the car.


----------



## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

If it is really cold and you got a heating pad you could put that on first to get it all nice and warm before heating it up more. That way you will not have to stand or set there heating it up with a hair dryer as long.


----------

