25 captured repliesPartial discussion capture · Source accounts, not a confirmed diagnosis
THIS DISCUSSION / SOURCE-DERIVED OVERVIEW
Discussion summary
YOUR RESEARCHDent Removal - "A" Pillar
Leading reported evidence
Repair using paintless dent methods
Performed · outcome unconfirmed
No successful repair reported for this finding.
0
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0
Unsuccessful attempts
1
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed
I hear that pillars can not be repaired using paintless dent methods.
Leading evidence: 'Repair using paintless dent methods' (no explicit attributable resolution; this is a reported action or suggestion). Across 1 matching discussions, The most frequently discussed action is 'Repair "' (1 discussions). For that action, 0 discussions report a resolution and 0 report an unsuccessful attempt. No action has an explicit, attributable resolution report under the current rules. These are forum reports and suggestions, not a confirmed diagnosis.
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Performed · outcome unconfirmed
I have seen and used a set of tool that you can "suck" up the dent.
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Suggestion
I don't think that you can do a "paintless Dent Repair" on an A pillar.
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Suggestion
I suppose it wouldn't hurt to ask a paintless dent repair guy if they could fix it .
Counts describe captured discussions, not unique people or a diagnosis. Author identities are not reliably stored. Exact duplicate evidence is counted once across matching discussions; one discussion counts at most once per action/state. Multiple repairs reported together remain a combination. Suggestions and failed attempts do not establish a fix. Matches cover whole discussions and can include related faults, model variants and incomplete threads.
25 eligible posts · 0 unverified posts · 1 discussions match the subject in their title or opening post.
Planet-9: 1 discussions
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Outcome without a verified action link
Just because somebody said it worked 5 years ago doesn't mean it works now.
Yesterday, on the freeway, a grape sized rock comes flying toward me out of nowhere (nearest vehicle, a big rig two lanes away to my left), and glances off the left side "A" pillar.
The paint was slightly scuffed, but some Meguairs plastic polish quickly removed that. But, the metal is slightly dented. I hear that pillars can not be repaired using paintless dent methods. If so, I am left with sand/fill in/prime/paint work. A very good mobile bodywork and paint guy I know can do this work, but if paintless is possible, would rather do that. Anyone had a dent in this area? Repair approach?
See pics.
- Phil
Phil,
This is so small I would never bother doing anything about it. There is no sense in painting the whole thing just because of this. You'll lose the factory paint for an invisible dent. Just my opinion.
Yeah if you had trim or a bodyline at the top and bottom of the pillar it
might
be possible but it looks like you have a metallic paint which is very difficult to feather.
OUCH
I'm sorry
if I were you I would try to live with that little b.....d ding.
my car has one very similar to yours.
Sometimes it is hard for me to remember that it is just a car.
if not then go to an detailing expert in you area asap.
rex
Dry ice to it?? I suppose it wouldn't hurt to ask a paintless dent repair guy if they could fix it . . . if not, and it were my car, I would just consider it another battle scar.
That is really little. +1 to above comments. Repair will be a waste and compromise original paint for an insignificant blemish. Don't do anything for three months and if you do still notice it, it might look more like a beauty mark by then.
A guy who does paintless dent repair on high end cars says a dent in "A" pillar is bad. May or may not be able to fix. Said it would help to know in advance what is behind the trim. Sometimes there are holes in the structure that he can reach through, sometimes not. Anyone ever had the interior trim off and seen what is underneath the "A" pillar?
- Phil
Roof members are often made of ultra high strength steel. Higher strength usually means lower ductility and greater difficulty in working it. I wouldn't even consider having a minor blemish pulled out. If it were truly major, I'd want the pillar replaced completely. Although, if you took that pillar out in an accident, you'd probably need to replace a lot more than just that. I can barely see the blem you are upset over and find it hard to believe it would reduce the A pillar's strength at all.
When I bought my first high end bicycle, a much missed L'egnano Roma Olimpiade, almost 40 years ago, its Reynolds 531 drawn and butted tubing was hot stuff. Now Arcelor makes a high strength steel for applications like A pillars that has, IIRC, twice the yield strength of the Reynolds. That is also about 7-8X the minimum strength of mild building steel and maybe 5X the actual of same. Pretty impressive stuff.
I'm with everyone else here. I'd leave it even if the repair is free. It's hardly noticeable. You'll forget it's there in a month or two if not sooner.
-Moto
If it can be fixed using a paintless method then I'd probably give it a go.
But I'd certainly not fill and paint for such a minor blemish.
As the others have said, leave it for 3 months and see how much it bothers you.
Found this photo of a 997 with A pillar trim removed. Looks to me like some things are screwed or otherwise fastened to the inner metal on the A pillar. I am hopeful that there are holes here that can be used to reach the slightly dented outside metal. Opinions? Could there be another layer of metal in there between what is shown here and the outside metal?
I would appreciate any parts breakdown or parts illustration for this part of the car.
- Phil
I have the body shop manual for the car. The pillar consists of three parts. An inner pillar which has a interior side and an exterior side. This is the covered with the external skin which reflects your dent. With what I am looking at to do it paintless you must remove the interior trim then drill a hole through the reinforcement pillar without drilling into the external skin. I would just take it to a supermarket and let a cart hit it...You will never notice that dent again.
I have seen and used a set of tool that you can "suck" up the dent. The theory is creating a vacuum around the dent then gradually suck it up by pulling. The process is easy to DIY. It does not hurt the paint at all.
Bryan
Hope all the information I sent you will assist you in your quest for perfection..
I forgot to mention in the multiple private correspondence that the
bullet hole decal
would be my first choice.
Yes, the info was quite helpful, and by all appearances, fixing this dent through paintless dent repair is highly unlikely.
But, will still inquire with people who do this work. Maybe there is some faint ray of hope.
- Phil
I don't think that you can do a "paintless Dent Repair" on an A pillar. All cars starting in 2008 have Boron steel A pillars, and I am sure
Porsche
was using boron on the A pillars before that. I would try it any way, but don't be surprised if it doesn't work.
There you have it. Unless
Porsche
specifically sanctions it and specifies how to do it, drilling a hole through a Boron steel A pillar is a dumb idea. Even if it is a small hole, the hole will result in a heat affected zone - that drill bit will get ouchy hot and the steel will probably lose strength locally. Note - true also of the older high strength steels - heat treatment is part of their strength. Just because somebody said it worked 5 years ago doesn't mean it works now. Plus the only way you could find out if it didn't work is to put the car shiny side down.
A hole drilled in the "boron steel" would be very small for a paint-less tool. the heat would be minimal. It is done all the time in the fabrication industry. A cold towel would be an effective heat sink in the area of work. The Outer skin which has the dent on the gents car is not boron and can be massaged with ease from the access hole.
