Hello everyone!

this is my first post and I'd like to say hello to everyone!

anyways to make a long story short.. i just picked up my xb and had the urge to wash and wax my car... but in the process of waxing my xb i accidently placed a pressure dent on the top of the roof :oops:

Well i think im the only idiot who did this, but i would like to warn other peops about it.



I did do a search on it just in case someone else has already posted on this topic and didnt find anything.

 

Havent heard anythign about that yet, and havent experienced it either, but ive only had my box about 3 weeks

 

Like all Japanese cars Scion's are made of tin foil and dent easily. Xbs especially have weak sheet metal on the roof. I seen alot of them with rippled roofs. Some even come that way from the factory. If you you are looking for a car with tuff skin steer clear of all Japanese manufacturers. BMW, Mercedes, VW, Audi, Saab, and basically any european cars are typically built with thicker steel and tend to be safer cars. Japanese cars are built fast, cheap, light, and made to crumple. Also you can't really complain .... you should know better than to press so hard on a econobox

 

It didn't sound like a complaint as much as a warning to others to be careful. It's easy to forget how fragile these things can be. Especially with the large flat surfaces. They don't tend to be as rigid as cars with more arch/curve. Is it possible to push it back out? anyway to get to the spot without having to pull the whole headliner? That sux.

I see a Camo Box now and then that has a dent in the hatch. it looks like some one just bumped it with a hip to close it or something...

 

I've seen businesses in my town that have signs that imply they perform, "no paint; pop-a-dent" repairs. I have no experience or opinion on whether they do good work or not... but, it sounds like these places may be worth considering. Keep us posted. Thanks. :D RPM

 

dont got one yet....but thanks....

 

Just an idea...well if it was that easy to put in couldnt you get in the cab and push it out...oh well maybe an idea.

 

I've heard of people using dry ice to remove hail dents. Maybe it would work on your dents too.

I don't think that'll work. The dent is there because the sheet metal is stretched a little bit. I believe that is why the dry ice thing works. It's such a sudder drop in surface temp that it shrinks the metal back. :?

 

I know we've seen this commercial before....wonder if it works? Might be worth the $20 to give a shot.

http://www.asseenontvdepartmentstore...ps-a-dent.html

 

[quote="the_saint"]I've heard of people using dry ice to remove hail dents. Maybe it would work on your dents too.[\quote]

That doesn't work - it's an urban legend. If it did - dent guys would do it, it would sure beat the hell outta having to learn how to do PDR (Paintless Dent Removal) and having all those high dollar stainless steel tool rods hanging on the wall. I do wished it worked though - god my life would be so much better.

The "As Seen on TV" glue-on dent puller is also total crap, save your $20. If they too worked - every PDR shop in the country would have them (we don't ... for a reason).

Basically, with real dents, there is one way to get them out (when avoiding a 'real' body shop), you have to work it out with physical contact and 'massage' the dent out... a learned skill.

GOOD NEWS - by the sound of your dent, it's what we call an 'oil can' dent. It will pop in and out easily. Without seeing it (so caveat emptor), I would drop down one side of the headliner and work your hand in there so you can feel the bottom side of the dent - GENTLY push up, should go "pop". Remember - that's a rare dent, for most any other you need to take it to a PDR shop.

 

If it's a pressure dent on the roof, you should be able to push it out easily by hand. Just press CAREFULLY, and it should pop back.

Secondly, thin metal sucks, yes, but realize that it will not make a significant difference in a severe collision. All sheet metal is inherently weak, as it has no structure to it. . . either way, a little more rigidity in the shell is not going to protect the occupants from injury. Even if the metal were 5x stronger, it would not slow down a vehicle colliding with you at 50+ mph. Think about it. . . the shape the form, the metal will simply bend and transfer the impact forces, as sheet metal is sheet metal. Now if you were talking about sheet metal that had a honeycomb structure built into it, or braces every few inches, that woulod be different. However one thing is for sure, thin metal is horrible for low speed collisions, since it damages easily and is expensive to repair (you'll probably have to replace it). The most crucial element to a car's structural integrity are the bumpers, the frame, and the amount of "give" it has in crumple zones.

Note a crash test of Suburban (chevy? GMC?) back in the 90's. The insurance testing agency (forgot the name) tested an offset crash at 40 mph and the suburban failed miserable. . . the was cabin intrusion at only 40mph! What happened. . . the structure was so rigid, that the softest part of the car broke. . . the cabin. This is the case in all cars. . . the cabin is the weakest part of the car by nature, and a good engineer will design weak points fore, aft, and to the sides of the car, to absorb impact forces and prevent intrusion. It's 9th grade physics. But again, rigid sheet metal won't cause intrusion, a rigid exterior will. But just don't make the mistake of thinking thin sheet metal = dangerous.

 

Guess thats why I work for a insurance company not a body shop :oops:

 

Learn something new every day. Atleast now I won't burn my fingers trying to put dry ice on a dent.

 

I wasnt complaining, just warning others to becareful. It was wierd how easy it happen, i didnt even place that much pressure on it. This is my first econo box. Previous vehicle i owned was a 1996 Chevy Tahoe and that thing was built like a tank. only thing was it went through gas like a tank! got tired of paying 50 bucks for a tank of gas. I have no regrets in purchasing my box.

I'd like to thank the others on thier suggestions on how to fix the dent. i'll prolly just leave it alone. it's barely noticeable.