bumper dent

[mollberry]

Hi,
I'm completely new to the forum, and I tried looking around before, but was unsuccessful at finding an answer...

I have a dent in the right rear corner of my bumper and I was wondering if a dent puller could do the job of (somewhat) fixing it. It's not that major, but it's one of those "returned-to-the-parking-lot-to-find-a-dent-from-an-unknown-somebody" stories, and I don't want to spend a bunch of bucks on damage that wasn't my fault.

I was wondering if a dent puller could do the job before I invest in one? The problem with my dent is that it's on the corner, so contraptions like Ding King and Pops-a-Dent would probably not work because it appears that the dent has to be on a flat surface (like a door or hood). So I was looking into a dent puller (like this one), but wanted to check if anybody has had experience with these.

Thanks!!

PS Here is the dent... taken at night coz I didn't think about taking a pic till then!

Image link

[Ruffrydasean]

that's still on an odd corner... you need somethin akin to a RUBBER(medium hardness) hammer to knock that out from the inside it seems..

Can you reach up under the bumper to feel the bump?

[t^3]

I don't think you'll be able to reach that far up the bumper, if you can reach into it at all. You'll have to completely take out the bumper to get to it. If you feel comfortable doing this, I can post instructions.

[bigdenis]

Heat it up - it'll pop out.

[Mike Gerber]

I feel for you. That would drive me crazy. I usually park away form people as best I can in parking lots to avoid things like that from happening.

That's called the "bumper cover" and you will have to take it off to get the dent out. If you do decide to take it off, use a hair dryer to make it more flexible and work it out from the inside. A heat gun on a low setting would be even better. Heat both sides when doing this.

Mike

[Likuid]

nah those dent pullers won't work on that. you seriously gotta fix it with a rubber hammer. I tried those dent pullers. they only work for small dents. nothing that size

[mandyfig]

Get it popped out as soon as possible. The paint is pliable, there's a good chance you will not notice after popping out.

Go to a Dent wizard or something.

But do it quick, the longer you wait, the more the paint will be damaged. Plastic when heated tends to go back to original molded state.

Try the hair blower and some suction type cups, go! GO!!!

[mollberry]

Oh wow, thanks for all your advice!! Uhm... as far as taking it off, yeah, some instruction would help tons if I decide to do so. I'm not sure how exactly to "heat it up" either ... do I just put a hairdryer up to it? (Yeah, not too knowledgeable about these things.) I did read about this trick elsewhere, but didn't think it could fix mine because it appears to be deeper than some other dents I've seen. Anyway, I'll give it a try. Thanks so much!!!

PS Unfortunately the parking lot was parked full-- I got the last spot! :P

[t^3]

Below are the two files I have for taking off the rear bumper cover - they're from the official Toyota repair manual:

Rear Bumper Components
Rear Bumper Replacement

I think it's self-explanatory if you carefully look over both of these, but feel free to ask for any clarifications.