Dent Repair
Dent Repair That Leaves No Trace: Door Dings, Creases, and Hail
A door ding, a shopping cart dent, a crease along a body line, or a hood full of hail. Macarthur's shop in Valley Stream pulls the dent, finishes the surface, and paints only what needs paint, so the repair disappears and the rest of the panel keeps its factory finish. Bring the car in during shop hours for a written price, or call 516-362-5350.
Certifications and reviews
The Certifications Behind the Small Jobs, and What Drivers Say About Macarthur on Google
A dent repair is judged by whether you can find it afterward, and that depends on the technician's metalwork and the painter's blend. Macarthur is certified by Honda and Acura, Nissan, Infiniti, Hyundai, Kia, Mazda, and Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram, and is I-CAR Gold Class, so a door ding is repaired by the same people and to the same standard as a collision. Every plaque is photographed on this site.
I got locked out my car on a cold snowy night and Alex came and unlock my car. He was very quick and professional. I would definitely use this towing company again.
Great timing and professionalism. The tow truck driver Carlos was experienced and helpful. I would recommend this company and Carlos to anyone.
Not the usual experience with a towing company. Everyone that I spoke to was polite and respectful and they towed my car with care. Hopefully I never need my car towed again, but if I do, this is who I will be using!
- 16Certifications on the shop wall
- I-CARGold Class training recognition
- 1,800+Google reviews, 5.0 average as of Oct 2026
- LicensedDMV # 7110205 · DCA # 1389419
- 1 ShopTow fleet and body shop, Valley Stream
- 24/7Our own trucks bring the car in
The Google reviews below come from the towing side of the business, where most drivers meet Macarthur first. The body shop is where many of them come back, sometimes for nothing more than a dent that has bothered them for a year. If the shop has fixed yours, a few words on Google help the next driver staring at a door ding.
Have a dent that bothers you every time you walk up to the car? Bring it in.
- Dent Repair
- Dent Removal
- Door Ding Repair
- Hail Damage
- Car Dent
- Body Shop
- Auto Body
- Panel Repair
- Auto Paint
- Collision Repair
- Certified Shop
- I-CAR Gold Class
Door Dings, Creases, Hail, and Shopping Carts: Why Every Dent Is a Different Repair
A dent is metal that was stretched, and how much it stretched decides the repair. A shallow door ding in the middle of a flat panel can often be pulled back with little or no paint work. A crease, a dent on a body line, or a sharp dent from a corner has stretched the metal further and usually needs finishing and paint. Hail is dozens of small dents at once. Macarthur looks at each one and tells you which repair it needs.
Here are the dents that come through the door most often and what each one means for the repair.
Door dings and shopping carts
A round, shallow dent in the middle of a door or a quarter panel from another car's door or a runaway cart. The paint is usually unbroken. The metal is stretched a little, and if the back of the panel can be reached, the dent can be worked out from behind with the finish intact. If the paint is cracked or chipped, the area is finished and painted.
Creases
A long, sharp dent from a scrape along something hard: a pole, a mirror, a bike handlebar. The metal is stretched along a line and work-hardened, and it does not return cleanly. A crease is pulled, the high spots are worked down, the surface is finished, and the panel is painted and blended.
Body lines and edges
A dent that crosses a styling line or sits on the edge of a panel is the hardest to make disappear, because the line has to be rebuilt exactly. These get metalwork, finishing, and paint, and a skilled technician restores the line so the reflection runs straight.
Hail
Dozens or hundreds of small dents across the hood, roof, trunk, and the tops of the fenders. Each one is small; together they are a lot of labor. Hail is usually a comprehensive insurance claim, and the estimate counts and sizes every dent. The hail section below explains how.
Dents with broken paint
Any dent where the paint cracked, chipped, or flaked is painted, because exposed metal rusts. The dent is repaired, the area is finished, and the paint is blended so the repair does not show. The auto body repair page covers scrapes and rust that often come with these.
Not sure what kind of dent you have? Bring it in and we tell you in a minute.
How a Dent Is Repaired: Access, Pull, Metal Finishing, and Painting Only What Needs Paint
The technician gets access to the back of the dent where possible, works the metal back toward its original shape with tools from behind or pulls from the front, finishes the surface so it is flat and the body lines are true, and then paints only the area that needs it, blending into the surrounding panel. Where the paint was never broken and the metal returns cleanly, there may be no paint at all.
Dent repair is metalwork first and paint second, and the goal is to do as little of each as the dent requires.
Access. Door panels come off, inner fender liners come out, trunk trim comes loose, so the technician can reach the back of the dent. Where the back cannot be reached, as on a double-skinned panel or a roof rail, the dent is pulled from the front.
Working the metal. From behind, the dent is pushed and tapped back toward its original shape in small moves, watching the reflection in the panel to see the high and low spots. From the front, pulling tabs are glued to the surface and the dent is drawn out, then the tabs are removed. The aim is to get the metal as close to original as it will go before any filler.
Finishing. Where the metal has stretched and will not come fully flat, the surface is finished with a thin skim, sanded, and checked against the panel's shape. A good repair uses the least filler the dent allows, because thick filler cracks and shows.
Paint only where needed. If the finish was broken or the repair reached bare metal, the area is primed, painted in the car's color, and blended into the surrounding panel. If the finish was not broken and the metal returned cleanly, the panel may need only polishing. The auto painting page explains blending.
Reassembly. Trim, liners, and panels go back on, and the repair is checked in daylight.
The best dent repair uses the least paint. We tell you how much yours needs.
With Paint or Without: What Decides It, and Why We Will Not Promise No-Paint on a Dent We Have Not Seen
Whether a dent can be repaired without painting depends on whether the paint is intact, how far the metal stretched, where the dent is, and whether the back of the panel can be reached. Shallow dings in reachable flat areas with unbroken paint are the ones that can. Creases, body-line dents, sharp dents, and anything with cracked paint need finishing and paint. Macarthur tells you which after looking, not before.
People ask for the no-paint repair because they have heard of it, and sometimes it is the right answer. Here is honestly what decides.
Paint condition. Modern paint flexes, and a shallow dent often leaves it unbroken. Look closely at the center of the dent: if there is a crack, a chip, or a white stress mark, the area needs paint.
Stretch. A round, soft dent stretched the metal a little; it comes back. A sharp dent or a crease stretched it a lot; it does not come fully back without finishing.
Location. A dent in the middle of a door is easy to reach. A dent on a pillar, a roof edge, or a double-skinned hood edge may not be reachable from behind.
Panel material. Aluminum hoods, doors, and fenders on many newer cars are stiffer and less forgiving than steel and spring back less. Some aluminum dents can be worked; many need finishing. The aluminum note below has more.
What we say. If your dent can be worked without paint, we say so and the price reflects it. If it cannot, we say that too and explain why. We do not sell a no-paint repair that will show, and we do not paint a panel that does not need it. The small jobs section on the body shop page explains how these are priced out of pocket.
Want to know if yours can be done without paint? Bring it in. We will look before we answer.
Hail Damage: Counting the Dents, the Insurance Claim, and Repairing a Whole Roof and Hood
Hail leaves dozens to hundreds of small dents on the hood, roof, trunk lid, and the tops of the fenders and quarters. The estimate counts and sizes the dents on each panel and prices the labor accordingly, and the claim is usually comprehensive, with your comprehensive deductible rather than your collision deductible. Macarthur repairs each panel, and where a panel is too damaged to work, replaces it.
A hail storm on Long Island fills body shops for a month. Here is how a hail job is handled so it is done right rather than fast.
Inspection. The car is looked at under good light, panel by panel, and each dent is counted and sized. The count drives the estimate and is what the adjuster reviews. Dents on the hood, roof, trunk, and the upper fenders and quarters are typical; dents on the sides are less common.
Repairable or replace. A panel with a manageable number of shallow dents is worked back. A hood or roof with hundreds of dents, or dents that stretched the metal badly, may be cheaper and better to replace. A roof replacement is a structural job and is handled as one. The frame repair page explains what a roof panel has to do with the structure.
The claim. Hail is comprehensive coverage. Report it, tell the insurer the car is at Macarthur in Valley Stream, and the shop sends the count and the estimate. The insurance claim repair page has the steps.
The repair. Each dent is worked, panels that need it are finished and painted, and panels that did not break paint may need none. Trim, moldings, and glass seals are removed and replaced to reach the dents at the edges.
After a storm. Shops get busy and some out-of-town operators set up in parking lots. A hail repair is still a body repair on your car's paint and panels, and a certified shop that will be here next year is the safer choice.
Hood full of hail? Bring it in for a count and the estimate goes to your insurer.
Dents in Aluminum Hoods, Doors, and Fenders: Why They Are Harder and How the Shop Handles Them
Many newer cars use aluminum for the hood, the doors, the fenders, or the trunk lid to save weight. Aluminum does not spring back like steel, work-hardens faster, and cannot be heated or finished with the same materials as steel without corrosion. Macarthur repairs aluminum dents with the technique and materials the metal needs, and replaces the panel when the dent has stretched it past what can be worked.
If your car is a recent model from almost any manufacturer, there is a good chance at least one panel is aluminum, and a dent in it is a different repair.
Behavior. Aluminum has less memory than steel. A dent that would pop back on a steel door stays put on an aluminum one, and the metal hardens as it is worked, so the technician has fewer moves before it will not move further. Some aluminum dents are gently warmed to make the metal more workable; too much heat ruins it.
Finishing. Steel filler and steel tools cannot be used on aluminum, because steel particles left in the aluminum cause corrosion that lifts the paint later. The shop keeps aluminum tools and materials separate and uses fillers made for aluminum.
Replace when needed. A sharp crease or a large dent in an aluminum panel often cannot be worked flat, and a replacement panel is the right repair. The estimate shows which, and the parts section on the body shop page explains how the panel is sourced.
Painting. Aluminum is primed with a primer made for it before color and clear, and the blend is done the same way as on steel. The paint section on the body shop page covers the process.
Knowing what you have. Tell us the year, make, and model and we know which panels are aluminum before you arrive, or bring a magnet: it will not stick to aluminum.
Dent in an aluminum hood or door? It needs its own tools, and we have them.
What a Dent Repair Costs Depends On, Paying Out of Pocket, and When a Claim Makes Sense
The price of a dent repair depends on the size and depth of the dent, where it is, whether the back of the panel can be reached, whether paint is needed, and whether a body line has to be rebuilt. Macarthur writes a price after looking at the dent, and most dent repairs are paid out of pocket because the cost is often close to or below a collision deductible. Hail and dents from a collision are usually claims.
No one can price a dent from a description, so here is what moves the number, so the price makes sense when you hear it.
Size and depth. A small, shallow ding is the least work. A large or deep dent takes more metalwork and more finishing.
Access. A dent the technician can reach from behind is quicker than one that has to be pulled from the front or that needs a door panel, a liner, and a lamp removed to reach.
Paint. A repair with no paint is the least expensive. A repair that needs the area painted and blended into the adjacent panel costs more, because the paint work is most of the labor.
Body lines. Rebuilding a styling line so the reflection runs straight is skilled work and takes time.
Out of pocket versus claim. A door ding is almost always paid by the owner. A dent from a collision with another driver is their insurer's claim. Hail is a comprehensive claim. If you are unsure, the estimate is written the same way either way and you can compare it to your deductible. The estimate section on the body shop page explains how the write-up is itemized.
Want a number? Bring the car in. A dent is priced by looking, not by phone.
While the Car Is in the Shop: the Scuff, the Rust Spot, and the Bumper You Have Been Ignoring
A car in for a dent is a car already in the shop, and most owners have a second thing they have been meaning to fix. Macarthur writes a separate line for the scuffed bumper, the rust bubble at the wheel arch, or the scrape on the rocker, so you can do it at the same time if the number makes sense, or leave it for later. The dent price does not change either way.
Because the car is apart and in the paint shop, adding a nearby repair is often less than doing it on its own later, and the shop will tell you honestly when that is the case and when it is not.
A scuffed bumper cover next to a repaired quarter panel is a candidate, because the blend already reaches the cover; the bumper repair page explains repair versus replace. A rust bubble on the same panel as the dent is another, since the panel is being finished anyway; the auto body repair page covers rust. A scrape on a different panel is its own job and is priced as one. Each is a separate line on the estimate, marked cosmetic, and you choose. If you are also dealing with a cracked windshield, the auto glass page covers that, and glass is often a comprehensive claim with a separate deductible.
Got a second thing you have been ignoring? Ask for a line for it. No obligation.
Dent Repair for Drivers Across Nassau County and the Queens Line, at One Shop in Valley Stream
Dents are repaired at 170 East Lincoln Avenue in Valley Stream. Almost every dent job is driven in during shop hours, Monday through Friday 8 AM to 5 PM and Saturday 9 AM to 12 PM, from anywhere in Nassau County, the Queens neighborhoods on the county line, or the Suffolk towns just across it. Every town has its own dent repair page.
Drivers from Valley Stream, Lynbrook, Elmont, Franklin Square, West Hempstead, Hempstead, Malverne, Rockville Centre, Oceanside, Baldwin, Freeport, Long Beach, East Rockaway, and the Five Towns around Cedarhurst, Lawrence, Woodmere, Hewlett, and Inwood are a short drive from the shop, and so are drivers across the line in Laurelton, Rosedale, Springfield Gardens, Cambria Heights, St. Albans, Queens Village, Hollis, Jamaica, and Far Rockaway.
From central and eastern Nassau, Garden City, Mineola, Carle Place, Westbury, Uniondale, East Meadow, Levittown, Hicksville, Plainview, Bethpage, Merrick, Wantagh, and Massapequa, from the north shore towns of Great Neck, Manhasset, Port Washington, Glen Cove, and Syosset, and from Amityville, Melville, and Huntington on the Suffolk side, the car comes in on its own wheels. The full list is on the locations page.
Find your town and its dent repair page.
More Body Shop Services From the Same Shop
Collision Repair
From fender benders to major damage, repaired to pre-accident condition.
Auto Body Repair
Dents, scrapes, rust, and panel replacement.
Auto Painting
Spot repair to full repaints, matched to the factory color.
Frame Repair
Frames pulled back to straight and true.
Auto Glass Replacement
Windshields, door glass, and back glass replaced.
Bumper Repair
Cracked, scraped, or pushed-in bumpers repaired or replaced.
One shop covers every repair on the list.
Questions Drivers Ask About Dent Repair
- Can a dent be fixed without repainting?
- Sometimes. A shallow dent in a reachable flat area with unbroken paint can often be worked back without paint. Creases, body-line dents, sharp dents, and anything with cracked paint need finishing and paint. We tell you which after looking at it.
- Will the repair be visible afterward?
- No. The metal is worked back, the surface is finished true to the panel's shape, and any paint is blended into the surrounding area so the repair disappears.
- How do you repair a dent?
- The technician reaches the back of the dent where possible and works the metal back, or pulls it from the front with tabs. The surface is finished, and paint is applied only where the finish was broken or the repair reached bare metal.
- Can you fix a crease?
- Yes. A crease is pulled, the high spots are worked down, the surface is finished, and the panel is painted and blended, because creased metal does not return cleanly on its own.
- Do you repair hail damage?
- Yes. Each dent is counted and sized for the estimate, panels are worked or replaced as needed, and the claim is usually comprehensive with your comprehensive deductible.
- Do you repair dents in aluminum panels?
- Yes, with tools and materials made for aluminum, kept separate from steel. Aluminum springs back less and work-hardens faster, so some dents are replaced rather than worked.
- How much does dent repair cost?
- It depends on the size and depth, the location, whether the back of the panel can be reached, whether paint is needed, and whether a body line has to be rebuilt. Bring the car in and we write a price after looking.
- Should I file a claim for a door ding?
- Usually not; the cost is often near or below a collision deductible. Dents from a collision with another driver or from hail are usually claims. We write the estimate the same way either way.
- Do I need an appointment for an estimate?
- No. Bring the car to the Valley Stream shop Monday through Friday 8 AM to 5 PM or Saturday 9 AM to 12 PM.
- Will the paint match if the dent needs painting?
- Yes. The painter mixes to the factory code, tests against the car's actual shade, and blends the color into the adjacent area so there is no edge.
- Can you fix a dent on a body line or an edge?
- Yes. The line is rebuilt in the metalwork and finishing so the reflection runs straight, then painted and blended.
- Can I have other small repairs done at the same time?
- Yes. A scuffed bumper, a rust spot, or a scrape gets its own line on the estimate, and you decide whether to do it now or later.
- Where is the shop?
- 170 East Lincoln Avenue, Valley Stream, NY 11580.
Did not see your question? Ask the estimator.
Call Macarthur About a Dent in Valley Stream
Pulled, finished, and painted only where it needs it. Bring the car in for a written price.
Call 516-362-5350