Hood dent - repair/replace?

[mathrock]

When I bought my E30 vert it had a pretty big dent in the hood. It's one of the only things left on the car that I need to fix up. How easy do you think it would be to fix the dent and repaint (paint has cracks along the dent)? Or do you think it would be easier/cheaper to get another dent-free hood and have it painted? Anyone have any ideas how much a repaint of a hood would cost?

Some pics:
IMG_20150526_201411 by Nathanael Burton, on Flickr

IMG_20150526_201342 by Nathanael Burton, on Flickr

IMG_20150526_201325 by Nathanael Burton, on Flickr


FYI, located in Burtonsville, Maryland if anyone has a dent-free Alpine White (146/0) hood they'd like to get rid of or knows of a good autobody/paint shop.

Thanks

Nate

[george graves]

I have a dent in my hood kinda like that. I was able to bang most of it out. It's tough, cause the curves in the metal make that peice really strong.

Have you taken it to a paintless dent repair place? I bet they will give you a free quote, or tell you if it's fixable.

[murdough]

I had a dent in my hood that was similar. I had mine repaired as part of negotiations for purchasing the car so I can't tell you how much it cost to repair. You can still see it if you look SUPER CLOSELY, but it doesn't bother me because it's ridiculously minuscule, but that is something to consider. If you could get a hood for cheap, I might go the route of repainting a new hood just because, but I would definitely get some price quotes on both options before making a final decision.

[reelizmpro]

My mom has a similar dent on her mercedes and none of the pdr guys will touch it because it's on the curved front edge. I'm sure they can make it better but not 100% and fir that reason, they won't touch it. They recommend replacing the hood.

[mathrock]

Thanks all for the responses. I felt brave enough this past weekend to take off the hood and try to pound out the dent (or at least straighten it out a bit). It turned out pretty good except for the two dings on the top skin of the hood that I couldn't pound out from the underside.

IMG_20150603_191554 by Nathanael Burton, on Flickr

IMG_20150603_191545 by Nathanael Burton, on Flickr

[512E30]

Sorry for the bump but that came out well!

[mathrock]

Sorry for the bump but that came out well!

Thanks! It's still a slight dimple from close up, but definitely not as noticeable.

[jeffnhiscars]

Im quite sure all the white cabrios were alpinweiss II so keep your eyes out for a decent hood and just swap them. Should not cost more than $100-125.

[george graves]

Good job - bet you can't see it from 15 feet away.