I discovered a very small dent on the rear fender of my 2018 F Type R vert. Not sure how it got there but it’s very small so when I saw it I wasn’t completely pissed. Just slightly. Thinking PDR would fix it easily.
Anyway I called a guy who has done paintless dent repairs for me in the past. He does really nice work. When he first saw it he said it should be no problem, should pop right out. After several tries he realized the fender is a composite material that wouldn’t respond to his usual process. He said he could remove the taillight and “probably” get it done from behind but I wasn’t ready to start taking the car apart with less than 3000 miles. Besides, the indentation is slight and barely noticeable.
Was just curious if anyone else here has experience with dent removal on composite panels.

 

isnt it aluminum?

 

He called his contact at the Jaguar dealer and was told it was a composite. ??? I honestly don’t know for sure. Somebody on here will know.

 

I did a quick search. In a review I read over quickly they did say it was “aluminum bodied”. I think my guy got some bad info from the Jag dealer. I was standing right there when he made the call and he was definitely told composite??

 

I believe all of the body panels are aluminum. The composites are used structurally. I was able to find this from Ian Callum:
"For the construction of the aluminum riveted and bonded body structure Jaguar developed a new specific aluminum alloys from the 6000-series: the AC300 and the AC600 aluminum panel alloy, with a high degree of formability which allowed to achieve clarity and tightness of radii and feature lines – for instance, the radius tightness of just 8mm allowed to reproduce the car’s “heartlines” exactly as the designers had intended.
The clamshell hood, an exotic signature feature of the F-TYPE and where the front heartline begins, is a one-piece stamping, made using a 1,000-ton press.
Jaguar developed other new manufacturing techniques in order to deliver both the design and structural integrity engineered into the F-TYPE. A new process, known as “warm forming”, is used to produce the inner door stamping. The ordinary stamping process with cold metal could not achieve the desired shape. Jaguar engineers developed a method in which the metal is heated to 500°F (260°C) before pressing. As a result, the desired shape and structure are achieved from one large pressing rather than numerous smaller ones, reducing complexity and weight.
The F-TYPE employs more composite materials than in any previous Jaguar, with structures under the sill and the trunk lid constructed from high-strength polymers. Extensive analysis throughout the car’s structure, powertrain, body and convertible roof contributed to the overall vehicle weight of about 3,521 pounds (1,597 kg). Concentrating as much of the mass as possible within the wheelbase by minimizing the front and rear overhangs also contributes to the car’s agility and stability.
Aluminum forms a great part of the commitment Jaguar has made to sustainability. More than half the content of the car comes from recycled or reclaimed metal. In addition, Jaguar is rolling out its closed-loop recycling system to its suppliers, ensuring all waste metal from the manufacturing process is reused."

 

It appears aluminum is the correct answer. Apparently it doesn’t have the same rebounding characteristics as steel, which makes sense. Which would also explain why the dent didn’t “pop” as my PDR guy expected. Oh well, at some point I may choose to have the taillight removed so the imperfection can be fixed right but I’m not there yet. Thanks.

 

Yeah, there's no "memory" in aluminum like steel. It's likely they would have to massage it from underneath.

 

It's definitely aluminum. I had a PDR done on a minor door ding on my door and it came out very nicely. I remember someone here telling of having a significant dent (gold ball) fixed satisfactorily with PDR, but can't remember any more than that. It was a few years back.

 

Where exactly is the dent. Everything above the tail light is aluminum. Everything below is composite. No PDR is possible on the composite. That is permanently deformed. Filler or total replacement required.

 

Interesting. I’ll have to look to see exactly where it is in relation to the taillight but I think it’s just above it. I had a pic but deleted it.

 

It’s just above the taillight. VERY minor. In fact it took me a couple minutes to see it and I know it’s there. But the fact I know it’s there bugs me.

 

I’m having a tough time visualizing exactly where that is. Can’t even figure out what’s up and down. It would be helpful if you could zoom out to show some reference points.
Is that perhaps the top of the trunk lid?
Edit: figured it out. The reflections were confusing me. Definitely the top of the aluminum rear fender. Should be PDRable.

 

sticking a video up moving over it a couple of times so we can see the light move in the dent would probably be better.

I had my first F Type PDR’d once when I saw a minor panel ding. He was very experienced and used glue pull technique very carefully. 100% removed. Got to find the right person to do it. Preferably someone who has experience working on aluminium bodied cars (Ferrari’s etc). Not expensive though and should only take them 10 minutes.

 

I'm surprised that @Unhingd didn't suggest affixing one of those fake bullet holes to the blemish.

 

The guy I used is pretty experienced. He does work for all of the local dealers. He tried the glue pull technique several times but wouldn’t pull it. It kept popping off. Don’t know if it makes a difference but I had just had the car ceramic coated the week before. Hadn’t even washed it yet.

 

Sorry..,the glue won’t hold on a ceramic coating. They’ll need to use high vacuum suction.

 

That makes sense. Thanks for all of the feedback.

 

Having scratched the rear quarter and having it replaced because of no memory it is aluminum. Done at authorized shop in dedicated aluminum bay.