How much does car bonnet repair cost?

Matilda Douglas-Henry

Like all other panels on your vehicle, allowing damage on your bonnet to worsen over time is never a good look for your car. With a large surface area and vulnerable location, car bonnets are always prone to minor or major damage: hailstorms, head-on collisions, or even parking your car under a certain type of tree can all create a need for bonnet repair. Car bonnet repair is a common and accessible service, but expect to pay up: for a high-quality and enduring repair job, costs can be high. At DingGo we can tell you all you need to know about bonnet repairs, including:

1. What is involved in car bonnet repair
2. The difference between car bonnet repair versus replacement
3. How much car bonnet repairs cost, and the factors affecting different price points

It is essential to get your bonnet repaired as soon as possible; even the smallest of dents or scratches that are ignored can allow water, oil, and debris to infiltrate the metal of your car and create long-lasting damage^[1].

What does car bonnet repair involve?

Car bonnet repair covers a wide range of technical processes and procedures, and a specialist will help you determine the types of repairs you need by doing an initial assessment of the damage. Fortunately, your bonnet can be easily removed from the rest of your vehicle, which makes it a much easier job for the technician.

If your bonnet needs to be resprayed or painted due to minor damage, the technician will apply a new primer, base, and clear coat to the bonnet, as well as repair any small dents or scratches. (For more comprehensive information about the cost of this procedure, refer to our “How much does bonnet respray cost?” article.)

Paintless Dent Removal, or PDR, is another common procedure that your technician may suggest. PDR involves using a set of specific tools to remove localised dents or dings from a panel without creating the need to repaint. Our article “How much does paintless dent removal cost?” goes into more detail on the subject, but if your bonnet has been the victim of a hailstorm—or, for that matter, any type of damage that has created isolated dents—PDR will likely be the cheapest and quickest way to have your car road-ready again.

In more extreme circumstances, a serious collision can leave your bonnet crumpled and raised, exposing your vehicle’s engine. While it’s always important to check the details of your vehicle’s insurance in the event of an accident, there’s a high likelihood that a technician will recommend you replace your bonnet entirely, instead of forking out for serious repairs.

How much does car bonnet repair cost, and what factors affect the different price points?

Car bonnet repair costs will depend on the make and model of your vehicle (common for basically all car repairs). The make and model naturally impacts the size of the bonnet, as well as the complexity of removing it from the car’s body. If your vehicle has restored or antique parts, price points become significantly higher overall.

Another factor to consider is the most recent paint job your vehicle has had: certain paints, like metallic ones, are immediately much more expensive to blend into surrounding panels. On the other end of the spectrum, a dodgy paint job can lead to further wear and tear down the road, meaning your bonnet might need to be stripped of that paint before the technician can proceed and cost you more in repairs.

If your bonnet needs to be resprayed, a common car model with a relatively small bonnet area, like a Mazda 2, would cost between $300 to $500^[2]. When your bonnet has been significantly scratched/dented, but still does not need to be replaced entirely, the price range is more likely to be between $550 to $900.

Your technician may have suggested PDR as the best route for your bonnet repair, and in that case, a safe estimate for PDR is between $150 and $250 for each damaged panel. A more complex dent, however, could park you somewhere in the $450 range. A deep scratch might cost anywhere between $450 and $700^[3].

If there’s a chance that your bonnet needs to be replaced entirely, a smash repair specialist will be able to assess the extent of the damage and give you a quote tailored to your situation. While bonnets can be easily detached from most cars, they are one of the biggest panels on your vehicle: the bigger the part, the more expensive the replacement. For example, if the entire front of your car is damaged—including the bumper, bonnet, and side guards—you might be looking at a range of $2,000 to $5,000.

Conclusion

It’s never fun to have a car bonnet in need of repair: not only is it unattractive, but it can create bigger problems the longer you leave it out in the elements. To avoid more egregious bonnet damage down the line, use DingGo’s quick quotes service today to set yourself—not to mention your vehicle—up for success.