What Tesla Owners Need to Know About PDR Pricing (From a Radically Transparent Technician)

If you own a Tesla and you’re researching paintless dent repair cost, you’ve probably noticed something strange.

You can find before-and-after photos all over Instagram. You can see impressive repairs on TikTok. You can read five-star reviews praising the work.

But you’ll almost never see the price posted publicly.

As someone who’s been doing PDR since 1991, I’m going to tell you why: most PDR technicians are terrified of posting what their work actually costs.

Not because they can’t quote you. They’ll happily give you a price over the phone, via text, or in a DM. But post it publicly where competitors and customers can see it? Never.

Here’s what that fear does to the industry—and to you as a Tesla owner trying to make an informed decision.

The Problem: When Technicians Hide Pricing Publicly, Everyone Loses

Let’s say you see a post on Instagram: “Flawless repair on this Model 3 door ding. DM for pricing.”

You have no idea if that repair cost $200 or $800. So you guess. And because you have no reference point, you guess low.

Now imagine that technician actually charged $650 for that repair—totally fair for the complexity, the aluminum work, the skill involved. But because they won’t post that number publicly, the next 50 people who see that post assume it’s $300.

When those people reach out, the technician faces a choice:

1. Quote the real price ($650) and watch half of them disappear
2. Undercut themselves to match the customer’s low expectation
Most choose option 2. They’re afraid if they don’t, someone cheaper will get the job.

Here’s what happens next:

• The technician rushes the job to make the lower price worth it
• Quality suffers because they can’t spend the time it actually needs
• The customer gets subpar work but doesn’t know enough to realize it
• Reviews still say “great job, friendly service” because the customer has nothing to compare it to
• The cycle continues
Meanwhile, the customer who actually wanted premium work and would’ve happily paid $650 for it? They never even knew that was an option.

This is the game most mobile PDR technicians play. And it’s backwards.

Why I Decided to Do the Opposite

At Dent Time, we post our pricing publicly. Not vague ranges. Not “DM for info.” Real numbers.

Hand-sized dent on a body line? $600-$900 depending on depth and location.
Common door ding? $197-$300.
Complex aluminum tailgate crease like the Rivian repair we posted last week? $756-$924.

Why would I put that out there for competitors and price-shoppers to see?

Because transparency attracts the right customers.

When you hide pricing, you attract people who are guessing low and shopping for the cheapest option. When you’re upfront about cost, you attract people who understand quality work has a price and want to know what they’re getting into.

You weed out the tire-kickers. You build trust. And you never have to undercut yourself or rush a job because you’re scared of losing a customer.

Why Tesla Repairs Cost What They Cost (And Why You Should Care)

Tesla owners are used to transparency. You bought your car online. You saw the price upfront. No dealership games.

But when you get a door ding and start researching PDR, you’re suddenly in the dark. Nobody will tell you what things actually cost unless you’re already halfway through the sales process.

Here’s what you need to know: Tesla repairs are legitimately different from working on a Honda or Toyota.

Most Teslas have aluminum panels—front doors, hoods, and on the Model X and S, the entire body. Aluminum doesn’t have memory like steel. That means:

• It takes significantly more force to move it back into place

• It requires heat application (careful, controlled heat—not a heat gun wielded carelessly)
• The tools are different. The techniques are different. The skill level required is different.
• If you push wrong or too hard, you don’t get a second chance. Aluminum doesn’t forgive mistakes.
Add to that: dual-pane windows (extremely fragile), complex bracing behind panels, and the fact that one wrong move can turn a $500 repair into a $3,000 nightmare.

Let’s talk about the most common Tesla repair I see: a door ding on the body line of a Model 3 front door.

Here’s what actually goes into that repair:

Less severe damage: Drop the door latch, stabilize the door, slide a specially curved tool down through the latch opening, apply heat, and carefully massage the aluminum back. You have to avoid losing screws in the door cavity. The tool has to have the exact right curve. The heat has to be precise.

Deeper damage: Remove the entire door panel. Remove the dual-pane glass (carefully—it’s fragile). Sometimes remove the entire door from the vehicle for better leverage. Then begin the process of working the aluminum back with heat and specialized tools, checking constantly for texture, push marks, and high spots.

This isn’t a 15-minute job. And it’s not something you want someone attempting who’s undercutting themselves to compete on price.

For a straightforward door ding? $197 to $300.
For bigger damage—creases, body line dents, complex areas? That’s where our two-tier pricing model comes in.

Why We Offer Two Price Options (And Why That Solves the Transparency Problem)

For simple dents, pricing is straightforward. But when you’re dealing with significant damage—a crease across the tailgate, a large dent on a braced panel—there’s a decision to make.

Some customers are budget-conscious but still want high-value work. Others want the absolute best result possible, refined to the millimeter under every lighting condition and angle.

That’s why we offer Premium and Practical pricing tiers on larger repairs:

• Premium Repair: We refine the panel as close to original factory condition as possible. Extra time and precision are spent on the final details so the repair looks correct from all angles and lighting

• Practical Repair: We restore the panel to a very clean, well-corrected appearance under normal viewing distance and common angles. The result looks natural and presentable without chasing the smallest details. This option offers a 30% reduced cost—not reduced quality—just reduced refinement time. conditions.
Both options deliver strong value. Many customers start with the Practical repair and choose to upgrade to Premium during the same session. You stay in control.

And here’s the key: we post both price ranges publicly. No guessing. No DM-for-pricing games. You see the work, you see the cost, you decide if it’s worth it.

This system works because it qualifies customers upfront. People who want cheap work self-select out. People who value quality know exactly what to expect.

Our customers love it. They tell us all the time: “I knew what I was getting into before I even called.”