SMART repairs sell cars quicker and for more money

Company fleets and private motorists are being strongly urged to invest in reconditioning before selling their used cars. Not only will it ensure they stand a much better chance of selling it first time, but they will see up to 150% net return on their investment according to the Manheim subsidiary Dent Wizard.

Dent Wizard is the world largest SMART repair business with operations in four continents and applies its magic to literally hundreds of thousands cars each year. Its research shows that a typical spend of £100 on SMART repairs will return the owner an additional £200 to £250 on the sale price.

The commonly used acronym ‘SMART’ standing for Small Medium Area Repair Techniques is extensive, covering paintless dent removal, specialist repairs to upholstery, trim and glass plus alloy wheel refurbishment and localised paint restoration. Dent Wizard and its sister companies Flying Colours and Wheel Wizard provide all this through a national network of mobile technicians.

David Mercer, Managing Director of Manheim’s Defleet Services division, which includes Dent Wizard said, “Apart from the cost efficiencies, SMART repairs can normally be performed wherever the car is situated meaning that the work can be expedited quickly without affecting the time taken to get it to market. When a car goes into a bodyshop, for even minor repairs, it’s likely to be off the road for anything up to a week. So the lack of downtime for SMART repairs is a really attractive benefit. ”
However, even Mercer agrees that SMART repairs can’t perform miracles and there are some cars where it is just not worth the investment. This includes very high mileage cars (120,000 miles plus) which are showing signs of heavy usage and those with so much damage, whether inside or outside, that the overall cost of reconditioning makes even SMART repairs uneconomical. Additionally, Dent Wizard advises against spending money on cars with lower sales value (generally below £1,500) where buyers are much more forgiving of incidental damage.

Manheim has produced a list of the typical areas of damage where SMART repair techniques can make a huge difference.

Dents in all panels up to 100mm which have not broken the paintwork
Paintwork chips up to 3mm on bonnets
Surface scratches to all panels
Rips and cigarette burns to upholstery
Holes in dashboards and plastic trims
Minor damage to plastic bumpers and external trim
Kerbed and badly scratched alloy wheels
Stones chips up to 5mm on windscreens