Overland Park Automotive

An open garage can attract many things—raccoons, neighbors, determined salesmen—but for Rodney Bruce it attracted dirty cars. Having worked at several dealerships since 1976, Bruce was familiar with a variety of detail techniques and could speak fluent Chevrolet. So in 2004, he decided to open a detail shop inside his two-car garage. Two successful years later, he moved his shop to its current and roomier location where he augments his detail services with hand washes and a repertoire of car-cleaning tools, including steam cleaners, orbiters, buffers, and 100% cotton terry-cloth towels.

A framed picture of the Route 66 sign hangs near the front desk of Dr. Dent—an homage, perhaps, to road trips across middle America. Though such treks can help make travelers worldly and wise, they can leave cars with dents and dings. Dr. Dent’s repair experts erase the bumps and scratches that happen on the road to self-discovery—or simply to the grocery store—to let the discoveries themselves shine through, and they’ve been doing so for more than 20 years.

Instead of affixing heart-shaped band-aids to scrapes and hail wounds, the crew uses several makeover methods to furbish car complexions. During paintless dent repairs, they return the surface to its ideal shape using a nonabrasive metal tool. In addition to improving the car's appearance, this technique preserves the original panels and factory paint. The technicians also use glue pulling—a new technique that involves adhesive tabs, slide hammers, and skilled force—to reshape dented metal. They can also fix chipped paint in-house, layering a clear coat of enamel atop a color-matched base coat.