![]() Sure, the Cybertruck’s panels will potentially be able to be repaired like DeLoreans were, but there’s the big question: will insurance companies approve labor-intensive repairs? High labor totals out cars they’re why one Ohio driver’s Rivian R1T repair came out to a whopping $42,000 for what appeared to be a basic fender bender. Those concerns of an elevated labor cost were shared amongst a Facebook group full of novice and veteran auto body repair technicians. “If you're going to spend more than say, eight, nine hours trying to do a repair, you’re better off just buying a new (panel),” Espey said. It’s an art form that takes a lot more time than the average steel fender. Espey described some of the repair processes of DeLorean panels as “old school,” where they’re using pick and files, not the computerized body shop tools to beat out divots and dings. But he agreed that the labor to repair stainless steel isn’t easy. James Espey, president of another shop, Classic DMC, was a little more optimistic. Repairing stainless steel really only makes sense for classic and collector cars like the DeLorean where replacements might not exist, and the cars themselves are special, rare items for hobbyists. Although our conversation was short, Bengston was pointed and direct. His company repairs DMC-12s and sells parts for them. “Repairing stainless steel is a novelty,” said Josh Bengston, owner and operator of DeLorean Industries, in Tallmadge, Ohio. ![]() Instead, some owners and body shop guys would use traditional techniques involving body filler, and then opt to paint the car. This is why the stories behind painted DeLoreans often come from accident-involved vehicles it didn’t make any financial sense to spend hours repairing a stainless steel panel. So, every repair has to be pitch-perfect, which isn’t easy, and, more crucially, very time-consuming. Then, unlike normal car steel (or even aluminum) body panels, you can’t hide structurally sound, but visually unappealing, repairs behind body filler and paint since the trucks are unpainted. It takes a lot of labor to ensure the body panels remain straight and usable. Yet, not considering the Cybertruck’s proprietary metal alloy and absurd thickness, we already have at least a bit of a precedent of how to repair stainless steel-an example from the 1980s, when DeLoreans were still new and probably more on the road than they are today. It’s silly to expect that a standard PDR ( paintless dent removal) guy could use their tools to hammer out any dents. Musk bragged that traditional auto presses, which can exert literal tons of force, can’t even shape the stuff because it’s so thick and hard. Its 3mm thick stainless steel panels are undoubtedly an industry first.
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