Car Scratches Go Away

Joe Ratzkin
July 6, 2006

Much as you do take extra care so that your car’s paint would not get marred by dents, scratches could happen. Scratches on your car can small and would not even be noticeable. However, if these accumulate, you can say goodbye to a car that looks like it was just purchased from the dealership.

These small scratches on your vehicle can be easily fixed using touch-up paint. However, if the scratch seems to be deep and large enough, then these may then need some professional assistance. If your car’s paint is enameled, then you can actually have to ask for professional help before you do anything or you just might mess up your car’s paint. However, if it is now, then you can go ahead and do the repairing yourself.

Body compound and primer paint should help you do the job well. If you are going to purchase primer paint, find a primer paint that holds a light color. The very reason behind this is that when you use touch-up paint, you can cover it up easily. Before you do anything, it is important that you have the area around the scratch clean. You can wash the area using a mild laundry detergent so that any kind of coatings or wax would be removed. If there are coatings or wax on it, you might have trouble when you apply the new paint.

When the area is clean, sand the scratch. You can use a fine grained sandpaper to do this. And if you notice any rust on it, sand it away. After this is done, remember to remove all the dust. Then start isolating the scratch using some masking tape and newspapers. Leave around a half inch around the scratch. This would be the space to work on the scratch.

Apply the body compound to the scratch. Make sure you use a plastic tool to do this so that there would not be any additional scratches on your car’s paint. After applying, let it harden. And when it is already hard, sand the compound until it is level and blow away any of the dust. The primer paint would come in handy now as you spray it to the scratch. Let it dry through the night.

Apply the right touch-up paint on it the following morning. If you are not sure what color it would be, you can check your vehicle’s vehicle identification number. After applying the touch-up paint, let it dry overnight and come morning, your vehicle looks like the scratch has never been there.

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