Scratch repairs - how?

[Patrick]

Hi. Recently, I've scratched my car. I don't really know how I scratched it, but I think I scratched it with another car.

The part of my car (which is almost black in color) which is scratched now shows the white paint underneath it. The scratch is quite faint, but it somehow destroys the good look of the car. I'm thinking of 'fixing' it, but I need advice from you all.

I'm a beginner, and someone told me that I only need to polish the car using some 'abrasive' cleaners, they say that cleaner will 'absorb' the paint from the surrounding areas and make the scratch disappear. But I don't think it will work, because the scratch is considered deep as the black paint is no longer there, revealing the white paint.

Another way, as found in one of the books, is to buy a paint of the same colour, paint it using 'paintbrushes', polish it (to make the colour appear like the surrounding paint), then wax it. I think this is the better way, but is it considered too tedious for me to do it, as a beginner?

Another solution is to go to an auto-shop and have them do it for me. But, will that be expensive? It is just a small part which is scratched. Considering that the place scratched is quite small, will it be more expensive if I do it myself, because I have to buy the paint and the polish?

Thanks for you advice!!!

[MerfBall]

Here: http://www.autopia.ws/articles.php?articleId=27

[Hash_man]

You can do it yourself, or you can take it down to Fortune car wash (on Mcloed accross from Hooters) and get the guy there to detail it out for you.

I spun out in my moms acura this winter, and went into a bush all cuz of the fuckin leaking shocks ... So i took it to fortune, and including a interior and exterior wash, which is $20, it cost me $50. And that was nothing little. The whole drivers side front quarter panel was full of scratches... so check it out, u also get free new car smell!

[Wildcat]

DONT USE ANY ARASIVE CLEANERS!! like that GT something or other bullshit, when my car used to be black i tried it, and it pretty much wiped the clear coat right off leaving an ugly ass patch of fugly, id say get some of that turtle wax that is the color of your car for an easy 1 week solution

[Weapon_R]

You'd be surprised at what some polish and a buffer can do...

[Patrick]

Hi. Thanks for all your replies.

After relooking at my car for a long time, I think I'd like to change something about the condition of my car. The white paint that I am seeing is actually from another car (I guess), not the premier coating. It is like there is another layer of paint over my almost black color paint. Yes, my car is scratched a bit, but not much. What makes it ugly is the 'additional' paint which I got from scratching it with another car (or is it the car which scratches my car?).

So, here is what I intend to do (please correct me if anything is wrong):

1. Wash the car thoroughly.
2. Polish the car.
3. Wax the car.

I just purchased a small bottle of 'polish and wax', which the shop dealer claims will be able to remove it, after seeing my car. However, I'm a bit sceptical about the 'wax' part. I think that compound won't be able to do both polish and wax at the same time right? Or could it do so? (The instructions on the car says like this : Polish evenly with a polish cloth. When dry, remove the chalky haze using soft, clean cloth - the last instruction pretty seems like what you'll normally see on a 'wax product' right?)

So, should I use this 'Polish and Wax' compound for that particular part scratched, then wax the entire car using other type of waxes, or should I use this 'Polish and Wax' for the entire car, without waxing it again after that?

Thanks for your advice!

[MerfBall]

Most cars today have a primer, paint, and a clear coat over top. The clear coat is what gives your car that nice shine. Most scratches are just in the clear coat. Alot of waxes are marketed as a polish/wax type of combination. If you want the best results use a real polish to polish the car and then put a coat of wax on top of the polish.

It really depends on how deep the scratch is if you can feel the scratch then usually than that wax or polish will improve the look of it, but you will still see it.

[Patrick]

Hi. I polished my car just now using the Polish/Wax compound, and it does remove the scratch, however, there is still some scratch on it (you have to look quite hard to see it though). I can still feel the scratch by touching it. However, I'm quite happy with the results, considering the little time and effort I put on it.

Now, I'm more concerned about this thing: after using this Polish/Wax compound, do I still have to apply pure wax after finishing the job? Or will this Polish/Wax compound do the wax job too?

You see, just now, I used the polish/wax compound on only the places which are scratched. I actually intended to use it on the whole car, but I felt giddy from the smell of the polish/wax compound, so I stopped. I just buffed off the place which I polished. Later, when I get better, I sprayed some water on the surface which I polished, the water beeds very well, as compared to other places which I didn't polish. According to a book, if water beeds on the place which I waxed, that means it is waxed quite well. Right?

So, what should I do now: use the polish/wax compound on the whole car, or just use the polish/wax compound on the places which contain scratches, then use pure wax on the whole car again?

And, say after 6 months, and I intend to wax the whole car again, (let's consider that this time, there are no scratches on the car), should I use pure wax to wax my car, or use this polish/wax compound to wax my car?

Thanks!

[Weapon_R]

Use pure wax on the whole car. No need to use that polish/wax shit on the whole thing.

[Patrick]

Hi Weapon_R. Okay, now I understand that, if there are no scratches on the car the next time when I want to wax my car, I'll use pure wax.

However, next time when I intend to wax my car, there are some scratches on the car, what should I do? I assume that I should just use the polish/wax compound on the 'scratched' part, then wax the whole car using pure wax right?

Thanks!