Real car enthusiasts do not want to see scratches on their cars. It makes your baby’s ride look dull and neglected. But unfortunately, scratches appear on all cars – it’s just a matter of time.
Luckily, you can fix the scratches and have that factory aesthetic and magnificent exterior look. But before we discuss car scratch repair, you need to know the types of scratches. There are more than two types of car scratches, each with its own approach to fixing them.
Rx Mechanic expert teams drafted this simplified guide to walk you through how to fix these scratches. So sit back and have a five-minute read.
Different Types of Car Scratches
There are different types of scratches that you can have. Identifying them will help you know which scratches can be buffed out and how to fix each one on your car. So here are the common types of scratches you can have on your baby ride.
Clear coat scratch
Cars have a thin, clear coating that protects the paint from minor scratches caused by environmental factors like dust, acid rain, and direct sunlight. Clear coat scratches do not scratch the car paint. They only affect the outermost layer. They are very easy to fix and inexpensive tasks.
Base coat or paint scratch
Another type of car scratch is a paint scratch, also called a base scratch. Paint scratches affect the car’s paint. But the effect is not that serious. They are still easy to fix with the proper guides and appropriate kits. However, this requires a specific set of kits.
Primer scratch
Primer scratches are deeper than a clear coat and base scratch. If your car scratches down to the metal, you have a primer scratch. Technically, Primer scratches are the deepest scratches you can have on a car. And they can escalate to more severe issues if you ignore them for an extended period.
If you ask, do car scratches rust? A straightforward answer is that it depends on the type of scratch. For instance, a clear coat scratch will not lead to rust. Conversely, primer scratch will cause rusting and other issues if you fail to fix it on time. It can be expensive for an auto repair shop to fix it.
Wheel scratch
Some car scratches do not happen on the car body. A typical example is the scratches on the wheels. This type of scratch is also known as curb rash. This occurs when a driver pulls too close to a curb and mistakenly rubs it.
Rubbing against a curb can either scuff or scratch your car. If you’re wondering about scuff vs. scratch, they are not the same. Though the difference is just the depth. Scratch is more profound than a scuff.
Glass Scratch
Glass scratches are like the regular scratches on the car’s sprayed areas, but it only happens on the windows or windshield. Glass scratches are common, especially on the windshield. They mainly occur when a loose rock falls on the glass, but it is not hard enough to crack it.
Read Also: How to Remove Spray Paint from a Car
Causes of Car Scratches
Several factors, like an automatic car wash, malicious behavior, and kicked-up rocks, can scratch a car. When you see scratches on your vehicle, you’ll want to take the car to a repair shop specializing in body repair and painting. These are the most common causes of different types of car scratches.
Improper waxing/washing
If you have a new car or recently spruced it up, mind the types of clothes you use when washing or ragging the vehicle. If the cloth is abrasive, it will cause scratches on the car. Instead, get a synthetic microfibre car wash towel.
Secondly, do not wash with any washing soap. Instead, get car-washing soap. Lastly, before you wax, ensure there is no dirt or debris on the surface.
Automatic car washing
The brushes on an automatic car-washing machine can retain dirt left by the previous vehicle. And if the car wash attendant did not rinse the brush very well before using it on your car, it may scratch your vehicle.
Rubbing
If you wear a studded belt or have buttons on your shirt, you can scratch your car by leaning on it. Leaning on the vehicle may not scratch it, though you can still mistakenly shift your weight.
Rocks
A vehicle in front of you may have kicked up a rock coming in your way. This happens mostly when driving behind trailers with chipping stones. While you can’t prevent it from happening, you can minimize the chances by not moving close to trailers with gravel.
Bird dropping and dead bugs
Seeing bird droppings on a car can be unnerving and frustrating. If you don’t clean them on time, the acidity in their excrement can fuse with the paint. This can cause scratches on the car paint when removing them. You’ll notice this a lot if you park under trees.
Dead bugs can also cause similar issues. So, ensure you keep your car clean at all times.
Bad parking habits
Opening doors into bollards, parking too close to walls, and scraping bumpers on pavements are all mistakes. But most of the time, these are not mistakes but bad parking habits. For example, drivers scrape bumpers because they’re unaware of their surroundings. You can avoid these by checking your surroundings and using your side mirrors.
Low-hanging trees and Hedges
If you drive in a country lane, something or another driver may prompt you to drive closer to hanging bushes, which will lead to scraping bushes or low-hanging branches.
If you regularly drive the same route, these low-hanging branches and bushes will scrape paint off your vehicle. This will cause white scratches on the car or clear coat scratches.
Always find an alternative route. However, if you can’t find one, always drive in the middle of the road and avoid going close to those bushes and hanging trees. Regular buffing will also clear those tiny marks on the paintwork.
Your car keys
One common cause of scratches around the car keyhole is your car key. Occasionally, most drivers scrape their keys on the paintwork near the keyhole, creating minor scratches around the holes.
Whether your hand is full of other stuff or there’s no bright light, you will occasionally misjudge the keyholes and scratch the clear coating. To minimize this occasional misjudgment, we recommend you reduce your keyring and add a torchlight.
Car vandalism
Car vandalism is an annoying, frustrating, and upsetting way of damaging someone’s car. It is quite unnerving because someone did it on purpose. Most times, not knowing who or why it was done is troubling.
Whether it is because someone didn’t like where or how you parked, your neighbor who wants to wreck you, or a random fellow causing trouble, it is at your consternation and expense.
Here are the types of car vandalism
- Tire slashing
- Smashed side mirror
- Damaged car rims or bodywork
- Graffiti
- Being scratched by a sharp object
Depending on the severity, you can fix the vandalism yourself or call an experienced service technician.
Kids
You and I know that children are careless of other people’s property. For example, your lovely kids or even total strangers can scratch your cars by slamming the doors too hard, leaning on the paintwork with their school bags, hitting parked cars with their scooters or bikes, or brushing a vehicle with a stick, or even drawing or writing on the car.
It may be hard to avoid this because children often seem to be magnets for parked cars. However, you can minimize the chances by parking your vehicle in a garage. And lastly, avoid parking on the road. In any case, know that all this little stuff is bound to happen.
Other drivers
You cannot list the causes of car scratches without mentioning other drivers. Other drivers cause the most car scratches. This happens mostly in parking slots when people do not pay close attention to their surroundings, opening doors without looking or driving into another car.
Read Also: Fender vs. Bumper: What are the Differences?
How To Fix Car Scratches
If you love fixing things on your car, you may want to fix a light or slightly deep scratches on your vehicle. This simplified guide will walk you through fixing the scratches on your car. While these steps are effective, they may not work on deep scratches.
So, it is essential to determine the type of car scratch you have before trying this at home.
Use a scratch repair kit.
If the scratches on your car are not too deep, then a scratch repair kit will do an excellent job. The scratch repair kit is available in many auto shops.
This convenient scratch solution has everything you need to fix the light to slightly deep scratches, including buffers, touch-up paints, removal paste, and polish.
Clean the scratched areas
The first step is to clean the scratched areas. A clean rag, water, and car washing soap will do an excellent job. This will help you remove any remaining dirt or debris from the scratched areas so you won’t rub it into your polish or paint.
Apply scratch remover
Once the scratched surface is clean, grab the scratch remover from your repair kit. Apply it on a clean synthetic microfibre towel or buffing pads.
Note: applying the scratch remover paste directly to the scratches will damage the paint.
Remove the scratches with the buffing pads.
Remove the scratches using the synthetic microfibre towel or buffing pads. The scratch remover paste works by removing a thin layer of the clear coat, making the scratched surface smooth. Some scratch remover pastes work by smoothing the edges of the scratched areas.
Don’t worry. It won’t affect your car paint. Gently scrub the buffing pads over the scratched areas. It’ll take some time before you start seeing the magic.
Clear off any extra paste
Once you have finished buffing the scratched areas, wipe off any excess polish from the surface. This will help you maintain a factory aesthetic feel.
How much does it cost to fix Car Scratches?
We have seen types of car scratches and how to fix them, so how much does it cost? Car scratch repair cost depends on the severity of the scratch. The deeper the scratch, the more time and materials it takes to fix. However, an average scuff or clear-coat scratch will cost about $150, while a severe scratch can cost about $2,500. This is an average estimation. It can be lower or higher than this.
Read Also: Best Powder Coating Guns
FAQs:
Q: What type of scratches can be buffed out?
When your car is scratched, you’ll likely look for the easiest, cheapest way to remove them. Of course, buffing out scratches is the easiest way to remove scratches. But what scratches can be buffed out?
It depends on the impact of the scratch. Clear coat scratch is the easiest to buff out. This type of scratch will require a DIY-friendly polishing job. And the base coat scratch will need more than a little buffing to fix it.
Q: How do you tell if it’s a deep scratch on my car?
The easiest and simplest way of checking the depth of a scratch on a car is to place your fingernail on the vehicle and slowly drag it over the scratched area. When you move your fingernail over the scratch, you’ll feel as if it is a deep scratch or not.
It is a clear coat scratch if you do not feel the impact on your fingernail. You can fix this type of scratch without consulting a service technician.
Q: Are micro-scratches normal on a car?
Some micro scratches are normal and unavoidable if you frequently use your car. You’ll only avoid all micro scratches when the vehicle is still in the showroom. Micro scratches are also known as swirl marks. They do not go beyond the clear coating; you can remove them by polishing or buffing the car.
Q: Is it worth fixing scratches on a car?
It is worth every penny to fix your car’s scratches. If you ignore a small scratch on your vehicle and keep driving, it may expand into more extensive scratches. The car paint serves as a protective coating for the car frame. And scratches act as weak points that cause the car paint to start peeling.
So, ignoring scratches for an extended period will eventually lead to rusting on the car’s frame.
Q: What is considered a deep paint scratch?
To know how deep a paint scratch is, place your fingernail on the paint and run it over the scratched areas. If it feels ridged or as if it’s grabbing your nail, you have a deep paint scratch. This type of scratch may be difficult to fix with a DIY scratch remover kit.
Q: What does a new scratch on a car look like?
To determine whether you have a new or old paint scratch, place your fingers on the car and slowly run them across the scratched area. A new scratch will have a perfect linear shape with a sharp feel. On the flip side, an old scratch will feel burnt and rough because it has accumulated dirt over time.
Q: What is the difference between a scuff and a scratch?
When you hit something, or someone hits your car, you need to find out if it is a scuff or a scratch. These terms differ, but they occur at the same time.
A scuff, also known as paint transfer, is a superficial bump on the top layer of a vehicle’s paint that can be easily buffed off. They are primarily residual particles left from whatever you run into. A scratch is more profound and sometimes goes beyond the outer coating layer. Scratches can be light, moderate, or even severe.
Final words
In summary, regardless of the types of car paint scratches you have, always fix them on time. If you ignore even the slightest car scratch and continue driving the car for an extended period, it will expand to more extensive scratches. From there, it’ll escalate, peeling the car paint and exposing it to rust.
Of course, you won’t want this to happen to your baby ride. That’s why we have outlined the types of car scratches and how to fix minor scratches. However, if you have a deep scratch, take the car to an experienced service technician to have it repaired. Getting a scratch remover polish for deep or primer scratches will be a waste of time.
