Self service station: how to get rid of scratches and chips on the car body

Sooner or later, any driver faces small scratches and chips on the car body. Can you get rid of them yourself? What is the best tool for this task? These questions were answered by «The most useful program».

The reasons for the appearance of chips and scratches on the paintwork can be: garbage on the side of the road, ordinary hail, or even pigeons walking along the car body.

«These damages to the paintwork most often occur on the front bumper, hood and also on the front side fenders»said the specialist.

It is important to eliminate such a problem in time. The metal is susceptible to corrosion, which causes rust and swelling of the adjacent part of the paintwork.

If the damage to the car body is shallow, then you can take your time with a trip to the service station to the painters. The auto expert claims that this will cost a significant amount — from seven thousand rubles per part. In addition, the problem can be dealt with at home.

What are the remedies for chips and scratches on the car

There are three most popular remedies for removing chips and scratches:

• Wax pencil. Its approximate cost in car dealerships is 250 rubles.
• Colorless resin marker. For him, they will ask about twice as much.
• Acrylic enamel. The price of a spray can is about 900 rubles.

Now you need to find out which of these products will show the greatest effectiveness in the fight against car damage.

What is the best way to hide chips and scratches on a car?

In identifying the most suitable anti-scratch and chipping agent, a hood, on which defects were inflicted in advance, will help. We will try to get rid of them in this experiment.

When using funds, you must act strictly according to the instructions. The wax pencil passed the test first. It is applied to a clean and dry surface. It is important that it be warm at the same time (from 25 to 45 degrees).

“According to the manufacturer, when applying this pencil, it slightly corrodes nearby paint and fills this scratch with it”the expert said.

After drying and removing the excess of this product, we evaluate the result: from some angles, the scratch is not visible at all.

Next, we evaluate the effectiveness of a colorless marker. Its key components are:

• acrylic resin;
• Pine oil;
• silicone oil;
• Coconut oil;
• Glycerol.

The manufacturer claims that it is these components that contribute to the high-quality removal of damage from the car body.

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When used, the scratch on the eyes is filled with the agent, becomes more uniform with the color of the hood. However, after the product has completely dried, the damage is still visible.

The third medium is acrylic paint. It is important to select it exactly in the color of the car, best of all according to its VIN code. Another nuance: be sure to check what is included in the repair kit.

“In some cases, it is indicated that the kit includes an application brush, in some cases it is not. In our version, we will use an applicator to apply paint. The applicator will be a regular sponge «— said the autoexpert.

Acrylic enamel also failed to hide the damage. It turned out to be too liquid and spread in a thin layer over the surface, only slightly coloring the chip.

Which remedy for chips and scratches copes better with temperature changes

Not only the quality of damage masking is important, but also the duration. The protective coating cracks due to environmental conditions, gradually disappears.

In summer, the body of the car is very hot in the sun, up to about 66 degrees. At the same time, at any moment, the heat can be replaced by heavy rain, or the driver himself will call on a car wash. Then the surface of the car will cool dramatically. Let’s do something similar. First, we heat the hood to the desired temperature, and then cool it sharply by pouring water over it.

After removing moisture from the hood, you can evaluate the result. Only a colorless marker and acrylic enamel coped well with the temperature difference. The wax pencil became more liquid when heated, and when water gets in, it is very easily washed out.

What remedy for chips and scratches tolerates frost better

Sub-zero temperatures are another feature of the operating conditions of a car in Russia. The body in winter easily freezes to -25 degrees.

When testing the ability of anti-chip and scratch agents to withstand freezing, all three test subjects performed well and remained in place.

It turns out that motorists can really get rid of minor damage to the car body on their own. At the same time, you can get the result without using the most expensive means against chips and scratches. However, this is a temporary measure, the protective composition will disappear sooner or later, so the damaged surface of the car will have to be treated regularly.