It is known to everyone that a car’s paint scratches very easily. No matter how careful you are or how dear you hold your valuable car, sometimes it becomes inevitable to save your car from getting scratched. You may get yourself in an accident, a cat may jump on your car, or something sharp may brush past your car’s surface, thereby giving it scratches. The scratches may be small or big, depending on the scale of the damage done to your vehicle. You can take some precautions to prevent this from happening, but you cannot totally prevent it from happening. First of all, you must analyze the damage, and if the scratches are light, you can fix them on your own. So here are some steps to remove light car scratches.
Use Sandpaper and Compound
Minor car scratches are unavoidable but can be treated easily by following simple techniques. To check if the car scratch can be fixed or not, do a simple test by running your fingernail across it. If the nail slides over without scratching, it’s a minor scratch and can be buffed away. To do that, you will need sandpaper and a polish compound. The steps you should follow are:
1- Rub with Sandpaper
First, apply some paper to the scratch and equally moisten the sandpaper. Start sanding the scratch until it becomes dull and isn’t noticeable. After that, clean the surface using a car wash towel or a clean cloth.
2- Compound Application
Use a polishing pad and apply a good amount of compound to it. After that, start rubbing the polishing pad on the scratch till it disappears. At last, apply the polisher on the scratch to bring back the shine of the car paint.
Normal Car Wash
If the scratches on the car body appear mild, they can also be removed with the help of a normal car wash. To do this, you can follow the following steps:
- Pour warm water on the car, especially on the scratched area. Adjust the water pressure accordingly if a pressure wash is being used.
- Scrub the scratched area with a detergent or a car shampoo. However, you must avoid using powdered detergent. Scratches may increase during cleaning.
- After applying car shampoo, pour more water on the car and rinse it completely. This method is suitable for surface scratches that haven’t penetrated through the car paint. Dirt accumulates on these scratches, which makes them look very bad. Therefore, for the time being, regular gentle cleaning with a car shampoo will suffice.
Use Toothpaste
To use toothpaste, you must check if your car scratch hasn’t penetrated through the paint. If it has, then this method might not work. Here is how to use toothpaste for the removal of car scratches:
1. First, wash the scratched area to avoid any dirt rubbing onto the scratches as it worsens the situation. Wash the area with a car detergent and warm water.
2. Use a damp microfiber cloth and apply about two pinches of toothpaste. If you have whitening toothpaste, it is considered to be the best. However, you can still use a simple one if you don’t have one.
3. Start rubbing the cloth onto the surface and move it in a circular motion. Make sure that the toothpaste is evenly distributed on the scratched surface; hence apply constant pressure.
4. After scrubbing the scratch, rinse it completely again with warm water. This will remove
the leftover toothpaste. After rinsing, use a separate microfiber cloth to dry it.
5. Repeat this process if scratches remain. However, you must not repeat this process more than once because it will lead to permanent paint damage.
Use WD-40
WD-40 is another element that can remove mild scratches perfectly. However, precautions are required while using this chemical material. The steps to follow are:
1- Apply WD-40 directly onto the scratched area and let the compound sit for at least a minute.
2- Wipe the scratched area using a cloth to allow the product to adhere. You can see the scars starting to fade.
3- You can repeat this process as many times as needed to remove the scratches. Mild solutions, such as regular soap and toothpaste, are not very effective against scratches. WD-40 looks mild, but it does a great job removing scratches that penetrate the paint surface.
Use a Scratch Remover
There are several scratch-removing products available in the market which can help in the removal of mild scratches. Here is how you can use them:
1. First, apply the scratch-removing product directly onto the area using a cloth or a pad. Press the product not only into the area but also around it.
2. Wipe off the leftover scratch remover using a cloth.
3. It is safe to do this method several times. If you try it once, there will be some difference, but the scratch will not disappear completely. Therefore, you must repeat several times to make the scratches less noticeable.
