Article Surfing Archive

Don*t get caught trying to touch up a scratch or scrape on your car's paint job with nail polish. There are some great nail polish colors that look great our toes and fingers however they don*t go so well on cars. Even if you think the color is close enough it is almost guaranteed that someone else will notice the blemish. It is always better to get the job done right the first time. So if you shouldn*t use nail polish, how should you fix those scratches and scrapes?

The answer to your problem is to get the paint touched up from an auto body repair shop. Don*t worry; you are not alone with this dilemma since about 80% of cars on the road today need some form of touch up work done to the paint. The reason you should chose an auto body repair shop instead of nail polish is because the shop can match the touch up paint almost identical to the paint on your car. So you may be thinking you can save money by buying paint from an auto parts store. Well, that is not a good idea because it is also hard to match the color directly. Seriously, how close can you get with a one color matches all? We all know that one size does fit all so why would one color match all?

Paint touch up can be effective on paint chips, nicks, scratches, rust spots and bumper scrapes. Keep in mind that it is a touch up job and that it will not be perfect. The importance of getting the paint touched up is more for the protection of your vehicle. It protects the metal from rust and other further damage. Since the area of repair is kept to a minimum you will not spend a great deal of time waiting to get the touch up done. Also there will be a lot less out of your pocket than getting the whole area repainted.

So, if you bring your car to an auto body shop for the touch up, this is what you might expect to happen. At the auto body shop they will prepare your car for the repair by washing the area(s) thoroughly and letting it air dry very well. Then the area will be lightly sanded with the correct type of sander for automobile paint. Then a clear layer will be applied to act as a base coat. They will use their computerized system to get the color code for your car's paint color. They will most likely do a test of the color on a part of your car that is not visible. This is done as a precaution to make sure the match is correct. Then they will begin work on the problem area(s) in a straight, even, back and forth motion. After the paint is dry in all areas they will complete the repair. The last step to touching up the paint is to apply a layer of wax and buff the area. This usually does not take much time at all.

So, keep the nail polish away from your car and let the pros touch up your cars paint.