Do it yourself scratch repair?

April 9, 2011 10:57 AM

Is this a do it yourself repair job or should I go to a pro?

I nicked my car with a gas pump. Don't know to much about this stuff, so I'd like y'alls opinion. Thanks!

posted by mpls2 to Travel & Transportation (5 answers total)

I've heard that black cars require a certain finesse to paint, but that looks like a very minor scratch. I'd cover it with sharpie, but this is coming from someone who attempted to epoxy her side mirror back on. (It didn't work too well. Screws work better.)
posted by ladypants at 11:36 AM on April 9, 2011

This works for me.
posted by ferdinand.bardamu at 11:50 AM on April 9, 2011 [2 favorites]

It all depends on how close to perfection you think your car needs to be. (I wash my car annually if it really needs it.) If you are really particular about how your car looks, don't do it. If you can live with something slightly less than perfection, go for it. I suggest that you find something around the house like a lawnmower or the top to the barbeque and use that to practice on two or three times before you do the car. It will tell you what your weaknesses are, help you gauge your skills and give you a chance to get better before it really counts.
posted by Old Geezer at 4:19 PM on April 9, 2011

^^ This. A hundred times this. Practice on something painted and metal that you don't really care about. Once it's on the car and dry, that's pretty much it.
posted by xedrik at 10:05 PM on April 9, 2011

Is it down to metal, or is that the primer shining through? If it's just the primer, go to a auto parts store and buy one of those little tubes of paint and dab a little in the gouge.

Same thing will work if its down to metal, but you are probably just delaying the inevitable rust spot unless you keep up on it and touch it up often-ish.
posted by gjc at 9:48 AM on April 10, 2011