how to fix scratch? - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

spaznrq · 07-20-2005, 02:37 AM

I searched the forum, and it's kinda surprising there's no discussion about how to care for scratches yet. Or I didn't search well enough...

I just got a pretty huge scratch on my gen5.5 indigo ink pearl (dark blue) Camry after trying to pull into a tight parking space and scratched my rear right side against the concrete pole. It's the part right above the wheel. It doesn't feel dented, but there's a lot of scratches, so my question here is what's the best way to fix this?

I'm thinking something along the lines of waxing it down to smoothen the scratches, then painting the parts where the paint came off with one of those small bottles of paint from the dealer. I don't want to do anything that would make it worse, so product suggestions and instructions would be greatly helpful and appreciated. Thanks.

johnnyzee · 07-20-2005, 02:59 AM

if the scratch arent deep they could be buffed out. if you've never used a buffer for this purpose now is not the time to try. bring it to an auto detailer or a body shop whos buffed out scratches before, which 99.9% have. in regrds to touch up paint, the dealer sells those garbage touch up pens. theyre no good. buy the touch up paint that comes with a brush and very lightly go over the scratch. dont put too much paint on because it just doesnt look right. if you're just worried about rust prevention, use clear coat touch up paint, just to seal the scratch. good luck.

Cyorke · 07-20-2005, 06:52 AM

Well if you can feel the scratches you are probably not going to be able to get them out. As far as touching them up get the paint form the dealer but do not use the brush that comes with the paint. Go to a hobby store and get some very fine art brushes to use. Another option would be to use a hypo-dermic needle to apply the paint. We have a guy that comes in and does all of our little touch up work like that and those are the methods he uses for ding all the little rock chips and things like that on hoods and fenders. It is so much better than those brush in a bottle applicators you get witht he paint.

spaznrq · 07-20-2005, 01:40 PM

Thanks for the replies.

The scratches aren't deep. It covers a big area and feel a little rough though. I went to the dealers and they have the Touch Up paint and Touch Up MAGIC, for $7.95 and $13.95 (or $19.95 for both). One is for repainting the surface while the MAGIC is used for coating it after repainting. Since I have never done any touch ups like this before (especially on a big scratch) I decided to wait and ask around the local auto body shops for help.

I went down to one right across from a Toyota dealership after looking at the touch up paints. They told me it was dented, although I didn't notice any of it. They needed to take out the entire panel to fix the dent and repaint the whole metal panel, including the adjacent door panel that wasn't scratched. They explained that this needed to be done because of fading and other issues... The whole job costs around $930

Do I have other options? I'll go to another auto body shop later to see what they say..

I was also researching online for help and I found this:
http://www.samarins.com/maintenance/...html#scratches
I am aware that the newer cars now have two layers of coating/paint. I wonder if these methods are good for my car (2005 Camry). Polishing the scratch with abrasive compound does not sound very good, unless there's a way to paint and recoat the surface with the protective coating afterwards.

Mighty~Mart · 07-20-2005, 02:01 PM

Nice find on the maintenance Spaz!
and Welcome to TN!

spaznrq · 07-21-2005, 05:12 PM

I've been doing a lot more researching. I've found a lot of forums and website that have instructions on how to fix scratches and there are a lot of good products to use, but after looking at my scratch, I decided to have it professionally repaired because it is actually slightly dented and the scratch covers a rather large area:

ouch! you say. yea i hear ya..

I've asked another autobody shop and they said they can do it for $395. Their method is different from the one that was $930. These guys said they're going to color match and paint only up to a certain part of of the panel, not the whole thing. That way, they don't need to take out the bumper in order to take off the panel to repaint it. I wonder if this is a good way to do it, and if the results would be as good? Any experiences or advice?

mendozer · 07-21-2005, 05:25 PM

WALMART automotive section has a paint touch-up rack. not generic either lol. they have all kinds of colors for GM models and import cars. they have toyota paints. theyre little ones about a mans thumb high and thick if i remember correctly. at least hawaii walmarts have them

Delay_FTB · 07-21-2005, 06:39 PM

That seems a little steep for a touch up.

I had a good size dent as well as scratches in an older car of mine. Someone had backed into me or something (hit and run while i wasn't there) and I went and got a quote to remove the dent, replace some trim, and repaint all for $430. Then my mom knew a guy who worked in a shop, he did it for free for me, and it took about 5 min.

Seems a little much to my wallet, but maybe yours is thicker than mine.

spaznrq · 07-22-2005, 04:16 AM

5 minutes sound rather quick!

How did you like the finish? Does it look like it was never scratched/dented? I want to have reassurance that my scars can be fixed completely.

I'm a poor college student, so during the rest of my summer, I am going to look for another job to pay for the damages I've made. I think $400 is about the right price for something like this? I am going to keep asking around.. I don't think touch up would make this look good. Thanks for the input from everyone though! Keep them coming.

BigJ200516 · 07-22-2005, 12:40 PM

the reason the first quote of 930$ seemed so high was that the chosen body shop wanted to do alot of blending to make the repair look absolutely perfect however seeing as how your car is pretty much new the paint should not have faded significantly enough to show a difference in my opinion but i dunno cant really tell from the pics

xpeed · 07-22-2005, 12:46 PM

Buy some sharpies and color over them.

brazilgoal · 07-23-2005, 08:04 PM

As much as I cherish my Camry the reality is that some scratches and dents will occur, espcially with my family. Whatever does not come out with Meguiar's Cleaner Wax gets touched up with car paint.

majorgercko1 · 07-23-2005, 11:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brazilgoal

As much as I cherish my Camry the reality is that some scratches and dents will occur, espcially with my family. Whatever does not come out with Meguiar's Cleaner Wax gets touched up with car paint.

Are you guys azns? jk luv

couture · 07-24-2005, 12:27 AM

Someone scratched (hit and run) my moms 2005 camry in the parking lot a few months ago, at the dealership she was quoted about 700 to fix it and it's not even a big scratch. Insurance requires a 250 deductible and they pay the rest, check to see if your insurance will pay for it. If not I suggest TRY using the touch up paint that you can get from the dealershisp or Wal mart. You just need to wet sand, put in the filler, prime, paint, and buff. Someone did the same thing to my car as my moms but I went to Walmart and got the touch up paint, i did a half ass job but you can't really tell, one of these days i'll redo it. If all else fails go to the shop that quoted you 500 sounds fair to me.

spaznrq · 07-25-2005, 12:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by couture

If not I suggest TRY using the touch up paint that you can get from the dealershisp or Wal mart. You just need to wet sand, put in the filler, prime, paint, and buff.

Could I have more information about the filler, priming, and buffing? I've already found the touch-up paints from the dealer (along with a touch-up "magic" that I mentioned before), but after walking around Pep-Boy's waxing/cleaning/rubbing compound aisles, I got totally lost on what to get for the rest of the job. There is also a Kragens and Autozone nearby, but I didn't bother to go through what they have because I didn't know what to get anyway.

Specific products or brands for the filler, prime, and buff would be greatly helpful. Thanks.