Have you ever looked at your car and noticed a visible scratch? It’s never fun to see some damage on your vehicle, and that long white streak can be quite an eyesore. Fortunately, there are many different layers in your vehicle’s coat that can help you figure out how deep the scratch goes. Here are some of the best ways to fix small scratches on your car and figure out what you need to do.
Test the Depth
The first thing you should do is gently slide one of your fingernails against the scratch. If the scratch catches your nail, it’s deeper than the surface, and you may need to buy a scratch repair kit or bring your car to a body shop. Trying to repair deeper scratches at home may be risky since you usually need to reapply paint. Your paint job may affect the value of your car, and a large spot of slightly discolored paint may be more noticeable than the original scratch. Fortunately, shallow scratches that don’t catch your fingernail are much easier to repair at home with some everyday items.
Clean the Surrounding Area
It’s always a good idea to thoroughly clean and dry an area before you start to fix small scratches on your car. Rubbing dirt from the surface of your vehicle into the scratch can make it worse, so you want as clean a canvas as possible to work with. If you’re not in a hurry, it may be a good idea to clean your entire car or take it through a carwash. Your vehicle will look nicer if the clean spots don’t visibly stand out, and it’s never a bad idea to give your car a thorough wash.
Use Toothpaste
Specialized kits are available for removing minor scratches from your car that you can buy at an auto-parts store, but if you want to remove it with stuff you have on hand, toothpaste works surprisingly well. The natural textures in toothpaste act as an abrasive that can remove mild scratches or make them far less noticeable.
Apply a small amount of toothpaste to your scratch with a microfiber cloth. Normal washrags or paper towels can further scratch your car and worsen the damage. Buff the scratch in small circles, applying some light pressure. Once you finish, rinse off the affected area, and dry it with a dry microfiber cloth. You may need to repeat this process a few times, but you should notice the scratch disappear as you work.