some $#%* lowlifes keyed my left front and rear door pretty badly - its just one scratch but is very deep - can see metal underneath (looks white from a distance) - cant afford to get it fixed at a body shop now..

any advice on protecting the exposed part .. or fixing it at home?

 

Try a buffer with rubbing compound. This helps. It won't eliminate the scratch but will help disguise it!

 

thanks!
any brand in particular or is it a generic compund?

 

The very fact that the scratch is down to metal is going to make a perfect fix impossible, unless it's done by a pro. The only thing you can hope to do is to minimize how bad it looks. Now if you have a dark car, a light scratch is going to look very bad. The thing to do is to clean the scratch then painstaintakingly fill the scratch w/ primer and then color coat. There is a detailed process for this somethere but I don't hav it handy. Take a look in the stickies. Even after you do this, you will not completely eliminate the damage. You will only have minimized it.

If you really want it fixed 100%, get it looked at by a body shop, get the estimate and then:
1) If you want it fixed
2) If it's worth filing a claim w/ the insurance company. ie... estimate - deductible = worth it or not.
3) Pay out of pocket.

 

thanks.. i probably will have to take it to a body shop eventually.. cant do it for a few weeks..

my only worry is.. till i fix it, do i have to protect the exposed metal in any manner ?

 

Well off hand there are two ways. One way is to fill the scratch w/ clear nail polish but this might hinder future repair unless it's sanded out. Or maybe using some car wax in the area. It can be cleaned out later but you would have to make 100% damn sure it's all cleaned out. Lucky it summer time now I guess.

 

Here is where the compound comes in. It fills the scratch so that the metal won't oxidize. Meguires make great compound. Be sure to wax after doing so.

 

Polishing compound is a fairly harsh polisher. It's not designed to fill scratches or prevent rust. By using this stuff, it will produce fairly obvious scratches in the area. Best not to make the area any worse until it's time to actually repair/fix it.

 

A really good buffer will do the trick!!!! It won't get rid off it but it will mask it a little bit.

 

Dam I want those Rims... How much if I trade my stock rims.. I have the same kind but not chrome...

 

Just finish the job!

Put a key to the rest of the panels with a ZORRO effect and then get the insurance to paint the whole car. That's the only way your going to completely fix and match the car. It sounds bad, but the insurance company is going to try and go cheap on you. If you have a $500 or more deductible, that is the only way you'll get it covered. Even though the pencil D(I)CK insurance claims adjuster wouldn't want to drive around with his car like that, he will think it's alright for you too. Just don't do any bragging after you get your new paint job, since insurance FRAUD is a serious offense.

Another trick is to drive around the nearest shopping center or mall and wait for some chick on a cell phone to back out of a parking spot and stop right behind her. She won't look, end up backing into you, and her insurance will take car of the rest.

J/K of course, but I've known people who have done worse.

 

madmax2000 my car was keyed when it was less than a month old. I know how f@#&ing mad you must be. I later noticed a lot of new cars particularly mercedes around here (SF bay area) that have been keyed so in a way our cars made somebody so jealous that they felt compelled to vadalize it. My car is black and the keying shows up as a long white scratch. I found something to help hide it. Turtle wax makes a "color cure car polish" which is like makeup for the car. It comes with a wax "Chipstick" that looks like lipstick. You rub this crayon looking stuff into the scratch to build it up and then you apply this thick polish over it. The product comes in different colors. I used the black and was impressed how well it ccovered up scratch. You can tell it is still there if you look at it up close and at an angle. However it does look better than before and should provide some protection to the underlying metal until you go for body work. Since our car's paint chips easily I am glad I found it. I bought for less than $10 on sale. Has anybody else tried this?

 

anarchy symbol on the trunk with a can opener.. they skipped over a merc 500 series and 2 bmw's to get my car. thanks, I'm honored.

The bill? about 550 to fix. I was out of pocket about 400 I think.

 

thanks for all ur sugestions guys.. will probably hold off on the chick on cell phone bit but might go with the meguires or the turtle wax..
ya, im from LA and no one touched my car in a year surprisingly.. and i went to the bay area for a week and this happened to me in f@#$ing alameda !!