JimGnitecki

When washing the car recently, I found this scratch at the lower front corner of the passenger door:





It's pretty clearly the result of a stone kicked up by the front tire.

It's not a really serious scratch, but it is the only one on the entire car.

What's the best way of doing a DUI repair that minimizes its appearance? I have the correct MB touchup paint, but my paint touchup experience is pretty nil.

Jim G

Jasonoff

DUI repair? Dipped into the sauce already today I see...

Explains your behavior though.

BLKROKT

I'd start off by having about 8 or 9 beers in an hour. Shotgun them for the most impact in least amount of time.

And then, I guess I'd get on the highway, put it in cruise control. Then try to reach down there with the touch-up paint. You may need an extension of some sort - maybe glue the touch-up pen to a stick or something.

That should do it.

Jasonoff

Mythbusters had an episode where they tried painting with explosives.

I would personally go that route after the beers.

JimGnitecki

Ok, we've now heard from the official court clowns, andgot that out of the way, but the question is serious.

Jim G

BLKROKT

I'd touch it up just like any other car. Try the Google Machine: "best method touch up paint scratch car". That should do it. There's nothing special about our paint.

You're welcome

JPetros2008

You never disclosed that your car had a scratch on it. No wonder you got it for so cheap.

Jasonoff

More "clowns" being added to the list each day. Interesting how that works huh?

How did you handle scratches on you POS rustang? Same procedure would likely work on this car you don't belong in...

m a x i m u s

I'm no touch up expert, but I have done some in the past. The scratch doesn't look that bad in the pic, and since it's down low where it isn't highly visible, you should be fine. Clean the area with alcohol to remove wax, etc, then take some paint and apply with a toothpick (check google for more details). This method allows the paint to fill in the gaps, versus using the touch up brush to slather it on, which makes a mess. Go slow, applying multiple coats to build it up to level. When dry, hit it with some polish.

CarHopper

Lots of patience if you're doing it yourself. That's #1. However, that being said, if it was my car I would either A) ignore it or B) take it to a pro and spend money to have it done the right way. (Like actually spraying it but just a super small section right there)

JimGnitecki

Thanks, Maximus. I like the minimalist approach you describe, which would avoid the undesirable "enlargement" of the scratch that results from trying to "cover" it versus "filling" it. Do I hold the toothpick mostly vertically or do I hold it somewhat at a reduced vertical angle from horizontal so that I can better prevent a "blob"?

The Google instructions I found, after I filtered out the ridiculous "sand it first" instructions (and thus enlarge it which seems counterproductive) mention the toothpick method, but don't realyl describe the actual technique. I realize the goal is to clean the scratch of wax and other contaminants, and then FILL the scratch, but the key appears to be controlling how fast and how much paint you let flow into the scratch.

Jim G

chrisridebike8

youtube will be infinitely more valuable than anything we can type here. videos on touchup will show you how to make it pretty. ammo nyc is a good channel to watch for car care.

JimGnitecki

I hear you on the spraying, but I am concerned that spraying (a) enlarges the size of the imperfection being addressed, and (b) it could be hard exactly matching the aged finish on a 5-year old car. I'd really like to fill it versus spray it, as like maximus said, it is small and low. (Youa ctually have to squat down to see it, which is how I found it when washing the car's rocker panel).

I'm afraid to just ignore it, because it has pierced the paint as you can see, and that's never good.

Jim G

JimGnitecki

Yeah, I guess I will view as many videos on the technique as I can. This is one of those skill sets I have just not needed to learn before.

Jim G

Jake215

From the picture it actually doesn't look so bad. Honestly try polishing it and if that doesn't work just leave it be. Matching diamond white is a giant pain in the ***.

bhamg

Buy some Meguiars Ultimate Compound. Put a small dollop on a microfiber cloth with a fine weave like those supplied with sunglasses and on cleaned surface work it perpendicular to the scratch. Keep wet compound going on the scratch as it, not the cloth, is cutting away the sharp edges of the scratch. Check it after 30 secs or so to see how it looks. The key is to get it to the "good enough" stage as opposed to the "perfect" stage because you'll never achieve the latter. If you can feel it with your fingernail then you won't remove it entirely with compound nor do you even want to try to. The Meguiars compound IMO is the best product they make, it cuts very quickly yet seems gentle in preserving the clear coat. Get yourself this if you want to take the serious hobbyist's approach to keeping up the finish.

https://www.griotsgarage.com/product...dom+orbital.do

Sakebomb

I really like the Dr. Color Chip System.

You can read more about it here.

https://www.drcolorchip.com/

NotABaller

It looks fine to me. I'd just leave it alone unless youre **** OCD type.

DarkLordByron

Jim,

God ALOT of people on this forum are dicks. I am active and have been active in several other forms ( M5 board, GTR, corvetteforum etc.) This board is probably the most toxic forum I've ever seen.
Anyway, inhigh school I worked in a body shop. I have personally fixed many scratches just like that. I used the touch up paint. Then wet sanded with 600 grit. Added the clearcoat then wet sanded w/ 1000, then sanded again w: 1500, 2000 and then lastly 3000.

Ambystom01

Car is ruined. Your only logical solution is to orchestrate a complicated insurance scam, and use the proceeds to buy a new Mustang.

JimGnitecki

I do hear you, but I am very reluctant to use anything on the scratch that could broaden its size. Right now, it's tiny, and I just need to "fill it" to make it less visible. Once I try to polish, I inevitably make it larger, and before you know it, a really big area needs a pro painter and like I said earlier, matching a 5 year old finish over anything wider than this 1/16" wide scratch is going to be basically impossible.

Jim G

JimGnitecki

This looks interesting enough for me to at least take a closer look. I will. Thanks!

Jim G

INS1GNIA

bhamg

So not true but no problem...

ED1C63

Go to MB if you don't have the correct touch up paint and grab a paint correction set for your specific paint, you can scout around online if you want a cheaper option. Sometimes they'll even do the touch ups for you if you buy the paint from the MB dealership. If you're doing it yourself, shotgun a couple beers, watch a couple videos and then apply the paint, let it dry for a day, wax and buff the car following and call it.