The Three Types of Car Scratches and How to Fix Them

Cars go through a lot. They protect us from the elements, flying debris, and other vehicles, all while transporting us to our differing destinations at fantastic speed. There are three levels of scratches a car can receive, and the repair process is different for each of them. Some may wonder what happens if you don't fix car scratches right away. This article will help you find out.

Cars generally have three levels of paint on top of the metal of the body. The first coat on the metal of the body is the primer coat. The primer coat helps protect the car's metal from corrosion and rust and acts as a base for the colored paint that goes on top of it. The second layer is the colored coat. The final coat is the clear coat. The clear coat goes on top of the colored coat to protect the colored paint and give the car a finished and glossy look. So, as the vehicles have three different coats of paint, cars can receive three specific types of scratches.

1. Clear Coat Scratches

You can probably guess that the first level of scratch a car can receive is on the clear outer coat. The clear coat is thick and designed to protect the colored paint underneath; therefore, a clear coat can receive varying depths of scratches. Your car can get a clear coat scratch through everyday wear and tear. Washing your car the wrong way, accidentally hitting your keys against the vehicle, or even a friend with a ring leaning against the hood are all ways the clear coat can get scratched. Because of the thickness of the clear coat, there are two different types of clear coat scratches.

Clear coat scratches can be surface level or a deeper scratch. Generally, these scratches are easy to fix if they have not penetrated the colored coat layer. Automotive stores all around the world sell scratch remover solutions with microfiber towels. Using this solution on the scratched spot with a microfiber towel is generally enough to fix minor scratches to the clear coat. Deeper scratches on the clear coat may require a more intensive scratch removal system. Typically, this process involves sanding down the scratched area, applying a compound, and polishing the site.

2. Colored Coat Scratches

Color coat scratches are generally caused by something or someone damaging your car. This could be scraping a wall, tree, or another car, or it can be caused by someone intentionally damaging your vehicle with a key or other hard object. Color coat scratches go through the clear coat and damage the colored paint.

, and ultimately re-applying the clear coat. There are many ways to make mistakes when doing this process, and an inexperienced individual could easily damage their vehicle further.

3. Primer Coat Scratches

The deepest level of scratch penetrates through the primer level to where you can see the metal of the car underneath. These types of scratches are most common from accidents or if someone purposely damages the vehicle. What happens if you don't fix car scratches right away? Primer coat scratches are the most critical types of scratches to fix quickly. Professionals will clean the scratch and fill it, then build up the three layers again by applying enamel, paint, and a new clear coat.

The Importance of Fixing Car Scratches

Many people may ask, what happens if you don't fix car scratches right away? Well, depending on the depth of the scratch, the consequences differ. But, primer scratches must be repaired as soon as possible. When a scratch reaches the metal of the car, that metal can rust very quickly. This rust can cause more damage to the vehicle, cause additional problems, and make the car unsafe.

Other benefits of quickly repairing scratches are that the value of your vehicle remains high, it prevents further damage, and it diminishes the likelihood of continued problems.

If you have a scratched vehicle, do not delay. Get to the store and get your scratch removal kit, or contact the professionals to ensure that a little scratch doesn't cause significant problems down the road.