Smoeone scratched my car

[MBK]

I was parked at Terminal 4 Car Park LHR on the ground floor. When i got back to my car i noticed a long scratch on my passenger side front wing i'm not here to shout about the person who done it, i just would like to know the best way to fix this.

form what i can see the scratch is only lacquer deep,

1. could this be polished out by me

2. do i need to get a professional in to do it (i.e dentman)

3. or will the wing need a complete re spray?

any feedback will be much appreciated.

Also to add i have some rust coming through on my wings so eventually they will need to be replaced but is there a intrim fix that will make the scratch not so in yer face.

TIA

 

[blondebier]

Sorry to hear this...

Any chance of a photo? It's difficult to tell by what you've described.

(A picture paints a thousand words and all that.)

 

[MBK]

Sorry to hear this...

Any chance of a photo? It's difficult to tell by what you've described.

(A picture paints a thousand words and all that.)

will be posted in 5 mins just going to the car park now

 

[maddog]

can you feel it with your nail??

If so it wont polish out but can be made to look better

 

[MBK]

not the greatests of photos but i've only got my phone with me at the minute


just like to add theres no ridge on the scratch, if i go over it with my fingernail (softly) it does not catch.

but let the photos talk now

ps sorry for the dirty car

 

[blondebier]

Can you feel the scratch by rubbing your finger over it?

Firstly I'd wash the area thoroughly with a good shampoo to get rid of any grime. (While your at it you might as well do the whole thing.) Dry it all off with a chamois.

When it's dry, apply a small amount of fine polish to the edge of a clean microfibre cloth.
Apply it to the scratched area with a clockwise rubbing motion. Don't rub too hard though. Next when it has nearly dried to a haze use the same clockwise motion to rub away any excess polish with a different (and dry) area of the cloth.

If the scratch is still present, try using a rubbing compound. Rubbing compound is a tougher product, so start with just a little bit of it. (DO NOT rub too hard with this either) Apply the compound to the scratch using the same circular motion as before. Use a dry area on the cloth to rub away any of the excess.

Be sure to check the scratch and your car every so often to make sure you aren't rubbing too hard. The rubbing compound is a lot stronger and tougher on your car than polish. If the scratch is still present after rubbing away excess, you may try using more compound, so long as you are aware of your scratch area and how hard you are rubbing your car's surface.

It is safer to use the product sparingly and add more than to use too much and make the area on your car worse.

Hopefully it'll start to disappear.

If this does the trick, then I would apply a decent wax over the affected area a few times to protect it. I've used Boora wax quite a bit and it is brilliant. (You can get it on eBay)

I hope it comes out.

 

[Smiley]

try farecla g3 rubbing compound; go easy with it. follow up with g10, finer compound.

 

[MBK]

Thanks Blondebier i will try this on the weekend as the weather isnt looking too good today, but thank you again. Top man.

Hi Smiley where can i get hold of Farecla G3? i have a halfords near me, or is this only available from specialist bodyshop supplierS?

 

[blondebier]

No worries. It's doesn't look too bad.

Fingers crossed you'll be able to get it to disappear. When it starts to go, it'll be tempting to apply more pressure... just take your time and you'll be fine.

Good luck.

 

[MBK]

just been on detailing world theres a guy on there whose just had his car keyed and the advice hes getting is very similar to the advice you gave me i'll give it a whirl this weekend and i will post pics of how it looks.

Thank you again ALL.

 

[glojo]

You will be amazed at what will polish out. the secret though is not to overdo the polishing

You have confirmed your fingernail does not find any ndentations so you should now be able to make that horrible mark disappear

 

[maddog]

Be VERY careful with rubbing compound its essentially liquid sandpaper

 

[MBK]

You will be amazed at what will polish out. the secret though is not to overdo the polishing

You have confirmed your fingernail does not find any ndentations so you should now be able to make that horrible mark disappear

Thanks for the moral boost John, when i first saw it i was amazed as i made sure to park away from any walk ways or other cars, but i still came back to this! oh well, i will try to polish it out and hopefully fingers crossed the mark should go away. Then i will wrap my whole car in bubble wrap

 

[MBK]

Be VERY careful with rubbing compound its essentially liquid sandpaper

I know, i was using it once on some alloys i was refurbing (attempting to) and i managed to burn the face of the alloy with a few rubs so i will be super careful with the paint work on the car... just a quick question the car was re sprayed about 3 years ago now is the paint set now?? or will rubbing compound be too harsh for it?

 

[Will]

Hi Kully,

Where abouts are you located? I've got some Farecla G3 you can use if you need to, probably got some very, very fine wet/dry paper etc if you need anything.

As long as it's not too deep, that should buff out leaving it all but invisable (certainly until you may decide to paint/replace the wing for rust!)

Will

 

[MBK]

Hi Kully,

Where abouts are you located? I've got some Farecla G3 you can use if you need to, probably got some very, very fine wet/dry paper etc if you need anything.

As long as it's not too deep, that should buff out leaving it all but invisable (certainly until you may decide to paint/replace the wing for rust!)

Will

Hi Will,

I'm in Greenford, Just off the A40 whereabouts are you in Surrey?

Cheers,

 

[Will]

I'll drop you a PM.

Will

 

[Smiley]

Thanks Blondebier i will try this on the weekend as the weather isnt looking too good today, but thank you again. Top man.

Hi Smiley where can i get hold of Farecla G3? i have a halfords near me, or is this only available from specialist bodyshop supplierS?

Sorry for delay - no you will not get this at Halfords it is used by body shops mainly. You can get it on line or from a vehicle refinisher supplier - take a look on www.yell.com or in the yellow pages.
As has been said go easy with the G3 and follow the instructions - use a damp cloth to apply.

 

[Dee-124CAB]

Sorry to hear of this Kully, I cannot begin to describe how mad I get when hear of this kind of stuff happening....Pure malice. As a car lover it does not even have to be my car, just seeing someone elses scratched like this makes the blood boil.

Good luck with it though, ill have my fingers crossed for you!

PS: With regards to your rust issues on the front fenders, did you not get her painted a while back??

 

[MBK]

Sorry to hear of this Kully, I cannot begin to describe how mad I get when hear of this kind of stuff happening....Pure malice. As a car lover it does not even have to be my car, just seeing someone elses scratched like this makes the blood boil.

Good luck with it though, ill have my fingers crossed for you!

PS: With regards to your rust issues on the front fenders, did you not get her painted a while back??

Yeah i had the car painted about 3 years ago, i thought i did a good job prepping the wings as they were rusty before but the rust has come through again but its only coming through in the corner where the wing meets the bumper corner. Well i'm on the look out for some Clean W124 wings, if i cant find a clean set i'll just have to bite the bullet and buy from MB.

Oh and when i first see the scratch i was angry, real angry but then once i found there was no one to focus the anger on, i just gave up being angry, i'd rather focus my anger on getting the car sorted.

Thanks for caring though