First of all, I just want to say I am pretty much clueless when it comes to paint and detailing.

I have a deep scratch (keyed or similar) on the driver side of the car which runs along fender and both doors. It goes down to the metal for the most part. I want to get this repaired, but without spending an arm and a leg in repainting. I don't need it to look absolutely new, just a little less noticeable than it does now.

I've read that you could fill the scratch with touch up paint and sand it back down. Does anyone have experience doing this? If I were to pay for someone to do this, would this kind of work go to an autobody or a auto detailer? How much would I expect to pay?

any advice would is appreciated. thanks.

 

not all auto detailers do touch ups, or know how to do touch ups. you can find one that knows how, but in the end of the day the touched up scratch will still be visible. at a distance you wont see it much, but up close you will see it. it is probably the cheapest method of repairing. and when i say cheapest, i dont mean its a shitty solution, its just the cheapest temporary fix for the amount of money and/or time spent.

an autobody probably wont even do it for you because its just not worth their time. but again, you can probably find out.

IMO touchup paint is good to use when your car isnt worth much or its an older vehicle and the paint is fading already, and its not cost effective to get it repaired professionally
(ex. if your car is a 92 hatchback worth $2000 but the professional repair costs $500-$1000)

 

I'm fine with the scratch still being visible up close. As long as its not bare metal scratch on a white car anymore. I'm actually planning to sell the car, that's why I want to repair it. Just like what you see most used car lots do. I think repairing it will pay for itself in the pricing of the car, but not repainting. I believe I got quoted around $1,500 from a shop to repaint pretty much that whole side a long time ago. It's a 2009 and the rest of the car is still clean. The car is worth around $10k.

 

One reason why I also dont want to repaint, is that buyers may question it and think it has been in an accident, which it has not... I want to keep it as original paint.

 

this guy goes thru how he repairs a scratch. its your best overview/tutorial on how its done. probably slightly more advanced then you'd want to attack but i dont know your skill level or confidence in executing what he does exactly.

 

wowwee that guy is a terrible teacher. Informative sure, but a pain to get thru

 

Hey thank u for making this thread, I found that video pretty informative. I bought my accord with a scratched bumper and when it got stolen the crak heads that stole it scratched up my paint everywhere... I really need to fix my cars paint haha thanks

 

he does tend to ramble a bit, but he's very thorough with explaining his process as well as his thought process which is what i like about him.