Paint chips and scratches make your car look ugly, they de-valuate it, and they can lead to nasty rust patches too. Here’s our guide on how to protect your car’s paintwork against them. A few ways include:
- Wrap your bodywork with clear film vinyl. This is the ultimate protection against stone chips and even heavier scratches. Clear vinyl wrap can be applied to any car panel and is best applied by a professional installer to make sure it’s the best job possible. It’s not cheap, but it’s worth it.
- Buy a high-quality car paint sealant. Sealants are like car wax, except they leave a far longer-lasting protective layer, some of which are tough enough to protect against light scratches and stone chip marks. Most are easy to apply, and you don’t need a professional to apply them. However, professional paint sealants can last longer and have a harder finish.
- Keep your car regularly waxed. While car wax doesn’t protect as well as sealant, the layer of wax and the slippy surface can help to reduce small scratches when washing your car.
- Use plastic door-edge protectors. Door edges get chipped regularly, and it’s easily done by opening your door onto a wall or post. A set of four slip-on plastic door-edge protectors only cost a small amount, and they can be removed and put back any time in literally a few seconds.
- Apply bumper and door rubber strips. If you’re not so bothered by the cool factor but want to keep your car’s bodywork is free from dents and scuff as possible, these are the way to go. You stick them to the corners of your car’s bumpers and down the door side to protect from scrapes and ‘supermarket’ dents. They can also be peeled off if needed.
How to stop paint stone chips and scratches from turning rusty
Deep stone chips and scratches that have gone down through the clear-coat, paint, and undercoat mean that the metal panels are exposed to the elements. If they’re aluminum, you won’t get the rust issue, but you will get the surrounding paint bubbling and peeling. ]If your car’s panels are steel, then they’ll start to rust. If that happens, it can lead to big patches of bubbling, ugly rust that can be so deep they go all the way through the panel. And all because of that insignificant-looking chip or scratch not being sorted out! Here’s how to stop this from happening:
- Visit Chipex.com
- Find your car’s paint code using the Chipex color code finder
- Buy a Chipex paint chip repair kit.
- Use the Chipex paint chip repair kit on the affected area.
What, it’s that easy? Yes, absolutely! The Chipex™ system means that not only will that unsightly blight on your paintwork be repaired and now safe from it turning to rust or bubbling, Chipex gives a 100% paint match guarantee to make sure the repair looks great too.
