It can cost thousands of dollars to get your car painted. So, when you notice an imperfection in the shell of your sedan, truck, or SUV, you might be inclined to helm some car paint repair yourself.
Unfortunately, fixing paint damage on your own opens you up to make even more mistakes that can make your vehicle look even worse than it did before. So, read up on the four most common paint repair mistakes so you know what to avoid — and how to make your ride look as good as new.
1. Not Preparing Your Surface
As with any other painting project, you can’t just whip out your brush and start to re-color your car. Instead, you have to prep the surface well to ensure your work looks its absolute best.
It’s most important that you buff out the scratches or chips that you want to fill in. Otherwise, they’ll just show through the next layer of paint.
2. Painting in the Wrong Temperature
You’ll want to avoid painting your car on a hot day. The high temperature can affect the behavior of the paint. That means that, after you carefully brush it on, it might still bubble, crack or appear discolored.
The same goes for extra-cold days — it can affect the way the paint goes on and dries, too. Your best bet is to paint on a day that’s neither too hot nor freezing.
3. Selecting the Wrong Color
If you go to a professional like Minucci Auto Body Inc., they’ll be able to expertly match the exterior of our car to the right paint shade. You might not be as lucky picking as an amateur car painter.
Even if you do a test patch, be sure you wait to see that it matches once it dries. Paint can look very different depending on the surface onto which it’s applied. So, let it dry to ensure your repair is the right color.
4. Applying Wax Too Soon
Finally, once the paint job is done, you might be inclined to clean and polish your car to finish the job. Not so fast: applying certain cleaning products can ruin all of your hard work.
Car paint contains solvents that take up to 30 days to fully release from the surface, meaning it can take that long for it to fully dry. So, if you slick a layer of wax on top of your fresh paint, you’ll effectively be locking in those solvents. The paint won’t be able to dry after that.
So, skip the wax for a month to ensure your paint job lasts.
Master Car Paint Repair
With these four steps in mind, you are on your way to helming a car paint repair that doesn’t end in disaster. So, grab your tools and get started — and be sure to avoid these common mistakes.
Need more car-related advice? Check back with us for more.