Remove scratches

Hi all,

for your information, I have a one-and-a-half-year-old 2004 Toyota Sienna but the question I want to ask now is a general question, I think. :p

Before I ask my question, I want to say that I just performed a search on the word "scratches" and then "scratch" but there were no results.

Ok, here it is: my poor car has a lot of superficial scratches all over and I was wondering what was the best way to remove the scratches. It's not bad to the point that it needs a whole new paint job and I would like to avoid this solution, if possible.
I want to stress that my wife and I do pay attention and we are not the ones who accidentally make the scratches.

I don't know anything about car care (my car is still clean though :cwm27: ) so I don't know if there is something I can apply by myself on the paint. Is this what waxing is for? Would waxing my car hide the scratches?
I go to an automated car wash once in a while and there is a waxing process but it doesn't do much that I can see.

I will appreciate if you can give any suggestions and hopefully there will be something I can do by myself so that I don't have to have my car painted again.

Thank you in advance. :smile:

Is there any paint left where the scratches are? If there is use some rubbing compound or polishing compound depending what condition it is. It takes off a very thin layer of paint (rubbing compound takes off more than polishing, be very careful with these especially with the rubbing compound that you don't rub to hard/to much and go throught the paint)and usually takes care of scratches that don't go the whole way through the paint. If it does go through the paint try some touch up.

Waxing doesnt hide or remove scratches, waxing makes a clear hard shell around your car to protect the paint from getting scratched in first place. Polishing can sometimes hide small small scratches, but they need to be as thin or thinner than your hair (IMO). There is one more step to fixing a car's paint job called "Deoxidizing" where you are basically brightening up the cars paint by either removing or neutralizing the layer of oxidized paint on top. You can go to almost any store that sells automotive parts, waxes, or polishes, and find stuff for removing scratches. There are a couple of brands that come with a stick that sort of looks like lipstick that you can fill larger scratches in with, it works allright. Fred Meyers sells a brand that I like but can never remember the name. It comes in a burganduy bottle and they sell an oxidizer, polish, and wax in a 3 step, 3 bottle process. Just remember to wash your car first, try to do all this out of direct sunligt, and use 100% terry colth towels and you'll be all good.

if the scratches are surface than something that works very well is "G2 scratch remover" i let somebody drive my car and they scraped the side of a tree with it and it left many surface scratches and sap. i took it to the car wash and rinsed it throughly with water and spray soap but made sure i didn't rub anything in. i then used the g2 remover like wax and it took the scratches right out like magic, after this i put a coat of regular car wax on the spot. anyways the G2 runs for about 6 bucks at walmart, etc and can be well worth it.

Hi all,

for your information, I have a one-and-a-half-year-old 2004 Toyota Sienna but the question I want to ask now is a general question, I think. :p

Before I ask my question, I want to say that I just performed a search on the word "scratches" and then "scratch" but there were no results.

Ok, here it is: my poor car has a lot of superficial scratches all over and I was wondering what was the best way to remove the scratches. It's not bad to the point that it needs a whole new paint job and I would like to avoid this solution, if possible.
I want to stress that my wife and I do pay attention and we are not the ones who accidentally make the scratches.

I don't know anything about car care (my car is still clean though :cwm27: ) so I don't know if there is something I can apply by myself on the paint. Is this what waxing is for? Would waxing my car hide the scratches?
I go to an automated car wash once in a while and there is a waxing process but it doesn't do much that I can see.

I will appreciate if you can give any suggestions and hopefully there will be something I can do by myself so that I don't have to have my car painted again.

Thank you in advance. :smile:


If the scratches on your car are really minor (EX: lots of small shallow scratches on the hood) you could take your car to an automotive salon of some sort.. have them clay your car. it removes all the dirt in the paint and can eliminate some of those scratches. i'm not sure of the price, i think it dpends on the size of your car, my buddy Ry had it done to his 2001 white dodge ram.. he said it cost around 200 or so.. then he couldn't drive his car for a few days.. not looking to spend that much? take it in and have them buff your entire car.. it's usually less expensive.....if you try all and fail... i would say time for a new paint job! just remember to keep the exterior very clean, dont let sand/salt/mud/ect sit on the paint!! wash and wax periodically...Good luck!

i kinda have a problem like this. when i bought my car the girl that owned it before me took poor care of it. one day i guess she locked he dog or sumtin in it. and it scratched the piss outa the passenger windows. how can i get those scratches out?

i kinda have a problem like this. when i bought my car the girl that owned it before me took poor care of it. one day i guess she locked he dog or sumtin in it. and it scratched the piss outa the passenger windows. how can i get those scratches out?

Glass is much harder to take scratches out of then paint. Look in the phone book for auto glass repair. Personnally, with the exception of cleaning, I dont ever touch the glass on my car, I always let professionals do it.

yeah thats what i was thinking. im getting my windows re-tinted because the tint is all crappy so I was going to have it done all at once. thanks man

For taking light scratches out of glass, you need Cerium Oxide.. Shouldnt be too tough to find..

leave the re-paint as a last resort, like someone said before, try a rubbing compound/polish. i've never used the G2 thing, but have heard of it. i own a car detailing/modification business in southwest washington, and have an account at the local paint store so i'm in there all the time. and what i have gathered: if scratching is not too extensive and light, meguires fine cut then a polish; for a little heavier scratching and a lot of it, meguires dual action medium cut/polish #83 (currently using this on a 99' black pontiac bonneville, what a biotch), if the scratches are too heavy for that, you'll prolly have to take it somewhere cause if you are a novice at car care, using a harsh cut you could very well rub right through the paint. when using any sort of cutter, be careful and keep checking your work to make sure you are not rubbing through, and if the cutting compound doesn't have a polish you will need to get one to apply afterwards. but you can save yourself some money by picking up one of these products, immediately followed by a good wax job, just be willing to put in the time.
Remember: car with scratches/swirls
~cutting compound/polish (could even try just polish if the scratches are light or if the paint just needs conditioning or deepening)
~then waxing (i prefer meguires medalion or gold class wax, or number 26 carnuba, for deepening use medalion or gold class)

Speaking of the glass work that was mentioned, I've got a question sort of dealing w/ this. I bought a car and it has a sticky film on the rear window from what appears to be the glue from removed tint. I will need to clean that off and I'm thinking of using some "goo be gone" but not sure if that will hurt my window defrosters? Any advice on how to clean those hard to reach angles?

thx

Speaking of the glass work that was mentioned, I've got a question sort of dealing w/ this. I bought a car and it has a sticky film on the rear window from what appears to be the glue from removed tint. I will need to clean that off and I'm thinking of using some "goo be gone" but not sure if that will hurt my window defrosters? Any advice on how to clean those hard to reach angles?

thx

rub in the direction of the defrosters, use something non corrosive like rubbing alcohol, or simple green, and don't even begin to do anything until you are prepared to buy a new rear window.
Also, I haven't tested it myself but I remember reading in a popular mechanics magazine that you can cut a black trash bag to fit the shape of the window, then spray a mixture of 50/50 water and ammonia on the glass before pressing the trash bag up to the window and leave it in the sun, the glue loosens up without damaging the defrosters.

Thanks, I might try that but I'll call a tint place also to see if they can give me any advice. With the tight angle on the rear window its no wonder they skimped out and didn't take the glue off.

In thes past I've always just used polish in the past and chose to forgo the 3 step process of cleaning, polishing, waxing. I've had solid results with this but i've seen lots of posts on the 3 step process and the whole caranuba (sp) waxing. Any thoughts on just using polish for the car?

In thes past I've always just used polish in the past and chose to forgo the 3 step process of cleaning, polishing, waxing. I've had solid results with this but i've seen lots of posts on the 3 step process and the whole caranuba (sp) waxing. Any thoughts on just using polish for the car?

cleaning you have to do to remove any dirt, road tar, bugs or anything else that will reduce the effectivness of the polish. Also those things can actually act like sandpaper when you polish making scratches even worse. Polishing makes everything shiny. Waxing is kinda weird, it depends on the conditions you drive/park your car in, the polish used, and really your preferance. Some polishes need a wax to last longer than a couple weeks, some dont. Harsh conditions mean you need a stronger wax protectant to make the shine last. Nothing will give you a better idea of the condition of your car's paint than a hand wash, polish, and wax, however you have to be prepared to lose a couple hours. On the other hand some people really dont care.
In the end you just have to find what works for you, and have fun.

hi well im the guy you want to talk to about scratches. im a professional car detailer. the answer to your question is. using a high speed buffer with variable controls you start by buffing the scratch with compound on a white wool pad , then change to a yellow wool pad and use FINESSE its white in color. this will remove all scratches and have a soft like touch to your paint. then you need to change the pad to a foam pad and use liquid swirl remover. this gets all the swirls out from buffing. then by hand take hand glaze made by 3m and apply that to one panel at a time remove with soft terry towel. then wax then your car will look new. for more questions contact me at [email protected]

hi well im the guy you want to talk to about scratches. im a professional car detailer. the answer to your question is. using a high speed buffer with variable controls you start by buffing the scratch with compound on a white wool pad , then change to a yellow wool pad and use FINESSE its white in color. this will remove all scratches and have a soft like touch to your paint. then you need to change the pad to a foam pad and use liquid swirl remover. this gets all the swirls out from buffing. then by hand take hand glaze made by 3m and apply that to one panel at a time remove with soft terry towel. then wax then your car will look new. for more questions contact me at [email protected]
Buffers are expensive, easy to f*** up your paint, and not even worth it until you decide your going to be polishing on a regular basis. For someone who is just learning about car care, and might need to wax/polish MAYBE twice a year, a buffer just isnt worth the investment. If you haven't already, stick with the simple compounds Matt.

Buffers are expensive, easy to f*** up your paint, and not even worth it until you decide your going to be polishing on a regular basis. For someone who is just learning about car care, and might need to wax/polish MAYBE twice a year, a buffer just isnt worth the investment. If you haven't already, stick with the simple compounds Matt.

well actually buying a buffer is not expensive if you want to spend 2-3 thousand dollars on a new paint job go ahead. buffer can go anywhere between 70-290 dollars i have a dewalt and makeeta. anyone can buff you just gotta follow directions and dont stay in the same spot to long. maybe its easier for me cause im a prof. detailer but i started not knowing anything. polishing by hand isnt gonna get out scratches that are deep. if a scratch is fingernail deep it isnt coming out anything else will come out.