[mattc1176]

Pardon the newbie question but this is my first 'nice' car where I've cared about cosmetic scratches. I scraped past something the other day and now have some nice scratches on the rear side panel and bumper. They are very shallow and I assume they can be buffed and smoothed out as opposed to being repainted, but I'm really clueless on how that works or who does this. What type of shop would be best to fix this? Would a detailer be sufficient or do I need a body shop?

[tux2005]

The basic way to tell if the a scratch can be buffed out is to run a fingernail over it, if the fingernail catches then it's likely too deep to buff out.

If it's just paint transfer (sometimes happens with very minor bumps or door dings) then you may be able to remove it with a simple clay bar kit. If there is a minor scratch then a detailer with a buffer and polish would be the person to remove it.

Posting a picture may also help us point you in the right direction (but the fingernail test is still the first step since pictures can't capture that very well).

[louielouie]

Definitely will need some pictures before much more suggestions can be made.

Shallow ones are easy. I had a few scratches on my car from a drunk friend's purse about a month ago. It wasn't past the base coat so I was able to use 3M scratch remover to buff it out. It's on Amazon for $20 or so.

[mattc1176]

Thanks guys...I'm bad with pics but they are definitely very shallow but I just don't trust myself to do it alone. I'll see what the local detailer has to say first I guess.

[Pparana]

just have a good detailer look at it. Either they can or they cant. Not much in between in that world.