We all have had this happen to our cars: scratched panels. It’s disheartening when we do it, but especially when we find scratches on our vehicle that was done by someone else. While this is very upsetting, don’t fret. Stop at your local reputable auto body shop for advise. A good shop can either polish some, most or all of the scratch, and offer touch up to mask the visibility of the scratch. Be aware that a touch up is like a painted scratch. The scratch may still be visible with a touch up, but hopefully, to a lesser degree. You can also purchase touch up paint from the dealer and do it yourself. However, a reputable auto body shop would have more tools at their disposal to reduce the overall visibility of the scratch if you choose not to fix it completely.
It is imperative that you get touch up on a scratch that is on a metal piece (e.g. hood, fender, doors, quarter panel). Otherwise, rust may form over time (depending on the area that you are in and the overall moisture in the air). So stop by a reputable auto body shop for advise, perhaps some touch up (if done at a reasonable price), and have the shop write you an estimate to fix the damage perfectly. Bumpers are made of scratches, so those panels will not rust. The bottom line is that you have choices.
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