5 Things that Will Ruin Your Car’s Paint in Scottsdale

You probably don’t think of your car’s paint job when you think about your car maintenance. However, it is an important part of keeping your car healthy and preserving its value. A good paint job will help you to resell your car for more money when the time is right.

You don’t have to see your Scottsdale mechanic to protect your car’s paint job. You just need to take some common sense precautions, get a regular car wash, and maybe visit an auto body shop for more serious issues like scratching.

Here are a few things that will ruin your car’s paint job (and that you should try to prevent):

Spilled Gasoline

Be careful when you are filling up. If you let the tank overflow or if you pull out the nozzle while the gas is still flowing, you could get some of the gas on your paint. Gas is a corrosive liquid, and it will wear away at the paint job over time. At first, you might only see a discoloration on the paint job, but over time, it can become faded or even start to peel away.

If you get gas on your paint, wash it away with soap and water immediately. You could even keep a cloth and some cleanser in your car for such occasions.

Bugs

You may not see the bugs while you are driving, but you’ll definitely see them all over your front grille once you stop. After a long road trip, your car will be covered.

Bugs dry on to your paint job and can cause scratching and chipping if you’re not careful. You should remove bugs as quickly as you can using a specialty cleaner designed to remove them. Never use a scouring pad or anything else to try to scrape them off — you’ll end up taking the paint with them.

Spilled Beverages

We’ve all put a drink on the roof of the car while we helped a kid into a car seat or loaded up groceries. The trouble is that we then often forget it’s there and drive off, spilling the drink all over the car.

Drinks can dry on the paint and get sticky, eating into the paint or pulling it off in some cases. Be mindful of where you put your drinks, and wash off anything that spills immediately.

Bird Poop

Mother Nature is just beyond our control. Sometimes — OK, a lot of times — birds will poop on your car. When they do, use a specialty cleaner to get rid of it as quickly as possible. Like other corrosive substances, it will eat into your paint job if you leave it be.

After taking care of your paint job, make sure you take care of what’s under the hood, as well. Scottsdale Muffler and Automotive provides professional automotive services for all makes and models, including routine car maintenance up to custom fabrication work. Call us today to work with a highly trained and experienced mechanic to keep your car in top shape.