Scratch on my wife's car: what to do?

[Monkeyleg]

Since about March or so, the streets in our area have been completely torn up.

So, everyone either has to park in their garages off the alley, or in the alley itself.

We're in the alley-parking status, as we have a small garage.

Yesterday I noticed a long scratch (two, actually) on the side of my wife's car. The scratches weren't there before. This is a fairly new car, and only has maybe 16K on the odometer.

There's no way she could have done that herself. The passenger side faces the middle of the alley when she parks, not toward our bushes or garbage cans.

I've never "keyed" a car, so I don't know what that looks like.

But this is the only blemish on the car.

So, call the insurance co. or get out my buffer and buffing compound? (BTW, the car is black).

[spinr]

Depends on how deep the scratch is...

If it's not that deep, then a judicious buffing will probably work.

3M makes a liquid rubbing compound that's really great for light/medium scratches in the clear coat.  Comes in a small grey bottle, costing about $5-$7.  I've used it many times with much success.  

I'd try this, rubbing it out by hand, before actually attacking with a buffer.  Once the scratch is out, I'd then go back over the general area with either a polish like Nu Finish or even a light application of the liquid compound using the buffer to blend the freshly compounded area with the surrounding clear coat.  Using the buffer will require much care, though.  Too much in one spot will take the clear-coat off rather quickly.

If it's a heavier scratch down to the base coat, but not the metal, the scratch would likely only need to be lightly sanded out, have the clear coat re-applied, and then wet-sanded and buffed/polished.  A bit more labor intensive, but still a relatively simple DIY project.

If it's down to the bare metal, I'd opt for a body shop repair.

Good luck!

[garyk/nm]

Unless you are a professional, please do not, I repeat NOT, attempt to buff this out yourself. Black is absolutely the worst for showing up any and all errors. You will end up with "swirlies" and hazing and it will drive you insane.
Do the fingernail test: if you can feel the scratch (any of it) with your fingernail, stop right now and take the car to a pro.
Failure to heed the above advice is at your own peril. Remember who's car we are talking about. If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy.

[Ex-MA Hole]

Do what Gary said.

[Monkeyleg]

Gary, I've painted cars before (including black ones), and buffed them out. One I built into a trophy car. It was black, also.

Problem is, that was twenty years ago, and my skills aren't what they were.

I do know that you can't blend black, so just re-shooting paint and clear coat on the area won't work. The entire door would have to be repainted.

It looks like the scratch was intentional.

This really steams me, since my wife goes well out of her way to keep her car looking good.