[nikunj_cal]

Originally Posted by dr.abhijeet

7 months old swift.i dont let any dent or scratch remain for more than 1 day. so hv gone entel motors so many times now they do minor scratches for free...and hv started to keep my color premixed(azure gray).
total visits till now-7
total money spent-less than 5 k

Doc, you get scratches in low traffic areas like GANGTOK ! Then I guess I should stop complaining about my DENTS !

OT : I love Sikkim , one of the most memorable trips of my life ( especially Yumthang)

[snaronikar]

I do not like having a scratch leave alone dent on the body of car. If this happens, I get it repaired during my next visit to dealer (servicing). I usually claim insurance and I'am never satisfied with the results of the work done by dealerships. :(

[dr.abhijeet]

Originally Posted by nikunj_cal

Doc, you get scratches in low traffic areas like GANGTOK ! Then I guess I should stop complaining about my DENTS !

OT : I love Sikkim , one of the most memorable trips of my life ( especially Yumthang)

its not traffic that gives scratches,in fact the traffic here is most disciplined everyone barring none obey traffic rules. its the parking or the lack of it leads to dings and scratches.
the other things is jutting tree branches on narrow roads, that gives scratches.
in fact driving in sikkim teaches you most imp virtues of life, rule following and patience.

[manish7]

am looking for some competent garage to this in Pune. Any inputs?

[vnabhi]

I got my first dent within a week of purchase--I had gone to the Ford showroom to fix the free Nokia Handsfree kit. Since it was sunny, I sat in their office room, and when I returned to take the car, it was in a different angle--the mechanic had moved it to make way for an Ikon.
In the excitement of testing the new device, I reversed the car, quite unaware that there was a 2-foot high barbed wire fence behind me. When the car stopped, I revved up the engine a bit, till I heard a ghastly 'thunk' sound.
I inspected the damage--it was a small dent on the border of the boot,where the horizontal surface meets the vertical.
I kept it as it is, as I don't wanna spend 4K to repair it---yes, it costs that much as the whole boot has to be repainted. It is also not easy to remove the dent, as it is at a place that is not easily accessible, unless we strip down the boot cover.

[Zappo]

I fixed them once after 6 months of buying the car. It was done very well indeed. Since then I have accumulated some more over the course of years. Never fixed them as those small nicks and skirmishes happen almost on a everyday basis (biker rubs his hot exhaust can on your bumper, a nut scratches and leaves a thing black line from his bike's lever, mirror etc while trying to squeeze in between 2 cars).

I would say if these are minor scratches better to leave them for a year or more. When there are lot many of them accumulated just get them mended. Works best.

[appuchan]

Originally Posted by androdev

i am averaging about one scratch/dent per month on my cars. how much more careful can i be when people are banging while i wait at a signal!! all minor so never bothered to get them fixed.. but i am just wondering what most people do..

You seems to have a magnet. Me too in the same situation. If you see my Santro, the whole left side is "colourless and shapeless". Right side is better, since I sit there !

[megger]

Difficult to understand such mentality. Someone scratched my side panel too with thin 3-4" scratches.

Originally Posted by GSHA

I am really troubled by the accumulation of scratches on my car. A couple of them are by notorious guys with keys / sharp objects. One of these "key" scratches runs from the rear fender to the front fender right through the rear and front doors. I was really depressed when I saw this scratch. I was tempted to fix it (by 3M guys through Mitsubishi dealership).

When there is clean car, I now understand, some people get jittery and put their nails / marks / and what not on it. Just the way people are tempted to pluck flowers from show plants.

[lamborghini]

I am skeptical of the quality of the work as the factory finish wont be matched.
Our fiesta got a few dents and scratches due to its extensive running and recently when it got a bad scrape that needed to be repaired, we got all of the scratches and dents repaired.

[GSHA]

Originally Posted by reignofchaos

GSHA is your car an Ashton Grey Cedia Select? I once saw a car at the service center that had a long scratch right from the front fender to the rear door.

Yup. Mine is Ashton Grey Cedia Select. And Yes. The long scratch runs from fender to fender. BTW - I use Southern Motors. Is that where you saw it?

For the benefit of everyone...

3M has a shop at Indira Nagar, Bangalore. It is located on 8th cross, Indira Nagar, HAL 1rst stage. I don't have the phone number right now. Can look up if someone is interested. They do all sorts of, of course, 3M stuff.

I intend to visit them regarding the scratches in my car and also running a sound proofing layer below the carpet - to reduce the overall tire / road noise.

[anonymous]

Originally Posted by diabloo

Thats great man. If you don't mind, could you share the secret?

Simple, Learn to say "NO" . It may sound rude to others but at the end, you will be a satisfied owner.

[kryptik83]

Originally Posted by nikunj_cal

Doc, you get scratches in low traffic areas like GANGTOK ! Then I guess I should stop complaining about my DENTS !

OT : I love Sikkim , one of the most memorable trips of my life ( especially Yumthang)

hey nikunj looks like u bought your swift from Mohan Motors , me too
(metallic black one)!! anyways, since I claim myself to be the king of scratches and hate to leave even a single mark on my car, i would like to know of the place where you get your scratches/dents repaired/removed.

[androdev]

i am happy to say that TAFE bangalore (surprise surprise!!) has done a fantastic job of fixing the dents and scratches on my car with black metallic paint (metallic paints are harder). I wash and wax the car myself - so my expectations were really high and they did a marvelous job. My conclusions:

1. authorized service centers can do a very good job of fixing dents (even major ones) and scratches - as good as new!
2. the charges are arbitrary - depends on your service adviser
3. i visited some private body-shop garages, don't know about quality of work but very scary infrastructure!
4. waxing/protecting the paint paid me off because there is no problem of old shade / new shade apart from the fact that the touch-up can be very localized instead of painting the whole panel. (thanks to my guru, an old man from B'lore on this forum)

Now I know why I never see a dent/scratch of Merc/BMW,etc. It is because they get them fixed asap :-)

[raul]

The only time dents and scratches bothered me was when the car was new. After a month it becomes ok and doesn't 'hurt' as much. More serious dents from small accidents I usually get done, but scratches from curious kids, bicycles, auto rickshaws, bikes and parking are inevitable in our traffic chaos - I am in Pune - are more or less ignored.

But if there is a quick way to fix I won't mind trying. Sometimes at petrol pumps you meet those chappies with the sprays, how effective are those?

[DocG]

Dents and scratches ALWAYS bother me, regardless of the car's age, or how much they've run, it makes no difference as to which car it is!!! However I only have a say over my Corolla and Beemer, and I get them fixed ASAP!!!

When there is clean car, I now understand, some people get jittery and put their nails / marks / and what not on it. Just the way people are tempted to pluck flowers from show plants.

I can't understand how people can think of doing that to a pristine vehicle!!! a biker hit my bumper once and tells me it's just a scratch upon inspection the scratch was a crack!!! and replacing the bumper costs more than his DAMN BIKE!!!!