Black Car w/ small paint chips?

[davencol]

I just bought a new black car that has paint nicks in it. I am from florida and, due to the hurricanes, some small pebbles from the road have caused small paint chips to one side of the car. They are very small but too many to just fill in with paint. I was told to get some black wax. Could you guys help me with getting the best product for this type of problem? Thanks

[Jim D.]

If you have detailed photos that could help, indicating the severity and depth of the damage. If they're down to the primer or on the surface makes a big difference as to whether or not you have to fill or polish.

If they're so deep you have to fill, you may reconsider touching-up. There's a product called Langka, and some Internet sources still sell Mothers Chip Repair. With either one, you touch-up with matching touch-up paint and use this product to smooth-out the blob, making it look much better.

I bring this up because I've seen people on the Internet that discuss this almost as a fine art, and have done extensive work such as you describe. But if you're dead-set on not repainting, you might still consider touching-up.

Though colored wax might be worth a try, you might not be happy at all. Some auto parts stores carry it in a few colors, but black is generally among those, or you can order it online. It has pigments that help fill the defects, but the finish is not as smooth to the eye or the touch as a result of those pigments.

Mothers does not sell a colored wax, but I bet I'm not the only one here who has at least tried it.

[Legendman]

I can't say whether this would solve your problem, but I offer it anyway.

There are paint detail guys/gals who touch up paint for a living. I see them at car dealerships from time to time. They use a little airbrush, filled with car paint, and touch up the cars that way. No brush, no blobs. Maybe this might be a solution for you.

[admin]

A touch-up professional worth his salt will advise beforehand that the customer may not be happy with the end result when it sounds as bad as it sounds from this perspective (no photos).

Now when it comes to what a dealer may accept for a used car sitting on the lot, that's a different story.

When it gets to a certain point, repainting to match the rest of a new, black car may be the only choice.

But certainly that choice will be up to davencol, and trying alternatives can't hurt anything but his wallet.