These scratches that are the most noticeable when looking over your vehicle. Localized scratches occur from minor mishaps, like brushing against a pole or getting hit by a runaway shopping cart. They often appear white on the surface of your car from the damage to your clear coat, causing this normally transparent layer to become visible over the top of your base coat.

Sometimes, these scratches appear black, or a different color than your vehicle’s paintwork. This is because of the paint transfer from the vehicle or object that brushed up against your car, leaving pigments embedded in the surface of your clear coat. Localized scratches may look serious; but, in reality, they’re typically nothing more than minor scratches that you can repair yourself with a scratch removal product. We recommend Turtle Wax Scratch Repair & Renew. This restorative rubbing compound is designed with special abrasives that align themselves under pressure to smooth any scratch in your vehicle’s paintwork. The formula can take on deep scratches as well, so don’t worry if you aren’t completely certain of the imperfection’s severity. As long as your fingernail doesn’t get caught in the scratch, you can remove it at home.

Swirls are light, uniform defects that are usually present all over the surface of your vehicle. These small scratches typically result from improper washing techniques, such as wiping your car with a dry towel when it’s dusty or using a cloth with rough seams or edges.

Although they aren’t as severe as localized scratches, swirls can be a lot more time-consuming to repair because there are so many of them across the surface of your vehicle. What’s more, you’ll want to use a dual action polisher or a rotary buffer in order to repair all these scratches at home. If you don’t have one of these handy machines, consider investing in one to save hundreds of dollars in detail fees and take care of scratches at home like the pros. If the swirls are difficult to make out in your clear coat, then an all-in-one solution like Hybrid Solutions Polish & Wax should be enough to repair the damage while adding a new layer of protection to your clear coat.

If the swirls are more noticeable on the surface of your car, you’ll need a more heavy-duty polish like Hybrid Solutions Pro 1 & Done Compound to remove them. This professional-grade polishing compound removes scratches and defects of any severity by simply adjusting to the strength of your cutting pad, so it’s the only polish you’ll need on your shelf!

The best way to prevent scratches in your clear coat is to apply a wax or ceramic coating to the surface of your vehicle. These protectants form a slick barrier over your clear coat to impede scratches, swirls and paint transfer. They also contain UV inhibitors to prevent spider webbing, oxidation and fading to help that showroom look last. We recommend a liquid or paste wax like Hybrid Solutions Pro to the Max Wax to give your car a deep, eye-popping gloss!