How to avoid minor dents and scratches to your car

We all know what it is like when your brand-new car has its first scratch. This beautiful object that has cost a small fortune is now blemished forever. But there are perhaps minimise the chances of picking up dents and scratches, read on to find out more?

Where do you park your car?

It is true that most often cars pick up dents and scratches in a parking area. The problem is that the parking bays themselves aren’t exactly huge always big enough, and this paired with drivers and passengers that aren’t always careful when opening and closing doors drastically increase your chances of picking up dents and scratches. Do you usually battle to get out of a parked car? This is when your door might bang against the car next to yours, or as you try and manoeuver out of the open door, you manage to scratch the body of the other ca So how can this potentially “scratchy” scenario be avoided? 1

How about halving the chances of getting your car scratched or dented?

If you want to halve the chances of having your car scratched, park in a bay nearest to those large-diameter, a support pillar or at an end space. In this way, you allow yourself more space to exit and enter your vehicle and fewer vehicles will park next to you compared to a normal parking bay, s that occur on the one side of the parking bay. Parking like this releases considerable space on the other side of your car, thus minimising the chances of any scratches and dents.1

Park far away from other cars

One way to force yourself to do some exercise is to park quite far away from where most other cars park. This will be best in parking areas like secure shopping malls, but not in those areas that are not well guarded. A car clearly isolated from the rest of other parked cars may become an easy target for criminals, as they may not be spotted so easily. 1,2,3 Be on the lookout for strangely-shaped spaces usually found in a corner somewhere in of a parking lot, where there is enough space for your car but not for any other car. Your car just needs to be outside the space where doors of other cars swing open. If you have no option but to park next to an SUV or a truck, rather park close to it, thereby ensuring that the door can only slightly open, and will not be able to bang swing open against your car and thereby causing damage. if it could be opened wide.

Avoid double parking at all costs

Double parking or occupying one-and-a-half parking bays will not go down too well with most people in South Africa, and your car may end up with even more scratches than you anticipated.

Go for parallel parking

You don’t have to be like this one driver, who, when trying to do parallel parking, would gently bump the parked car in front as well as the one at the back before eventually switching off the engine. If you don’t like parallel parking, rather practice becoming proficient at it. Parallel parking is the best way to park because the chances of your car getting scratched are reduced at the least. 1,3

What about cars with baby seats?

Parents need lots of space to get their children in or out of a car seat. IIf ever there is a good reason for them to swing open the back passenger door as wide as possible wide open, that would be it. in a parked car, is when a parent is trying to extricate a child from one of those difficult-to-operate baby seats. A parent may well not be too conscious about any movements of the back car door while busy with a child, and this is when potential scratches and dents can easily occur. 1

Park your car in a garage at the office or at home

It makes sense to park your car in a covered garage or carport at the office or at home, because the more protection there is from outside forces, people, trees, leaves, and birds, as well as the weather, the better for your car.2

Avoid hail storms at all costs

Sometimes you hear unfortunate individuals who were caught in a hail storm while driving somewhere. There is nothing you can do if the trip was unavoidable. It is advisable to generally, keep a lookout for bad weather, and if you hear that it is on the way, rather be safe than sorry, and spend that extra hour at the office before going home.

How do I clean a dirty car?

If your car is covered with considerable dust, make sure to hose down the car first with water before wiping the body with a shammy (Chamois leather), (generally known as a “shammy”)leather. Wiping a car with just a wet cloth without prior wetting may act as fine sandpaper because the bulk of the dust has not yet been removed.

Be careful about what you place on top of your car

Scratches can easily come occur when you place, for instance, car keys or other objects on the roof or hood of your car. This may seem obvious, but lots of people have caused damage to their car in this manner. some sharp metal object on top of the roof while looking for the keys. The other great danger is that you can so easily drive off without realising the item is still on the r 1

Sources:

1. Practical Frugal Living
2. Classic Car Online Today