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Updated: 10:54 PM Nov 26, 2008
Inexpensive Auto Body Maintenance
Sometimes things just happen. And when you're on a tight budget, it's not so easy to get those things fixed. So here are a few tips.
Posted: 10:00 PM Nov 26, 2008Reporter: Sarah Rasmussen Email Address: sarah.rasmussen@weau.com |
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Say you're driving down the road and a rock flips up from the ground and chips your window. Or you come out of the grocery store and there's a scuff mark on your car. Don't fret for too long. Kris Bjerke from CVTC showed me how to do some short-term repairs.
Let's start with a chipped or cracked window.
Any chip in your window, outside of the main viewing area for the driver, you can temporarily fix yourself.
"The biggest things is you want to make sure that the chip is sealed up from moisture because moisture gets in anything and that's when you get the big spider crack across the windshield," Bjerke says.
A simple repair kit from an auto parts store only costs you $10 and lasts for a month, until you can save up the $50 to have a professional fix it.
What about a scuff on the paint of your car?
"We just use a little bit of compound on a rag. And typically, you can get most of them out by hand," Bjerke says.
A quart of compound costs you $20 -- and voila. You saved yourself the $100 it would cost you to have a professional do it.
If it's more than just a scuff, like a deep scratch, Bjerke says all it takes is a steady hand and $8 bottles of touch up paint and clear coat.
"It may not look the best up close, if you're doing it yourself, but from 5 feet away, most people wouldn't notice it," he says.
Finally, headlights are an extremely important part of your car, but after a while they can fog up.
So instead of paying $200-$300 for a headlight kit...
"We sanded the plastic with a fine 1,000 grit sandpaper to get that clear coat off," says Bjerke.
Put a little plastic polish on a cloth or hand buffer and rub away the grime.
Paying for these four repairs at an auto body shop could cost you about $1,000. But remember, some of these are just temporary fixes and any major problems you have with your car, need to be checked out by a professional.
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