4 Reasons To Schedule Stone Chip Repair

Paint chips from stones and gravel thrown up while driving are quite common. These tend to primarily affect the hood, but other parts of the car can also suffer from stone chips. Although the paint damage may be small, there are important reasons to have it repaired.

1. Prevent Further Damages

Ignoring a small chip in the paint may not seem like a big deal, but the damage can become worse over time. Water can work its way beneath the edges of the chip, slowly eroding the adhesion until the surrounding paint begins to peel and flake off. This can occur even with shallow chips that only penetrate the topmost clear coat. Peeling and cracked clear coat is just as unattractive as peeling paint. When you do eventually tend to the damages, a simple chip repair won't be possible. Instead, the entire affected panel must be repainted. It's much more cost-effective to repair the chip before the damage progresses.

2. Stop Rust In Its Tracks

If a stone chip is deep enough to penetrate the paint to bare metal, you have a bigger problem. Eventually, the exposure of the metal to moisture and air is going to cause rust to form. Although a small rust spot may not seem like a big deal, it's important to realize that the rust will also be spreading beneath the paint surrounding the chip — where the extent of the damage can't be easily seen. Rust will eat holes through a car panel, eventually necessitating the full removal of the panel. What starts out as a minor paint chip can quickly become an auto-body-destroying problem.

3. Improve Car Value

The value of a vehicle depends on many factors, but two of the most important are the mechanical state of the vehicle and the condition of the body. Although a few paint chips on the hood of the car or affecting the side panels may not seem like a big deal, it can drastically lower the value of your vehicle in the eyes of potential buyers. Their first thought is likely to wonder what else could be wrong with the car, if such a minor repair as a stone chip wasn't taken care of. 

4. Maintain Cosmetic Quality

Fixing stone chips is also something to do for yourself. Chances are you want to feel good about driving your car, and it feels much better to be driving a car that looks as good as it runs. Stone chip repair is relatively low-cost and it isn't time-consuming, so it's a small price to pay that can greatly increase your joy in car ownership.

Contact a stone chip repair service for more help.