Your vehicle’s doors are particularly vulnerable to scratches and dings, either from you opening your door yourself, or someone else opening their door into yours. Repairing your paint can be a real hassle and costs a significant amount. Preventing door scratches can save you money and your valuable time.
1) Protect Your Paint with Paint Protection Film
One of the ways that you can prevent scratches on your vehicle’s door is to have paint protection film installed on your vehicle. Paint protection film is used on everything, from electronics to airplanes, to RVs. If paint protection film, also known as PPF, can protect airplanes, it should do a marvelous job protecting your vehicle’s paint.
Paint protection film is an incredibly thin, flexible film that can easily conform to the shape of your vehicle’s door. Not only can it protect your paint from abrasions and scratches from road debris getting hurled at your door, but it is also invisible on your vehicle with both matte and gloss options.
This option for protecting your vehicle’s door will cost a fair bit since it protects your entire vehicle, although you can have paint protection film installed in specific areas. It also is advisable to have paint protection film installed by someone who is certified by the PPF manufacturer to get optimal results.
2) Install Vehicle Door Edge Guards
Something less extensive, made specifically for vehicle door protection, are vehicle door edge guards. Door edge guards help to protect your door from both dents and scratches, buffering any blows they may receive.
Additionally, they can also provide so small amount of protection to other vehicles if you open your door a tad bit too far. Although it will not protect other vehicles by much, it can make the difference between scratch or no scratch.
Vehicle door edge guards can be installed yourself or at your local shop. Cling door edge guards require no adhesive, whereas the adhesive door edge guards do. Like adhesive rubber bumper protector strips, adhesive vehicle door edge guards will not damage your paint when they are removed. Instead, they protect your paint from any damages.
3) Ceramic Coat Your Vehicle
Ceramic coating is another option for paint protection that can be applied either to your entire vehicle, or just isolated areas such as the doors. Ceramic coatings provide superior protection in comparison to paint protection film. Doubling up is an option as well, with some ceramic coatings being made so that paint protection film can be applied on top for the ultimate protection.
Some ceramic coatings have additional benefits besides preventing your door’s paint, or your paint in general, from getting scratched. XPEL’s Fusion Plus not only reduces your risk of getting scrapes to your paint, but it also blocks UV rays from damaging and fading your paint.
This ceramic coating also repels materials, including water, dirt, oil, and even acid from squished bugs. Contaminates bead up and roll off of the vehicle, also making washing your vehicle less of a hassle.
4) Modify Your Personal Behaviors
For many of us, we spend hours a day in our vehicles. Driving becomes just another automatic part of life that we don’t think very much about. This can be at the detriment of your door’s paint though. The easiest and cheapest thing you can do is to be careful. Be mindful of your actions and their potential impact on your vehicle.
For example, ensure that there are no potential dangers where you park. Do not park too close to the street or bushes whose branches could possibly scrape against your vehicle in the wind. Make a conscious effort to open your vehicle’s doors slowly and carefully. Ensure there are no stray shopping carts near where you park at supermarkets.
5) Door Sill Protectors
One area of vehicles that is often neglected is the door sill. Every day we step in and out of our vehicles without thinking of the door sill at all. This area, due to continuous contact, is prone to becoming scratched and worn. Door sill protectors almost completely eliminate this problem.
Unlike some other options to protect your door’s paint, door sill protectors like SLiPLO’s Universal 3D Door Sill Protector can be installed yourself at very little cost. With this do it yourself door sill protector kit with its easy installation instructions, this can be installed by someone with absolutely no experience in just a couple of minutes.
6) Car Door Trim Ceramic
We cannot forget about your vehicle’s door trim and molding! These areas are often made of different materials that are not painted and they do not lay flush with the rest of your door making them especially vulnerable. Cerakote Ceramic Car Trim Coating can help to protect these areas from both contamination and light impacts.
Like other ceramic coatings, this trim ceramic coating will repel contaminants, provide protection for your vehicle’s door, and stops sun damage and fading. Fading that already exists will revert back to its original appearance. Unlike paint protection ceramic coating, though, this one is only good for 200 washes or two years, whichever comes first. This product is applied by simply wiping it on and can easily be done at home.
Wrapping Up
Nobody wants to have scratches on their vehicle’s doors, yet it happens all too often. Not only is it unsightly, but it also can lead to rust where your paint has chipped off. To avoid this, and costly paint repair, preventative measures can be taken, and you should be careful with your vehicle’s doors.
Paint protection film and ceramic coatings can be applied to your vehicle as a whole, or just the doors, to act as armor for your vehicle. As the name suggests, door guards guard your door against impact and provide a buffer to reduce the likelihood of anything making contact with your door’s paint.
Ceramic coatings for door trim and door sill protectors are ways to protect the less-often-thought-about areas of your door. Depending on the amount you want to spend, how much scratch protection you want, and what area of your vehicle’s door you are concerned about, there is an option out there for you!
For more info on the features, benefits, and pricing of door sill protectors, click here, alternatively, use our interactive map to find an authorized installer near you. If you enjoyed this article, check out our blog.