Best approach to fix this hole in the clearcoat/paint?

[xilex]

Something kicked up on the freeway and hit the front of the car. It is not smooth because it deformed the clearcoat upwards. I want to prevent it from worsening in the future. Is putting in touch-up paint and maybe clear coat on top adequate, or would I need to enlist the services of a pro to smooth it out? Do you have an idea what it could cost? It is not worth paying $200-300 to fix this when it can happen again in the future (compared to a full bumper repaint or replacement), which is why I asked if there is a way to mend it a little bit.

I have two more divots like that on the bumper lip that clearly took out both clearcoat and paint because can see the dark gray beneath it. Thank you.

 

[Dan]

Dr. Colorchip would work well enough for those.

 

[Accumulator]

Agree, and/but any other single-stage type of touchup paint oughta work OK too. IMO the idea is to avoid turning a little touchup into a major project, so I`d keep it simple and be prepared to say "good enough".

We`re not addressing the whole "flex additive" issue, but that shouldn`t be a problem for little fixes like that, never has been for me.

 

[xilex]

Agree, and/but any other single-stage type of touchup paint oughta work OK too. IMO the idea is to avoid turning a little touchup into a major project, so I`d keep it simple and be prepared to say "good enough".

We`re not addressing the whole "flex additive" issue, but that shouldn`t be a problem for little fixes like that, never has been for me.

Thank you both for input. Unlike a typical paint chip I`ve seen where the surface is smooth and it is just a depression into the paint, the one I have is like a crater where the edges are slightly raised. So if I "fill" it in, it is going to be like a mound. I`ll look into a touch-up kit, put some paint in and some clearcoat in. It`s not really noticeable from 3 feet away. I just don`t want it to spread outward.

 

[Accumulator]

xilex- I had a much worse issue of the same type on my previous Crown Vic and...noting that it was white and that`s a forgiving color...I just filled it in with DrColorChips and did a [crappy] job of leveling it just a little with their solvent. Plenty good enough and (even on white) I`m pretty particular. The "leveling with solvent" approach is good for stuff like this IMO since the worst that can happen during the leveling is a removal of the touchup (forcing a redo) and IMO the single-stage touchup paint is fine for little jobs like this.

I`m always a little surprised how such stuff has hardly *EVER* worsened for me. I used to expect it to happen, but now I don`t even think about it. Maybe you`ll be just as lucky as I`ve been.

If some impact flexes the repaired area all bets are off and you might have to redo it, but that`s just the risk you run when touching up bumpercovers.