I have about three 1/4" scratches on the side of my car from a little contact with a mailbox. They are white which I have heard means it's a clearcoat scratch. 10 ft away from the car you can't see them, but up close they're quite noticeable. I have applied Scratch X four times, but I don't think it's helping. I now have a bottle of Ford Motorcraft touch up paint and a small brush. Is touch up paint right for me? If so, any tips on applying it?

 

If you can feel the scratches with your fingernail, you will need to apply new paint there (such as touch up paint)

If not, then first try an abrasive polishing compound (I use Turtle Wax)

If that doesn't get rid of them, use 2000 grit (two thousand) sandpaper, along with plenty of water, and sand the scratched area. This will give you a very dull finish but it should get rid of the scratches. Go back over it several times with polishing compound and then a much less abrasive polish...and bam you have a nice paintjob again.

 

Its clearcoat time, not touch-up paint time.
They do sell just the clearcoat in a touch-up bottle.

 

Try Meguiar’s cleaner wax.