I'm new to detailing (ok I've never had a car detailed before) so I'm wondering if all this swirling could hopefully be fixed with Stage 1/2 paint correction? Luckily it's only when the sun hits it just right; other times it looks good.



I have one of those Mcguirs drill attachment compound/polisher, and there's honestly nothing in this world I hate doing more than detailing a car, literally takes all weekend. Whats funny is when I got this car back in June I actually did clay/compound/polish/wax the hood, so why'd the swirls come back so soon??
I'll probably start looking around at full paint correction services, and maybe, mayyyyyyyyyyyyybeeeee ceramic coating protection. I know everyone who gets it swears by it, but..... $$$$$$

 

technique is paramount.
if you have poor habits when washing the car; it will show.

even if you get your shit ceramic coated; if you continue to have poor habits washing the car, the swirls will always come back.

it even shows in the way you talk about washing/detailing your car....and I quote... "I HAAAAAAAAAAATE IT!"

 

technique and proper tools are paramount...
it's likely your drill bit attatchment is also harming your paint

 

My brother had this car for 7yrs/100K miles before me and he was religious about using drive-thru car washes.... weekly. I hear they're the worst for your paint.
I'm used to handwashing my cars since they're usually too low/too big front lips to even consider car washes.

 

I can't see the picture but I cringed when I read "religious about using drive-thru washes... weekly"

 

Oh, so that's the source of the swirls

​

 

yup that explains everything

 

That is certainly swirls.

You can save the $ and do it yourself.
Start off with a Harbor Freight polisher. This is def better than the drill method.
You could probably knock it out with $100 (polisher, meg ultimate compound, polisher & wax)

 

The reason being the material/product you used were likely "fillers" and covering the defects in the paint and once it rains or car is washed...magically all the swirls etc reappear. Paint correction removes those swirls if done correctly from the clear coat and thereby restores the depth of shine back to the paint. By the looks of those swirls in pic I am pretty sure a stage 1 will correct that and along with a ceramic coat should be around $600. Mine was worse as some ass clown used a rotary and had no clue and left buffer trails and holograms and swirls everywhere. No I was not ass clown this time around.

Just remember ceramic coating is not a silver bullet as it will still swirl and scratch if you dont observe the proper 2 bucket technique to wash the vehicle and appropriate drying procedures. I have the same color as your and had the cquartz done to it over 1 year ago and it still looks amazing. Now if I could only get the leather seats back at 39k miles you wouldnt think they would look like shit so soon...DAMN that taupe.

 

I'm all about saving money and doing things myself when I can (rebuilding engines, engine/tranny swaps are no problem for instance) but now with a bad lower back problem, bending over the hood with a polisher for extended periods sounds excruciating to me. Plus this is the perfect instance to me where it's worth it to pay a professional to save me an entire weekend, for it to possibly not look any better


That makes sense. What's the term about polishing a turd?.... Not saying mine looks like a turd, but that's exactly what I'm trying to prevent for the next 10 years.
$600, that's it??? I was EASILY expecting twice that for Stage 1 plus ceramic coating. I was thinking 1K alone for ceramic. But as with anything, $ will be determined by quality of products used.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but once the paint is glass smooth and ceramic coated, isn't maintaining that glossy finish MUCH easier?

 

high end detailers can get away with charging upwards of $1000...think exotics.
also, i think bigger vehicles which take more time get pretty expensive too.
a hobbyist like myself would charge around $300... a $600 job sounds perfect for a well established detailer.

I have never messed with a ceramic coating, but without the coating...paint can get marred by simply touching it. if there's a light film of dust that you cant see, and you sweep your hand across it...you just marred the fuck outta the car.

 

My guy is well established and that of course was not for Modesta which is one of the higher end coatings. He has done his share of Ferraris, Ford GT's, Lambos, Bentleys and the like. Prices for those are obviously commensurate with the vehicle. I had a 97 Landcruiser and 2001 Maxima also done for the same amount of $600 with c quartz, my philosophy any protection is better than none at all The Landcruiser came out amazing for 20year old paint

Another trick Ive taken to on B pillars is wrapping those in clear bra. They are such soft plastic and scratch by just looking at them its an awesome compromise since I like the glossy look.

 

Always use a foam pad on a speed buffer and wet it first and get the rest of excess off of it before working. Hand wax after to ensure no "hook marks". Its a pretty easy process. Dont do car washes, and for the love of anything holy, NEVER use dish washing liquid. If you can apply the little added time, hand wax after every wash. Your car will love you for it

 

Its real simple. This guy is a hoot to watch...

Junkman's 2-Bucket Wash Technique - Part 1 of a few

How To for Novice to Machine Polishing - Part 1 of a few

The 12:25 mark tells it all...

 

"LITTLE" added time???
WTF am I doing wrong in life? It takes me like 4hrs to hand wax about... 1/4 of the car. After which I am absolutely exhausted and give up, then it never gets finished.

*edit* I just got to the part in the 3rd video of "Brother in the Garage" polishing series right before he starts claying where he says "It's not gonna take you 6 months to detail the car like I did with my vette, but it isn't getting done in 1 day". That made me feel alotttt better

 

I'm also VERY glad to see my techniques are very similar to his, e.g.; similar overlap percentage, in a cross-hatch pattern, similar speeds moving the polisher (I might go a tad faster than him), dabbing the compound/polish onto the entire working area first. Also a similar amount of pounds of pressure; I pretty much just use the weight of the hand-drill (5-8lbs?) push down on the pad.

Altho I do probably use too much compound/polish. I use about a quarter-sized drop, on a pad MUCH smaller than his.

Cue Murtaugh "I'm getting too old for this shit"

 

swirls are normal they are on every car out there rarely you see a perfectly polished car on the road, but its true that bad techniques will lead to more swirls more quickly so work on your technique before correcting you only get so many chances at correcting. Ideally you should only need to correct your paint once then never go back to the same habits and you shouldn't need to correct it again.

Junkman knows his stuff!

 

Psh!!!!
you wont find hardcore swirls on MY CARS.
you will find paint defects, but not swirls. (that's cuz I take care of my cars. lol)

 

justnspace not doubting you man Im the say way I hate swirls especially ones such as these, but you have to remember possibly 90% of the cars on the road or even more are like this. You and I are both the exception, I just got a TSX to detail boy test panel revealed Im going to love getting rid of the swirls paint is in excellent shape suprisingly with lots of clear to play with. Just need to have all other work i.e. dents and stuf removed before I perfect the paint.

 

yeah, I always have to remember that I'm the odd guy washing my cars every weekend. lol
normal people don't do that.

 

Your the detailed guy that people will envy, I also take care of my cars and having a clean good looking well protected old car look better than something even right off the showroom floor. They will always think your the odd guy, but let them think what they think and you continue to do what you do, the way I see it is that I spent my hard working money on something nice and want to keep it looking nice for a long time. Aint nothing wrong with that.

 

Thread starter, you really have to reevaluate and start from ground up, are your wash techniques working? once you correct could you be sure you wont be back to square one, you, you need to make a commitment to do so otherwise you will be back to square one in no time meaning all that clear coat you shaved off to level the paint and remove the swirls will reappear if your maintenance regime isnt in check.

In reality I could correct any car, but the owners are back to square one in no time, so is it worth investing the time to make it perfect and commiiting to take extra good care?