joshv06

Hello,

Just wondering if anyone could share some insight on my situation. About a month ago I purchased a used ISF. When looking at the car during purchase the exterior appeared to be almost perfect i.e. No scratches, dings etc.

Now on Saturday I cleaned my car (with new expensive wash mitt, two buckets, chamois etc) everything was fine. However I did notice some scratches that were not there when I bought the car a month ago (nothing to major).

Today I went and grabbed some dinner and when I walked up to the car the was a huge scratch on my side skirt. See below:





Seeing as the car was detailed before I bought it from the dealer is it possible that they have some sort of concealer or other material that might otherwise hide these imperfections? These scratches almost seem to appear from thin air.

Josh

FNSSESPORT

I know using certain compounds (I use Meguiar's Ultimate Compound) will hide minor scratches/swirls, but then they eventually show again after a few washes.

Cronic

iTrader: (1)

Yes, they hit it with a glaze/wax to hide a lot of those small imperfections. After a few weeks it begins to wear off, and expose it.

Black in general is tough.

Time for a paint correction.

I8ABMR

They waxed it at the dealership to make it look amazing. As the wax wears /burns off with the heat the wax filling the scratched will come out and will expose the scratches. I have had a little of that with my red F, but the black is going to be horrible. Luckily this can fixed by just having some paint correction ( polish and wax ) and you will be smiling again

swoo350

Exactly what happened with mine, went to the lot and it look immaculate. After a few weeks of car washes a bunch of scratches started showing up as everyone else stated the dealership most likely just threw on a wax/glaze with a bunch of fillers so that it'll look good while they are selling it. Greasy move but seems like everyone does it.. If you're looking to do the paint correction yourself you should check out http://www.detailedimage.com/Auto-Detailing-Guide/ or ask Zach in the detailing forums, he knows his ****.

lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

Nothing a wet sand and buff won't fix.

joshv06

Thanks for the response guys. Im glad to hear it can be fixed easily with some paint correction. I was worried I might need to get some respray or what not. I thought maybe I was going crazy considering they seemed to appear on their own.

In a way I'm glad to hear it's a common practice. Im going to check out the link above and see if maybe that's something I can do myself after winter.

Josh

kbtoiz

iTrader: (4)

Dont use a chamois. Buy a big microfiber towel. You can also buy an electric leaf blower.

Mrd916

My fav color on an F is black so that is why I bought a white one

bnizzle87

This is why I purposefully bought a black car. I really like to maintain her shine, despite the constant attention to keep her clean and well detailed. Everyone knows how dedicated I am to maintaining the gloss and taking every precaution to ensure that there are as few nicks and scratches as possible. Some good detailing tools and a bit of time and patience, and they'll come right out and look better than ever. Gotta put in the effort to keeping a black car clean, though.

StealthFF

Nothing that cannot be fixed by paint correction here is a quick example of the turbo before I just flipped it. You can see 3 quadrants and fenders corrected except for lower right hand quadrant not corrected. I even corrected the clear bra. Find a paint correction specialist. On avg. it will cost you approx. $300 in supplies (On the very economical side), and about 5-10 hours if your time is worth it. If not talk to a paint correction specialist near you.

zen

iTrader: (6)

I have seen people using touch up paint to fill the scratches then use paint leveling fluid to level the uneven paint after the touch up. Has anyone tried it ? does it work ?

melbitoast

iTrader: (1)

Same thing with mine. I had no idea about this wax/glaze thing, so I'm glad this thread came up. I'd been pretty pissed off lately about the paint. At least now I have an idea why these mysterious scratches/imperfections have suddenly shown up.

I wonder how much it costs for a professional paint correction specialist...

swoo350

Not sure about prices where you live but for a good paint correction job it usually ranges from $300-$500. You can always ask them what kind of products their using, what kind of process they do ie. clay bar/polish/wax, I am sure they will gladly tell you if they are a good detailer.

SeanGTS

iTrader: (1)

I really felt the Lexus Obsidian black was exceptionally soft in regards to scratching.