My 1996 sc300 is black. the paint is not at all faded, however there are substantial swirl marks, and some SCRATCHES on the hood. i would rather not have it repainted if possible. i have had it buffed (not by a pro, by someone who does detailing out of his garage) and it helped a little, but it quickly went back to the way it was. any suggestions? what can be done?

 

I am no expert on paint, but I would take it to a detail shop that knows it's stuff. Call up your local Mercedes, Lexus, or BMW dealer and ask them who they take their cars to before they go on the lot. Dealers would not send $50-$70K cars to someone who is not good. I take my car to a detailer with a Mercedes contract and I have never seen such an amazing job. They took out scratches in my wifes dark green Range Rover that amazed me.

Good luck!

 

Lexus sponsors a Certified Detailers Program. Getting these people to work on your car is costly but not nearly as much as a good hood paint job. I think ever dealer has/tries to have one but they're normally booked up with internal work. They really know about Lexus finishes and have tools and techniques to remove haze and buff without swirl marks. I didn't believe it until I had some scratches buffed out of my trunk lid. Results: no scratches, no swirl marks!

 

Clean it. Clay bar it. Use a mild polishing compound in a front to back motion in the direction. Zaino it with three coats of 5 and two coats of 2 and be done with it. It takes a long time to do the Zaino. If you don't mind simply spending a few hundred you can get it painted again. Paint companies charge a certain amount to mix paint usually and then add the actual cost of the painting. If you got your car painted then you might want to get the front bumper painted as well. Just do NOT take it to MAACO or Earl Scheib.

Before you do some major work though try using Meguiar's No. 26 Hi-tech Paste Wax after the hood is very clean. Give it a couple coats.

 

sounds good, i will give it a shot.

 

can anyone re commend a good paint shop in Maryland besides the dealer. I want a full paint job and it's like $3,000.

 

Holy smoke $3000 is cheap. Run with it.

 

not to me............