so, the lex just went thru a car wash [just a what ever was because it was SO VERY dirty] and i was doing a good wipe down of everything at home in my driveway and realized how damaged the car is getting ... 2 places that need touch up paint for sure [there's a third one but it's in the middle of my roof and i think it would look like hell] and a big scrape across my trink lid! ... and i discovered that some1 has definately tried to break into my car via the driver side door ...

then of course the thought went thru my head *maybe it's time to trade cars* but that's a lot of extra work becuase i wouldnt trade classes of cars; we have a boat car in the garage so it's logical that the second car is the entry level size ... and i'm certainly not in favor of a non-lux car [no offence to anyone] but there are features that [and call me a baby or spoilt or what ever if you want] i just require a car to have and other ones i really wouldnt give up ... so clearly the car stays [not to mention the mother factor, haha trade one of the cars and not tell her ... riiiiite]

that's all, i just wanted to share my sadness i've got just about now

 

... new IS?

That's why you should keep the car clean. If you're too lazy, go through touchless pressure wash once or twice a month at least to keep it relatively clean...

 

Someone keyed my car really DEEP. I thought it needed a paint job but the body shop managed to wet sand it and buff it out. Paint on the Lex has a pretty deep clear coat so you might be able to ged rid of the scratches with just a good buffing. Good Luck.

 

I know how you feel. Every time I wipe my GS down, I see all the scratches and blemishes, both man made and normal wear and tear. At first I feel sad and feel like she is getting old and time for a new car but then I have to slap my self out of it. My Lexus is beautiful and I just try to take care of the paint as much as possible by hand washing and waxing and quick wipe downs in between.

Sounds like you are very happy with your IS and it sounds exactly like what you need. Keep enjoying your car .

 

Faymester - a suggestion - get your car professional detailed. It's amazing what they can do to restore a car. It will put a smile on your face.

 

oye... I feel your pain cause that happens to me.. oh every 2 months or so. UBC and its ongoing construction means lots of stone chips on the highway. >.<

While the photos in the "claybar/wax etc" thread show a nice shiny car, once you see it up close, it's a very different story .

But hey, do touch up that paint . I'm not familiar with the Lexus touch-ups but the Toyota ones have a clearcoat on the other side of the touch-up pen. That really helps hide the scratches/chips!

 

+1 for professional detail. (Full detail)

 

Also, try SCRATCH-OUT in the small yellow bottle. Great stuff for surface scratches and paint problems. If that doesn't work, you'll need a harsher abrasive first.....and then SCRATCH-OUT on top of it to take out the swirls. If that doesn't work, then it's the body shop.

http://www.kitwax.com/html/kitProducts.htm

In some cases, if you don't want to go to the body shop or if it is not too extensive, you can hide scratches by taking black-out tape and covering them with strips or patterns to make them look like part of the car's trim...and then do an equal one on the opposite side of the car (that's an old trick I've used both on my car and others). That only works, of course, in some cases, but if done well, under the right circumstances, it is a nice fix, and people usually don't notice (even auto appraisers at trade-in time).