Newbie Detailer, Report from first major detail - Still need help

John814 · 06-18-08, 08:48

Hey guys,

I have been a consistent lurker on here, but thought it was time I really post a full report of my results from my first major detail on my 08 VW Rabbit, Black on Black 2-door Hatch.

I ordered a whole bunch of Griot's products, the Orbital, Machine polish 1,2,3 and Wax, and several of the other products as well. (This was a long week of detailing, trial&error, and dollars spent).

I was impressed by the results until I saw the car under direct sunlight.... There are still BIG swirl marks in the paint. It's not nearly as bad as before, but still apparent. I had to detail the car in the garage, with some flood lights, but I was using my mag-lite to see the paint, and every time, no matter how much time I spent on an area, I still had swirls... I don't know what swirl-free black paint looks like... I spent so much time on the car and it still has swirls, and I tried just about everything.... I've been very frustrated. Of course, the car looks better than 90% of the cars out on the road, but I want perfect results.

Please help! I don't want to spend a whole lot more money on different products, and want to use what I already have...

If it helps I'll try to post some pics of the car in the sunlight.

Sorry for the rant, but I'm sure you car-clean-freaks can relate!

dublifecrisis · 06-18-08, 09:11

describe your steps in more detail and the autopians will help you out. I've never used Griot's stuff but his catalog is always in my bathroom : )

and FWIW-that VW paint is pretty tough so it will take some effort with the Griot's DA polisher.

bwalker25 · 06-18-08, 09:18

+1 VW paint is VERY HARD, best chance with a DA is with a 3.5" PFW pad and I would say perhaps M95 and finish with a 4" polishing pad and a light polish. I'm not familiar with the griots stuff though, sorry.

IME you would be at it all day on VW Paint that stuff is super hard.

raz175 · 06-18-08, 12:52

John,
Through personal experience, the Griots buffer and polishes are very weak. I couldn't get any correction even with their most agressive polish. After trying multiple combinations, I gave up and then purchased a Meguiars G100 (PC). Using Lake Country Pads and Menzerna polishes, it was like night and day compared to the Griots. However, I now have a Ford truck which has been repainted with PPG Ceramiclear, and although I can do the correction with the PC, it takes many passes. So I recently stepped up to the Flex XC 3401 and I love the power it has and the faster correcting ability it has over the PC. My recomendation would be to send the Griots stuff back and get a refund. I know they'll refund your money for any reason within 180 days.

Buegie · 06-18-08, 01:05

Don't get discouraged, VW clear is tough but its definitely doable with the right products/pads. I haven't used the Griots buffer or polishes but I agree that you might want to pick up a PC or a Flex if you can afford one. Either one should bring you very good results. A good system for VW clear would be SIP on a 4" yellow pad via PC. Follow that with Op. Polish on a white pad and you should be good to go

John814 · 06-18-08, 03:19

I used Machine Polish 3 on my car, saw next to no results, using the Griots Orbital. Purchased machine 1+2, started with 2, then finally down to 1. Tech Support from Griot's was spot on, with the 1 making smaller/tiny scratches, then smoothing out with 2 & 3. However, there are still deeper scratches that 1 could just not get out. At least, I thought so. I didn't want to make thousands of passes with the buffer on the machine1 in fear of paint/clear coat damage. I did the entire car, most of it looks good, but there are still swirls. Like I said, I've never seen a black car without swirls, from Porsche CGT's to Veyrons to Mercedes, nothing has been totally clean. They Veyron came closest, but it wasn't in direct sun.....

Anywho,
I don't know if I could return the stuff to Griot's as much of the product out of the polishes has been used, as well as their buffer pads have been written on/used, as well as the buffer (which is basically new though)...

I'm AMAZED at how badly a NEW car could be scratched, just from the dealer's autowash before I bought it and a few quick passes at Mike's (Autowash during Winter.... no other option... I know... it's bad)....

I'm close to just getting it professionally detailed, but I don't want to since I've spent SO much money on products to correct the paint.

I'm also having a problem with water spots, but that's a whole nother issue, I was just going to use vinegar bath next time I wax.

And yes, I clay bar, used paint prep, and washed multiple times before polishing, waxing... and all my micro fibers were from Griot's and were clean when used. It took me nearly a week to do all this, and I'm still angry that I see swirls after all that labor...

raz175 · 06-18-08, 04:54

Quote:

It took me nearly a week to do all this, and I'm still angry that I see swirls after all that labor...

I went through the exact same scenario. I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. After much study and learning, I deduced that the only thing wrong was the tools that I was using. Call Griots and explain that their equipment does not meet your expectations. I think you'll be surprised how much they will do for you. Then take that money and spend it on good equipment, and you will have good results. And yes, black vehicles can be swirl and scratch free. I am currently working on my SuperCrew Ford F-150 which is very large and very black, has a superhard clearcoat, and I am getting it near perfect.

John814 · 06-29-08, 11:07

So I'm getting a few different recommendations on products. I want to correct the paint, but could I still use my pre-existing equipment at all? I also don't want something so harsh that with my inexperience, will damage the paint. I'm really new to this stuff, and although I will be careful while detailing, I don't want any mistakes.