Repainting due to bugs...??

rammer · 07-09-06, 02:50

How many of you have had to seriously consider repainting your front ends due to bugjuice damage? I have a 21 month old Obsidian Subaru Outback XT that has some serious clear coat 'bruises' and chips due to bugs and minor road spew. How far can I expect to get with a polish and sealer/glaze?

Dave

stage5 · 07-09-06, 05:25

From my personal experience and what the majority of people say you cannot get anything out if the scratch/chip can be felt with your fingernail with polish. Do you have pics? If you can feel it with your fingernail but it is only clear coat damage then wetsanding with 1200-2000 is the answer. For chips I'd use the touchup pen and once it dries wetsand then polish (this is what I did and you cannot tell where the chip was). I've used SSR2 and 1 after the wetsanding. Go very light by hand with the 1200. A few pases shuold be enough.

Denzil · 07-09-06, 08:15

I've done my dad's car which experienced a lot of bug hits on his front bumper and when I did a full detail on it, the little "chips" of missing paint showed up even more than before. The damage had been done and detailing the front bumper only made it more apparent. It's always ideal to take care of the front of your car when you go through bug-heavy traffic areas.

SamIam · 07-10-06, 05:36

This, along with the typical stone chips, is why I invested in a clear bra. Both my cars are light colored metallics, and blend in well. A well installed clear bra is tough to see on my cars, and the fact that I don't have to deal with the road rash is a blessing.

StumpyDetailing · 07-10-06, 07:41

I assume they wouldn't eat into the paint if there was a good sealant or wax recently applied? Or it would have taken longer?

There's an endurance test for different sealants

Charlies02GLS · 07-10-06, 10:58

I might be wrong on this but I don't see how any sealant you put on a vehicle is going to help defend your paint against stone chips. However, keeping the vehicle sealed and waxed will greatly help with keeping the bug guts off the paint and also make it a heck of alot easier to clean the bugs off the paint.

As far as repainting, I've dealt with a number of local painters around here and I have been far from satisfied with their work to put it lightly. It can be really tough to find a reputable painter so just keep that in mind.

SnipeJDM · 07-10-06, 12:26

I just got mine repainted last week and they did an excellent job. My bumper was the only eyesore on my truck and now it's all pretty again. Now I just have to baby it for the next 3 months.

kompressornsc · 07-10-06, 12:46

Not to start 'the big debate', but here's the situation. On my wife's car, I use S100 and it has horrible etching. It's waxed every month or so, and washed almost weekly. Now, on my Ridgeline, I have zero etching (and more bugs) with the same wash schedule and a lot less product application. I had the same experience on another car I took care of-regular waxes did not protect from etching, Zaino did.