wetsanding to remove swirls?

[Shazaroni]

hi a new member needing some advice. when i took delivery of my 350Z (super black) the dealership hadnt removed all the wax from the car. I took it back in few days later to have it removed. Told them to please be careful when wiping it off as black is very sensitive.



get the car back and see it in the sunlight, it`s so ridiculously swirled and scratched that it looks like a year old car! it`s one week old btw.



spoke with the dealership GM who told me that he would send it out to a detailing place that specializes in wetsanding. he assures me that this will remove the swirls and scratches...supposedly this place has a "$100K" machine that shoots jets of water/compound to remove the marks.



my concern is 1) will it do the job of removing the swirls and scratches? 2) wouldnt that take off a layer of coating off the car? and what kind of downside is there to this process?



also, has anyone heard of such a machine?



thanks for any info!



btw, anyone know of a very good detailing shop in Atlanta that might be able to do this work?

[Steve @ Guru]

Time to find a new dealership.



That`s absolutely ridiculous to say that you`d need to wetsand the car to remove swirls...my guess as to what happened is:



1) The dealership paid some kid $5.25 per hour and outfitted him with dirty towels/rags and a rotary buffer with some way too strong compounds that were loaded with silicones and other undesirables.



2) The kid then ran the car through the automatic brush washer, sprayed some cheap-o wheel cleaner (high acid, most likely) on the rims and then dried it with a dirty, old chamois.



3) He then ran it into the detail shop, sprayed some oily, silicone tire dressing on the tires, and grabbed a bottle of the `green` stuff and proceeded to buff the car with his dirty bonnets/pads.



4) He wiped off the residue with an equally dirty towel and then applied the final glaze (`the white stuff`) using the same technique (and probably the same pad) as step 3.



5) A quick cleaning of the windows with some glass cleaner and a paper towel, a quick wipe down of the interior and he was done - and on to the next victim (I mean, car).





Find a reputable detailer, or take some time to research proper techniques and products here. You should easily be able to remove the defects with a porter cable buffer and some 3M products (SMR, FI-II, etc) or Meguiar`s (SMR, DACP, SFP).



Be sure to thank the dealer for you, and be sure to let your friends and neighbors know about the quality work that the dealership provides. Wetsanding a new finish....eeeek! The top third of the clear coat is where most of the UV protection is provided; wetsanding would remove a good portion of that clear, thus degrading the UV protection...and the thought of a machine that does it automatically is laughable.



bretfraz - any chance you could help this guy out?

[jmdlat]

Personally, I would give the dealer a chance to fix the problem.



If you want to do it yourself, start you way with the least strongest abrasives and if it isn`t working, then work your way up.



3M swirlmark remover, Meguiars #9, then Meguiars heavy cut cleaner...etc. If they are as serious as it seems, then let a professional take car of it especially one experienced with a rotary.



But yea, as said, it does take paint off the car to remove the marks. I would personally fight for a new car if it isn`t perfect because that would be unacceptable in my book.

[Poorboy]

the machine could exist, but not typical of a dealership to have one...a really large recon shop located near a manheim auction

in Newburg NY had a device that looked like what he`s describing..i did not get a real close look at it but it was a huge polishing pad that had hoses connected to it and i guess it could give spurts of a liquid compound or water, and it was suspended in air with what looked like a coil spring or huge telephone wire

but was not in use at the time.

Definitely give the dealer the chance to repair, if he can`t get another car and tell them to leave it alone and do it yourself or find a detailer through a neighbor or friend or co-worker who has a nice looking ride:xyxthumbs . you may have to deal with the dealer again for service and the dreaded RECALL.:eek:

[Shazaroni]

thanks for the input guys. i think i will ask them to replace it or let me trade it on another at msrp.



wish i had the magic touch to do it myself. :sosad

[Poorboy]

they`re sweet looking cars and should come with a paint job to match..good luck....probably better off with the replacement:xyxthumbs

[vroddad]

I`d think twice before anyone (especially a dealer) take sand paper to my new car.

[dimondshiner]

Originally posted by jrh382

Personally, I would give the dealer a chance to fix the problem.



If you want to do it yourself, start you way with the least strongest abrasives and if it isn`t working, then work your way up.



3M swirlmark remover, Meguiars #9, then Meguiars heavy cut cleaner...etc. If they are as serious as it seems, then let a professional take car of it especially one experienced with a rotary.



But yea, as said, it does take paint off the car to remove the marks. I would personally fight for a new car if it isn`t perfect because that would be unacceptable in my book.





How about P21S Paint Cleanser

Is it strong enough to remove swirls and light scracthes?



thanks

[vroddad]

Wetsanding is waaay overkill for swirls... sure, it`ll work but at the expense of a good amount of paint thickness.

[bigeze]

:bounce This is the easiest way to remove swirl mark I`ve ever found check it out [COMMERCIAL LINK REMOVED BY MODERATOR] I`ve owned a body shop for about 22 years know, thats were it was developed the shop address is [COMMERCIAL LINK REMOVED BY MODERATOR]

[rockafella]

someone didn`t read the rules.....:nono :nono

[mercedesfanatic]

Originally posted by Tom Horvath

:bounce This is the easiest way to remove swirl mark I`ve ever found check it out [COMMERCIAL LINK REMOVED BY MODERATOR] I`ve owned a body shop for about 22 years know, thats were it was developed the shop address is [COMMERCIAL LINK REMOVED BY MODERATOR]



Tom... What was that link again:D

[imported_BretFraz]

just tuned into this thread.



I wish I knew a great detailer in the ATL but I don`t. It will take some searching to find a guy who will actually remove the swirls and not cover them up with a glaze which is SOP for most detailers.



If you continue to come up empty, LMK. Maybe we can get together and work on it.