Is your GT500 paint all marred up?

[vankuen]

Well, a few weeks after I got my car from the dealer in Fort Worth (RLB auto group) I found that whatever they used to hide the excessive marring and scratches had worn off.

Up to that point I hadn't even washed or dried the car by hand and so I know it wasn't from me. So I just spent a couple hundred bucks getting the scratching and marring out with a detailer here locally. He spent 25 total hours working the paint in steps to get it out without having to use heavy compounds or wetsanding.

One thing that the detailer had mentioned though was that my car had a veeeery soft clear coat, and that he said if I'm not extremely careful my car will be all marred again after the first wash.

So that got me thinking...do all the S197 GT500's have this paint "issue"? If so...how are you guys taking care of your paint?

Just for kicks...here are some before and after pics of the work:

Before:

and after:

 

[mblgjr]

Without full-sun shots your "afters" aren't an equal comparison; but it does look nice.

Did he tell you his steps? If he used a Glaze; be careful as some marring may come back, but it won't necessarily be your fault, it will just be the oils from the glaze washing off.

Considering his total time involved, it sounds as if he did things properly.

And there is NO way your car needed wetsanding (and glad he didn't). A 2 (or 3) step polishing with the proper pad/polishes would take care of that without a doubt.

I've got an '09 Vista and my Dad has a Perf. White; both have pretty hard paint and are def. not "soft" by any means (and that's with me using a rotary). Black is always a harder color to work on since it shows micromarring if you don't absolutely have patience and the proper polish. Each car can vary of course as well.

Now, the vinyl stripes are STUPID soft. Everything mars them pretty much. Have to be super careful when washing/drying over them.

Read here for washing tips/process...

READ the process more than the product suggestions.

How To Properly Wash Your Car

How To Properly Wash Your Car

Washing & Drying - Autopia.org

 

[damon94]

That happened to my stupid ass in my 05 cobra a week after I bought it by running it through a chevron car wash for 8 bucs. Looked the exact same as the pics. Needless to say I have never done that again.


I live in fort worth where is that dealer located? Do they have another red n black. I got a red n white and I always wanted the red package.

 

[blkGT500nCA]

Welcome to black.

Damon94 you've got an '05 cobra???

 

[c6vette]

Paint's still perfect... at 4100 miles...

 

[03 TOPLESSSVT]

Very rare 2005 Cobra indead!

 

[bpodner]

:lol:
But really there is only one thing to remember, black is not a color, it's a job!

 

[skyhighsd]

It just really looks like a black car that was ran thru a car wash. :nonono:

 

[jcobra]

Get some menzerna nano polish and a dual action polisher.

 

[vankuen]

I'll be using zaino in a few months more than likely. I have a bucket full of the stuff and want to use it all up.

But I do plan on get an orbital and some good polish though. Heard good things about the Menz stuff.

 

[svtmadman]

Not a good comparison....

 

[Q8_Shelby]

it just really looks like a black car that was ran thru a car wash. :nonono:

+1

 

[chuckstang]

Can scratches that show white be buffed out or will it need to be wet sanded or repainted

I have what I would call a bad scratch on my front fender that I know I could not buff out but am hoping that it is not impossible.

Basically, if I see white I call it all the way through, so if you see white does that mean you are Fawked?

 

[jcobra]

Usually if you can feel it with your finger nail it's not going to buff out.

 

[vankuen]

Weird that very few of those that have responded have had problems with their paint. I would have thought this would be more of a widespread issue considering that ALL of the GT500's that I looked at prior to buying this one all had marred and scratched up paint--regardless of color. I saw it on a red one, a white one, and blue one. When I saw this black one, I was pretty amazed that it wasn't scratched. But now I know that the dealer simply used oils and fillers to hide the scratches.

I am very particular about the washing / drying / polishing materials that go onto my car, my cars never see any mechanical car wash. So I'm confident I can keep the car for the most part in its present state. I'll probably use some spray sealant of the same brand after each wash for the next few months and then recondition the car with Zaino.

I also realize that the photos were taken at different points in the day thus making it "not a good comparison" -- but that's because he finished at the end of the day and not at 12 noon. So regardless of whether you feel its a good comparison...the car looks 99% better than it did prior to the detail, and that's not because of oils and fillers, that's because of hard work to get the paint right before putting any sealant on it.

There are a couple of minute scratches that were very deep that required wetsanding. Not pictured...one was able to come out completely and the other was diminished but not completely removed in an effort to play it safe and not remove too much clear.

But getting back to the main point of the original post, how many of you have scratches in your paint and how do you normally do about taking care of your gt500?

 

[vankuen]

Without full-sun shots your "afters" aren't an equal comparison; but it does look nice.

Thank you.

Did he tell you his steps? If he used a Glaze; be careful as some marring may come back, but it won't necessarily be your fault, it will just be the oils from the glaze washing off.

I was out there off and on for most of it. He worked on it using several steps, various cutting pads I think, and once done he'd take a towel to it to buff off the remainder of the powder. That's where we saw that the towels being used -- even though MF -- still slightly marred. It didn't happen until I let him use my zaino towels that it wasn't a problem.

Considering his total time involved, it sounds as if he did things properly.

I hope so. I know he used Optimum products which contain no oils or fillers.

And there is NO way your car needed wetsanding (and glad he didn't). A 2 (or 3) step polishing with the proper pad/polishes would take care of that without a doubt.

There were two distinct scratches that required wetsanding. One was done by a body shop before him and the other was done by him, but in an effort to save the clear we only went so far. That scratch will have to be filled unfortuately.

Now, the vinyl stripes are STUPID soft. Everything mars them pretty much. Have to be super careful when washing/drying over them.

I noticed that as well...but those are already messed up from the previous owner. I may end up just removing them one day and blacking the car out completely.

 

[mblgjr]

^ The stripes can be polished with patience.

I've done it using Menz. IP on a PC, 4" orange pad, speed 5. Came out really really well, but it takes *light* pressure...and patience.

Mixxer on here likes to use 3M Ultrafina, but I'm not sure what exact process he uses.

Opt. products are nice all around, you shouldn't have any issue then and hopefully you can keep her looking new.

As far as your comment about other owners and all the 'new' cars you looked at being this way...yeah; mine came with the Dealer-installed swirl package as well. We were just lucky that Dad's car (white) had only sat on the showroom floor off in a corner, so it hadn't been washed but maybe twice. Then the Vista had been inside as well, then out for about 2-3 weeks, but not long enough for them to mess it up.

"But getting back to the main point of the original post, how many of you have scratches in your paint and how do you normally do about taking care of your gt500?"

Continue looking around the links I posted and you'll find plenty of good info and other products you may be interested in.

I have a PC random orbital and pad assortment, along with a rotary, so doing the job you just paid the detailer to do is something I do myself (I'm also a small fleet manager, so it's something I do on occasion anyway). It takes time and effort, but it's like anything else you do yourself.

Proper washing is of utmost importance on black. IF you're not washing with the 2-bucket method...start doing it. Also look into getting a Foam Gun. They're pricey; but I feel like it's worth it and I was the world's biggest skeptic about it when folks started talking about them.

This is the link I couldn't find last night. The guy has a Black Yukon/Tahoe and is super great about keeping it up and has videos/etc. on how to polish with the PC on black, etc.

How to - Wash and Dry your Car for a showroom finish

 

[vankuen]

^ The stripes can be polished with patience.

I've done it using Menz. IP on a PC, 4" orange pad, speed 5. Came out really really well, but it takes *light* pressure...and patience.

Mixxer on here likes to use 3M Ultrafina, but I'm not sure what exact process he uses.

Opt. products are nice all around, you shouldn't have any issue then and hopefully you can keep her looking new.

As far as your comment about other owners and all the 'new' cars you looked at being this way...yeah; mine came with the Dealer-installed swirl package as well. We were just lucky that Dad's car (white) had only sat on the showroom floor off in a corner, so it hadn't been washed but maybe twice. Then the Vista had been inside as well, then out for about 2-3 weeks, but not long enough for them to mess it up.

"But getting back to the main point of the original post, how many of you have scratches in your paint and how do you normally do about taking care of your gt500?"

Continue looking around the links I posted and you'll find plenty of good info and other products you may be interested in.

I have a PC random orbital and pad assortment, along with a rotary, so doing the job you just paid the detailer to do is something I do myself (I'm also a small fleet manager, so it's something I do on occasion anyway). It takes time and effort, but it's like anything else you do yourself.

Proper washing is of utmost importance on black. IF you're not washing with the 2-bucket method...start doing it. Also look into getting a Foam Gun. They're pricey; but I feel like it's worth it and I was the world's biggest skeptic about it when folks started talking about them.

This is the link I couldn't find last night. The guy has a Black Yukon/Tahoe and is super great about keeping it up and has videos/etc. on how to polish with the PC on black, etc.

How to - Wash and Dry your Car for a showroom finish

Hey thanks for the info! Have any leads on where to get a good orbital?

I do in fact use the two bucket methods and I have the dirt tray inside the wash bucket. I'm unsure as to what's best to use now for the washing tool...because things have changed so much since I owned a black car. I have a hard time trying to find a mitt here locally that doesn't scratch.

 

[breoland]

my car came from the dealer with swirls all over the place. it really pissed me off that a new car had all those swirl marks. I dont even know where to begin

 

[damon94]

lol wtf. 07 is what it should have said no idea where 05 came from. mine is red/white and the swirls I got from the carwash sucked.