[madpacket]

I was checking out a black 06 at the dealer and it already had what I consider a lot of swirl marks in the paint. I dunno if they mistreated it or if black really is that vulnerable? It had 19 miles on the odo so it's not been there too long.
Are the swirls easy/possible to remove? I've read the autopia links about swirl remover but it seemed that having swirls on a brand new car was somewhat disappointing...

I love black/gold but sadly I obsess over the swirls and couldn't be happy if they don't polish out for the most part.

Otherwise I like white/gold which I think hides the swirls.

[Endless_STi]

I have a black/gold as well. Now when I bought my car I didn't notice any swirl marks on it. Just some orange peels. But swirls marks should not be hard to get rid off. Just bring your car into a detailing shop and have them buff and wax it all off.

[Nachos Libres]

Yeah, black is hard to keep up. I think just touching a car causes swirl marks. So with that said you will definately have to continually buff out swirl marks over the course of owning it. I have a ton of swirl marks on my car, but I don't try to buff them out. You can only see them in direct sunlight, other than that my paint looks flawless.

[RUGBY]

For the last 8/9 years my cars have been black. When clean they look the best (IMO). Constant: wash w/ dawn (dawn is used about 1 per month), clay bar, and lots of Zaino, wash with car soap, zaino, wash with car soap, zaino, wash with car soap, zaino, wash with car soap, zaino, back to wash w/ dawn, etc...

More Zaino the deeper and more "liquid" your paint/shine will be. Black is just a PITA. I swear I cannot do it again (getting too old). It is just too much work and then direct sunlight will make you cry

Couple pics of my black vette (without direct sunlight )

[madpacket]

Originally Posted by RUGBY

For the last 8/9 years my cars have been black. When clean they look the best (IMO). Constant: wash w/ dawn (dawn is used about 1 per month), clay bar, and lots of Zaino, wash with car soap, zaino, wash with car soap, zaino, wash with car soap, zaino, wash with car soap, zaino, back to wash w/ dawn, etc...

More Zaino the deeper and more "liquid" your paint/shine will be. Black is just a PITA. I swear I cannot do it again (getting too old). It is just too much work and then direct sunlight will make you cry

So are you saying that even with the Zaino (p5 or something?) the swirls were still apparent? Or you got it looking good, then had to repeat later because of new swirls?

I had the understanding that the one Zaino product would fill the swirls, making them less obvious/masked but didn't get rid of them. From autotopia they make it sound like you can be rid of the current ones through polishing. I just wonder how long you can keep that up before the paint is worn through

Thanks for the feedback!!

BTW- this would not be my daily driver, so the number of times I'd have to drive it in the rain, dirt etc. would be limited. I mean I'd buy it even with the swirls, if I could rest assured I'd get them out myself. Going to a detailer all the time isn't really an attractive option, I'd like to fix them myself with like a Porter Cable 7324 or whatever- does that work?

[Nachos Libres]

^^ It would take a lot of coats of the Z-5. I tried around 3 on my old car and didn't notice any difference so I just started using the Z-2 and it make the finish look so good I just forgot about the swirl marks. It's so hard to make any car look perfect in direct sunlight closeup, so I just don't care.

[madpacket]

Originally Posted by SVT Amateur

^^ It would take a lot of coats of the Z-5. I tried around 3 on my old car and didn't notice any difference so I just started using the Z-2 and it make the finish look so good I just forgot about the swirl marks. It's so hard to make any car look perfect in direct sunlight closeup, so I just don't care.

My last car was silver and even after a year and many washings it was just about impossible to see any swirls.

But man that black had swirls on the wing, hood, trunk, bumper, and above the doors. Dang. Am I being too picky? It's brand new so you'd like it perfect for at least 1 day

Hey what are those dudes saying in your animated sig?

[RUGBY]

Originally Posted by madpacket

So are you saying that even with the Zaino (p5 or something?) the swirls were still apparent? Or you got it looking good, then had to repeat later because of new swirls?

I had the understanding that the one Zaino product would fill the swirls, making them less obvious/masked but didn't get rid of them. From autotopia they make it sound like you can be rid of the current ones through polishing. I just wonder how long you can keep that up before the paint is worn through

Thanks for the feedback!!

BTW- this would not be my daily driver, so the number of times I'd have to drive it in the rain, dirt etc. would be limited. I mean I'd buy it even with the swirls, if I could rest assured I'd get them out myself. Going to a detailer all the time isn't really an attractive option, I'd like to fix them myself with like a Porter Cable 7324 or whatever- does that work?

let's say you do the same work on dark vs light colored cars:
With a black car, I always can see more imperfections then with light colored cars no matter what I did.

[SubyFi]

I just drive at night and I dont see the swirls

[Stargazer]

A good coat of wax can really help to hide the swirls (and the first thing I'd do is make sure the dealer never ever washes the car again ). If there are a lot, I'd go to a detailer at least once to get them removed. Then afterwards, make sure you wash your car yourself using the proper technique so you won't add swirls yourself. I've used both Eagle One NanoWax and Meguiar's NXT Generation and they hide swirls really well. When you wash your car or apply wax don't use a circular motion, just go in one direction. Also, use a separate wash mitt for the upper and lower portions of your car. I also rinse the wash mitt after every stroke so that I'm not wiping any portion of the paint with a dirty mitt.

[DARKSTI]

Ok, first NEVER use dawn or any dishwashing soap to wash a car!
Zaino really isnt a polish (except for its new ZPC), so it wont remove swirls. To remove swirls easily you need a Random Orbital buffer, like a Porter Cable 7424. You can get one from Lowes or online at http://autogeek.net You will also need pads, I would buy the pads from AutoGeek.
You also need a good polish, such as Menzerna IP and FPII or Poorboys SSR 2.5 and Polish with Carnuba. Then after you polish you can seal the paint with a good sealent like Menzerna FMJ or Poorboys EX-P, then top with the wax of your choice.

[madpacket]

Originally Posted by DARKSTI

You also need a good polish, such as Menzerna IP and FPII or Poorboys SSR 2.5 and Polish with Carnuba. Then after you polish you can seal the paint with a good sealent like Menzerna FMJ or Poorboys EX-P, then top with the wax of your choice.

Thanks for the feedback! I checked out your photo gallery and you car looks perfect on the detailing book. I couldn't see any swirls. If that one at the dealer looked like yours, I'd be driving it now

It sounds like it would take some work, a porter cable and some products but black can look perfect.

[DARKSTI]

Originally Posted by madpacket

Thanks for the feedback! I checked out your photo gallery and you car looks perfect on the detailing book. I couldn't see any swirls. If that one at the dealer looked like yours, I'd be driving it now

It sounds like it would take some work, a porter cable and some products but black can look perfect.

Yea, but people make it sound like its a long proccess, if you do it right , it shouldnt take long at all

[Lawrider]

Rugby,

One should never use Dawn or other dishwashing soaps to wash a car because they strip away wax. So all your efforts at laying down Zaino is being being negated. Nice waxes continue to shine with multiple coats. A car needs the protection that comes from multiple coats.

As others have said, first step is to specifically demand your car is never washed by the dealer, since they use cheap auto washes with nylon brushes.

Getting swirls out can be done two ways; using a filler, or using a glaze/polish to remove the swirls. Use the least abrasive compound necessary to remove the swirls. I would suggest picking up glaze, polish, swirl remover and rubbing compounds...but starting with the gentle stuff (glaze) and move on if it does not work. For the TBE STI's, glaze works real well at removing the exhaust residue off your rear bumber.

For a great shine, wash very, very well with a quality car wash. If the paint is new you do not need to claybar, otherwise claybar. Use 3M Imperial Hand or Machine glaze followed by a quality wax, preferably three coats, and your car will shine. Use spray shine (like Meguiars Quik Detailer) between washes to clean off bird-crap or other things.

I tend to be very anal about my cars, one easy tip is everytime you wash the car, wax one section of the vehicle, and just keep rotating. That way you don't have to do a massive 5 hour detail job when you want to wax.

Cheers,
Sameer

[DARKSTI]

FYI, Glazes actually hide the swirls, they dont remove them.