Washed with Scotchbrite?

[g_mo]

Just kidding about the Scothbrite. Recently purchased a 99 Suburban with scratches all over the hood and roof. I can slightly feel them on the hood with my fingernail but I don't think they go all the way through the clear. I clayed a section of the hood and then some Ultimate Compound with no results. I think the PO washed it while the surface was gritty or used a dirty car wash brush. I've read how hard GM clearcoat is and wondering if I need to put some more elbow grease into it or if I'm wasting my time and going to need to get it recleared or possibly wetsanded. Thanks.
Gary

[Murr1525]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Clay removes dirt, now scratches/swirls.

You would need something like Ultimate Compound for that.

However, if the scratches can be felt, I am not sure they will go away. Any chance of a pic?

[g_mo]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

I clayed the hood to make sure I had a clean surface the I used the UC.

[Mr Miyagi]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Time for a new camera!

[g_mo]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Time for a new camera!

No, that's what it looks like in the dark . I'll get some better pics tomorrow before dark.

[Murr1525]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Looks like something was practically forced into the paint, maybe set on it?

Not sure that is fixable.

[Markus Kleis]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Yikes, that looks REALLY bad.

Like Murr suggested, that *might* be beyond repair, but there are still several things you can try before that can be determined.

Try and get some day shots - and macro shots if your camera allows for them.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Looks pretty severe. Hopefully all of us can come up with a solution when you post some better pics.

[BobbyG]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Maybe it's my eyes but the paint looks completely checked and cracked, well beyond any detailing option and needs to be sanded and repainted. I dunno, maybe I'm seeing it differently.....

[g_mo]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

More pics.

[SRT84JM]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Looks beyond detail to me.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

From a bit of a distance it doesn't look too bad at all:



But up close it's a nightmare!


You mentioned that you can feel these scratches with your fingernail. The problem isn't so much that you can feel a scratch with your fingernail but that there are so many scratches throughout the panel surface. The amount of buffing or, preferably, sanding and buffing needed to correct this would likely remove so much clear that what's left would then likely fail rather quickly.

We hate to say it, but our thinking follows that of the rest of the group here - it is beyond full repair without repainting.

That said, however, what do you really want out of this finish? If you don't really care about a show car shine on a used (almost) 12 year old vehicle, then you should be able to at least clean it up some with a D/A and some Ultimate Compound. The scratches are NOT going to go away with that process, but you will clean up the paint noticeably, remove the embedded dirt and add some overall gloss to the finish. It will certainly look "better" but it's not going to look anywhere near like new. Not even close.

[g_mo]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Yeah it looks good from far but far from good. I'm not looking for a show car finish. As you can see in the first pics I posted, at night with light reflection it looks horrible even from a distance. I know I can't get everything out and save the finish, I would like a noticable improvement. A friend at work has a rotary buffer and going to give it a whirl (pun intended) Thanks
Gary

[Murr1525]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

Make sure he knows what he is doing, can certainly make it a lot worse with a buffer and inexperience.

[RogueGypsy]

Re: Washed with Scotchbrite?

I don't know if it's a Chevy thing or just white paint in general, but be very careful how much clear you remove from it. I've seen more white Chevys with clear coat failure than any other vehicle or color.

I agree with everyone else, you probably won't be able to get them all out and it looks like you have some alligatoring in the paint too. Meaning it's drying and shrinking. But I do think you can get acceptable results with a bit of work. BTW It looks like someone had a cover of some type on it to protect it from dust storms and the cover trapped the dirt and sand and rubbed it all over. I hate it when that happens.

Try this:

Wash- obviously to remove the dirt.

Clay- to remove any embedded contaminants that would cause scaring in the next step.

M105 ultra cut compound- to remove as much of the scratches possible and leave a much smoother finish. Smoothing the scratches, even if they are not removed will greatly reduce how visible they are to the eye.

M07 show car glaze- to restore the lost oils to the paint and clear, it may or may not help with the alligatoring. But it will make the paint shine.

M26 Hi-Tech yellow wax- to help fill the remaining scratches and better conceal them.

NXT 2.0- a final layer of protection and more filling for the scratches.

I'm confident, after working this routine, your paint will look better than the majority of vehicles driving down the road. Even with the scratches still there, they will be far less noticeable and the shiny from the NXT should blind anyone trying to look too close.