New Runner and Paint Scratches

[LAT4R]

Ok Here is the deal,

I just bought a brand New Galactic Gray Mica 4Runner with 100 miles on it. When i picked up the suv i looked over it quickly as the sun was going down and didnt notice much.

Now looking at it in the sun i have noticed that when they "Washed" the SUV before i bought it, it looks as though they didnt rinse all the dirt/sand/dust off of it before washing it. There are very light scratches you can see if you look at the paint on an angle. They are not deep they just look like hair like or very light scratches in the clear coat. Hope you can understand what im talking about.

Can anyone reccomend anything to do to fix this? A good wax job? Should i bring it to a detail place and have it buffed ?

Thanks in advance.

 

[toybox]

There are very light scratches you can see if you look at the paint on an angle. They are not deep they just look like hair like or very light scratches in the clear coat.

Can anyone reccomend anything to do to fix this? A good wax job? Should i bring it to a detail place and have it buffed ?

Thanks in advance.

Dark colors can get these scratches somewhat easily.

If you feel like spending the time you could get these out yourself. I would suggest searching for detail threads to get an idea of what you need to do and the products to use.

otoh you could bring it to be detailed and if they are good they will get the scratches out without doing anymore damage to your paint.

 

[LAT4R]

Re: Re: New Runner and Paint Scratches

Dark colors can get these scratches somewhat easily.

If you feel like spending the time you could get these out yourself. I would suggest searching for detail threads to get an idea of what you need to do and the products to use.

otoh you could bring it to be detailed and if they are good they will get the scratches out without doing anymore damage to your paint.

Thanks,

I have been looking on the detail posts. I was kind of pissed like i said b/c i know they did a half a$$ed job on washing it. But atleast they are just in the clearcoat.

Thanks again!

 

[General Lee]

Stay away from the dealer, never let them wash your vehicle wether its when you first buy it or if you take it to them for service. Dealers will hack the paint up to all hell.

All Paint gets these swirls and marring, not just dark colors. It comes from improper washing and drying tecniques. Just like you said, they most likely used the same rag they used on 25 previous vehicles. You will need to to *polish* them out with an abrasive polish with a rotary buffer, or a dual action polisher. It will depend on how deep they are as to how abrasive you will have to go to remove them. A *good wax job* will not remove them, you may only hide/fill them slightly so when the wax disapates they will be back.

** If you get them polished out, make sure who you choose to do it knows what they are doing with a buffer as they can severely ruin your paint further.

 

[seancgn68]

Re: Re: Re: New Runner and Paint Scratches

Thanks,

I have been looking on the detail posts. I was kind of pissed like i said b/c i know they did a half a$$ed job on washing it. But atleast they are just in the clearcoat.

Thanks again!

I say get it professionally done, and then bring the dealer the bill. It's a brand new truck! Why should you pay for their screw up.

Alternatively, I am in love with Zaino products. My wife had similiar kinds of scratches on her Lexus, and I used a couple of coats of Zaino Z5, and I can't see them anymore. Zaino is non-abrasive, so you can't mess your paint up more, and it hides/fills (but doesn't actually remove) the scratches extremely well.

 

[wbboydcofc]

Amen to Zaino....


When I ordered a few years ago, it was mail order only. PITA but well worth it. Just traded in my black volvo s60 t5 for the runner, and can tell you that Zaino is a miracle. When I took delivery of the Volvo, the dealer "washed" the car, leaving me with a ******** of swirlmarks. Zaino removed them all, as would be evident by the night time gas station test ( the lights in gas station bays are the best for detecting swirls). Don't order the ZFX.. not worth it. Wash with Dawn dish soap to remove all wax first then 3-5 coats of Z-2 or Z-5. Works miracles.


Brad


Edit: If the swirl marks are bad, start with a good orbital buffer and 3M Swirl Mark Remover ( Also known as 3M SMR as labeled at auto parts stores)

 

[baetis]

Wow, I had the exact same experiece, same color, same everything. After trading in my 97 SR5 (372,000 and stil going ) I was so psyched to get a new one. I took delivery of it at night, and the next day, what a disappointment. The dealer has offered to have a detailer "fix" teh scratches, but im really worried the detailer will take more of the clear coat off. Should I have the scratches remove or ask for a hand wax job? It appears the galactic grey is going to be hard to keep unscratched. Thanks

 

[no1sportz]

This is exactly why you do not want to let a dealer "detail" your car. Remember, they do not care about your finish. Even when I buy new vehicles I ask them NOT to clean it. It also helps if you get one right off the truck and not off the lot. Besides using Zaino, the next best product which is far easier and also produces amazing results is Klasse. After washing and drying, use their All In One product. It acts as a polish and wax but is actually an acrylic sealant. It is non abrasive and lightly polishes fine scratches, oxidation and swirl marks. This one product can be used alone or follow with their Sealant Glaze for even better results. If you follow the directions (so may people do not and then whine) on the bottle you will find this is probably the EASIEST products on the market to apply, yet one of the BEST for protection and looks. Still want more show car magic, follow with a solid natural Carnuba on top of all this.

 

[General Lee]

Amen to Zaino....


When I ordered a few years ago, it was mail order only. PITA but well worth it. Just traded in my black volvo s60 t5 for the runner, and can tell you that Zaino is a miracle. When I took delivery of the Volvo, the dealer "washed" the car, leaving me with a ******** of swirlmarks. Zaino removed them all, as would be evident by the night time gas station test ( the lights in gas station bays are the best for detecting swirls). Don't order the ZFX.. not worth it. Wash with Dawn dish soap to remove all wax first then 3-5 coats of Z-2 or Z-5. Works miracles.


Brad


Edit: If the swirl marks are bad, start with a good orbital buffer and 3M Swirl Mark Remover ( Also known as 3M SMR as labeled at auto parts stores)

Zaino will not and does not remove swirls. Z-5 hides or fills the scratches and swirls. When the sealnt wears away you will see them again. The only way to remove swirls is to level the paint with a compound or an abrasive polish.

Zaino now has an abrasive polish available now but I have not tried it yet. However, the sealants such as Z-2pro, Z-5 etc offer unbeatable durability and a great look.

 

[wbboydcofc]

General Lee,


Very true,
Zaino does not "remove" the swirls physically. Only way to do it is with some sort of abrasive compound, but Z-5 does fill them quite well. I have noticed that the swirls hidden by zaino seem to remain hidden for at least 6 months. A few coats seem to last even longer. Wonder how strong the synthetic sealant (zaino) is compared to a clearcoat.


Brad

 

[seancgn68]

General Lee,


Very true,
Zaino does not "remove" the swirls physically. Only way to do it is with some sort of abrasive compound, but Z-5 does fill them quite well. I have noticed that the swirls hidden by zaino seem to remain hidden for at least 6 months. A few coats seem to last even longer. Wonder how strong the synthetic sealant (zaino) is compared to a clearcoat.


Brad

Agreed, it definitely does not remove them. One of the biggest advertised benefits of Zaino is that it is not abrasive, so this makes sense. However, you still can't SEE them, so why start grounding down your clear coat? I will Zaino our vehicles twice a year anyway to keep the illusion, so I don't see abrasive compounding as necessary.

 

[General Lee]

Agreed, it definitely does not remove them. One of the biggest advertised benefits of Zaino is that it is not abrasive, so this makes sense. However, you still can't SEE them, so why start grounding down your clear coat? I will Zaino our vehicles twice a year anyway to keep the illusion, so I don't see abrasive compounding as necessary.

Exactly, It all depends on how anal you are about your finish. If you can live with knowing the swirls are there but are fine with hiding them, then so be it. Me personally don't like swirls being there so I polish them out. I try and only polish about once a year and maintain the finish with a careful process to *minimize* scratches and swirls. If it gets to a point where I need to hide them before my yearly polishing I will apply a glaze to get me by.

To much polishing will compromise your clearcoat so I try to keep it at a minimum.