The previous owner of my truck apparently got over-zealous trying to make it look nice and now I've got two problems:

1) the paint and glass have a bunch of micro scratches all over (I guess he wiped it with a dirty rag, I dunno)
2) there are mineral deposits all over the truck from where I guess he washed it and didn't dry it well.

OK, so I went and spoke with an automotive paint supply company today and they suggested that I take it to a detail shop or a paint shop and have them buff it out with compound and then put on a good liquid polish. They said it'd probably be about a $130 job. Anyway, I wanted to check with you DTR guys and see what you thought about this as a fix for a micro scratched paint job. I realize that there's nothing that can really be done with the scratches on the glass, but what do y'all think about making the paint look better?

This really makes me miss my old truck. It was also a 2001 and the paint job looked BRAND NEW. You know why? Cause I didn't do JACK to it. Didn't scrub, buff, wax, polish, none of that! I just left it alone and got it washed from time to time. I miss it. Anyway, I'm off-topic. Thanks for the suggestions guys.

 

When i worked at the local body shop this is what i would to to solve your problem.

First: Wash your truck real good with soap and water and add a SMALL amount of ammonia to it to get rid of the road grime and deposits. No a small amount of ammonia will not hurt your paint! Getting rid of the grime will prevent swirl marks when you go to buff it.

Second: Use a rubbing compound, not a real course one but a more of a liquidy type to buff it with. The compound does not need to be as ruff as sand to bring out a proper shine.

Then: Use a liquid wax or a spray wax to get an even better deep gloss shine.

Hope this helps!

A.Y.

 

Bring it by the house. I'll wash it, clay bar it, and wax it for ya and it'll look brand new. A clay bar took about 3 years of junk off of my paint job.

 

Yeah, that's exactly what I'd have a shop do. Do you think I should look more at body/paint shops or "detail shops"? Also, what do you think is a reasonable price for a job like this? I don't have a buffer, am not really interested at all in doing this job myself, and don't have ANY experience working with pain, so I don't want to mess things up. That's why I'm looking to have it done by professionals. Thanks!

 

I agree. Claybar does a nice job...you just have to be good at polishing afterwards.

A.Y.

 

$130.00 is a good price...its alot of hard work and takes more time than what most people would think. Any price around $150.00 is a fair price IMO. If it were my truck i would rather take it to a body shop. Body shops know more about the paint and do's and don'ts when it comes to down to it. Not knocking any detail shops, but most around here are just seeing $$ when it comes down it. It takes talent and time to buff correctly without swirl marks. That's if you can find a body shop willing to do it. Some consider it a detailers job, but any respectful and reputable body shop should be willing to do it.

A.Y.

 

Tell me about it. I spent 6 hours clay barring and polishing my truck up one day. I slept good that night.

 

For me...it wasn't the claybaring that took a whole lot of time...it was just trying to polish the hazy spots out of it after claybarring!

No doubt it cuts the grime, but man is it a pain afterwards!

A.Y.

 

I was lucky and kept my clar bar soaking wet and didn't have any hazy spots. Clay barring a 4 year old truck is not an easy task. Especially when one of the 1/4 panels is nothing but solid soot.

 

Yeah...that just requires twice the amount of elbow grease and fatigue of your arms for a couple of days!

A.Y.

 

Alright, anywayz...

Should I just call around some local body/paint shops and ask how much they'd charge to buff a truck with compound to remove all the small scratches and water deposits, then polish it with a good liquid polish? Keep in mind that I haven't actually gotten a quote of $130. That was just a ballpark given by a guy at a local auto paint supply store.

 

Yeah...I would call a couple reputable shops and get a quote for a buff job all the way around with a compound and a good hand glaze with a liquid wax. As far as a price i would guess around $150.00, but not completely sure of that. If you want get some quotes and let me know the price and i can get a couple quotes her locally and we can compare. Never really knew what we got for that particular job..i was just the guy doing all the work!

Heck...I know a guy that is too lazy to hold down a job that will wash, wax, scrub the wheelwells, polish tires/wheels, shampoo carpets, detail interior, and steam clean the engine for about $70.00 It will take him about 6 hrs to do the job and he will use his own supplies. Needless to say i need to look him up!

A.Y.

 

Yeah, where are you located? Maybe you can put me in touch with him!

 

IDK...Ky is a decent little drive from Tx.

But no...i wouldnt think prices would be that different. I try to talk to some of my buddies that are autobody techs. and see what the shop they work for would charge for somethin like this.

A.Y.

 

I used to detail cars for a living, I would take it to a professional detailer and ask them what products and tools they use. I would avoid places that use rotary buffers. Swirl city there in untrained hands! I would purchase a Porter Cable random orbit from Lowes or Home Depot and do the job myself. I would also suggest reading the guides on this site and ask questions in the forums.... http://www.autopia-carcare.com/ Good Luck!