Wow, man, the difference is amazing. I have a 2007 Blue Metalic SLT also with some scratches etc. Not to the point of yours but your info here really helps me with the questions I have.
I'm nervous about having to sand a few problems (front/back bumper marks). I'm gonna read up more on Mike's articles, but simply put, you used 2000-3000 lightly wet sanded and then wen over it with a cutting compound and/or swirl remover to remove the marks? It looked pretty straight forward, just seeing all those scratches form the paper makes me about throw up!
Thanks!
Don