Work done at body shop, swirl marks everywhere

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cinderbike

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Took my Fiesta ST into the body shop to get some dents from fender benders taken out and have a door with a fairly big paint chip painted over.

I went with the highest rated body shop in the area... and it looks like they cleaned and/or polished the car with a Brillo pad. Swirl marks EVERYWHERE, even on the areas that are freshly painted.

The owner thinks I'm crazy and isn't doing anything about it, and I've already done a bit of research, and it doesn't look like there are any non-hack job detailers in the area... so coming here for advice. I would rather not have to pay $1,000+ to fix it, either.

PS: I do not understand how this place is so highly rated and recommended. They put my door panels back together wrong, broke some trim, and even FORGOT TO PAINT one of the panels. Either I got the 'B' team or most people must really not give a single crap about their cars...
 
Welcome to AG, and I'm sorry for the circumstances you are here. My first question as always, where are you located? There is probably someone local that would gladly help you. I always offer. Second, pics, we need pics.
Billy
Obsessive Details
 
I'm in the Reno/Tahoe area.

It's been overcast the past several days so I don't think pics will be of much use.
 
Take them to small claims court after you get a written quote from a detailer describing the issues.
 
A couple hours away from me. If you were closer and wanted to tackle the job yourself I would have helped.
 
Get a BOSS 15 system. That is a one stop shopping trip right there that gets you all the stuff you need in one kit. Ford paint is typically easy to work on. I have aBoss 21 that I love.
 
Sorry to hear of the mishap. Sad to say this is the NORM in the body shop industry. I called on body shops for 3 years as an outside sales rep and trainer for Meguiar's and it was the same thing back then.




cinderbike said:
The owner thinks I'm crazy and isn't doing anything about it,
Click to expand...


I've dealt with these people before. They thick hack work looks normal. It's probably all thev're ever seen.

He's one of the "most people" I talk about in this article,


The difference between a swirl and squirrel



:D
 
cinderbike said:
I have a feeling like that'd be my best bet, since no-one else seems to have any respect for my car.
Click to expand...


With a small investment you can undo the damage this hack shop did and then moving into the future you can always take care of all your cars.

Chances are good, once you buff out your car your friends, family members, neighbors and co-workers will ask you,



How much do you charge to detail a car?



Then you can recoup your investment and still be able to take care of your own cars AND you'll be doing better work than the so-called high quality shop.

See this article, the pictures tell the story...

It's not that hard...



:xyxthumbs:
 
I got a call from a body shop that strictly works on jags and rovers,they wanted me to detail the cars that were there for repair and I politely declined.At the end of the day there not gonna compensate you for the time involved and insurance pays next to nothing to clean a car or truck the rightway .
 
This is why I got a raise todayIm the MAN! Sorry to hear about your car.
 
So... Any tips on where to start, technique-wise? Done some reading and it sounds like the clearcoat on newer Fords is ultra-thin. Also read these newer water-based paints suck for lack of a better word.

PS: Why isn't anyone working on developing better paints? If some light dust, a bad wash or even just some fingerprints can cause need to get a detail job done it seems like maybe it isn't very durable?
 
Well, I have a few "buffing on fresh paint" examples here http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...oduction-review-rotary-finish-compairson.html. I haven't posted a whole lot so far but it may be of some help. Our second largest customer where I work is Ford. The problem with the new Fords is not the water based paint but is the very thin layer of clear coat that covers it. It is very very easy to burn through. I probably burn through one out of every five new Ford cars during my paint preparation process so you need to be very very careful especially on the quarter panels on the new Focus. Why this body shop decided to do any buffing on the panels they did not paint is beyond me.

EDIT: Please take a lot of pictures of your vehicle before you attempt any corrections yourself in case something happens and also any pictures you could post for us would be helpful.
 
cinderbike said:
So... Any tips on where to start, technique-wise? Done some reading and it sounds like the clearcoat on newer Fords is ultra-thin. Also read these newer water-based paints suck for lack of a better word.

PS: Why isn't anyone working on developing better paints? If some light dust, a bad wash or even just some fingerprints can cause need to get a detail job done it seems like maybe it isn't very durable?
Click to expand...

Then, what would we need Autogeek for? Lol
 
cinderbike said:
So... Any tips on where to start, technique-wise?
Click to expand...

If you purchase a simple dual action polisher, for example

Porter Cable 7424XP

Griot's Garage 6" DA

Meguiar's MT300

These are all the same type of tool - that is they are an 8mm free spinning random orbital polisher.

I explain all of this on the forum in various threads and everything you need to know is also condennced in The Complete Guide to a Show Car Shine. As in everything you would ever need to know to wash, dry, inspect, clay, compound, polish and wax your car by machine is explained in detail on this forum and in my how-to book.


So like I was saying, if you get a simple dual action polisher then get this DVD it show you step-by-step how to use all of these tools.


How to Properly Use the Porter Cable 7424XP Dual Action Polisher Updated!
PorterCableDVD.jpg



It shows the Porter Cable 7424XP but the technique is the same for all of these tool.




More information to come....

:)
 
cinderbike said:
Done some reading and it sounds like the clearcoat on newer Fords is ultra-thin.

Also read these newer water-based paints suck for lack of a better word.
Click to expand...

Where ever you read the above... don't trust that source for accurate information in the future.

There are no water-based clearcoats being used at the OEM level, at least that I know of.

There are basecoat paints that are water based being sprayed but the technology is proven and you don't "work" on the basecoat only the topcoat or clearcoat layer so any discussion about water based basecoats is irrelevent unless you're a painter painting cars talking aboiut paint system.





cinderbike said:
PS: Why isn't anyone working on developing better paints?

If some light dust, a bad wash or even just some fingerprints can cause need to get a detail job done it seems like maybe it isn't very durable?
Click to expand...

You're not the first to ask that question... get in line behind me.

First - Paint is going to get damaged. That's a given. So what we really need is two things,

1. Paint that the average person with average skill levels can work on successfully.
There are some paints that are so hard or so soft that they requires more skill, more technique and more time and enervy to perfect. In a perfect world paints would simply be easy to work on.

2. More piant on the car - that is more top layer of paint on the car.
Removing defects means removing paint. Currently OEM paint jobs the clear layer is approximately 2 mils thin. That's thinner than a Post-It Note. It would be NICE if at the OEM they would spray more top coat so you and I have more material to work with over the service life of the car. Note these words in this last sentences are chosen very carefully.



More info to come....


:)
 
Here are some articles for you to read, they will help you get going. I would recommend reading them and not scanning them.

Please try to find this kind of information help on any other forum or Facebook and if you cannot find it then at least you'll know a place where you can get it for future reference. The thing about a forum is you have full size pictures, formatted text in an easy to read interface. You can't get that on Facebook.


Tons of information all the way through this thread.

Video: Mark your backing plate to make it easy to see pad rotation



This walks you through everytthing you want to do and the ORDER to do it whether your car is brand spanking new or a few years old or if it's just been trashed by a body shop or detailer. The title is for GOOGLE search engines.


How To Detail Your Brand New Car by Mike Phillips



This artilcel walks you step by step how to buff out a car using a simple dual action polisher. It's very in-depth with lots of pictures.

Step-by-Step How-To use the Porter Cable 7424XP


You're going to have to clean your pads as you work around the car.

How to clean your foam pad on the fly



Before buffing out a car it's a good idea to test the tool, the pads you have selected and the compounds and polishes you have selected in one small area to MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS WORKING - before buffing out the entire car. If it's not you can always come back here and describe what you're seeing and we will help you to dial in your process so that it works.


How To Do a Test Spot



When you are ready to buff out your car you need to divide larger body panels into smaller sections, here's an article on that topic,

How to divide larger body panels into smaller sections for machine buffing


Chevy_Hood_Sectioned_02.jpg



More info to come....

:)
 
cinderbike said:
PS: Why isn't anyone working on developing better paints? If some light dust, a bad wash or even just some fingerprints can cause need to get a detail job done it seems like maybe it isn't very durable?
Click to expand...

ABC_light_bulb_mar_2_141009_16x9_608.jpg

"Made by the Shelby Electric Co. of Ohio, it's been shining bright, without a flicker, at the town's firehouse since 1901."

Need I say more?
 
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