So, when I purchase my G in Feb 2010, the dealer did a wash on it. Of course, this put some minor swirling in that I did not notice until my first real cleaning. It was raining on pickup day, so it was hard to notice.

Anyways, I did some research and found a local to do a fix up job. Guess what. It is in even worse shape now. The car looked great when I picked it up. He had put a wax on it and it shined like crazy. A couple of weeks later, the wax came off and you could see swirls like crazy.

I have not approached the person yet. I am going to complain, but dont expect much luck. Anyways, I was wondering if anybody had ever run into this situation.

 

Make sure the person you trust with your car is a DETAILER and not a car washer. There's a huge difference. I ran into the same issue myself before I got the tools and put in the time to practice and learn how to do it myself. It takes some experience and skill to do it right. And plenty of time.

To avoid this, take the time to find a detailer who can show you the correction they have done. Not pictures of shiny cars, but actual finish correction showing the condition of the car before, during, and after their work. Like a lot of the before and after photos you see on this forum. Anybody with a towel and a bucket can make a car look shiny and decent for a photo. But what they are doing is covering your swirls and scratches with glaze or wax to hide them temporarily. Ask them what tools they use for finish correction. Ask them what polishes and compounds they use. Ask them what wax they use.

 

This person was a Detailer. His card and ads even pointed to paint corrections. When I first talked to him about the work that I needed, I tried to ask questions that would indicate his level of care. He mentioned the things that I was looking for (claying). I did not get to see any his "handy" work though. Since I live in a small town, it is hard to find people. I did spend a lot of time looking, but picked wrong.

I would like for this to be a thing I did myself, but I know that I dont have the time. I barely find the time to wash the car myself. Between work, family, and helping the wife with starting her own business, I have no time to do this.

I am going to go back, but do I really want this guy to work on my car again? At $250 I feel that I should get something back, but you would think for a first time customer he would have given me his best effort.

Another thing. Should I wash the car prior to going back. It has been about a month and the car is dirty, but I dont want him to blame it on me. Though I am not sure he wont anyways. How should I approach this with him?

 

I'd simply tell him that once the wax was gone off of your car the original imperfections were still present underneath, they seemed to be only hidden and not corrected. You may be right in that he'll say that the problem is that you washed it improperly and put the swirls on it yourself. If so, ask him if he would be willing to perform correction on just one small area to show you what it looked like before he waxed it. Ask if you can watch what he does. Then you can see if he knows what he's doing or not. Just a thought.

 

Good plan. Thanks for the advice. Lets see what happens. I will still be looking for another detailer in the future, but I try to get something done.

 

Bring it down to me. You know what you're going to get.



Good luck getting it resolved, I hope it works out well for you since you paid good money and took it to someone who's supposed to be a pro.

 

Damn BB that's some nice AZZ correction lol

 

Wow awesome work!

 

Thanks. That's when I was still learning and befog I got my Flex. And when I used to take my car to "professional" detailers like Gobbler Man and get results like he did. As you can see. So I spent the money to get the right tools worked hard and spent the time to learn detailing.

 

Can't hate on that split/screen .
Nice

 

I would gladly bring it to you Black Betty. Believe me, this guy convinced me that his work was worth $600, so money is not the main concern. Problem is being stuck in South West VA. I am not really close to anything.

 

Sounds like to get it done right where you live you may have to invest in the tools and supplies and learn to DIY.

I live in the 4th largest city in the US. You'd think we would have a number of great professionals here, right? There probably are a couple, but I haven't found them. Even the higher priced guys who lots of people use or recommend have done a terrible job of paint correction. Most "detailers" I've encountered here can't even wash your car properly, let alone perform proper finish correction. Some glaze and cheap liquid wax is what most will give you and charge finish correction prices.

 

I really would like to get into the DIY game. I enjoy washing, detailing, and oil changes. Time is the biggest limiter though...as it is for everybody.

I was thinking about maybe trying one of the local collision/accident repair shops around here. Might I have better luck with them? I am thinking that they do a lot of paint repair. Maybe they will at least get it closer to what I want.

 

wow blackbetty, that is some fantastic correction. wish there were detailers like you here.