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Valet offering showroom finish. Can they actually get rid of swirls?

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mrs_sparrow
mrs_sparrow Posts: 1,917 Forumite
I have a bloke who comes to valet my car 4 times a year, and he does a brilliant job, but does not offer a 'showroom finish'. By that I mean I have swirl marks on our black car and he has told me he cannot give me a service that gets rid of them - he can mask them but not get rid of them completely.

I have found someone else locally and on their website it says they offer a show and shine finish and can get rid of swirl marks and surface scratches - it's not cheap, but I wondered if this was actually possible or whether I'd be wasting my money. The car is not old (3 years) so I do not want to ruin the paintwork, I just wondered whether to go for it or just not bother and stay with my usual bloke and put up with the swirls.

Is it possible to get rid of these marks or are they doing something drastic such taking paint off to do so and then giving it a deep wax, or are they just masking the scratches for a few months....?

All advice gratefully received.
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Comments

  • Crabman
    Crabman Posts: 9,942 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Combo Breaker
    I'd look for a recommended detailer who can do a good job - you need to make sure they know what they're doing. There's a world of difference between a valet bloke and a proper detailer.

    Swirls are generally caused by washing the car with a sponge and dragging small particles across the paintwork. They can also be caused by garage car washes and the hand car wash people.

    This thread on Detailing World is a guide to swirl removal (I realise you may not be looking to do it yourself but it will help if you know about the process): http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=10656

    The "correct" way to wash a car so as not to cause unnecessary swirls is here (again, on DW) - I just use the basic two bucket method as I don't have a pressure washer: http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=4637
  • Lum
    Lum Posts: 6,460 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Combo Breaker
    You'll be looking at a couple of hundred minimum to get a proper swirl free detail.

    I had it done on my car which was 18 years old at the time, looked lovely.
  • mrs_sparrow
    mrs_sparrow Posts: 1,917 Forumite
    Thanks for the replies.

    Yes, this is not cheap which is why I asked whether it was worth it really and whether it was possible. Just a kind of 'top up' and then carry on using my usual bloke. It wasn't him BTW so I am not worried in this respect, he does an excellent job and I have no issues in paying him once every few months. He is really busy and I guess, it is just not something that is worth it for him - these guys are saying it takes a whole day to do. I just wondered whether it was worth the money really.

    I'll have a look at the info on detailing - might keep the husband busy one weekend, LOL. Thank you.
  • malkyh
    malkyh Posts: 1,085 Forumite
    How much are they charging? Using a MOP (Machine Polisher) will get rid of swirl marks and light scratches.

    I used to work for a valeting company and a full MOP was in the region of 80-100 depending on condition.
  • marleyboy
    marleyboy Posts: 16,698 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    edited 7 June 2012 at 1:18PM
    I have been in valeting for a number of Years, working on Cadillacs, Porches and Ferrari's, as such you can imagine a high speck professional finish is essential on both interior\exterior and bodywork.

    The new softer paint on cars is very sensitive and requires a finer course of polish\polishing and generally to polish both on\off needs to be done in one direction and gently done. Swirls are usually as a result of being too brisk with the polishing, or as mentioned, bufferheads and carwashers, which should be avoided.

    Getting the paintwork back to its original speck is manageable, but it is not a case of simply polishing out the swirl, as this will leave a patchwork effect on the bodywork, in effect once the swirls are carefully removed, the whole bodywork must be polished accordingly, so as to avoid any such patch or blemish.

    Such a task can take anything between 2-4 Hours, the materials required for such sensitive paintwork does not come cheap, so you are looking between £1-200 for a showroom standard, depending on the paintwork.
    :A:dance:1+1+1=1:dance::A
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  • Crabman
    Crabman Posts: 9,942 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Combo Breaker
    Lum wrote: »
    You'll be looking at a couple of hundred minimum to get a proper swirl free detail.

    I had it done on my car which was 18 years old at the time, looked lovely.

    Looks amazing, I love seeing "older" cars on the road that are well looked after. :cool:
  • Lum
    Lum Posts: 6,460 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Combo Breaker
    It's still going strong too. Drove it in to work today because the aircon has failed on my 2010 Mondeo.. still working fine on the Cefiro :)

    It'll be 19 years old next month.

    Only problem is it only gets 22mpg and needs super unleaded.
  • s_b
    s_b Posts: 4,464 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    swirls always show up worst on black bodied vehicles
    its down to the user of an electric mop pressurising the head too much and literally putting swirls into the paint or lacquer
    i used to use a swirl remover but realised it was only a polish/light cutting agent
    the art to no swirls is a clean mop and know how to use it this comes with experiance
    remember you shouldnt be needing a cut of the paint if the vehicle is looked after, i only cut cars if needed to sell them after previous owner neglected them
  • allan673
    allan673 Posts: 1,213 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    edited 7 June 2012 at 5:40PM
    swirls are caused by improper wash techinques, grit on the sponge/wash mitt, people using brushes to wash the car, car washes and jet washes with brushes.

    find an experienced detailer to remove them. you dont have to cut the paint. most come out with the use of a quality pre wax cleaner on a polishing pad with a rotary polisher.
  • allan673
    allan673 Posts: 1,213 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    "its down to the user of an electric mop pressurising the head too much and literally putting swirls into the paint or lacquer"

    i dont really agree with this statement. your in the wrong job if you are making swirls with a polisher. buffer marks maybe if youre incompetent, but not swirl marks.
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