swirl marks and fingerprints?

[K9sH3]

Originally Posted by dictionaaron

so i bought my h3 about a month ago and i got home and washed it a week later. After that i parked it in direct sun and you could see HORRIBLE swirl marks and what looks like fingerprints that dont go away. Ive waxed it with the zymol cleaner wax/polish and it didnt do anything. I only really shows up in direct sunlight. So obviously this is something that was there when i bought it that the dealership did. It really pisses me off because they took care in making sure it wasnt visible on the lot. Is there anything i could do to get the dealership to fix it because it bugs the living **** out of me. look at the picture to see, that is right after washing it so those arent finger prints that come off. It looks like someone touched it with solvent on their hands or something. There are also small scracthes ALL over the clearcoat with the fingerprints. Any suggestions.

What was the outcome of this?

[MotorsportsAuthority aka Dragon]

For black, wax after every wash. In addition, use a REAL sheep's skin wash mit. Wal-mart has them (you can feel the leather inside) for around $5.00. I've found that car wash is pretty much car wash. Wax and products afterwards are a WHOLE different story...

Errr...back to the paint. IF on the surface, those finger prints can be removed with a clay bar. Be sure to keep it lubricated. IF etched into the clear, you'll have to do some fighting there. It would be hard to prove that the dealership was trying to "hide" the marks. Especially since you have to prove that it didn't happen at the supermarket. The BEST I see them doing is reclearing that door or side. With how little clear is on the vehicle, I'm 90% sure that they'll sand through and end up having to repaint it. Sorry...just don't trust dealership "collision" centers.

There should be a REAL good detail person in the area. We use 3M 06060 to buff cars after paint, so you could try it. The porter cable won't work for what you're needing to get done. You're going to need a high speed buffer, or actually, I'd recommend you pay a pro to do it and not risk burning through the clear.

If you do end up going to a pro detailer, they don't HAVE to use 3M or Meguiar's or whatever. They know their products, the combinations, and the steps that they need to be successful. Just make sure they have proven they know what they're doing by providing CLOSE UP photos past projects.

Good luck.

[dictionaaron]

I sent the sales manager at the dealership an email with the picture and he sent no response back. Which is odd because he responded quickly to any of my other emails. I dont know how id prove it was them since its been about a month. Im thinking of just taking it to a detailer here and letting them high speed buff, even though he said he he didnt think it would help that much. I think the dealership would somehow be able to say it wasnt htere fault if i called them out. Even though its obvious that kind of etching isnt the result of me just plain washing it. Its not just the door either its almost the entire car. I just got my survey from GM and im gonna tear up the dealership on it. The biggest problem is the dealership is 2 hours away so i cant just drive in and show them. We have a large GM dealership here but since i didnt buy it there i dont see how that helps at all. Any suggestions on getting the dealership involved. Im gonna call this afternoon but i dont see anything good coming from it.

[K9sH3]

I think your in a bad spot... The dealer will of course blame it all on you. And it seems that you will have to eat whatever cost it will be to fix it, and that sucks. The only thing you can do at this point is to be sure that GM and Hummer branch know about this and keep on them about it. Send them all reciepts (copies) and be sure to nag nag nag. I wish ya luck!

[lotus4s]

I would make every effort to let the dealer see it before you do anything. From the swirl marks it looks like they already tried to buff it out and it didn't work. It may need to be wet sanded and buffed but that may not even work if it's etched too deep.

Good luck.

[dictionaaron]

i called the dealership and my salesman siad he look into it and see when all it was in the shop and what for. Which probably will come back him saying they didnt do it but its worth a shot. If that doesnt work im gonna call GM. If i had done it i wouldnt care so much but i didnt so i want what i paid for. I didnt buy a dam neon or something, i think i have the right to be picky considering its a hummer. I figure Worst case scenario i just get a nice coat of dirt on there and leave it.

[dictionaaron]

my dealership scheduled me a day to take it in,and they said theyd do whatever it takes to fix it. My problem is if they had to repaint or re-clear for some reason this would severely depreciate the value of my car. If this is the only way to fix it should i ask for a replacemet since it would drop at least 10% off the value of my car. Plus the fact that my paint job is horrible and "orange peelish" to begin with.