'99 Jeep beginning clearcoat failure?

[Belair]

I gave my grandson my '99 Jeep last spring. At that time there were what looked like the beginnings of clearcoat failure on the hood, like on other Cherokees I've seen. He's only washed it in drive thru wash places this winter & there's no wax left on the paint. The clearcoat doesn't look any worse than last year but I want to clean it up this spring before it worsens.

My plan is to start with Meg's GC car wash, use Mother's Calif. Gold clay that I have, then Meg's SwirlX on the fender & part of the hood where someone sat, then a polish, & possibly end with a sealant or carnuba.

Here's the question: The clearcoat failure, if that's what it is, is near the center of the hood toward the windshield, not near the fender/hood light scratches. Would it be safe to use the SwirlX all over the tops of the fenders & the complete hood, or might that lead to more of a clearcoat problem than if I left the center of the hood untreated with SwirlX? I suppose I could use some Meg's Ultimate Polish on the clearcoat problem area & not use the SwirlX there, & maybe the abrasives on the UP wouldn't cause any damage. I'm sorry I don't have any pics to post right now. I'll be doing this all by hand. Should also mention this is a black car; a shiver just ran down my back.

Your thoughts on how to proceed? Thanks, Joe.

[embolism]

I doubt you will make it any worse if you do it by hand. After polishing though, you might want to look into putting on Opticoat...

[jbgrant]

Joe,

Any way you can get some pictures posted? You're not going to get the best answers from the most experienced people (definitely not me) without some photos! Defects are extremely easy to see on black as you know. Be careful if you start to compound or even clay the bad areas, they can get worse in a hurry. Swirl X is mild stuff, Ultimate polish (not compound) is even more mild. I find the UP to be much better to work with (but that's generally using machines). Polishing out easily visible scratches by hand is a chore and difficult to achieve satisfaction especially on black. I would use a very good sealant following the thorough cleaning and mild scratch corrections and hope for the best. A good top wax (NOT a cleaner wax) will fill the defects for a few weeks and make the car look its best.

I’ve actually filled in clear coat crazing with more clear and then polished off the excess with success for the long term, but I really don’t know what kind of damage you have. If the clear is seperating form the base there's probably not much you can do.

[ExoticAutoDetai]

:postpics:

[Matt]

:postpics:

:iagree:

If it is clearcoat failure, the only repair will be to respray that panel.

[Belair]

As it turns out, the car is going to be detailed by someone. Thanks for your ideas embolism, jb, and Matt.

And as for you EAD, your thoughtful reply makes me want to say "Stop sniffing the sealant. It's showing.".

[Marc Hufnagel]

As it turns out, the car is going to be detailed by someone. Thanks for your ideas embolism, jb, and Matt.

And as for you EAD, your thoughtful reply makes me want to say "Stop sniffing the sealant. It's showing.".

To help you with diagnosis of CC failure, a picture is worth a thousand words. :bash:

[ExoticAutoDetai]

To help you with diagnosis of CC failure, a picture is worth a thousand words. :bash:

That's right thanks hell lol :)

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