Corvette clears perfection or NOT?

[southern_boy1975]

Ok, I have a 06 sunset orange corvette that has issues and has had them since new from the dealership. I just did'nt see them untill the night I got it home under the light. I took it back and of course I think they made it worse!

Thanks to all of you guys and all the forums for all the information that has made me 95 percent happy with the out come of my little project.

Now I am starting to wonder if its impossible to perfect this car's clearcoat 100 percent!:confused:

Here is my process:
Washed with Z-7 shampoo (Dryed only with blower)

Clayed with Z-18

Washed and dryed once more

Polished with Optimum Compound using a 5.5 orange pad and my PC set at 6. I repeated this step twice over the entire hood. (I found the 5.5 pad much more effective with the PC than the 6.5 pad)

Polished with Optimum Polish using a LC 6.5 white pad and my PC set at 5.

I plan on sealing the car with 3-4 layers of Z-5 and 2 layers of Z-2.

I have attached before and after picture of the hood and was seeking the advice of felow corvette owners and detailers.

Am I going crazy?
:awesome:
Will it ever be perfect now that this has become a obssesion?
Has anyone ever had luck getting dealerships to fix there bad prep jobs?

[Truls]

If the swirls made at the dealership is common on the vetts (not the first one i hear have a new swirly vette), i would send a mail to those who make the cars/hq and make them aware of the problem. If its something wrong with my car, that the dealer dont willingly fix, I call/mail their HQ and leting them know about it. If they dont hear about it, they cant/will never do anything about it.

The EDGE is a fine example, they hear about a problem (ShMitt glue feks), and they fix them right away, if no one told them about it, they wouldnt do anything about it.

Bad news travel faster than good ones

Looks like you did a good job on the hood, Sparkling orange

[abrcrombe]

I don't think it CAME with swirls, but dealer prep often consists of a dirty rag, and dirtier water. That is what they call a wash, and since THEY aren't spending the big bucks on a new car, they don't care as much as you do. Any car is hard to get 100% swirl-free, but Corvette's are notorious for their hard clear coats. Most people try their best and leave it at that. If you feel like you need a stronger polish, you could try Menzerna PO106FF. It is not sold here, but is made specifically for hard clear coats.

[ScottB]

dealer prep = swirls and marring, not the factory. I can get the cc on my Vette pretty well prepped, but can do nothing for the orange peel GM adds to all units.

P.S. I could tell which forum you came from by all the Z's in your work. Stay for awhile and we will show you some great substitutions.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/500/Vette_008.jpg

[Truls]

Know that its not factory made swirls, what im saying is if i had bought a car at a dealership with swirls, and the dealership didnt want to correct it, or made it worse, i would contact the Chevrolet HQ to report the bad experience with the dealer. So could they give directions on HOW TO WASH A CAR or refer to AGF to learn more about it, when they deliver the cars to the dealers, or make them contact the dealer regarding your problem.

I would "click" if i had found swirls on a new vette (if i someday could afford one)

[southern_boy1975]

Well, I did take it back to the dealer. The very next day as a matter of fact! They gave it a quote *good hand polish* haha and they thought it looked great. At the time I had no experience as I asked them, so what caused all the scratches and swirls which I could still see very good in the sun or light in my garage.
Bubba, the detail man told me that it came from the factory like that and they never touch the vets. I contacted GM and thats when I started getting sent in circles. No dealership wanted anything to do with it and I knew and told GM there was no way the dealer that the car came from could fix it. I had read alot by then online and I knew Bubba was wrong. It was a fact that Bubba's nasty rags and lack of knowledge that was causing my problems. I finally decided to forget the claim with GM and work on it myself. Now i notice everything and can not seem to let it go. Where there is a will there is a way to make it perfect. The pictures I posted do not show the extent of the scratches since for some reason i had to down size them to get them to post. I am just looking for any helpfull advice on better methods of perfection.
By the way, thats a sweet vette killrwheels!
I have seen alot of your post and have learned alot. Is it possible to post a bigger picture?

[Surfer]

Know that its not factory made swirls, what im saying is if i had bought a car at a dealership with swirls, and the dealership didnt want to correct it, or made it worse, i would contact the Chevrolet HQ to report the bad experience with the dealer. So could they give directions on HOW TO WASH A CAR or refer to AGF to learn more about it, when they deliver the cars to the dealers, or make them contact the dealer regarding your problem.

I would "click" if i had found swirls on a new vette (if i someday could afford one)hehe, Chevy hesitated with the roof panels flying off till more and more people had it happen, including a neighbor and friend lol. I don't think they'll really care if you call HQ and tell them to learn how to wash a car:D.

[southern_boy1975]

yeh, and i have a recall on that. just scared to take it to the dealer. i have had it a year and it has less than 4,000 miles on it but when i took it in for a oil change..... they busted the fiberglass with their 2-post lift at the rear lift point on the passengers side. they fixed it after hours of my time and i was lucky they where able to blend the paint on the bottom of the car. all that over a $50 dollar oil change at 3,000 mile. guess i could take the top to them? i just give up on dealers with no respect for the car!

[Truls]

hehe, Chevy hesitated with the roof panels flying off till more and more people had it happen, including a neighbor and friend lol. I don't think they'll really care if you call HQ and tell them to learn how to wash a car:D.

OK, i understand............really...flying off the cars?

Good you came here then S-B1975, killr got "black belt" in detailing vettes. He got some great posts on the topic

[sparkie]

Welcome to AG. In the two pics, I see a world of differents! The PC can make a big improvement with a little time.

[Surfer]

OK, i understand............really...flying off the cars?

Good you came here then S-B1975, killr got "black belt" in detailing vettes. He got some great posts on the topicIf you think that's bad, go buy a Porsche GT3, track it, then try to have some normal warrenty work done....good luck with that. Just like BMW, "why yes, heres your machine built for street/track use, but if you use it on the track, your warrenty is voided" :D

[wytstang]

If you think that's bad, go buy a Porsche GT3, track it, then try to have some normal warrenty work done....good luck with that. Just like BMW, "why yes, heres your machine built for street/track use, but if you use it on the track, your warrenty is voided" :D
I had a friend go through that with his Cobra after he blew the motor, Ford keept telling the dealership to find out if there were over revving codes, was he racing, ect ect, ect. Finally the GM at the dealership got on the phone and told Ford "What the f*** do you expect he did with it, it's a Cobra". Well since he was good friend with the GM he didn't care and got hime a new motor lol.

[ltoman]

dealer prep = swirls and marring, not the factory. I can get the cc on my Vette pretty well prepped, but can do nothing for the orange peel GM adds to all units.

P.S. I could tell which forum you came from by all the Z's in your work. Stay for awhile and we will show you some great substitutions.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/500/Vette_008.jpg

Show off.
My vette will never look like that _ i am just accepting it now, and pcing it again later!!

[ltoman]

Ok, I have a 06 sunset orange corvette that has issues and has had them since new from the dealership. I just did'nt see them untill the night I got it home under the light. I took it back and of course I think they made it worse!


Thanks to all of you guys and all the forums for all the information that has made me 95 percent happy with the out come of my little project.

Now I am starting to wonder if its impossible to perfect this car's clearcoat 100 percent!:confused:

Here is my process:
Washed with Z-7 shampoo (Dryed only with blower)

Clayed with Z-18

Washed and dryed once more

Polished with Optimum Compound using a 5.5 orange pad and my PC set at 6. I repeated this step twice over the entire hood. (I found the 5.5 pad much more effective with the PC than the 6.5 pad)

Polished with Optimum Polish using a LC 6.5 white pad and my PC set at 5.

I plan on sealing the car with 3-4 layers of Z-5 and 2 layers of Z-2.

I have attached before and after picture of the hood and was seeking the advice of felow corvette owners and detailers.

Am I going crazy?
:awesome:
Will it ever be perfect now that this has become a obssesion?
Has anyone ever had luck getting dealerships to fix there bad prep jobs?

i love that color - wasn't it Atomic Orange tho?

[ryandamartini]

Ok, I have a 06 sunset orange corvette that has issues and has had them since new from the dealership. I just did'nt see them untill the night I got it home under the light. I took it back and of course I think they made it worse!

Thanks to all of you guys and all the forums for all the information that has made me 95 percent happy with the out come of my little project.

Now I am starting to wonder if its impossible to perfect this car's clearcoat 100 percent!:confused:

Here is my process:
Washed with Z-7 shampoo (Dryed only with blower)

Clayed with Z-18

Washed and dryed once more

Polished with Optimum Compound using a 5.5 orange pad and my PC set at 6. I repeated this step twice over the entire hood. (I found the 5.5 pad much more effective with the PC than the 6.5 pad)

Polished with Optimum Polish using a LC 6.5 white pad and my PC set at 5.

I plan on sealing the car with 3-4 layers of Z-5 and 2 layers of Z-2.

I have attached before and after picture of the hood and was seeking the advice of felow corvette owners and detailers.

Am I going crazy?
:awesome:
Will it ever be perfect now that this has become a obssesion?
Has anyone ever had luck getting dealerships to fix there bad prep jobs?

Good work, however I am seeing some marring in the lights. Go over it with a medium polish eg XMT2 on an orange on that vettes' bulletproof coating.