Can someone tell me what these spots are?

[buffguy]

Over the weekend I did some test spots on my girlfriend's 2007 lexus is250 to get rid of defects such as swirls. After finishing half of the hood I noticed these pits and spots on the paint that i'm not sure of. Could theses be rock chips or some sort of etching? It was all over the hood and in various spots. I posted some pictures below.

Also, it took me about 2 hours to do half of the hood and there are still some rids but the swirls are gone. I'm using m205 with a LC flat orange pad and GG DA. I was following mike advice to start with the least aggressive approach. I think I might be under doing it as it took me about 8-10 section pass for each section to get rid of the swirls. I'm thinking about doing m205 with the yellow pad, but do I have to finish it down with white pad after or should I bump it up to m105 with white or orange pad. What would you guys suggest so that I work more efficient. Thanks.

Spots
http://i1036.photobucket.com/albums/a448/chowgp/DSC_2085_zpsdc005c29.jpg
http://i1036.photobucket.com/albums/a448/chowgp/DSC_2082_zps02179fa6.jpg
http://i1036.photobucket.com/albums/a448/chowgp/DSC_2068_zpsade82f5e.jpg
http://i1036.photobucket.com/albums/a448/chowgp/DSC_2065_zpsb7eacb3f.jpg


50/50 Is there anything else I can do to improve the clarity and pop?
http://i1036.photobucket.com/albums/a448/chowgp/DSC_2051_zps72a2efa9.jpg
http://i1036.photobucket.com/albums/a448/chowgp/DSC_2052_zpsebafe500.jpg

[TundraPower]

Does the 4th picture look like acid rain? Droplet's from something very corrosive?

[Pureshine]

Looks like pitting in the paint sucks sorry :(

['03 Ram 5.9]

was this car ever repainted?

[Setec Astronomy]

The paint defects are pitting from bird poop, brake dust, tree sap, and various other environmental contaminants that weren't removed and etched the paint.

If you want to work faster use M105/orange and follow that with M205/white, that should get you faster swirl removal and also a bit better finish. Do you have a finishing pad (black, blue, red)? You could also try that with the M205 after the 105.

[dcjredline]

Looks like fish eyes to me. From a pooooooooooor paint job prep.

[g26er]

Looks like fish eyes to me. From a pooooooooooor paint job prep.

What I was thinking... Poorly prepped repaint.

[zmcgovern45]

was this car ever repainted?

As an owner of a IS250 in Smokey Granite Mica, I can assure you that it should not take you 8-10 passes with M205 on orange pad. Lexus paint is SOFT, I corrected the swirls in mine with M205 and a Black pad with 4-6 section passes, and then had to follow that up with Menz PO85RD to eliminate some micro marring.

Did you try any other areas of the car to see if it corrected differently? I suspect that you will find the paint very easy to correct (assuming the whole car wasn't resprayed).

My rear quarter panel was repainted by Lexus and if you look at it in the right light you can see a few of these pinholes/pitting spots.

All signs point to a repaint on your car, too.

[BobbyG]

Looks like fish eyes to me. From a pooooooooooor paint job prep.

This is the first thing that came to mind....

Either the finish wasn't properly cleaned prior to paining or the painter didn't add a fish-eye eliminator to the pot before shooting the finish.

[buffguy]

was this car ever repainted?

The car was never repainted as far as I know.


The paint defects are pitting from bird poop, brake dust, tree sap, and various other environmental contaminants that weren't removed and etched the paint.

Thanks for the info.

If you want to work faster use M105/orange and follow that with M205/white, that should get you faster swirl removal and also a bit better finish. Do you have a finishing pad (black, blue, red)? You could also try that with the M205 after the 105.

Thanks, I will try this. I have black and blue flat pad.


What I was thinking... Poorly prepped repaint.

Car was not repainted as I know, but I will check the edges to see if it was repainted.


As an owner of a IS250 in Smokey Granite Mica, I can assure you that it should not take you 8-10 passes with M205 on orange pad. Lexus paint is SOFT, I corrected the swirls in mine with M205 and a Black pad with 4-6 section passes, and then had to follow that up with Menz PO85RD to eliminate some micro marring.

Thanks for the info. Is your black or pads the LC flat pads? Does the black pad really leave micro marring? The description says It has no cut and will apply thin, even coats of waxes, sealants, and glazes. I think one of my problems was applying too much pressure and the pad wasn't spinning right.

Is it this pad?
http://www.autogeek.net/beveled-black.html (http://www.autogeek.net/beveled-black.html)


Did you try any other areas of the car to see if it corrected differently? I suspect that you will find the paint very easy to correct (assuming the whole car wasn't resprayed).

I didn't try any of the other areas.

My rear quarter panel was repainted by Lexus and if you look at it in the right light you can see a few of these pinholes/pitting spots.

All signs point to a repaint on your car, too.

I will check the edges of the hood later to see if it was repainted.

[zmcgovern45]

It is the 5.5" LC Black Finishing Pads (flat). It is common to see some micro marring from polish on soft paint. To be honest, it was barely noticeable - most people would probably not follow up with another polish but since I was coating my car with 22ple I wanted it to be perfect.

While only you can speak for your car, it does seem like it may have been repainted due to the fact that anyone who has corrected OEM Toyota/Lexus paint would typically agree it is quite soft and corrects rather easily.

If you bought it used, the dealer/owner may not have known it was repainted either, or they may have chosen to not disclose that information to you as they are not technically required to.

Anyways, I would recommend trying another spot on the car with M205 and a white polishing pad to see what your results are - you should find that combo will clear up your swirl problem pretty quickly.

[NIS240SHU]

In my opinion it's not fish eyes from bad paint prep. Unfortunately, I've seen many of them and they typically have smooth, rounded edges.

Imagine you stretched a latex glove and pushed down with your finger. That's the shape a fish eye makes.

It's caused by silicone or oils that repel the paint as it begins to flow after spraying.

[Benziez]

As an owner of a IS250 in Smokey Granite Mica, I can assure you that it should not take you 8-10 passes with M205 on orange pad. Lexus paint is SOFT, I corrected the swirls in mine with M205 and a Black pad with 4-6 section passes, and then had to follow that up with Menz PO85RD to eliminate some micro marring.

Did you try any other areas of the car to see if it corrected differently? I suspect that you will find the paint very easy to correct (assuming the whole car wasn't resprayed).

My rear quarter panel was repainted by Lexus and if you look at it in the right light you can see a few of these pinholes/pitting spots.

All signs point to a repaint on your car, too.

meaning.... resprayed paint are harder to correct?

[Setec Astronomy]

In my opinion it's not fish eyes from bad paint prep. Unfortunately, I've seen many of them and they typically have smooth, rounded edges.

I agree. As I said in an earlier post, it's from not washing the car enough, and letting stuff sit on there and eat into the paint.

[95oRANGEcRUSH]

My Acura has the same on the rear driver's side door. My door was resprayed. Like others have said, yours appears to be from a respray. Has she owned the car since new? If she bought it used it is 100% possible the bodywork was never reported so it would never show on a CarFax or other VIN checking system.