Been working on detailing my car since getting the mechanical issues straightened away, when I started buffing out the deck lid and noticed that it just wasn't glossing up well. So I took a closer look and here's what I see...



Anyone got any ideas about what in the world could have caused this sort of damage? I've been using the same exact techniques and materials on the roof, hood, and deck lid, and neither of the other two panels show this kind of damage. So I don't think I did it. One shop that had my car for 14 months kept it outside most of the time, so I knew I had water spotting damage to contend with. This same shop also had a herd of cats running around. I did see cat paw prints on the car a few times when I stopped out at the shop, so that it a possibility. But the number of scratches and being limited to only the deck lid really puzzles me.

So, anyone got any ideas?

BTW, that surface has been lightly sanded with 2000 grit paper and then buffed with a rotary TWICE now. So it had to have looked much worse before I did that. But I don't think I can trust the clear coat to be thick enough for me to continue with that process again.

 

 

Wow. Those look pretty deep. Has the deck lid been re-painted at some point and those are sanding scratches showing back through after the paint has shrunk up?

 

Or someone has been resting / sliding packages on the trunk lid.

If there is insufficient paint thickness, use a glaze type wax, which will temporarily hide the scratches by filling them

 

It does appear that it was used as a garage shelf for 10 years.

 

Well, my car was in two shops for about 2 years getting work done. The first shop had my car taken to a local body shop so they could buff out any scratches during the drivetrain replacement. I stopped over at the body shop and from what I recall, the guy put a couple of days into the buffing, including that deck lid. So I don't believe that damage happened at that time. Certainly those scratches weren't there before I took the car into that shop, as I spent quite a bit of time detailing the car up to that time.

So the car was then towed to another shop in Georgia and spent 14 months there while the guy fiddled around trying to get the car running right. Which he never did. Even though I had a car cover there and requested that the guy NOT leave the car outside, he left it out anyway and NEVER used the car cover as far as I know. And he had a small herd of cats living there. I saw cat foot prints on the car a few times, but to put that many scratches in the deck lid, I think he would have needed to have had thousands of them jumping onto my car.

Did he use the deck lid for a storage shelf? Well, after I discovered all the sub-par work he did (or claimed to have done), I certainly can't rule that out. The guy completely disrespected my property, in my opinion, and I can't even rule out purposely malicious damage.

I drove the car home after having it in Georgia, and it has been in my garage, and pretty much on my lift nearly all of the time since. Except when something in the drivetrain broke and I took it to the local dealer to fix it. Not only were bolts missing from my bell housing, but the aftermarket carbon fiber drive shaft turned out to be incorrect and too long for the application. But I seriously doubt the paint damage could have happened there for the short period of time it was there.

Anyway, I spent some time with a wool pad and the Porter Cable (bearing in mind that the deck lid had already been wet sanded TWICE with 2000 grit paper, and buffed twice with a rotary buffer with a wool pad) and got it to looking OK at a reasonable viewing distance.





But quite a few scratches are still there. I'm just not sure how much clear is left to do any more sanding and heavy buffing before I wind up cutting through the clear and hitting color.

So it just might have to do as it is and think about getting the car repainted some day soon.

Thanks.

 

Find a professional detailer locally with a paint measuring tool. He should be able to make a reasonable assessment on your issue and if polishing can be done or if refinishing is needed.