Swirl Marks - Navarra S3

[Dan_G]

As per the title, my car which is 6 months old and has now been cleaned 3 times has suffered from significant swirl marks - in direct sunlight these are viewable from 20 feet away.

I am wondering if anyone else has this issue on Navarra colored or Black cars as it looks like the clear coat is VERY soft to have incurred this level of scratching in only 3 washes.

That said, I am forced to use a ‘hand wash’ firm, but I don’t have a place to wash my car in London. I was also concerned about the amount of grime that had built up following recent ‘rusty rain’ that left deposits on the car. The firm do use pressure washers and microfiber cloths etc – this is not a supermarket car park place - and whilst clearly it’s them who have caused the swirling I will have no recourse with them.

It has not been waxed either so I am guessing that a decent coat of polish and wax will help fill these swirls in a bit.

Now looking for a professional polishing / correcting firm who can apply some sort of ceramic coating to it to stop this happening again.

 

[Darren92]

Nothing wrong with the paint, it's the poor washing doing it.

 

[Steelster]

Absolute novice here but have spent a fortune recently on some detailing products and spent hours watching videos (yes, I am that cool) and if they're not using 2 bucket method swirls are inevitable I'm afraid!

 

[Darren92]

One bad wash will mark a car, just because they use pressure washers and microfibre cloths doesn't mean they're washing the vehicle correctly.

Do you know which products they use? I bet heavy TFR is one of them.

 

[Simonb1975]

Had a black focus st and gave up worrying.
Now we have a silver mondeo and white s3 and if there are any swirls, you have to look hard to find them.

 

[Terminator x]

My car was swirled to **** from new eg as issued by Audi, suspect the dealer washed it. I get Fran on here to clean mine; he got rid of the swirls and they haven't come back either.

TX.

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[Darren92]

Had a black focus st and gave up worrying.
Now we have a silver mondeo and white s3 and if there are any swirls, you have to look hard to find them.

Silver paint hides a lot of sins, that's why silver cars come up really well when waxed.

 

[larbel]

Pictures? Anyway, highly recommend CQuartz UK, they are easy to apply and does a decent job protecting my Sepang.

 

[Svenedin]

My car is Navarra blue and also 6 months old. It has been washed many more times than yours has (a consequence of frequent bird mess). I was bothered by swirl marks, visible in strong sunlight. I think the paint colour shows them up easily. The swirls had started to annoy me so I washed the car and then followed this with Autoglym Super Resin Polish and then Autoglym High Definition Wax. This took me 12 hours, by hand, but I can no longer see swirls -they were extremely superficial. Like you, I can't always wash the car myself because I end up causing inconvenience to others with the hose going across a pavement. Also like you, I am considering a ceramic coating but for me it is to try to protect the paint from bird mess.

 

[wab172uk]

Get it detailed. It took me nearly 2 years to get my Sepang Blue S3 detailed, as I always pondered whether to get it done or not.

Had it done in February, and every car from now on will be detailed immediately. They look so different in the sunshine.

But if you're not a great car washer, or can't be bothered (like me) then get the detailer to wash it for you like I do.

 

[Scottyg]

My car is Navarra blue and also 6 months old. It has been washed many more times than yours has (a consequence of frequent bird mess). I was bothered by swirl marks, visible in strong sunlight. I think the paint colour shows them up easily. The swirls had started to annoy me so I washed the car and then followed this with Autoglym Super Resin Polish and then Autoglym High Definition Wax. This took me 12 hours, by hand, but I can no longer see swirls -they were extremely superficial. Like you, I can't always wash the car myself because I end up causing inconvenience to others with the hose going across a pavement. Also like you, I am considering a ceramic coating but for me it is to try to protect the paint from bird mess.

Just remember SRP isn't actually abrasive so will only have filled in the swirls. They'll be there once you wash the car a good few times.
Only way to get rid of swirls permanently is to polish them out with a DA/Rotary polisher. Done it by hand before but will take you a while and you'll be like Popeye.
I'll never buy another dark car. Love my detailing but my OCD goes into overdrive with dark cars. I'll be sticking to White/Silver from now on.
I'll second using Cquartz Uk on it but make sure the car is blemish free before applying. Wife taking delivery of a new mini (Moonwalk Grey) in a month or so and it'll be getting coated in Cquartz. Just remember to buy the Reload spray to lengthen the protective properties of the Cquartz.

 

[Svenedin]

Just remember SRP isn't actually abrasive so will only have filled in the swirls. They'll be there once you wash the car a good few times.
Only way to get rid of swirls permanently is to polish them out with a DA/Rotary polisher. Done it by hand before but will take you a while and you'll be like Popeye.
I'll never buy another dark car. Love my detailing but my OCD goes into overdrive with dark cars. I'll be sticking to White/Silver from now on.
I'll second using Cquartz Uk on it but make sure the car is blemish free before applying. Wife taking delivery of a new mini (Moonwalk Grey) in a month or so and it'll be getting coated in Cquartz. Just remember to buy the Reload spray to lengthen the protective properties of the Cquartz.

OK. It seemed to me that the Super Resin Polish is very mildly abrasive but time will tell!

 

[AudiNutta]

3 washes in 6 months?! What? Haha!! I do that in two weeks!!

My car left the showroom covered in swirls, I had Audi get it detailed and it has been done again 2 weeks ago thanks to marks in the paint. I've gone down the ceramic coating route now.

 

[Scottyg]

OK. It seemed to me that the Super Resin Polish is very mildly abrasive but time will tell!

Unfortunately it isn't. It has fillers in it which mask/fill in the swirls thus making you think you're getting rid of them. I always use Megs 105, 205 or Ultimate Compound with my DA. Having a DA with a dark coloured car is essential unless you have it ceramic coated. Even with my silver A3 I wouldn't be without it.

 

[Dan_G]

The sun has gone in here now - so it looks ok. Have ordered some poorboys blackhole polish to see if i can cover them in the short term.

Have also emailed a couple of detailing firms near west London to see about correction and then a glaze.

 

[Stevier88]

£5 wash with free swirls, avoid them! if you watch them they keep their wash mitts in a water bucket which has washed 20 cars before yours just dragging dirt back over your car leaving swirls. Even audi are uncapable of doing it properly. I havent had any luck removing scratches or swirls by hand only by a DA. Alot of products have fillers which just mask the swirls not actually correct them.

Drop it in to a professional detailer to have it corrected, if you're struggling to wash it yourself find a good mobile detailer who will wash it using the correct method. It can take days to correct it depending on how many stages of polish are required and £100's but only takes a 5minute £5 car wash to restore it to swirls galore.

 

[AL_B]

It's a common story with dealers and back-street hand-wash firms. They are doing a rush job, possibly dirty water, sponges rather than wash mitts etc.

As said above, two bucket method is a minimum if you want to avoid swirls. They can never be avoided fully, but it reduces the amount. Wash in one direction not circular motion. I also do pre-foam before even touching the car.

When I got my S3 8P it had swirls from new from the dealer. It was immediately corrected by Matt at Off Your Marks detailing.

I recently bought a nearly new S3 8V, 3 months old, 3K miles. The paint work is terrible. It looks like a vinyl record on the bonnet.

I will not name the dealer, but they are agreeing to pay for correction (by Off Your Marks) as in my view there is no way 3 month old car should look the way it does.

After the initial correction of my 8P and annual mild polishing by Off Your Marks, I sold my S3 8P with pretty much no swirls in it. So I was pretty chuffed with how I'd looked after the car for 10 years.

AL

 

[Pickle1970]

I don't worry about mine, as long as it's clean all's good.

 

[Mark_86]

My Daytona had a few swirls on recently, but I just used some Autobrite Devils polish which is designed to remove them. Took me about 15mins...


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[DeanoC]

Unfortunately it isn't. It has fillers in it which mask/fill in the swirls thus making you think you're getting rid of them. I always use Megs 105, 205 or Ultimate Compound with my DA. Having a DA with a dark coloured car is essential unless you have it ceramic coated. Even with my silver A3 I wouldn't be without it.

Same combo. 105, 205 with hex pads then coated in gtechniq CS and exo:





One bad wash is all you need. My mate marked his corrected car applying c1 with a lint pad because some of the c1 dried on the pad!

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[Scottyg]

A lot of holograms in that first clip. Looks stunning in the second one. I'll need to get the DA out in the next few weeks. Got a couple of marks I want to get out.

 

[S32B]

Had a black focus st and gave up worrying.
Now we have a silver mondeo and white s3 and if there are any swirls, you have to look hard to find them.

White for me next no matter what car I get

3 washes in 6 months?! What? Haha!! I do that in two weeks!!

I don't feel as guilty now Summer is clean time, winter is jet wash and drip dry time.

@ the OP, swirls! don't mention swirls to me:

From last weekend before I started:

And after a DA with ultimate compound:

 

[robps3]

as a couple of other guys have mentioned that unless you get the paintwork corrected and not washed there in the future then its a nightmare. Wifes car is a honda FRV in nighthawk black, its stunning when detailed but the paint work is the worst ive even seen it gets swirls in it when you just look at it now.

I just use poorboys black hole, which has fillers in it. it covers the swirls really well and looks great again. Can layer a sealant over it but generally i would only put a sealant over it from the same company as some dont get on with eahc other. Perhaps jsut layer the poorboys on and you will see a dramtic difference.

I was chatting to my neighbour who had just bought a black S63 and he was washing it with the help of his son, using a sponge i might add which instantly made me go funny, but then his son dropped the sponge on the tarmac and picked it up and then started rubbing the door panel... i had to walk away as both of them was swirling up the paintwork no end.

 

[Scottyg]

That made me cringe!!

 

[robps3]

That made me cringe!!

my neighbour didnt batter an eyelid. honestly hes a nightmare i tried to dry his car with a shammy leather and he was using in full sun and still bone dry and i gave him a drying towel and he had a lightbulb moment. Not before he swirled his car and mercs have pretty good paint. i fully expect to see him out there one day using a scouring pad on bird poo.

 

[Flying Scotsman]

I agree with @Scottyg comments...dark coloured cars vs white/silver....glazes/waxes that fill swirl only...D/A rotary polisher with correct polishing bonnets and correct abrasive degree of polish to remove swirl. I have owned numerous dark and white coloured cars. and white is the easiest by far to keep looking at it's best.
Having said that and having numerous professional polishing devices, my last car was white and was returned to a dealer on trade in for my Ara Blue S3 with no swirl , much to the dealers surprise. It was detailed and cleaned by me by hand only after the first and do not be shocked dealer prep. In my neck of the woods the dealer I use does an A1 job. Thereafter, I wash once a week by hand, two bucket, chenille microfiber wash mitts (one for wheels, one for car), hand polish and wax every 3- 4 months and no swirl. My Ara Blue after 2 months..absolutely no swirl. The key in my opinion is to factory order your car and if your dealer is not up to snuff, have it professional detailed.
Buying off the dealers lot, you will have a car with a myriad of paint issues and using many so called hand car wash places will also result in swirl.
The key I think is washing you car at least once a week as pollution will build up on you car regardless of whether you ceramic coat, polish/wax etc.
I am still a fan of polish and wax every 3 - 4 months and I am lucky that I am retired and have the time and covered /heated area to do my car cleaning upkeep.

 

[Supa Koopa]

last week I saw one of the guys at a car wash place drying his plastic chair with the leather while he was waiting for the next car to come through. Walked over and ran it through the mangle to dry it (obviously making sure all the bits of crap were well and truly embedded in to it) and then wiped down the next car. I nearly cried

 

[S32B]

as a couple of other guys have mentioned that unless you get the paintwork corrected and not washed there in the future then its a nightmare. Wifes car is a honda FRV in nighthawk black, its stunning when detailed but the paint work is the worst ive even seen it gets swirls in it when you just look at it now.

I just use poorboys black hole, which has fillers in it. it covers the swirls really well and looks great again. Can layer a sealant over it but generally i would only put a sealant over it from the same company as some dont get on with eahc other. Perhaps jsut layer the poorboys on and you will see a dramtic difference.

I was chatting to my neighbour who had just bought a black S63 and he was washing it with the help of his son, using a sponge i might add which instantly made me go funny, but then his son dropped the sponge on the tarmac and picked it up and then started rubbing the door panel... i had to walk away as both of them was swirling up the paintwork no end.

last week I saw one of the guys at a car wash place drying his plastic chair with the leather while he was waiting for the next car to come through. Walked over and ran it through the mangle to dry it (obviously making sure all the bits of **** were well and truly embedded in to it) and then wiped down the next car. I nearly cried

Well this is the guy to make you cringe:

 

[Scottyg]

my neighbour didnt batter an eyelid. honestly hes a nightmare i tried to dry his car with a shammy leather and he was using in full sun and still bone dry and i gave him a drying towel and he had a lightbulb moment. Not before he swirled his car and mercs have pretty good paint. i fully expect to see him out there one day using a scouring pad on bird poo.

I posted a while back asking for the best way to get rid of grubby suntan lotion hand prints on my neighbours car. Got the answer I needed but he only came and asked me once he'd tried T-Cut original, but wait for it....................applied by a scouring pad!! He had mangled the paintwork big style! Wasn't just in one spot, all along the paint just under the window frame on the drivers side!! I actually burst out laughing when I saw what he had done and used!!

 

[christuffley]

My car is Navarra blue and also 6 months old. It has been washed many more times than yours has (a consequence of frequent bird mess). I was bothered by swirl marks, visible in strong sunlight. I think the paint colour shows them up easily. The swirls had started to annoy me so I washed the car and then followed this with Autoglym Super Resin Polish and then Autoglym High Definition Wax. This took me 12 hours, by hand, but I can no longer see swirls -they were extremely superficial. Like you, I can't always wash the car myself because I end up causing inconvenience to others with the hose going across a pavement. Also like you, I am considering a ceramic coating but for me it is to try to protect the paint from bird mess.

I got the meguiars MT320 DA polisher. Spent a bit on it but with my Navarra Blue it took only a few hours to wash and polish and the swirls have gone. A decent wash method should prevent them.


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[GSB]

6 months old, 6000 miles, no swirls at all. Ceramic coatings are the ******' dachshunds danglies...

 

[Matt Titanium]

My father used to swear by this stuff - but he bought all sorts of crap off the shopping channels. Watch and weep.
http://www.qvcuk.com/Greased-Lightn...em=507277&recommendationTypeId=IOFFER&sc=DTLR

 

[Tom.H]

My Ara Sportback is off to Jim White at White Details for a few days Tuesday

 

[christuffley]

6 months old, 6000 miles, no swirls at all. Ceramic coatings are the ******' dachshunds danglies...

How much did you spend getting it done?


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[GSB]

How much did you spend getting it done?


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For a full clean, clay, mechanical polish and ceramic coating, it's £450. If you want to add EXO super shiny coating to that, make it £560, and if you go the whole hog, and get your wheels, lights, glass, dash, carpets and seats treated too, it's about £700. You'll need to live without your car for a week or so...

 

[hood]

My last 2 cars were detailed and the last one Nardo Grey needed a paint correction straight from the dealers_swirls all over the place.
This time I specifically asked for no prep and the delivery wraps to be left on.
The car was delivered last week-A Tango Red SB BE-to the driveway.My wife thought I had lost my marbles as when she looked out she saw a car with white stripes down the side. LOL
Anyhow my detailer has been too busy at the moment and as Im hoping to get new FL RS3 in 9-12mts I have decided not to go to the expense of a professional detail.
Ive given it an all over clean and used Maguires ultimate quick detail for the moment.Absolutely no swirls on it due to dealers not getting near it so all good so far.First red car i've had so maybe they hide the swirls better.

 

[Flying Scotsman]

I hate to tell you but red is a high maintenance colour for swirls etc.

 

[azibux1]

Check these guys out if they're local - not sure where in London you are

http://www.poshwashlondon.co.uk/

At 'from £15' for a wash & dry with proper care and attention I think it would be well worth it. Plenty of supercars / high-end cars there.

Note: I haven't actually been here before, so check it out yourself... I'm just basing this on what I've seen people raving about it online

 

[Steelster]

My Ara Sportback is off to Jim White at White Details for a few days Tuesday

You lucky *******!! When did you book that!?!? I called in Feb some time and was quoted an August slot so have had to book in elsewhere to get new car detail sorted.

I'm sure my guys (recommended by Jim) will be great but seeing his stuff, I really wanted to have him do the work. Looking forward to pics!

 

[jaypers777]

Without wishing to get into the detail of how to detail a car here, read up on how to clean a car. There is loads of great info on this site. Best bit of kit I bought was all of the snow foam paraphernalia for the pressure washer. As the first stage to washing a car, this stuff is amazing and you can actually see grime, however messy and stuck to the paintwork, loosen up and slide off even before you have touched the car. This in itself must prevent a lot of swirling.