Is it normal for new cars to have swirl marks and scratches?
 

Hello,

I've had my raven '17 86 for about a week and I gave it a wash/wax yesterday. To my surprise, I found swirl marks all over the paint and a few scratches. At first I wondered if I made all these, but I was sure to wash in straight lines to avoid any making accidental scratches too obvious. I also found a deep scratch near the key hole, and I've never used the physical key to lock/unlock the door before. The dealership had one of those automatic washers which I'm assuming they used to wash the car while I was doing the paperwork.

The main reason why I'm asking if it's normal for these kinds of scratches to be on new cars is because this is my first car purchase, new or used, and I would like to be better informed for future purchases.

Also, the salesman that worked with me gave me his cell number and has been able to answer a few questions I've had since the purchase. Should I bring this up to him and see if there is anything the dealership can do about the paint? Unfortunately, I live a couple hours away from the dealership and won't be able to go back to the area for a couple of weeks.

Quite a few people have told me that black paint is difficult to take care of, but I am willing to put in the time and effort to do so. It would be preferable to start with a clean slate though.

Please let me know if I'm being oversensitive about this.

Swirls are very typical. Even in high end cars. It's always good to tell the dealer not to wash the car when they offer it before delivery, because they don't use the best washing methods and swirl/scratch the paint.

Yes, it is typical. The guys at the dealer are not detailers; they throw some water on the car to rinse obvious dirt off and call it a day. Take your car to a detailer, have them claybar and wash it, then have them do paint correction. From there you can have it sealed, opticoated, wrapped in clear vinyl, or whatever you want.

There is nothing that the dealer will do about swirl marks and they probably won't touch the scratches since you signed off on the car at delivery.


Black is the very hardest colour to maintain and you will need to put a lot of time into it. For the best finish you can either follow Gram's instruction above or spend some time on Youtube watching different techniques and do it yourself.


You will get less picky as time goes by and right now are just suffering from new car isn't perfect syndrome. Just wait until you get your first chip or ding!

nooo! don't say that!

It will happen. Yes, yes, it will happen.

I keep telling myself that I bought this car to drive, not look at.. but I still want it to look pretty!

I took the first high velocity rock hit in my first week. Damn near cried. Second a few weeks later. Was upset. After the 3rd or 4th dozen of them I no longer even flinch. Just walk by and think "oh that's new" and carry on.

Does this mean that you wouldn't recommend a full detail & some form of coating?

If that is what you want it will help with the small stuff. There is no coating that will help against high velocity stones or debris though. My clear hood film is like tattered flag now and my bumper looks like it took a shrapnel blast. My sides have chips and dings, my roof has chips and dings and even my trunk lit took a hit. It is a low car and stuff that would hit others in the grill will just catch you someplace else.

Yepper, you are being too sensitive. It's just a car ....... not your SO's face. :sigh:

I'm surprised that ol @Tcoat didn't reference some threads for you ..... I reckon he is slowing down ....... maybe he took too many of his new pills .... :iono:

Yep, the first scratch is the worst ...... so, prepare yourself.

There is a bunch of instructional stuff on the interweb, to guide you in maintaining a black (or any color) car.


humfrz

Most of my friends that are really into detailing have stopped buying any dark colored cars since the mid 00's. Regulations on paint has taken out a lot of the toxic/polluting VOC's that gave old paint their durability. A lot of the brand new FRS's I saw at the dealership I purchased my car at had swirl marks.

I would still do the full detail and at least put sealant on. If you want to put a coating on the paint (recommended), it needs to be clean before you start or you're just sealing the scratches in. Do what you can now to keep the paint nice, so in five years it still looks great instead of good enough. I wish I had clear bra'd mine, because the first thing I did was drive it across the country and chip up the front end. Tcoat is right that nothing you do will matter when it comes to big rocks or things like that, but a clear bra will keep the small stuff from chipping the paint.


Within the first week I took a rock into my windshield. I didn't cry, but there was a lot of screaming and swearing.

In my lazy, un-kept opinion, some folks just get all carried away with fussing over a car's paint protection.

The humfrz method is to wash it with Dawn like dishwashing soap (to remove the wax); claybar the sucker (follow the instructions on the kit); wax that puppy with a good, name brand wax ...... then just drive it.

When it gets dirty, or you feel like it, wash it with a car washing soap (that won't remove the wax). Then wax it once in the spring and once in the fall.


humfrz