Psychopath vandalised my car

[tHe_sTiG]

Hi there guys,

Some psychopath left several fierce scratches all over my VZ. Here are some of them. Any way of getting rid of those scratches? No car detailers where I'm living, could really benefit from instructions on how to fix them.

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Would really appreciate your help guys, these scratches are really an eyesore.

[2DIE]

A lot of them look too deep to polish out.

You could try a touch up pen and real fine sand paper (like 2000?) fill in the scratches and sand carefully. That probably wont bring it back to 100% but it would be less noticeable.

[VYMAD]

A lot of them look too deep to polish out.

You could try a touch up pen and real fine sand paper (like 2000?) fill in the scratches and sand carefully. That probably wont bring it back to 100% but it would be less noticeable.

I have a couple of small scratches on one door, am going to do the touch-up/sand down thing. I've done a couple before, and I think there may be a How-to on here somewhere, op.

[tHe_sTiG]

Thanks for the tips. Would 600 sandpaper do? Its the finest available where I am. I'm also thinking of using some rubbing compound to blend in the touch up paint once its sanded down and level with the car's paint. Is that a good idea? What about using polishing compound to finish off the process? I've seen that on a couple of threads, but I'm not sure what the idea is behind that.

[Moey]

Have you had a quote to repair, might not be that bad if paying the Panel Shop by cash..

[tHe_sTiG]

Have you had a quote to repair, might not be that bad if paying the Panel Shop by cash..

I happened to pass once by these guys. ecowash mobile It just looked like any normal car wash to me, bit more upscale only. The site does state that they remove scratches, though if you look at No.11 in the FAQ, they refer to them as "feather-like" scratches... swirls or surface scratches I'm guessing?

I'm not all that sure, are you familiar with these guys? Do they know their stuff? I'll pass by them and get a quote to repair. There's no other place than this one in my part of Saudi Arabia. Guess I have nothing to lose if I try.

[jezz736]

Thanks for the tips. Would 600 sandpaper do? Its the finest available where I am. I'm also thinking of using some rubbing compound to blend in the touch up paint once its sanded down and level with the car's paint. Is that a good idea? What about using polishing compound to finish off the process? I've seen that on a couple of threads, but I'm not sure what the idea is behind that.

The idea behind polishing to finish the job (from what I've read) is to remove any marks left behind from the sandpaper. Don't know if hand polishing will do the job though, think u might need a Random Orbital polisher for this.

[2DIE]

Im 99% sure 600 would be too rough for a smooth finish, best to check with someone that has experience or check the forums as I have seen some kind of tutorial on here also.

If you have any hardware shops or panel repair shops ect if they don't have any fine sand paper in stock I'm sure they could order it in for you.

Sucks that this happened to your car, any idea who did it?

[tHe_sTiG]

Hi guys! Just went over to EcoWash today and had one of their guys look at the big scratch. He had a quick go at it, tried to polish it out with a rotary machine and some polish, didn't work. Though he was able to git rid of some of the smaller ones. Charged me nothing. He told me to come back tomorrow morning when the place wouldn't be so crowded, said he'll inspect the entire car for scratches and try to do something about the big one.

Hoping for the best! I was highly doubtful of even finding anyone here who knew how to use a rotary machine haha! Will let you guys know how it goes.

Sucks that this happened to your car, any idea who did it?

Hi mate, yeah I've got a pretty good idea of who did it, some group of Saudi troublemakers in the neighbourhood. Doesn't really make a difference though. There's no such thing as sueing people or the national guard for getting my car vandalised, this system doesn't exist here.

[RiCeY]

Touch up paint will never blend and may end up looking worse.

Dont try sanding either if youre inexperienced as again it could end up worse.

Any scratches deep enough to be felt with your fingernail running over it pretty much require sandback and respray.

[ScufVZwags]

Sorry to hear bout the scratches mate. Hope u manage to sort them out

[tHe_sTiG]

Just came back from EcoWash, nothing they could do. Went to another place, they said the scratches are too deep to polish out. Requires sanding back. They know of some guy who can do that, will go over to him sometime this evening or tomorrow. Just want to know, will sanding harm the clearcoat of the car? And what are the chances of it going successfully, considering the scratches I have?

[impulsive]

touch up guys or just get it fixed... bout $150 a panel at touch up guys

[too jazzy]

haha if they have touch up guys in saudi

[impulsive]

lol, maybe..

There should be no shortage of sand paper atleast. In all seriousness just get it fixed properly, dodgey touchups cost more in the long run

[simz1989]

touch up guys or just get it fixed... bout $150 a panel at touch up guys

I think hes telling you the "touch up guys" lol

[impulsive]

I think hes telling you the "touch up guys" lol

youve lost me

[tHe_sTiG]

What exactly do you mean by touch-up guys? Someone who can apply touch-up paint properly? I'm afraid that might make the scratches look worse though. Would sanding the globs of touch-up paint to level of car paint + polish solve the problem? What I also need to know is: Is this a temporary or permanant solution? Scratches will return after a few washes or that's the end of them?

[CapriciousWL]

Looked at the damage - definitely not nice.

On another note, why couldn't GMH move the handbrake when converting to LHD? Are all conversions like this?

[tHe_sTiG]

Looked at the damage - definitely not nice.

On another note, why couldn't GMH move the handbrake when converting to LHD? Are all conversions like this?

Hehe yep, handbrake's on the passenger side. Its a cost-cutting method I think, so they don't have to keep shifting the position of the handbrake for RHD and LHD cars. Same principle applies to the window switches. They're centered in both cars.

Guys, I'll see if the "touch-up sand down" can be done, or something similar, on the weekend though (Thurs and Fri here). In the meantime, if anyone can offer some ideas or suggestions, please do so.

Thanks for the help mates.

[EDGE3]

Fine sand it back to bare metal then prime it then sand it again then go get a can of matching colour coded paint and spray it let it dry then give it another spray wait a week then orbit polish the hell out of it

[tHe_sTiG]

Fine sand it back to bare metal then prime it then sand it again then go get a can of matching colour coded paint and spray it let it dry then give it another spray wait a week then orbit polish the hell out of it

Sounds a bit extreme... maybe as a last resort. Is it possible to add a clearcoat on top? Or that's only done during the production of the car? Don't want it to look horrible and oxidised after a couple of years.

[bigdaddycool]

You should look at a professional touch-up......... These guys do a great job.

Car Paint, Plastic Repairs by Superfinish Express Automotive Mobile Paint Franchise

[dobesz]

Not good they look a little deep to polish out. Why not get a quote and claim on insurance? Depends how much your exces is I guess!
Dog act tho

[tHe_sTiG]

You should look at a professional touch-up......... These guys do a great job.

Car Paint, Plastic Repairs by Superfinish Express Automotive Mobile Paint Franchise

I'm in Saudi Arabia unfortunately. However, on the bright side this makes me realise that the damage done can in fact be repaired. Just have to find the right guys to do it.