When I took delivery of my car, I pointed out that there was a dent on the front lower part of the bumper.

The dealership sent the car to a shop to get repaired. The body shop was supposed to repair and repaint.

The panel looks straight now, but there are hella swirl marks in the paint on that panel.

Should I take it back to them to screw up again?

Should I try to buff it out myself? Could the swirl marks be beneath the clear coat? Or does the clear coat pretty much mitigate any swirl marks that might be on the underlying color-coat?

thanks!

EDIT: Thought that I'd point out that I am willing to buy a PC OB and all the pads, etc to do this right. I just don't know what to do. Should I raise hell at teh dealer or will they just screw things up more? The car has hella swirls all over it from crappy car-lot washings so the whole car needs a good buffing.

 

The swirl marks are most likely not underneath the clearcoat. Wait 30 days (for the paint to cure) then try and buff it out yourself. The body shop probably rushed through the polishing and left a swirl.

 

+1

 

+1. Wait wait wait. Give the paint time to cure. I recommend hand polish. A random orbital buffer is a great tool in the hands of an EXPERIENCED detailer.

 

It takes lot more than 30 days for paint to cure. Car paint (especially now-adays) is curing 6 months after it has been sprayed. But, you can buff a car right after it has been painted without any problems, just make sure you DO NOT wax it with a non-breathable wax, otherwise the paint will never cure underneath. Just to be safe though I'd wait a couple weeks and then see what a buffer will do, and if that doesn't work then you could always wetsand a little bit. 99% of the time marks like that are on top of the clear and not underneath, so I think you're safe.

 

Thanks for the replies. I'll DIY it and definitely wait a while to touch the bumper.

I am not an experienced detailer, but I am very handy, patient, extremely detail-oriented and thorough; borderline OCD, and usually do well at anything I try (except bowling ).

I'll try the PC ROB and some good swirl remover to go with it on the rest of the car and do the front bumper after it cures.

I used to detail my old M3 with a craftsman ROB and never had any trouble. But that BMW paint is far superior to the **** Nissan uses. I am just apprehensive about doing anything to the Nissan paint.