Porsche clearcoat

F

fredbear

New member
All,

New to the forum, great info and a lot of passionate people. I have a fairly new porsche and it has acid rain damage. Paint is seriously etched and has never been polished. I bought a PC and went to work with optimum compound and an orange pad. After I got the hang of it I finally started to see the clear coat start to cut down. The shine is great but now it shows the blemishes even more. Here is my problem I have taken it down a little and seen a big improvement but still have etching. I want to go more but am worried about going through the clear coat. I don't have a thickness meter... Any suggestions or experience?
 
Using the PC, you run little risk of going through the clear. You could be spending a lot of time trying to level the paint with the PC. Etching can be very difficult to remove even with a rotary. It really all depends on how deep the etching is. When in doubt find a qualified professional solve the problem.
 
I would do just what BRWILL2005 said. Take it to a body shop (several really) or one your dealer uses.



Take it from another 997 C2S owner of a black finish and detailer, you need someone who can check the etching correctly. Don't try this on your own.



Porsche paint 2005+ is very soft. Not that a PC will do much to it in terms of damage, it's just more difficult to keep it free of marring. A PC will take care of the marring very well on this type of paint with the right pad and polish.



Once corrected, find ways to keep it clean and treated with a good wax or sealant of your choice.



Regards,

Deanski
 
brwill and deanski,

I will heed your advice. Off to the dealer to see what they recommend and also will get in contact with a local detailing expert.



Thanks Shellshocked
 
Fredbear--A good friend of mine bought a Cayman S (black) during the summer. I noticed that the dealer did a poor job of prepping the car, and so, I offered to help out. Hearing that current Porsche paint was on the softer side, I tried my best with a PC, and Optimum polishes. I took care of the dealer issues, but saw etching that was beyond my equipment/expertise.



The Cayman looked much better, and my friend was happy, but I was ticked that I couldn't do more. I'm thinking about getting a Flex in the spring, and trying Menzerna polishes.



So, I kind of understand your dilemma. The dealer may or may not be able to help out. A quality detailer (like many found here) may be of more help.



Deanski has been around Dr. Porsche's cars way more than I, and I'm sure his advice is on the nose.



Yes, I get to drive my friend's Cayman, and I see why you like to drive it. It's a blast, and it does really well for those of us who don't have race-car reflexes
 
fredbear said:
Deanski I have a Cayman S in meteor gray. I smile everytime I drive it.
Click to expand...



NICE!:woot2:



Where I am, I have access to one of the best Porsche racing team and Porsche modifications. That would be FarnbacherLoles who I'm sure you may know, makes a Cayman GTR which has a 997 X51 engine, Cross coilovers, PCCB's, new seats, safety harness and bars, new exhaust. It's one sick car, and having the advantage of mid engine, it's a track killer!



I love the new Meteor Grey color! I'm sure there are many smiles and I hope you are driving her as often as possible.



As for the etching, this could be corrected if it's not too bad or deep.



Hope you're a PCA member as well. And if you haven't been over at Rennlist, it's the place to P car owners. Renntech is another.



Regards,

Deanski
 
I'm in Atlanta and there appear to be a couple of highly respected pro detailer here. I will start with the dealer and see what they say but I don't have high hopes for that path. After looking at the etching closely last night, I think a good detailer could take care of it.



Deanski - I think Santa is bringing me a PCA membership! I have spent some time on Rennlist, yes a lot of great info. If I lived near FarnbacherLoles I would be divorced from spending all my money on mods!
 
Hey Deanski, I also have a black C2S and was wondering exactly what pads and polisher you use? Do you use a rotary or pc? I have a pc and tried menzerna FP with a white LC pad. It didn't much, I've sinced purchased Menzerna 106ff with orange and green pads. I haven't used these yet though.
 
jw said:
Hey Deanski, I also have a black C2S and was wondering exactly what pads and polisher you use? Do you use a rotary or pc? I have a pc and tried menzerna FP with a white LC pad. It didn't much, I've sinced purchased Menzerna 106ff with orange and green pads. I haven't used these yet though.
Click to expand...



I use a rotary and white polish pads for most work.



BUT: With a PC, which will not do much cutting at all, you need to use the orange pad and depending on the defects, a good polish. Since the finish is soft, 106FF should do quite well.



You just have to do small areas at a time with the PC and orange pad, crank up the PC high and get 106FF to dust (which it sure as hell will) which breaks down the polish from cutting to polishing. If you get a slight haze, switch to the white polish pad. You could switch back to FP, let that break down. Sometimes, a small spritz of distilled water as it gets close to breaking down will extend it a bit longer so it can finish with a very high gloss.



The PC takes longer due to the action. A rotary will take a whole lot shorter time, but risky if you've never used one, let alone on a Porsche.



If you still have issues, you may have to get a bit more cutting polish, but 106FF with normal swirls with an orange pad and on Porsche paint will do the job. Paint is soft anyway, so correction is easier than other clearcoat.



If you have any further issue, let me know, I'm here to help!



See you over at RENNLIST!!:nana:



Regards,

Deanski
 
fredbear said:
Deanski - If I lived near FarnbacherLoles I would be divorced from spending all my money on mods!
Click to expand...



You got that right!! :grinno: Looking at the PSS9 Damptronic coilovers which are PASM compatable. As well as other more interior/exterior mods as well.



You can blow a crap load of cash there! That Cayman GTR is sooo sick. Never seen one that can hold onto the track like it was on rails and still drive well on the street. If I knew they were doing this car before I got the C2S, I'd be one happy camper and still have a few $$ leftover.



They also make a GT3"S" which is another track killing car. Sure helps when you back the top GT2 winners (Brice and Miller).



I may be divorced, but I'd have one killer car to drive..:D And isn't that ALL we want anyway?:p



Deanski
 
My Cayman S will arrive in February. I have not worked with Porsche paint but from the post's above it sounds like it is soft.



The dealer is not going to prep the paint prior to delivery. I plan on polishing it with 106FF using a white or blue pad then applying Klasse AIO followed by P21S. Does that sound like a good plan? BTW it is Speed Yellow. Thanks.
 
HansB said:
My Cayman S will arrive in February. I have not worked with Porsche paint but from the post's above it sounds like it is soft.



The dealer is not going to prep the paint prior to delivery. I plan on polishing it with 106FF using a white or blue pad then applying Klasse AIO followed by P21S. Does that sound like a good plan? BTW it is Speed Yellow. Thanks.
Click to expand...



Speed Yellow was my second choice. It should be one good looking Cayman S as I do not see too many in SY!!:bigups



You should be fine with your prep. Just clay it after washing. There may be some adhesives left over from the wrap when shipping. Yes, the paint is soft. Since it's new, try a soft pad first, or switch to a finish polish. The go up to the white if needed.



Give the AIO time to cure before applying the wax topcoat. Otherwise you may end up with a mess as waxes have solvents to help flow the wax.

Once done, it should look stunning!!:xyxthumbs



I'd invest in some paint protection film as well. I did my C2S and glad as all hell I did!



When you get it, post some pics!!!!:drool:



Regards,

Deanski
 
The wait is always the worst. Seems to take forever. I also tracked my car by ship until it arrived in port. Then dealer expidited pick-up.



Regards,

Deanski
 
I took the car to the dealer today and their detailer looked at it. He said he would not want to work on it. He said that he could polish it and it would help but that to do it right it needed to be wet sanded. He said they see it alot and even showed me his car (a caddy) that he had wet sanded to fix the same problem. They pointed me to a body shop (Ken's) that they use for acid rain repair. I talked to the body shop owner and he said the only real way to tackle it was to wet sand it as buffing just polishes the bottom of the pit. Not exactly what I want to hear with a new car but at least the dealer is standing behind the car.
 
You said you are in Atlanta - I would private message "gmblack3a". He is also in your area, and if he can't fix it, no one can. Search the click and brag section - he has done at least 1 Porsche that I can think of.
 
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