I'm relaxed, just mystified. How would you like it if someone infers that they know you better than yourself?

I do all those methods you described, i.e., closing the door using the plastic trim, etc. But I recall many times after the car has been freshly washed and seeing a little spec of something on my black paint and rubbing it a bit with my finger and then seeing noticeable little scratches where I just rubbed. Now I either don't try and rub off specs of dirt or I use a very wet paper towel.

 

Again I never directed those commets at you. They were general statements that let people know that swirls are preventable. Rubbing a tiny spec of dirt with your finger will cause it to swirl as will using a paper towel. Paper towels are very abrasive even when drenched. I suggest picking up some quick detailer spray and good quality microfiber towels. They'll remove light dust and dirt without swirling or scratching the paint

 

Can you direct me to a website that states the proper way to wash a car and what to use?

I always wash with a fluffy white thing, 1 bucket of soap/water for tires and another for the car & dry it with a red clothe thing that absorbs water

 

Autogeek has very good articles. Car Wash Guide, Car Wash how to - easy steps to shampoo and dry your vehicle using paint-safe mitts and towels, plus sponges, the Grit Guard and

By only using 1 bucket you are taking all the dirt and grime you took off your car and putting it into that same bucket with the soapy solution. When you dip the mitt back in that bucket you pick up all that dirt and rub it all over your vehicle essentially scratching it. Take a look at all their other articles, all very good info.

 

FYI, I just made a post on my blog about thin paint; it's not just Hondas!

Feel free to chime in.

Subcompact Culture: Paint Complains: Has automotive paint gone down in quality?

 

Wait, Im confused...

Do you have 50 buckets lined up, 1 for each dip of your mitt?!

 

No all you need is 2. One with plain clean water and a grit guard and one with soap. You shouldn't need to redip the mitt more than 4 or 5 times assuming you have a good quality mitt and soap. After each panel dip the mitt into the water and drag it across the grit guard. The dirt particles will sink to the bottom and the grit guard will prevent them from rising up when you swish around the mitt. After that rinse it out really good to where its almost dry and then get your soap. You'll notice how dirty the water bucket gets. I also use a leaf blower to dry that way I have no contact with the paint and prevent waterspots from the drippings from the side mirrors and handles. Water just flies off when you have a good quality wax on there.

 

Gotcha

Where do you get those buckets with the grip guard? I've looked before in auto stores but with no luck.

 

The grit guard is an insert that sits at the bottom of the bucket and that same site that I linked you to sells them. AutoGeek.com Automotive Super Site

Also all you need is a 5 gallon bucket. I made the mistake of getting 5 gallon buckets from walmart which for some reason are a bit narrower and my grit guard didn't fit in them. I recommend getting the ones from home depot. Feel free to PM me with any questions, don't wanna threadjack too much lol

 

Do you have some personal experience with this you want to share? Can't say I've seen complaints with recent products like you've mentioned, especially having to paint a car because they couldn't get the cover tape off. I saw mostly very positive feedback across many, many message boards. I'll be interested in your direct experience with this.

 

I've had my 09 TW Fit for JUST over 24hours. less than 100 miles so far. My friend wanted to check out the magic seats so he folds them down and proceeds to lay down flat in the back. As he's getting out, he somehow managed to chip the paint off the rear bumper. Its about 1.5 inches in length. This SUCKS.

 

yup. do not let men touch your car unless they own a fit also.

a friend looked under my hood. I had to close the radiator cap, oil cap, airfilter after him. He also manged to snap off the clip for the air filter (which is easy to do). And he thought, he was doing me a favor...

 

Damn, if true, this is VERY disappointing. My only previous new cars have been Dodges, and, say what you want, both my Neons ('96 and '02) had excellent quality paint. My '02 had only ONE stone chip on the hood after 110,000 miles.

That said, the WORST new car paint I ever endountered was on my '92 Electric Blue Dodge Shadow ES. All you had to do was LOOK at the paint and it would chip down to the primer. I sold the car when it was four years old, and when I saw it a year later, the paint was PEELING off the car in sheets!

So far the paint on my Fit is better than that (knock wood), but it is very soft and scratch prone. Fortunately, this means that scratches buff out easily (and I have a lot of experience with this).

Are some colors more prone to chipping than others? In my admittedly limited experience, I've seen more chipping with bright blues, for example. So much so that I refuse to buy a blue car even though it's my favorite color. Maybe we need to collect some data of paint adhesion versus color.

 

Unless the car is brand new, EVERY car has swirls. You can minimize and try to hide swirls but when the sun hits it, you can see them.

This is a fact.

 

i got a black 09 fit s and the paint sucks. for dust i use the as seen on tv brush that u can buy anywhere. it does a good job no swirls takes off dust and leaves a shiny finish. as of the paint chips on the front bumper and hood and side mirrors i just learned about something called the clear bra. its 3mm thickness and protects your car from paint chips. my buddy did it 3 weeks ago and it works. the best car is it isn't visible looking at it. going to be doing it here in the next week

 

I have never had this product simply because of my previous post. One of my friends bought one and that is what happen to his and I saw others that have done the same. Now, this was 20 years ago. Maybe the technology for this product has gotten better??

 

3 words... touch up paint!

 

Touch up paint works, but have to do it everyday if your car is a daily driver

 

? where do you live in the mountains?

 

I live in the bay area. Drive 140 miles a day in the fit. Freeways have loose gravel all over and semis all over the place. Front of my car looks like crap after 1 month of owning.