What are swirl marks?
Swirl marks are bad because they are those fine scratches on car paint that you usually don’t notice until you get up close or light hits the surface of your car at the right angle. Swirl marks stand out the most on flat surfaces, such as the hood, roof, or trunk.
What causes swirl marks?
The most common cause of swirl marks is by usage of incorrect towels, sponges and/or washing procedures. At some express car wash you will see the car wash start wiping as soon as they start the job. And using a towel to dry your car after washing. It doesn’t take much to scratch the clear coat on a car. If the towel has dirt or dust on it, or is an old towel, you will create new swirls every time.
You can’t blame them, because with a price that low, those express car washes are not going to follow the correct washing process. Imagine going through a dozen towels per job, and spending hours on your car but only charging fifty bucks. Anyone can work out that is not going to cover their expenses. With rent, staff wages, water, electricity, insurance, equipment etc., the list goes on. Express car wash needs the volume, they do a lot of cars per hour as quickly as possible. That’s the difference between a car wash and a car detailer.
Don’t go to express car wash! It damages your car’s paint work
Virtually any kind of improper car washing or drying tools and techniques can create the microscopic scratches that show up as swirls.
- Using harsh paint cleaners or polishing compounds
- Using a dirty chamois or towels and applicators containing polyester threads
- Wiping dirt or dust off your car with a dry towel
- Using a dirty car duster
- Not rinsing your sponge often enough when washing
- Driving through an automated car wash that uses brushes and other wipers
- Failure to rinse your car completely before washing
- Not thoroughly washing your car before drying
- Placing a dirty cover over your car
Why is swirl marks bad?
Swirl marks make the paintwork look duller. The reason comes down to each individual scratch making up the swirl marks. These scratches actually refract the light hitting the surface of the paint. When light normally hits a flat and unscratched surface, the light reflects directly to your eye. We called this type of surface ‘Glossy,’ therefore the flatter and more perfect a surface is the glossier it looks to our eyes.
Swirl marks make you car looks old and cheap.
When a surface has imperfections and begins developing swirl marks, the surface begins to refract the light and the surface appears dull. The surface of the paintwork will become less glossy. Making your car look old and the paint look dull.
How can I avoid swirl marks?
Everything in life is a choice, your car ends up with swirl marks because you choose to go to express car wash. It may appear to be cheaper at the time, but in the long run it’s going to cost you a lot more. When you sell your vehicle, if it looks dull and old, what do you think is going to happen to the resell value? Especially when you sell to a dealer, professionals can easily tell if you’ve looked after your car or not.
Make the correct choice now and book with us (https://wewashem.com.au/booking). It actually doesn’t cost much if you do a regular Deluxe wash. It’ll certainly cost less than doing a paint correction to remove the swirl marks.
Wake Up! When you pay $20 you’re only gonna get $20 worth of work.
