# Noobie needs a lot of advice regarding battered Insignia



## Goober (Nov 8, 2011)

My dad and I share a Carbon Black Insignia which has received numerous whacks as well as a fair amount of vandalism courtesy of the cretins that live in Maidstone.

The car comes from Motability which is a lease scheme for the disabled and as such they really dont care about repairing cosmetic damage which leaves up to me and my dad to sort. We really dont have a lot a money so getting it sorted professionally is out of the question. I've included a bunch of pictures below and i'm hoping someone might be able to advise us on how to repair the damage as best we can.

Now obviously we aren't expecting miracles since some of the damage is pretty bad, we just want to be able correct it as much as we can. We're looking in to getting a cheapo Silverline rotary since thats all we can afford but we have absolutely no idea what backing plate, pads and compounds to use with it. Naturally we will also be buying paint as well since a lot of the damage wont polish out.

Anyway, on with the horror show.

1. This was done by some local yobs and is located on the boot, just below the rear windscreen.










2. Front passenger side of the car. The wall won the fight.










3. More vandalism on the rear left passenger door.










And now the main event.....

4. Dad managed to somehow swing the car into a post of some kind in Tesco carpark. This is also on the rear left passenger door. The photo doesn't really show it but as well being badly scratched it is also dented a fair bit.










As I said earlier, we're both noobs and on a tight budget so we aren't looking to work miracles but if we can make any improvement then we'll be happy.

Thanks


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## Cthrower (Sep 19, 2011)

Some wet sanding and polishing would improve the scratches, and you could get a touch up kit from Pants4u for the more deeper marks that won't just sand/polish out.

In terms of pads & polishes, I've always used Chemical Guys hex logic pads, cutting, polishing and finishing, along with the 3M polishes and sometimes Sonus polishes.

I have a carbon black Astra, ans these products work wonderfully with my paint.


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## Goober (Nov 8, 2011)

Cthrower said:


> Some wet sanding and polishing would improve the scratches, and you could get a touch up kit from Pants4u for the more deeper marks that won't just sand/polish out.
> 
> In terms of pads & polishes, I've always used Chemical Guys hex logic pads, cutting, polishing and finishing, along with the 3M polishes and sometimes Sonus polishes.
> 
> I have a carbon black Astra, ans these products work wonderfully with my paint.


Thanks for that.

I dont suppose you'd be able to tell me exactly which Hex pads i should use and with which cutting and polishing compounds? I really dont know where to start


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## Cthrower (Sep 19, 2011)

No problem.

I use the following;
Hex Orange with either Sonus SFX-1 or 3M Fast Cut (For badly marked/swirled paint)
Hex White with Sonus SFX-2 or 3M Extra Fine compound
Hex Blue with Sonus SFX-3 or 3M Ultrafin

If you're going to wet sand any of the marks first, I'd start with a 2,000 grit followed by 2,500 and then 3,000. Then work up the pads and polishes, starting with Orange -> White -> Blue 

Note;
This may not be a "perfect" combination, or the "correct" method, but it's the process I use effectively many times.


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## Goober (Nov 8, 2011)

Thanks again.

I dont suppose any of the three polishing steps can be left out? I really need to try and keep the costs as low as possible.


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## lowejackson (Feb 23, 2006)

You could try Meguiars 105 & 205. I think you can buy these in small bottles if you wish to save more money. You will still need a collection of pads


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## Goober (Nov 8, 2011)

lowejackson said:


> You could try Meguiars 105 & 205. I think you can buy these in small bottles if you wish to save more money. You will still need a collection of pads


Thanks. Which two Hex pads would i use with Megs 105 and 205? Would it be the Orange and Blue?

If i were to buy the 30ml sample size bottles of 105 and 205 how far would they stretch? I dont even know if 30ml is enough for one panel or one whole car


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## lowejackson (Feb 23, 2006)

30ml should be enough for the entire car. I would also get a white hex pad in addition to the cutting and finishing pad


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## Goober (Nov 8, 2011)

lowejackson said:


> 30ml should be enough for the entire car. I would also get a white hex pad in addition to the cutting and finishing pad


Ok, last question then (i hope) if i get Megs 105 and 205 would the process be as follows;

Hex Orange with 105
Hex White with 205
Hex Blue with 205

Thanks again.


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## lowejackson (Feb 23, 2006)

Until you start polishing it would be really hard to know what pads are going to work with you paint. Your list could be spot on or it might be 105 on the white pad and then 205 on the finishing pad


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## Goober (Nov 8, 2011)

lowejackson said:


> Until you start polishing it would be really hard to know what pads are going to work with you paint. Your list could be spot on or it might be 105 on the white pad and then 205 on the finishing pad


Cthrower in post #2 has worked on the same paint with success with Hex pads and 3m or Sonus polish so maybe i should try and find some samples of them instead of megs.

Other than DW where would be a good place to enquire about how best to work on modern Vauxhall paint?


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## lowejackson (Feb 23, 2006)

3M, Sonus, Optimum (my favourite), Menz, Meguiars, Scholl etc will all do a great job. 

There might well be a Vauxhall forum which has a detailing section but I would be very surprised if you were to see very different type of recommendation

You could try asking in the polishing section of DW


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