Golf GTI Mk2 - Paintwork Advice

[shiftydave]

Hi All,

I've posted this on Detailing World but thought I'd put a post up here as well. I've recently picked up a Golf GTI Mk2 and could do with a little advice please on how best to restore the paint. At some point in the car's life it has had a fairly shocking respray and is suffering from two main things:

- Orange peel on the roof and a few other small, localised areas.
- Flat (almost matt) paint on the bonnet that looks like it's been painted badly, not had any protective lacquer (assuming this should have been applied) and attacked by sap / bird turd.

Pictures of the offending areas:







I would obviously give the car a proper wash and clay but the next steps I'm unsure on, so I guess my main questions are:

- Would a wet sanding by hand be the best bet for the orange peel? I've found a few decent guides on here and elsewhere. I would plan on then giving a further polish with a DAS-6 Pro, Hex orange and white pads and Meguiars 105 and 205 (this kit http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/index....productId=1...
- After wet and dry / polish, what's the best approach for longer term protection? I'm unsure of what clear coat might be there already and what could potentially be needed afterwards?
- Is a wet sanding a good bet for the bonnet as well, or perhaps another approach? If a wet sanding is recommend then the above questions would apply again, especially a clear coat/lacquer. I am conscious that potentially a respray might be needed, but I'm trying to keep costs to a minimum.

Ultimately I'm not expecting the paintwork to be perfect, and in fact I'd rather not have a resprayed bonnet to be perfect as it would make the rest of the car look even worse! Just looking to bring the overall standard up, bring back some shine and get the black looking blacker. I'm even tempted to do a rattle can respray on the bonnet, but I know that can provoke extreme opinions from people...

Many thanks in advance!

[ch427]

Im no bodywork expert but i would try a cutting compound first, something from 3M would be worth looking at as they seem the bodyshops compound of choice.

[ukkid35]

shiftydave said:

Hi All,

I've posted this on Detailing World but thought I'd put a post up here as well.

So did I, and the response was disappointing - basically I was told to go to a local bodyshop. I'm hoping we will learn much more from fellow PHers.

[shiftydave]

Thanks for the replies here. The 3M cutting compound may well do the job. Seems a little pricey and doing a bit more reading up people seem to recommend starting with a fine polish and then getting more aggressive if that doesn't cut it (excuse the pun!).

People on DW were a little slow to reply but have come good with a bit of info so let's not start a PH vs DW war just yet!