Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

[brekfustuvluzerz]

Hi, this is my first post here but I have been lurking around and see that there are a lot of knowledgeable and helpful members so I decided to reach out for help. I have an 02 Jeep Wrangler with a severely neglected exterior and hope to restore it as much as possible. I left mud on it for a month and when I finally washed it I saw that some residue from the mud had soaked into the paint and it now looks horrible! Serves me right I guess! Anyway, here's the damage:









So what process and products will I need to start with? Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

[Murr1525]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

Hmm...

The gray spot in the top pic, lower right, is just mud also , not paint failing?

I get the feeling you may need to wash, then give it a quick going over with some Ult. Compound to get some dirt off, then clay it, then give it a better going over with the Ult. Compound. You could wax after, or Ult. Polish then wax. I think the clay would load up to fast if you just clayed first.

Maybe if you bought one of the clay towels, you could get away with claying first, and rinsing the towel off often. But they are a little pricier...

[1994Gen1L]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

I would definitely hit it with a coat of Polish before a coat of wax, need to rejuvenate the dry paint with some essential oils. Make sure you post some after pics.

[Detailing by M]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

clay it then polish with 205 on a yellow pad and a Dual Action Polisher.
105 on a marron pad if 205 doesn't remove the stains.

I wouldn't do this by hand but you can, but with a DAP you would be done in hours rather then days and the results would be better.

[Soarer5]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

Do you have any polish or compound that you can do a small test spot by hand? We need to see if that is failing clear coat (grey spot bottom right)in the first pic and if it removes anything in pic #2. If nothing changes, your clear coat is most like etched and may need professional work by machine. If it can't be repaired, you would need a repaint.

[brekfustuvluzerz]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

Thanks for the replies! I've got a good idea where to start now. As for the grey smudge in the first pic, I have no idea what that is. It wasn't there before the mud. It only appeared after I washed it off. I do have a cheap random orbital buffer I can use, but I'm not sure how to use it. Can anyone tell me what product to use with it and what kind of pad(s) to use?

[brekfustuvluzerz]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

clay it then polish with 205 on a yellow pad and a Dual Action Polisher.
105 on a marron pad if 205 doesn't remove the stains.

I wouldn't do this by hand but you can, but with a DAP you would be done in hours rather then days and the results would be better.

Oops, just saw this. So what would be the process for using the buffer?

[Detailing by M]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

you have a two handled random orbital polisher (wax applicator)
that isn't the tool for this job.
that mech won't let you apply the correct amount of pressure with a compound to correct your problem.
go get some Ultimate Compound at your local Auto Parts Store/walmert and do this by hand. It should come off with a little pressure & elbow grease.

[Murr1525]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

Pretty much the same product by hand or machine.

So you can do a test area/panel easily enough by hand, and judge from there how it turns out.

[brekfustuvluzerz]

Re: Complete noob needs help restoring paint on jeep

you have a two handled random orbital polisher (wax applicator)
that isn't the tool for this job.
that mech won't let you apply the correct amount of pressure with a compound to correct your problem.
go get some Ultimate Compound at your local Auto Parts Store/walmert and do this by hand. It should come off with a little pressure & elbow grease.

Correct! Ok, I'll give it a go by hand.