Original vs. shop paint quality?
At the beginning it was perfect: exactly the same color, same shine.
Now it begins to tarnish (!) No matter what I do (polish, wax) it shines only for a little while (1-2 weeks). Then it becomes matt again.
The surface is very easy to scratch and I can leave marks with my fingernails (!!!)
The original paint is still the same: nice and shiny.
Is the original paint much better than what a body shop uses or I just choosed the wrong shop?
The car is bright red (if it matters) and is parked outside all the year long.
Same with clears. UV protection, long term stability, etc - are dependent on the chemicals used.
And red is perhaps one of the worst long-term stability paints out there. My wife's old red car wouldn't stay shiny worth a darn. I could get it well waxed and shiny, but a few weeks later... it'd be dull and weathered looking again. Only long term solution is a repaint.
Is there a way to say how long it will last wen I get it repainted?
Is there a guarantee?
Is there a test?
Is there a particular specification?
Is there a way to protect it?
...or it's just a matter of finding a honest shop? (pretty difficult.. yeah).
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However... to go back after 4 years and complain... hopeless!
Is there something I can do to save the situation? Or just wait until it's completely fu*** and repaint it?
Does it matter if the hood is fiberglass? (from suncoastcreations)
Pheonix is correct, sounds like they didnt put enough harnder in the paint it should get rock hard. This is also a problem because its not fully cured, and when you go to paint again, you will have lifting in what ever you put on, the whole hood will need to be sanded back down because you cannot put new paint over uncured paint
If I go with some kind of polishing product on the top (like Turtle stuff) the cloth turns to red

On the bottom (engine side) the cloth doesn't pick up the color.
Should they add some UV filter? The temperature is not a problem for sure (headers, supercharger...). Is it possible that this paint has just been ruined by the sunrays?
The color becomes soft only when the car has been in the sun for a while (high temperature). When it's cold it's pretty "hard". The underside is always "rock hard", no matter how hot it is.
Yeah I dunno how an experienced painter could miss that...but you never know.
Maybe they ran out of clear after painting the bottom
repaint...

