So, this is my second celica. The previous owner did not take care of it, at all. The paint is faded, oxidized, stained-like.. completely messed up. Waxing doesn't help. I don't know, I did a search. Wasn't too much to work with. Clay bar? Wet sanding? Give me an idea. I do not have enough money to get it repainted.

I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves. It's depressing.









Any tips would be appreciated.

claybar would remove most/all the stains but the fading and oxidation is a diff story.

i wold recomend giving it a light wet snd and buff it will help with the stains the same as a clay bar but for the oxidation I would go get a spray bomb of the color (in acrylic urathane(sp)) and do some touch up painting. A spray bomb should only cost $16 u may need two but im thinking one. After you touch up spray do another light wet sand and buff

What is a spray bomb?

You'll need a professional detail if you ask me.

For all the chips in the nose, check out touchup123.com. The vette' guys turned me on to this and I've seen results that show it works really well.

The oxidation..........that looks pretty bad. It's most likely going to need a good sanding and repaint.

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I have had very good results with Nu Finish car polish for oxidation. Nu Finish

How to remove oxidation
Overview
Apply Nu Finish as you would for car wax.
Materials:
1. Nu Finish
2. One large towel cut into several pieces (8 x 10 inches).
3. Extra paper towels (optional)
Procedure
1. Wash and dry car.
2. The company says you don't have to rub. That's not completely true.
3. I typically apply and remove the oxidation in stages. Two or three stages has worked for me.
4. Rub the paste or liquid with the towel concentrating on one area at a time.
5. Discard the towels when they have a slight film.
6. Allow the Nu Finish to “haze”.
7. Wipe the haze with a very clean towel.
8. Repeat steps 4 through 8 if necessary.
It does seem to work really well on oxidized paint. I recommend trying it.

All the best
Yellow94GT

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ya im curious to know too

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spray bomb = canadian rattle can. curious though coming from our resident paint goddess from Pennsylvania
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these can be made at bodyshops or automotive paint stores. they can even match the colour perfectly if they have a "colour-eye" system. this compensates for fading and/or oxydation so clean your car thoroughly before getting a match...is that close to a resonable explanation Xtina?

miguires scratch-x and a buffer would bring it back to life.

if you wanna bring some shine back..but not to much work and not to much effort...a good rubbing compound. It will bring some of the colour back..but not fix it totaly. I had some dumba$$ rub his bumper against the side of my car at a drive in just after i got it..and my paint looked like that. So, i used some of that..and it came out pretty decent. Just dont use too much.

whatever you use (wet sand / scratch x / polish / rubbing compound etc.) just go really careful not to take too much off as I have previously rubbed through the laquer on my rear wing with car polish and about 50 washes/polishes. ( I now use wax rather than polish btw)

Just a good polish (or the scratch x) should get rid of most of the staining, but you'll need to touch up / respray to get rid of all the stone chips.

Mine is starting to get like that too.

Good luck doll.

D

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if u do decide to wet sand make sure u get some 1600 grit ....and go slow because if u crack that clear coat u will be down to bare paint which wont last so long..... good luck