Paint polishing

Polishing is the most effective way to remove scratches, swirls, carwash marks and holograms from your paint. With professional Rupes polishers and the right compounds we restore the depth and shine of your paintwork — results you can never achieve with consumer products.

What polishing does (and doesn’t)

Polishing removes a thin layer of clear coat, levelling out shallow scratches and hairlines — your eye then sees a flat surface again instead of hundreds of micro-reflections. Deeper scratches that have cut through the colour layer need spot repair; polishing alone can’t fix those. During the inspection we tell you honestly what’s achievable.

Three levels

• One-step polish — for paint in good condition that just needs a gloss boost. Removes light oxidation and adds immediate colour depth. Included in every exterior package.
• Two-step polish — combines a cutting compound with a finer finishing polish. Removes wash marks, swirls, holograms and light scratching. Included in Premium and Deluxe.
• Three-step paint correction — our most complete treatment. Three passes with decreasing abrasiveness for deeper scratches, RDS (random deep scratches) and heavily weathered paint. Included in Deluxe.

Our process

1. Decontamination. Thorough hand wash, then a clay bar treatment to lift embedded iron particles (e.g. brake dust) and tree sap. Polishing dirty paint creates new scratches.
2. Inspection under LED. We use inspection lights to map every scratch, swirl and hologram before starting.
3. Test spot. We polish a small area to dial in the right pad-and-product combination. Every paint (BMW Mineral Grey ≠ Audi LY9B ≠ Tesla Pearl White) reacts differently.
4. Polishing per panel. Dual-action and rotary machines, controlled speed and pressure.
5. IPA wipe. We strip polish residue so the real result is visible — no fillers hiding anything.
6. Apply protection. Right after polishing the paint is most receptive to wax, sealant or a ceramic coating.

Who it’s for

• Owners of black or dark paint — that’s where swirls show most.
• Used cars with neglected or marked paintwork.
• Cars going up for sale or to a photo shoot — polished paint immediately lifts perceived value.
• Lease cars with handover damage you’d rather fix in-house than via the lease company.

How much paint comes off?

A professional polishing pass typically removes 2-5 micrometres of clear coat — negligible against a typical 100-150 µm paint thickness. We measure with a paint thickness gauge across multiple panels before committing to a three-step correction, so we never deplete the clear coat.

Pair with protection

After a two- or three-step correction a ceramic coating is the natural next step: otherwise the result slowly degrades back into oxidation and light marks. We recommend booking both in the same appointment.