Cut + polish
Paint correction, cut and polished in two steps
Swirls, haze and oxidation come out of the clear coat with a cutting compound and then a finishing polish, after the paint has been inspected under special light and measured.
Chapter 01
Swirls, haze and oxidation: what the machine is removing
Swirls are fine scratches in the clear coat, most often put there by dirty wash mitts, automatic car wash brushes or the wrong drying towel. Under direct light they show up as circles and spider webs. Haze is a dulling of the surface that makes the colour look flat, and oxidation is paint breaking down after years of sun, road salt and winter grit, so it looks chalky instead of deep.
Before any compound touches the vehicle, the paint is inspected under special light, because ordinary daylight hides most of this damage. A paint thickness check comes next. Polishing removes a thin layer of clear coat, so the reading shows how much can be taken safely and where to go lighter, on edges and on any panel that has been repainted before.
That inspection is also the honest answer to what correction can and can't do. A scratch that has gone right through the clear coat can be softened but not erased, and you hear that before the machine starts, not after. For a vehicle that only needs a lift in gloss, the lighter Polish & Protect package in exterior detailing may be the better fit.
Front of a 1963 Ford Galaxie with its chrome grille and bumper, parked in a garage
2-Step Correct: cutting compound first, then polish
The 2-Step Correct package is Polish & Protect plus a two-stage correction. Step 1 uses a cutting compound to level the swirls and haze out of the surface. Step 2 is a polish that refines the finish back to gloss. It starts from $699 in CAD, with price scaling by vehicle size, and the booking page lists it at about 7 hours.
Their FAQ puts paint correction at 2 to 5 hours, and both numbers are true. The correction work itself, the cut and the polish, runs 2 to 5 hours depending on the paint. The full 2-Step Correct package is booked as a 7 hour job because the wash, decontamination and Polish & Protect work sit on either side of it.
Ceramic coating can be added once the paint is corrected, which is the order that makes sense: a coating locks in whatever finish is under it. The three coatings, from 3 to 8 years, are laid out on the ceramic coating page, and the quote form there asks how much correction the paint needs.
Chapter 03
A garage or enclosed space, water, and a deposit
Polishing and coating need a controlled space, so paint correction asks for a garage or other enclosed space, plus access to water. It is not a job for an open driveway on a windy day. You don't need to be home while the work is done, as long as the team has access to the vehicle.
A deposit is taken at booking for paint correction, because the job holds a long block of the day. It is non-refundable, but it transfers to a rescheduled appointment when you give advance notice. The balance is paid when the work is finished, by cash, credit or debit card, or e-Transfer.
Urban Auto Detail comes to High River, Okotoks, Diamond Valley, Nanton, South Calgary and the Foothills, and there's no travel fee, though locations further out need a minimum service package to cover the trip. The service area page has the detail, and the FAQ covers scheduling and payment.
“The quality of the workmanship was excellent for the price point charged.” Gavin Melder, Google review