Hi Ashcurzie... how many miles does your car have on it? I fear stone chips are just a fact of modern motoring since all manufacturers moved over to water-based paints (thank you EU rule makers) which are nowhere near as durable as the previous two-pack paints. Adding to the problem are the fact that the paint coat is thinner (less paint = less weight, I was told) and that the primer / undercoat is commonly white. I have a dark blue Mazda 6 and my trusty Mk5, the difference is stark. The Golf has over 100,000 miles more on it than the Mazda, but looking at the bonnet you would guess it was the other way round. Yes, the VW has chips, but far fewer have penetrated to any degree. The Mazda even has a couple of chips on the roof !
You could try a coloured wax. I tried one from Halfords - I think it was Turtlewax - but with limited success. This may be what your car was treated with, or something similar.
In the end, I suspect only proper way to do it is with a touch-in kit from VW, they are cheap enough, just a few quid. BUT - and this is important - don't use the touch-in brush as supplied, you will likely make a mess and your car will look worse than when you started.
I was shown a trick by a bloke who does it for a living, it works a treat but you need to take your time. First, shake the paint for a good three or four minutes. You will need to get in close (I use a pair of cheapex +4.5 reading glasses from Aldi). Remove any wax or polish in the chip, I use alcohol and a cocktail stick. Obviously you need a dry day, good light but not hot and sunny. For a first attempt find a chip somewhere less obvious.
This is the trick; tear the corner off a sheet of kitchen roll, twist it into a point, and then use that to apply TINY dots of paint. Work round the edges of the chip first as you fill it in. Resist the temptation to use big blobs. The aim is not to go above the level of the surrounding paint. You may have to do it three or four times, with 15 minutes between, but with care and practice you can hide the chips very well. It's a bit of a ritual with me now... wash the car, dry it off and spend ten minutes going round with the touch-in.
I hope this helps... good luck! Of course you can always get the Chips Away man in...
