When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
With Winter on the horizon I wanted to get my TLX all cleaned and sealed up and ready to face what's coming.
Mrs McNut was away for the weekend and the weather was nice so it was the perfect time to give the car the full clean/polish/seal treatment.
First step - get all the supplies ready to go!
I started Friday night with Chemical Bros Citrus Wash - a 1oz/gallon ratio to clean anything the dealer may have put on the paint during prep for me. I haven't done anything but wash it knowing I would be detailing it before Winter so there's no wax or sealant to clean off.
The paint passed the baggie test pretty well - so kudos to Acura for that! Nonetheless I did a quick pass with a clay bar just to make sure it's super clean and smooth.
All cleaned up and ready for the polishing to begin on Saturday!
Spent about 6 hours with the PC dual action buffer and Mequiars 205 polish. The truth is the paint is pretty much perfect before I start polishing and I could have skipped this step but I want to squeeze that last 10% of shine from the paint. Here's a reflection shot (from the garage so the lighting isn't great) after the polishing:
The next step is to put a coat of Blackfire Wet Diamond All Finish Paint Protection on. This stuff goes on very thin and it's hard to see the coverage on the white car so I applied it by hand. It goes on easy and comes off easy and the car almost shimmers now! Great reflection shot in the poor garage lighting:
I let the car sit overnight and Sunday morning put on a coat of Blackfire Crystal Seal. This stuff is super easy to apply - you just spritz a bit on the applicator and wipe it on. It's tricky as you don't need much and you can't see where you've applied it so you need to pay attention. It cures pretty fast though and after 4 hours I pulled the car out of the garage to take some final shots. It's still morning and there's not much light but you can get an idea of how slick and shiny the car is. I plan on taking some shots in the sun later today if time permits.
That's it! Probably a good 12 hours spent on it. My back was reminding me this morning that auto detailing is a young mans job for sure! Truth be told the car looked great before but it definitely looks even more great now and with a couple coats of sealant on it I should be in good shape for most of the Winter.
How did you find the clear? Is it soft, and does it allow for easy correction?
My dealership puts a resistall coating on all of their new sales for free. Normally I'd pass, but by the time my car arrives, I may not have the time, or temps to allow for a coating.
My wife's MDX was purchased 2 months ago, and it seems to be holding up so far, but it's black
I'll get them both through the winter with foam gun washes, and Aquawax after every wash, then in the Spring, I'll break out the Rupes, and then coat them both with Pinnacle black diamond coating.
How did you find the clear? Is it soft, and does it allow for easy correction?
My dealership puts a resistall coating on all of their new sales for free. Normally I'd pass, but by the time my car arrives, I may not have the time, or temps to allow for a coating.
My wife's MDX was purchased 2 months ago, and it seems to be holding up so far, but it's black
I'll get them both through the winter with foam gun washes, and Aquawax after every wash, then in the Spring, I'll break out the Rupes, and then coat them both with Pinnacle black diamond coating.
Thanks!
I only found a few light scratches on the hood and the M205 with a white pad didn't take them out after 5 or 6 section passes so I left them. I wasn't interested in doing any real correction and on the white car you have to look real close to even see them. I'm sure next fall I'll get to try out some orange pads after a year of driving it!
I only found a few light scratches on the hood and the M205 with a white pad didn't take them out after 5 or 6 section passes so I left them. I wasn't interested in doing any real correction and on the white car you have to look real close to even see them. I'm sure next fall I'll get to try out some orange pads after a year of driving it!
Sounds like hard paint
The upshot though is it should hopefully be harder to mar. Looking forward to a white car after having black, dark blue, and a host of other colors which were all very dark, and mirror like.
10-26-2014, 09:46 AM
