I was reading all these guides and i got even more confused.

I just got my CPO 09 TL SH-AWD Tech, and i was waiting for a week of clear skies to wash my car. I did a bit of research, and i decided to go with Meguiars Paint restoration kit. i know i know, i dont need to restore the paint on a car this early, the compound solution wouldnt help. i was gonna use it for another car were trying to sell.

the kit comes with: Shampoo, 25g Clay Bar, quick detailer, clear coat safe ultimate compound, Carnauba plus wax applicators and microfiber towels.

from what ive been reading i was gonna do this.

2 bucket wash system, with a grit gaurd.
100% cotton sheepskin mit

wash, clay, wash, wax^n

but then i got to thinking that i needed to use a sealant or even a polish after claying. thats where i got confused. do i: wash, clay, wash, polish, sealant, wax^n or what? im gonna be using applicator pads to do the work, dont have the orbital tools. and then i read about a glaze, fml. i never thought it could get so complicated. i used to just wash my car or get it washed at the local carwash, but then i saw all the horror stories and said f that, imma do this myself from now on. just dont wanna end up doing the same damage to my car that they were doing.

i would like a "shiny" finish, and i realize that it'll take time, minimum of 3 hours is what im giving myself.

if someone can just tell me in my stupid (wash, clay, wash,....etc) style that would help. and if they could recommend a polish or sealant aswell that would be great. probably gonna need more clay bars aswell, but we'll see.

thanks in advance

 

btw, its Polish Metal Metallic.... if that makes a difference.

 

If your not correcting no need to polish and a sealant is better than a wax, both do the same job. Go to Car Quest and ask for Duragloss #105. Apply very thin.

Your steps will be wash, clay, 50/50 wipe and then the sealant.

And to dry get a couple Waffle Weave Drying Towels.

If you want to do it right then do it right ...but it will cost a couple $$ to start.

 

its never to early to correct paint on a car.
cars come marred and swirled from the dealer.

Listen to Jesstzn, as he's been in the game for a while

 

Thing id he doesn't have a "proper" buffer and by hand its a waste of time.

 

I was generalizing.

as you covered everything already!

 

personally, if i am claying, i am correcting....i wouldnt clay without machine polishing, claying will induce marring....i dont care how gentle you or the clay is....

 

thanks, im looking for stores that sell the duragloss 105, watching youtube videos of how to do it, and reading the companies recommendations. so from my understanding of what you guys said along with what i read online:

wash,clay,50/50, duragloss, sealant .... or is the duragloss a sealant aswell? thats the impression im getting.

also read that the duragloss should be used with a Polish Bonding Agent

http://www.autogeek.net/duragloss-to...ce-polish.html

it'll be my first time "detailing" a car, and i dont wanna use a orbital unless i got someone whose done it a few times watching over me.

 

BTW I have clayed a lot of cars without marring .. especially newrer ones .. just don't rub hard .. it will be minimal of any.

 

if you're marring your paint with the clay bar...you're not doing it right.

i clay barred my car for years before i actually invested in a PC. before i corrected my paint this winter, my car had ZERO swirls from all the years i've washed/detailed the car. i had some fine random scratches in places most likely from me removing snow off my car over the winters. otherwise, my TL was pretty clean.

 

i'll find everything i need and probably do it this weekend. raining all week here in NJ.

i'll post pics of before an after once i get a chance.

 

When you have some time read this. You will learn everything you need to know and then some!

http://www.detailedimage.com/wax.php...-pearl-part-1/

Btw, when did sheep start growing cotton?........

 

after reading that article i feel incompetent in my abilities to clean my car. im gonna see if anyone i know has a orbital that i can borrow.

and ha ha ha ha... i was gonna write 100% cotton mitt, then i remembered reading up on sheepskin mitts and just forgot to delete it

 

Read over that whole article a few times and you will start to feel better. You want a DA Random Orbital too, not just an Orbital/Rotary buffer.

 

why correct if there is no imperfections to correct? - this is objectively and respectfully of course.

I just corrected my car, Id be willing to take before and after pics of claying the paint to see if it educes any marring or swirls.. My initial thought is how could it? If the surface is clean of any grime, and you have fresh clay, proper lube.. however I do know it COULD happen because thats just how the universe works...

That settles it, I am going to do a test today to shed some light on the claying educing marring topic and post it. I think it will be a fun, objective test for us all to learn from.

 

Thing to remember in all this is no scenareo is the same as the next .. there can be different grades of clay... different amounts of contaminants ... different types of contaminants ... different colors of cars so harder to see if it marred.

On my own cars I know I have not significantly marred them claying because they never get in that bad a shape even after winter driving.

This is an actual picture of my front 1/4 panel and I didn't mar it claying ... one reason is I clay off the contaminants and polish off the stain instead of rubbing the hell out of the surface to get the stain off. Way faster and your polishing any way.



On cars I am correcting its not that much of a worry as they are usually marred more that the clay could possibly do anyway but I don't see any degradation after claying.

 

wowzers.