steve9207

Ok, here I go, I've got everything I need over the course of the past month (at least I think, I guarantee someone is going to point out something I don't have, haha, but that's what I'm here for!!).

So, I plan to wash / polish / seal my car for the winter. Now my questions:

- I don't plan to clay the car, it's in excellent shape (I'll do it in the Spring after the rough winter). It's an 07 TL that I bought in August 2007 - never been polished / waxed, yet (by me at least). Who knows how long it was on the dealer lot though - could've been 1 month could've been 1 year.

Arsenol:

Wash Soap: P21S Bodywork Shampoo
Polish: Optimum Polish 32 Ounce (New Formula) applied by 6.5" White CCS Pad for Polish on the UDM
Sealant: Four Star Ultimate Paint Protection applied by 6.5" Blue CCS Pad for Polish on the UDM
Quick Detail: Duragloss AW for throughout the winter to try to maintain the protection.

Comments on the line up for tomorrow.......?

1. With the temperature dropping day by day, I need to do this sooner than later. One, I don't want to work in the cold, two I figure I may have problems with proper adhesion / bonding, am I correct?

1a. It's supposed to be in the low 60's by 2:00 tomorrow, I plan to start around 12:30 or so, by the time I get to the polish / sealant phase it should be at the peak temperature. Do I need to do anything different due to the colder weather? (i.e., wait longer before buffing off the polish / wax? Work it in longer?)

2. As some may have remembered with my other thread, I had some difficulties my first time using my UDM. Main problem: Used WAAAAYYYY too much polish and didn't apply long enough.

2a. Any general tips for me? You know, those little secrets you learn with time as you go along? Come on, you guys know who you are on here, chime in!!

Thanks for the help everyone. You guys are the best and have helped me out tremendously since I've got my TL in August! I'll be sure to post some pics once I'm done.

exceldetail

Ah, you were using CCS!!!! Go with even smaller amounts of polish! No BIGGER, then your pinky nail.......12/3/6/9, 3 passes........OP goes a long way. WIth the white and OP, your going to get more cleaning then polishing probably. The white will take a liitle longer to break down the OP, theres no need to any faster the even 4 with the polish.
Blue with the UPP is fine.......Just one pass, 50% overlap. Do the whole car, then remove. If humidity is low, thats even better for drying. Hopefully by the time you have finished there will still be some light out, or you can wait until tomorrow. But what I like to do with synthetics, especially UPP, is bake it in the sun for about 10 minutes. This allows the oils to thin. Give it another wipe down, and your good to go........Do not use a QD for a good 24-48 hrs.....

steve9207

^^^

As always, thanks Pat Haha, yeah I was using WAAYYY too much polish - I'm too embarassed to even tell ya how much I put on there, haha. I guess I was worried of not using enough because on the bottle it says something about making sure "there always enough liquid / lubrication between the pad and the car."

Weather.com is telling me that the humidity is supposed to be in the 28% range. Do you recommend the white pad for the polish since I'm not worried about paint correction, etc. Should I maybe just use the foam pad that comes with the UDM?

BOB001

i personally would clay the car 1st, sometimes you will be surprised what on your paint

exceldetail

The one included is fine (its white right or was it blue) Either or is fine and will offer cleaning ability.
Clayin, yes, good idea, however its really goingto be exposed and will need a serious cleaning in several months. Totally optional at this time.

steve9207

Thanks guys.

Pat - yeah it comes with a white foam pad, but the consistency is not the same as the traditional white pad we think of. (i.e., it's hard as 'hard', you know how the orange pad feels stiffer than the white pad, which is stiffer than a blue pad, etc.)? I'd compare the white pad that came with it closer to a Blue CCS pad in terms of feel, from what I remember.

I think I might go with this and save my white CCS or maybe even the Orange to use underneath my microfiber bonnets to give it a more formed base.

steve9207

Thanks again everyone, if anyone cares to see the final results, check out this thread.

conan777

Darn Too Late! LOL! I was going to say go with the clay. It doesn't really take that long but you'll be amazed at what you can pull off the paint! I just did mine a couple days ago and was shocked at how much dirt I had embedded in the paint! and I wash my car every week religously! Oh Well do it in the spring! ha..ha..! Car looks great!

lusid

UGHHHHHHHH, just moved furniture around the house, then went out and UDM sealed my whole car, on top of that sealed my rims..

BACK is gana hurt tommorow. lol