Detailing Discuss how to make your car sparkly clean for car shows, local meets, or any other reason. What products do others use and how do we get them? Get your questions answered in here.

Your Professional Opinion

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Old 04-29-2004, 07:28 PM
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Your Professional Opinion

Alright the last few times I waxed my Car it doenst seem like its coming out all that good anymore or lasting all that long either...compaired to last year and two years ago

I use only Meguiers Paste Show Shine wax and I have always gotten good resuslts with that, about 2 years ago...now lately its almost like the paint, clearcoat is Tired, Worn Threw ?? I dont know where to look either...the water protection is good but deminishes fast, 2 rain falls and its no longer smooth to the touch...the car looks amazing as well after a wax so thats not an issue..

another thing I notice as well is the Hood doesnt have that really gloosy feel anymore after a wax...NOW i did purchase the Klasse kit with and the P10 ?? wax (its upstairs and I dont wanna go look at what its called)...its good stuff though. but i havent tried that yet...

I'm Looking for a professional opinion ??

-matt
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Old 04-30-2004, 08:28 AM
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You probably need to clay your car. read this: http://www.properautocare.com/usclaybartor.html

by waxing without claying, your actually sealing in all the paint contamination.... I did it on my car, huge difference. You just need to make sure your car is really clean before you clay. You'll need to strip off all the wax beforehand also.
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Old 04-30-2004, 09:32 AM
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I already did the clay bar thing last fall

-matt
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Old 04-30-2004, 01:25 PM
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It sounds like you need to polish your car.

If over the years you haven't polished it occasionally and maybe have let the wax go too long before reapplying once in a while, the paint is probably oxidized a bit. What wax is this you're using again? The name is not familar to me... If it's a pure, non-cleaner wax then this would explain why you need a polish.

Waxes aren't the whole story and aren't the solution to everything. It sounds like you've placed a lot of emphasis on that, but are neglecting any paint prep. Klasse and P21S are great products, but they're not going to work magic on a dull surface. Try to read up on polishing if you can.

Wash
Clay
Polish (1 or more steps, AS NEEDED)
Wax

Start with a milder, gentler polish first (swirl remover, pre-wax cleaner, P21S Cleanser are a few examples) if you're not sure how bad things are. But have something stronger handy in case that is not effective enough.

BTW, I am not a "professional" (ie, someone who details for money) and I would caution about putting too much weight on that title. Some pros do fantastic work, while others can be total hacks, and many detailing enthusiasts who just do this for fun can know just as much as they do sometimes. Just a FYI.
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Old 05-01-2004, 04:17 AM
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I'm a "professional" if it means anything to you, but i'm going to tell you the same thing as Bman. Your clearcoat isn't getting "tired" unless at some point you've wetsanded your entire car or compounded way to much. Sounds like your paint is getting oxidized. Klasse AIO does a great job at removing oxidation(which you said you had). I would suggest something slightly more abrasive before that(Klasse AIO is a chemical cleaner). I can't tell you which one to use without seeing how bad your swirls and scratches are but Meguiar's and 3m make some redily available compounds that are pretty good.
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Old 05-01-2004, 05:21 AM
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Both Bman and sqard are correct in their analysius of your paint's condition. I would recommend getting something like either of the following:

- Meguiar's Dual Action Cleaner Polish
- Einszett Paint Polish
- Einszett Ultra Paint Polish or Metallic Polish
- P21S Gloss Enhancing Paint Cleanser
- Pinnacle Paintwork Cleansing Lotion
- Menzerna Intensive Polish & Final Polish

Bear in mind, each of these have varying abrasiveness levels and that can be best determined by your eye and what your paint's condition warrants. If I were in your predicament, I'd do the following:

a) Wash the car with Dawn to strip off the layers of old wax
b) Clay the car
c) Polish using either of the following:
- Einszett Paint Polish or Metallic Polish
- Meguiar's Dual Action Cleaner Polish
d) Follow up the polishing step with Klasse All In One
e) Top with Klasse Sealant Glaze

If you are doing the polishing step by hand, I'd recommend the Einszett products. DACP gets its best results by using a PC or rotary.
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Old 05-01-2004, 08:18 AM
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I think Im FU*KED...

I have alot of NIcks accross my hood and the otehr night I decided to fill them in with touch up paint and I also bought the product called Langka... www.Langka.com It suppose to smooth out all of the excess paint when you use touch up paint on your car...well when you remove it it removes to much and its a pain to get off the paint and all of the chips remian there...now my hood is a dimple city of all green paint that looks like pimples...FU*K...

Sqard...Im in Pequannock, right off of 23 by 80, if I come down by you maybe monday, do you think there is anything you can do for my problem now. ?? (sand down the dimples, polish, wax) ?? the hood is really a mess... if you use ther BLOB stuff, its screws up the paint around the chip as well with light scratches. I Just want it back to normal..I dont even care if there is chips or not...those dimples are bad

-matt
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Old 05-01-2004, 02:00 PM
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Matt, I only work weekends right now because I'm still in school. If you want to stop by on a saturday or sunday I can take a look at it for you. If you want to wait until the summer I will be working 7 days a week though.
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Old 05-01-2004, 04:11 PM
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Matty, are you saying you should never have used the Lanka? The claims in the lanka site are not true?
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Old 05-01-2004, 06:54 PM
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Sqard, what do you think my Solution is gonna have to be ?? Hood bro to cover them up ??
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Old 05-01-2004, 08:19 PM
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As long as the paint matches, either wetsanding or just compounding with a rotary will make them blend in VERY well. I guess it depends on how many there are. If there's over 15 marks or so, i'd probably say you're best off with a respray of your hood. I would have to see the situation first before telling you for sure though.
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Old 05-01-2004, 09:10 PM
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alright I need directions...maybe come out there next sat morning...there is over 15 of them but i really dont wanna spend $800 to respray the hood

-matt
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Old 05-03-2004, 01:34 PM
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I would recommend using the Meguiar's 3-step system.
It starts out with a clear cut cleaner.
Then, a polish to bring back the shine to your paint(wax does not do this....but just protects the shine that you get from polish)
Lastly, the wax gets it where it lasts for quite some time.

I can usually go 4 or 5 months without doing it again. I only do this really detailed stuff about twice per year.
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