Auto Detailing and AppearanceTips and tricks on how to make your Third Gen shine! Get opinions on products or how something looks on your Chevrolet Camaro or Pontiac Firebird.
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The guy that owned my car before me must have waxed it up for the for sale pics. He rubbed the film off of the hood but nothing else it seems. When I first got it I thought that the paint was just faded. Two days later of sitting out (was in a garage) it got rained on and my black car became white.
I finnaly got my car to the house yesterday and tried taking soapy dish water to it to get it off. It didn't help. The white came back after drying. We took some rubbing compound to it (real light stuff, turtle wax brand) and it started to make it go away. Basically took whiteness out now there is a hase on the paint.
I believe the paint is still good on the car. The hood looks great(nice and shiny) but thats because the previous owner actually finished the waxing process on it but nothing else.
Whats are your Ideas
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I would start with a clay bar. Follow that up with a high speed orbital and some medium swirl remover, then to a light swirl remover, then polish and wax..
Are you sure it's not just paint oxidation? Regardless, I'd get an orbital buffer with some swirl remover as stated above and go over the car. If you don't have a buffer, you can go to autozone and get some swirl remover and try going over it by hand. By your not going to get the best results unless you use a porter cable.
Are you sure it's not just paint oxidation? Regardless, I'd get an orbital buffer with some swirl remover as stated above and go over the car. If you don't have a buffer, you can go to autozone and get some swirl remover and try going over it by hand. By your not going to get the best results unless you use a porter cable.
I thought it was faded when I got it. Everything except the hood. the next day after I took this picture it turned white. I believe due to the rain.
We used this really old rubbing compound on it yesterday. Started to get rid of it I was using a buffer though. (G/F's Elcheapy walmart buffer) I don't want to burn it up.) It took 3 min to sorta get a 6 by 6 spot to shine. Put some scratches in it though. I just need to get the old wax off.
I say if theres a Detail shop take it down their or a body shop & see what they say. They should know about those kinda of things, instead of you buying all kinds of stuff, using them & the problem is still their.
Last edited by karl's-92'-z28; 02-05-2008 at 02:05 AM.
you could go to your local auto store and get some wax and grease remover that should def take it off, but when you do that plan to wax or do the meguiars 3 step immediatly after,,,if you take it to a detail shop theyre going to try to sell you on a chemical clean and a wax...locally in my area this costs about 300 bucks for something you could do yourself...try wax and grease remover its like a mild laquer thinner that uses a wipe on wipe off method it will be located with the body/refinish section
Without seeing the car to tell whether it's oxidation that could or could not be polished out, if you think its wax, use white vinegar or a wax and grease remover. However, realize that if it sticks around, its most likely oxidation and will have to most likely be buffed using a rotary polisher.
Does it come off when you scrape your fingernail over it lightly? Or do you have to apply a lot of pressure to get it to come off? If you need to do it with a lot of pressure, do it in an inconspicuous place.
It's much better to make a determination with a picture. Hope that helps.
If the weather is good enough tomarrow I will take some pictures so you guys can see what it looks like.
Wouldn't a Black car that had paint oxidation turn to looking like a black primer? If so why dose mine have white swirl marks?
Just a question. This is the main reason Why I think it is wax.
Its possible though that the car is oxidized underneath the wax. I used a clean buffer cover and held it on the car in area for a while. When I finnaly got most of the white stuff to go away it wasn't shiney. I believe though that I could still see waxing marks. I just thought of that just now.
i was going to say try wetsanding it.
i did that to my last car. it was red but it turned into a pinkish color due to a bad wax job and sitting out in the sun alot from the last owner.
wet sanded the whole car. got i think a 3 step polishing kit. took 2 days to finish it all up. it looked like the gave the car a whole new paint job.
almost look like a ferrari red almost. it was a very nice the way it came out.
If you're not experienced, I wouldn't wet sand. You also do not know how much clear you even have on there without a gauge. You do not want to burn through the clear.
I'd practice on something else before you do it to your car. If done correctly, it will make a paint job look a ton better (no orange peel). Here's a piece of my car I wetsanded and buffed:
__________________ 1988 IROC-Z 14.0@98mph 2.07 60 Ft (Stock setup)
L98 now with a little AFR, and a bit of comp cam. - [The new "slightly" faster L98]
Last edited by IROCThe5.7L; 02-09-2008 at 01:37 PM.
I'm definatly afraid at this point to do any wet sanding. It has a newer paint job on it due to the Z28 emblem on the back bumper being painted over.
If you are gonna wet sand it, be very careful. Try in a small, hard to see place first.
Since you know that is not the factory paint, there is no way to know how much clear they layed down. Or, it could be a cheaper paintjob that uses single-stage enamel without clear.
sand the car down , then primer it , then you won't have to worry bout it...hhahaha. Seriously its a toughy issue if you don't know whats going on with the paint, best bet is to ask the previous owner if you can still get in touch with him.
I would try a three step polish system (mothers, meguirs) with a cheap buffer before wetsanding. wetsanding is a pretty involved project. dont use rubbing compound youll burn through the clear and it will just leave the finish dull.
I'm planning on getting it painted in the future. Right now mostly trying to make the car move under its own power. after that I'll spend the money on making it pretty. I just wanted to clean it up a bit.
Not to sound mean but that baked on wax is goona be a biatch to get off. I would just sand it down & primer it for now. If not try using a wax stripper, but use it in a small area, but again you'll be wasting your money on these items if theydon't work.
My G/F brought home a Dewalt variable speed buffer on friday from her work. We haven't got to use it yet due to it being so cold out. The building the camaro is sitting in isn't heated. We also aren't so sure what speed to run it at yet. Haven't been able to find anything on the internet about it. They also gave her a bottle of some kind of mild polish. They thought it might work. She works for a company that sells Auto detailing products. I don't know how much they actually know about the products they sell. We'll try it though. She also got some kind of buffing pad. I don't know much about this stuff. Its normally "Wax on, Wax off" for me.
if it has speeds 1 to 10 put it on 3 or 4 use a Diamond Cut Compound from Meguiar's
link to the Meguiar’s Complete Video Guide Smooth Clay Kit
hope it helps you out http://www.meguiars.com/video/
__________________ Hotckiss suspension 1LE Brakes 355 sbc 373 gears 5speed 6 point rolecage 1LE brakes T-5, Koni yellosw, Roller Rockers BIG sway bars,5pont harnes Sparco racing seates 5 point harness hurst shifter
place thin rings around the pad starting from the outside and moving in to the center. 4 to 5 rings should be great. Place the buffer on the car BEFORE turning it on. Then, without applying more than your hand's weight to the buffer, hold down the power button and apply the cleaner/compound to your car's surface. I usually start on the hood of the car and cover the entire hood before applying more cleaner/compound. I then apply a little more cleaner/compound and work my way around the car, applying more as the pad dries out. Do not apply cleaner/compound to black trim, but don't sweat it when you get a little on there.When you are done applying cleaner/compound, using a clean, super soft, terry cloth towel, remove the cleaner/compound. Be sure to flip the towel to a clean spot once you feel like it is getting "gummed up". You will be able to tell. You will use plenty of towels taking the cleaner/compound and other steps off, so have plenty on hand (maybe 20 or so small 12"x12" towels). Once you have buffed it out by hand and all of the cleaner/compound is removed, you will see that the car is looking pretty good. We are not done yet, it is going to look even better.
Waxing! Ok, now we are actually going to apply some wax to your car's finish. There are two options here. First, is a paste was, second is a liquid wax. I have always been partial to the paste waxes as they seem to leave a better finish, but for the sake of your time and relationships, I have a good compromise. I usually use a combination of liquid and paste waxes. Mind you, I use the professional stuff, but the paste wax is bought at Pep Boys, Auto Zone or whatever. Apply some past wax to a clean buffing pad with a butter knife or small paint scraper. Cover about 50% of the pad with a light layer of wax. You will see that it will spread like warm butter. Then apply some liquid wax from a bottle (be sure to shake well) on top of the paste wax (not too much here) and then apply like you did in Steps 1 & 2. Buff with tons of clean terry cloth towels and you are done. Your car probably looks incredible at this point and you did it yourself.
lol i love google
__________________ Hotckiss suspension 1LE Brakes 355 sbc 373 gears 5speed 6 point rolecage 1LE brakes T-5, Koni yellosw, Roller Rockers BIG sway bars,5pont harnes Sparco racing seates 5 point harness hurst shifter
Actually got to run the buffer on this thing last night. Its Shining again. There is a Flat feeling to the paint when you run your had over it. I'm figureing I'll get the whole car shining again and continue going over it untill I get it smooth as silk......
IF you have a detaling shop in your area ask them how much an acid bath costs. My buddy does detailing for a bunch of car lots and high end stuff on the side. He gives my 01 camaro an acid bath once a year (strips everything to clearcoat) doesn't harm my clearcoat then does a wax job on her. he only charges like 50 bucks for the acid bath so to a non friend maybe 100 or so which isn't bad. just another option incase the buffer ends up not working completely. Good luck
Yes, please post pics to show us how it came out. I'm very curious to see the difference. Is the DeWalt a DW849? That would be a rotary polisher which is best when used in a detailer's hands. (NOT to insinuate you dont know what you're doing.) I was just curious what she brought home for you to try. The paint sure looked neglected. You've piqued my curiosity now!
If you already got it shiny I wouldnt keep buffing on it until you get it smooth. Clay bar and wax instead. Continuing the buff from this point could result in paint burn. Going from the pics I would assume you only have a single stage paint job anyways.
We didn't get real far yet as I just had Head gaskets go on my Diesel truck. So now I have to fix that. (Swear I can't win for losing some times)
Any how, The orange peel looks worse in the pictures than it dose on the car. (I think) You can see looking the roof the spot that hasn't been buffed yet. Then looking futher down the B pillar you can see where We've been working on it. It is no where near done at this point. We just wanted to see what would happen.
Wow. Night and Day difference. You may be ok for a while if you decide on repainting it in the winter or something. But you'd have to be religious about keeping her clean. Looks 1000% better.
