FireInMe17

So, when I clean my car, I get really obsessive, I will spend hours upon hours just cleaning and waxing and polishing my Camaro.

But I'm wondering if theres something better out there to use?

Anybody have any tips or tricks to make it shine and look nicer?

Any suggestions?

The last time that I really waxed my car I spend about 14 hours over 2 days to get it the way that I wanted, and it lasted about 2 months before it started to fade.

-This is what I did for the body:

Meguiars ScratchX 2.0

Meguiars Claybar Smooth Surface kit

Meguiars Deep Crystal Cleaning system, All 3 steps

Meguiars Ultimate Compound

Meguiars Color Restore

Meguiars NXT Tech wax 2.0

Another light coat of Meguiars NXT Tech wax 2.0

Polished body with 10in polisher

Mothers Back to Black on antenna base

-Windows, lights, wheels and tires:

Armor All Extreme Tire Shine

Armor All Wheel triple action foaming Cleaner

Armor All Glass Cleaner

Meguiars Headlight restore on turn signals and tail lights

-Interior:

Armor All Ultra Shine Protective Spray over all interior vinyl and plastics

Vacuumed (of course)

Scrubbed carpet where needed

Mothers Back to black on some black interior componets

Armor All Glass Cleaner

Fix rattles and tighten dash and center console

-Procedure:

When I wax the car, I wax as many layers as I can by hand, and I take time to get all the swirls out and make it look natural so it can shine the greatest. Only the last few layers and the buffing/polishing are what I use the buffer for.

When I clean the tires I leave the triple action foaming tire cleaner on for about 5 mins so it can get as much off as it will, and then remove it, and wipe down/spray, and detail wheels as best I can. I spray as much tire shine on as I can and just leave it sit, I do this last overall for the exterior.

On the inside, I apply all chemicals and protectants with a micro-fiber towel and work them in very well, and apply them heavily. I vacuum the hell out of it and get as much as I can and get into all the nooks and crannies and get all the dust and dirt out. If theres some discoloration then I scrub the carpet with just water and it usually sets the dirt free, and I make sure I get it completely dry.

Glass is a big deal, I hate streaking just as much as I hate swirls in my wax. Again I use a micro-fiber towel, never have i used newspaper.

I take my time with everything and make sure it looks the best it can.

Its a hobby, and Im constantly trying to get it to shine just a little better, and make it last longer.

I know theres a lot here, but does anyone have any suggestions?

I'm trying to come up with a plan and procedure as to how I'm going to clean my car and get it looking the best it ever has in the spring, and I can't wait!


Heres how I got the car to look last time I did all this(August).











And then this is what it looked like before I ever did any of that to it(YUCK)

FireInMe17

Anybody there? lol

89ROC-Z

iTrader: (7)

looks ten times better! Get the orange peel out though. Wetsand with 2000 then buff it out.

Good to see a kid actually care about his car though!! Lots of thirdgens are all rusted out and full of sh**. Keep up the good work!

bearcats20

Did you use Meguiars ScratchX 2.0 on the whole car?

Aldakoopa

Did you rub the basecoat to a shine where the clear was peeling off the hood/top/trunk? It's hardly noticeable afterwards and I've never seen anybody successfully pull that off. I don't know how many cars I've had to strip the clearcoat off of and repaint in the past 5 years. @_@

Good job though, but I agree with 89ROC-Z, too much orange peel. Sand it out and buff it and it will look 10x better. I wouldn't suggest doing it to the bare basecoat on the hood/top/trunk though, it won't take much to sand/buff through that straight to the sealer.

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

holy dancing batman!!!!

did you polish out the base coat that shinny where the clear was peeling???

check this out
https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/afte...-best-wax.html

hope that helps

FireInMe17

Orange peel? I was gonna try to get it wet sanded lol

Yeah pretty much it got rid of swirl marks in the paint and got some of the bigger scratches out. Worked pretty nice as one of the first coats for the waxing!

Aldakoopa

Orange peel is that slight bumpiness in your paint. If you sand it smooth and buff it, it won't be there and it will look a lot slicker and shine a lot better.

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

i want to know if he polished that basecoat out where the clear coat was peeling all over it

Aldakoopa

I think he did. I can see a slight discoloration on the hood in the "polished" pictures, exactly where the clear is gone in the "unpolished" picture.

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

yea i think he did too.....but dang that had to take some elbow greese

Aldakoopa

Yeah I'm amazed he hasn't already rubbed through the basecoat down to primer yet.

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

i know , BTW Welcome to TGO, you are getting all kinds of post just on this thred

Aldakoopa

Thank you. I guess this and the body forums are kind of my areas of expertise, so it'll probably take me a lot to shutup about it.

However, I'll be more likely to ask questions about the mechanics/electronics because I don't have as much experience in that department. My Trans Am has a lot of problems from the PO, and I don't know where to even begin on fixing most of them...

FireInMe17

All I did was really get the chemicals that I got and got a micro-fiber towel(well a few of them lol) and rubbed them in to where the clear coat was oxidizing and well the rest of the paint as well(using some force), then with each layer I got it all straightened out with no swirls or abnormalies or anything, then buffed it with my 10" buffer and started on a new layer with a different product. So it was on there pretty thick, I don't know what exactly I did to the clear coat and the base coat and all that but I bought Meguiars products that said they treated problems with the clear coat and oxidation and applied them heavily to my car.

Heres a picture of what the hood looked like a few layers into the waxing, about half way done:



I still did a lot to it afterwards tho, and when I was done almost all of that was gone and you had to have a picky eye to really notice it, it was almost smooth to the touch too....

FireInMe17

Finally done, the oxidation on the b-pillars is nearly gone, I dont have a final picture of the hood.....



Thats the best that I've ever been able to get it, next time im going to plan out the steps and methods that I use to see if I can get it to look any better, lets hope so! I want to make it shine one last time before I get it painted!

89RS_82Z

iTrader: (2)

call me old school but i love my single stage paint (non clear coat), yes you actually got to polish it a few times a year to keep it lookin good, but no worries with the cc.... heck i even wax my cc paint jobs 2 times a year


great work fire

just my but i would strip the red off the wheels and either polish out the alum, or paint the red parts a wheel sliver

FireInMe17

Thanks, and I'm getting the wheels painted come hell or high water in the spring

Aldakoopa

Clear coat oxidizing? It's just straight up peeling.

But, good job getting it to shine though.

FireInMe17

The only place that its actually literally peeling off is by the turn signals on the front bumper, but thats it, lol

I know what you mean though, it would scratch off with just a fingernail before hand

Aldakoopa

Yeah, that's the clear actually separating from the base coat. I've never heard of it refered to as oxidizing before...

FireInMe17

Well like on the hood its oxidizing, thers no doubt about that, the sun did its damage to it, but yeah like on the plastic bumpers it is seperating completely I suppose....

y84pauloflondon

Every year before I wax and polish my car, I always use Dish Soap to wash the car to remove All old wax, polish, oils. Car wash soap is not as strong as Dish soap and thats why I use it.

FireInMe17

Ok heres my complete list for anyone who would like to know to try it or maybe make suggestions, I think I got it planned out pretty well.

All these steps are in the order that I think would be best to be applied in.

Car Wash and Wax Procedure

1) Wash with hot soapy water
2) Buff entire car with polisher
3) Meguiars Smooth Surface Kit
4) Meguiars Crystal System step 1
5) Meguiars Crystem System Step 2
6) Megiars ScratchX 2.0
7) Meguiars Ultimate Compound
8) Meguiars ColoRx
9) Meguiars NXT Techwax 2.0
10) Meguiars NTX Techwax 2.0
11) Buff entire car with polisher
12) Clean wheels
13) Clean Tires
14) Treat Plastics
15) Treat Antenna
16) Clean glass
17) Remove any and all imperfections on car

Interior Cleaning Procedure
1) Remove car mats
2) Vacuum entire car and all cloth surfaces
3) Scrub carpet/seats with hot water
4) Dry carpet/seats
5) Wipe down plastic surfaces with wet cloth
6) Use protectant (Armor All/Mothers) on all vinyl and plastic interior surfaces
7) Clean mirrors and interior glass surfaces
8) Check all components to make sure they are tight and won’t rattle
9) Clean car mats and return them to car

Engine Cleaning Procedure
1) Remove any leaves/sticks/debris from engine bay
2) Make sure all electrical connections are tight and tape any wires if needed
3) Spray engine with heavy duty engine degreaser, and let sit as can instructs
4) Spray down engine bay and remove degreaser and rinse out any further debris
5) Dry engine bay and remove as much water as possible
6) Check all electrical connections once again
7) Adjust sensors/filters/check fluid levels as needed(Optional)

Supplies
1) Meguiars Techwax 2.0
2) Meguiars Scratchx 2.0
3) Meguiars ColoRx
4) Meguiars Ultimate compound
5) Meguiars Smooth Surface Kit
6) Meguiars Crystal Car wash system steps 1+2
7) Armor All Auto Glass Cleaner
8) Armor All Ultra Shine Protectant/Mothers Protectant
9) Armor All Triple Action Foaming Wheel Cleaner
10) Armor Extreme Shine Tire Cleaner
11) Vacuum Cleaner
12) Buffer/polisher
13) Shop towels for engine and tires
14) Micro-fiber towels for interior and exterior of vehicle
15) Heavy Duty Engine Degreaser
16) Engine Fluids(Optional)
17) Bucket
18) Hose
19) Cleaning mits/ towels/sponges
20) Drying towel
21) And most importantly….PATIENCE AND DEDICATION!!!

*During the application of the products on trouble areas use some force and rub the chemicals as best as you can, and do not leave surface imperfections, or remove them as best you can as not to cause problems in the next layer(s)*

*Apply generously, and in some cases let it sit to soak itself in to allow the process to work by itself to lessen the load of work that you yourself have to do for the area*

*If there is any doubt in your mind that you need to go back over a surface or work on it a little bit more, then more than likely you do need to and you should*

*Take time between layers and allow the pervious layer to sit(I like to call it bake) into the paint/clear coat, and if you like polish after allowing the chemical to set*

*For the interior apply generously and work the protectants into the plastics, the better you do the better it is protected*

*Make sure that you do not use a towel that you used for the interior on the exterior, even though it may not seem it, they are contaminated with other chemicals/products. Only be sure that they are clean after they have been machine washed*

*Be sure not to contaminate layers with other chemicals for a different layer, or the exterior with interior chemicals as stated above, you might not think it will matter, but trust me you can tell when it happens*

*Make sure that you have ample time to at least stop when you are done with a layer, and do not stop half way through a layer, it is hard to pick up, and allow uneven <baking> time*

*Be patient if you really want to make your car shine and protect it*

FireInMe17

I was thinking that I would need to do something along those lines to strip it back down to being bare again so I could get the best possible wax job and start from scratch.

y84pauloflondon

The TYPE of buffer/polisher used plays a big roll on how good the finished product will look! A "Varible Speed Ramdom Orbit Polisher" is the type that the Pro's use. A regular "Sander/Polisher" spins on one spot and CAN cause the paint to BURN. The Orbiting action prevents this from happening!

This is what I'd use:http://cgi.ebay.ca/Porter-Cable-6in-...item563907e49b

FireInMe17

I'm going to get something like that because heres the one that I used lol

y84pauloflondon

When I do my car, this is what I do!

Car Wash and Wax Procedure

1) Wash with hot soapy water(Use Dish Soap)
2) Buff entire car with polisher(Buff with what? and Why? IMO, not needed)
3) Meguiars Smooth Surface Kit(I would list this as Step 2)
4) Meguiars Crystal System step 1
6) Megiars ScratchX 2.0
Next) Wash again to remove Cleaner residue
8) Meguiars ColoRx
7) Meguiars Ultimate Compound(Depending what the compound is? and Does?)
5) Meguiars Crystem System Step 2
9) Meguiars NXT Techwax 2.0
10) Meguiars NTX Techwax 2.0
11) Buff entire car with polisher
12) Clean wheels
13) Clean Tires
14) Treat Plastics
15) Treat Antenna
16) Clean glass
17) Remove any and all imperfections on car(What do you mean by "Imperfections"?)

IMO, There should be NO steps between the Polishing and Waxing!!! (Just my opinion, from doing this for 10+ years of Trial and Error!)

y84pauloflondon

Yeah, my dad has one just like that, and it SUCKS...Sorry,LOL. I found it to be underpowered! This "Orbiting" action stopped orbiting when Lite force was applied.

FireInMe17

Well first I would buff it after washing it to get the surfaces smooth and make sure that the chance for something to go wrong is minimized by smoothing it out and getting it ready for the rest of my system.


Then the smooth surface kit would be to smooth out where the clear coat is oxidizing and the base coat and make it easier for the wax to go on.

The Ultimate compound is used to restore a finish to a paint job, I guess it wouldn't hurt to go back over it and wash it with water after the Crystal system is used though...

And what I meant by imperfection is swirls, uneven spots, spots where something bumped the car or touched it or got into the wax, you know, just little things like that that could take away from the overall shine.

I would think that it would be best to polish in between layers so that the next layer will go on as smooth as the last, thats what I did last time.

FireInMe17

Oh and yeah, that buffer does suck, its too noisy and just cheap and then your right it doesn't work well at all when theres any force applied to it at all, I ruined the application bonnet on it with all the chemicals I used with it, no matter how well I cleaned it it ended up getting ruined....thats why i need removeable polishing heads like on the polisher you showed me.

FireInMe17

Heres what the engine looked like if anyone is interested in how that looked after a good scrubbing and degreasing following the steps that i listed above:

y84pauloflondon

Here's a site that my friends and I have been using for the last few years:

http://www.autopia.org/

This site should have ALL anwsers to your questions!!!

I wouldn't be washing it after the polish is applied! You need the wax on there first to protect the polishing you've just done!

1)wash
2)clay bar
3)srcatch remover
4)wax cleaner
5)wash
6)polish- 1 > 2 times...depending on how bad the surface WAS.
7)wax ONCE.... (Thin coat)
8)Rinse w/water and hand dry w/towel
9)wax- 1 > 2 times....depending on surface! (Thin coats)

y84pauloflondon

And I'm surprized that none here has told you to stop using Armor All for the interier. It's believed by many that Armor All removes the natural oils from the vinyl causing it to dry and crack.

Plus its very oily and acts like a magnet for dirt/dust.

FireInMe17

That sounds pretty decent y84pauloflondon, I'll head on over to see what people have to say there, I'm just wondering if anyone else here will chime in, I want to keep this thing going and see if anyone has anything else to say

FireInMe17

Yeah I'm done using it after that one lol

y84pauloflondon

Over All, your doing really good kid!!!

Keep it up!

y84pauloflondon

Don't worry, someone will. They'll either agree or disagree with us, or just simply add-on! Give it a couple of days.....

FireInMe17

Thanks, I'm doing the best I can, I came into this with out any knowledge or experience in any of it, and I didn't have anyone to help me or give me pointers either, this is just what I came up with, so thank you. No one my age does this to their car or takes as much attention to detail as I do, nor do people understand why I do it haha

y84pauloflondon

What I like to use is a lightly damp rag on the vinyl.(dipped in warm water{5%soap, 95%warm water} and squeezed out. Thats as naturally clean as its gets!!! The CAR SOAP will NOT remove the natural oils from the vinyl!

FireInMe17

Some people have told me to use mothers instead saying that it doesn't just put on a nice shiny film on everything like Armor All does, but it replenishes the oils in the vinyl and actually protects it and doesnt attract dirt. Whats your take on that?

y84pauloflondon

Hey, like I said, I've got 10+ yrs of trial and error! Using all sorts of stuff inside, outside and under the hood.

BUT, save up your money, and you WILL need a New paint job! Over all, your car looks really good considering how bad it was. But your clear coat is pretty much gone.

DON'T be cheap!!! Look around for a Top body shop to paint her! Go around to some local car shows this spring/summer and ask around where these guys got there cars repainted!

Take your car to these shops, have them look at her, talk to them, and try to get a feeling of which shops cares about your car and which one's just want your money!!!

y84pauloflondon

What I just started using this past summer is "Meguiar's Natural Shine", and I really like this stuff. No oilly feeling, its NOT super shiny, and looks Naturally great! But I use it every other time I clean the interier, or just before a car show!

FireInMe17

Yeah its getting repainted in the summer sometime, it was gonna get painted last summer but I ended up spending almost 2 grand getting it fixed and back on the road, it was dead for 3 weeks

Right now I just want to get it nice and dressed up one last time with the original paint, originality in a Thirdgen is what I think really sets them apart from the built up ones to the survivors, and as we have less and less survivors, they become more desirable, or at least to me. I want to keep this car the way that Chevy intended it to be, and the way that it was when it was brand new.

I have a few people in mind to paint the car, and I think I'm going to a carshow in Harrisburg next weekend so I'm def. driving my car and I'm going to talk to ALOT of people and see what they have to say.

My friend at school got his '77 VW Karman-Ghia painted really nice for 800 bucks, and the guy even let him help with the process and gave him a discount, so I was thinking about getting his number and talking to him about it.

I mean if you would see this car, the paint is perfect, it looks so nice and I don't like VW's haha

If I didnt have to get it fixed though last July, then right now it would have a nice new paint job with a nice oxidation/peeling free clear coat

FireInMe17

Well thats great, I didn't look into what Meguiars would have for an interior yet, but then I can make the entire car a Meguiars car!

Ron U.S.M.C.

Breathable poly/acrylic coating. Hand buff on,hand buff off.Thats it.

FireInMe17

Will that do everything to my paint that all those other products did in one step? And what did your car look like before you used that ronusmcmma?

Ron U.S.M.C.

I don't think It will work as well as the procedure some go through to bring there cares to a brilliant shine. I would say it Is more of a maintenance product for cars with a new or fairly new paint job.My paint is only two years old. Race Glaze is the only product Ive ever used on my car .Its never seen any wax. My friend and pro-painter that painted my car recommended it as opposed to wax. Here's a link to their site= http://raceglaze.net/RaceGlaze.net/Home.html

FireInMe17

I'll have to try it when i get my car painted then, but for now I'm stuck with doing all this to restore my paint to that "nearly painted" look.

I have to save up like a grand to get mine painted for the summer before I head off to college.

Ron U.S.M.C.

FireInMe17, By the way you did a incredible job on you car and its always great to see some one that has that kind of dedication . Great job.