Advice with 1978 Coupe DeVille - Strip, Polish, Protect

[BlackCarBlues]

Hi everyone. This is certainly not my usual type of car detailing. I accepted the challenge of detailing my girlfriend's late grandfather's Seamist Green 1978 Cadillac Coupe DeVille -- it will be in a local parade on Sunday.

I am wondering if anyone can tell me what to expect when working on a car that does not have modern basecoat/clearcoat. I'm not sure if this car is lacquer or enamel... does that make a difference? Per usual, I will be doing a test spot and using the least abrasive method as possible to still restore the car to a nice shine. I won't be chasing perfection and attempting to remove RIDS, as I don't have that kind of time and I don't know how thick the paint is.

Here is my preliminary plan:
1. 2BM wash
2. Blackfire iron remover
3. Clay with GG Speed Shine and red foam clay thing
4. Test spot to determine level of cutting/polishing needed
4b. Will probably start with GG Perfecting Cream, then move to GG Correcting Cream (not FCC) if not removing enough defects
5. Clean up with GG Surface Prep panel wipe
6. Metal/chrome polish
7. Protect with GG Ceramic 3-in-1 wax

Since I don't know how this older paint will respond, I will be doing a small test spot with every product.

Does anyone have any tips for working with paint of this year?

 

[BadgerRivFan]

Single stage paint of that age (assuming it’s the original paint) could benefit from some “conditioning” to remove oxidation and to rehydrate the paint.

Do a search on this forum for “Mike Phillips No. 7 rub down” and read through the various threads Mike started about how to use Meguiar’s Show Car Glaze No. 7. This would be a good place to start. Search on YouTube also and you can watch a video with Mike that explains the whole process

How to use Meguiars Mirror Glaze 7 Show Car Glaze to restore antique and original single stage paint - YouTube