Help Needed: 00 Black Yukon, 06 BMW 6, 02 WRX

[PacificLenny]

First post, long time lurker, big thanks to all the people that take their time to teach and help. We all really appreciate it.

Here are my patients/money pits:

00 Black Yukon:
Heavy Oxidization, deep scratches.

Just inherited this thing and it hasn't been waxed in 5+ years so yeah its a mess. I recently did a test on the hood with: Wash, Clay, Meg. Ultimate Compound and a rotary. It's stored outside year round.


06 BMW 645 Convertible:
Gets stored inside and driven a little in the winter and daily driven in the summer. Some Random Scratches, a lot of spider webs and some water marks.

Last year I clay'd it and then used AutoGlym Pro polish and AutoGlym HD Wax on it. Looked good till the Wax and filler polish wore off.

02 WRX:
Its been sitting outside not in use since 2008, I have recently started fixing and cleaning it up. Whatever you recommend for the Yukon I will do to the WRX.


First off here is what I have for tools:
Jobmate 6" random orbital (never use)
Makita Rotary:Two soft foam pads, one hard pad, two wool pads and a cool-it speedy foam pad that I don't know what to do with, need help here.

Test Section before and after on the Yukon (Megs UC, soft AutoGlym pad) (Using all best practices from here: clean pads, overlapping passes, test section, etc).

Feed back please
Help Needed
I'm going to place an order with Autogeek but I need some help with product suggestions or procedure first.

Polymer Sealant:
The biggest question i have is polymer sealant. I usually only wax the cars once a year and i know the sealant will last a lot longer. I need help picking a sealant.

I want to get the BMW looking top shape, I love the liquid metal silver I have seen the pros create on here. Any advice or products to get me there would be appreciated.

I know at minimum I need to buy some more pads, polish, polymer sealant and wax.

I was thinking of buying/been reading about:
Lake County Hybrid Pads
Menzerna Fast Gloss Compound (FG-400)
Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant 3.0
GTechniq EXO

But I am way out of my league here on product selection, all i know is i don't want to buy another polisher, I want to stick with rotary.

Please help me pick the best pads, polish and sealant/wax combo.

Final points, I have a black and white boat that has yearly oxidization and discoloration, i usually use 3M or Meguiars Marine products but the wax below the rub rails comes off very fast. What are you thoughts on using the GTechniq or another polymer sealant on the hull?

Here are a few pictures for fun

Thanks Again

 

[AntC]

Not to sure about the other vehicles but for my 2000 Tahoe i used this combo:

Meguiars Mirror Glaze #105 Ultra-Cut Compound
Menzerna Super Intensive Polish PO 83
Menzerna Power Finish PO 203
Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant 3.0
Lake country 5.5 flat pads

I found that the finish on trucks can be pretty hard, but the Meguiars leveled it pretty well.

 

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

I want to put in some advice but at the moment I am really tied up and wont have time until later on maybe even tm. I have family in town.

I will get back when I have downtime. Hopefully others can help you out.

 

[zmcgovern45]

So here is what it all boils down to...

No 2 vehicles are going to be exactly alike - I don't care if it is another identical car to what you have, there are so many factors that can play a role in how your paint reacts to correction vs. another car of the same year, make, and model.

What I am getting at is that you MUST always do a test spot to be sure that what you are going to do is going to work for you. Just because someone else has an identical vehicle to yours (in year, make, model) does not mean their exact process will produce the same results on your vehicle. You may not know if your car has been repainted, your car may sit outside 24/7 while theirs has never left the garage, etc etc. Also, your technique may differ from someone elses - yielding different results. I could continue with these "what if" scenarios, but the best advice for tackling any job is to just be prepared. You can prepare yourself by investing in various compounds, polishes, and pads that cover a wide variety of cut. To say 'whatever you do to the Yukon is what you are going to do to the wrx' is a comment that displays lack of experience. You simply need to start with the least aggressive approach on each vehicle, and take small steps until you see the results you desire. Treat each of the 3 vehicles as a separate project!

Best of luck! Be sure to post before/afters when you're done!

 

[Andr3wilson]

First off

:welcome: to AGO!!

BC plates! If you were here in Edmonton I would be more than happy to personally help you!

First off, zmcgovern45 recommendation of treating each car as a separate project is the first advice I would give!

Next off some of those foam pads are in pretty rough shape! Looks almost like they were burned. I would recommend some new ones! Depending on what your budget is, I would recommend getting some larger 6.5 inch pads and some 4 pads. For the 6.5 pads, definitely get the Hybrid pads! smack aka Mike recommended them to me and boy I sure glad he did. These are by far my favourite pads!

Get:
1 of each (except the wool pad!), doing multiple cars means you need tailor the process to the car!

You will need a 5 inch backing plate for these especially on a rotary.

This is what I use

Flex-Foam HD Rotary Backing Plate, circular polisher backing plate, backing pad

Really nice and easy to line up.

For your 4 inch pads you dont have too much choice, I use the 4 inch LC CCS pads. I have 2 orange and 2 Red, thats usually the best bet on a Rotary!

For your BP, get one of these:

Rotary 3 inch Backing Plate

The whole idea between having multiple pads is the fact that on a rotary, damage and burns can happen in half a second if you are using a pad too big and bulky for the section you are doing!

Now I don't know how much experience you have with a rotary, but the first piece of advice I can give is, DONT LET IT SCARE YOU! The Makita is an exceptional tool and you have no need to buy a new polisher. The Jobmate on the other hand my lack the power to actually spin the pad. A spinning pad is what breaks down the abrasives!

Here is a thread of me doing a G Wagen all with a Rotary

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...n-i-am-autos-picture-heavy-28-hours-work.html

When you compound (irregardless of what compound/pad combo use) you will have visual holograms left over. You need to finish up with a finishing polish and finishing pad in order to get a clear haze free finish.

Now most mistake people make with a rotary is too much pressure and cranking it out to high RPM. Typically for me I always take a slower RPM and take a bit more time to work the product. I keep it around 2-3 or 900-1000 rpm. As far pressure let the weight of the machine do the work, your hand is just there to guide it. Best way to see if you are using it correctly is to feel the pad right after you finish the section. If its a bit warm, ease up a bit. The pad should not luke warm! 2-4 passes is usually enough, but if more is needed, thats normal.

For the polishing products, meguiars is a great product and works well! Personally I am a strong advocate of Menzerna product line. I like the way they work and the ease of use.

I would recommend you get:

FG400
PF2500
SF4500

FG400 is a great compound and should be finished up with SF4500. Now you will most likely use this on the BMW and the Tahoe. The BMW and Tahoe with most likely have a harder clear coat and need the aggressive compound to clear it up. Use this with a Hybrid Orange/Blue cutting pad and an Orange LC pad

PF2500 is a medium aggressive polish. The Blue WRX will most likely have a soft clear coat. This is a typical trait of Subarus. Use this with a Hybrid Blue cutting pad and an Orange LC pad.

SF4500 is a stunning polish and should follow up PF2500 and FG400. This polish wont remove blemishes as much as really intensify the gloss! It will make all colours really pop and makes a noticeable difference in the appearance! Use this with either a Hybrid white/black and an LC Red.

As for the LSP (last step products such as sealants and waxes) I would not recommend Exo. It is very finicky with the correct temperature ranges and I wouldn't recommend it for someone new to detailing.

The polymer sealant is basically a synthetic version of a carnuba wax. They really do a good job of giving that "pop" and protection.

Wolfgang is a good sealant, but recently I have moved over to Menzerna Power Lock paint sealant. I find it makes lighter colours such as silver and white look brighter and pop more.

If you want a wax, then try some Dodo juice waxes. On the BMW try light fantastic or white diamond, the WRX Blue Velvet Pro and the Tahoe you can use Blue Velvet as well! If you want one wax for all that has good durability try Supernatural. Yes it is more expensive, but it frankly is a really good wax. I like it!

If you are willing to venture outside of Autogeek, I would recommend getting Zymol Carbon and Creame. Carbon for the Dark, Creame for the Light colours

Now for your waxing of the cars, I would move from once a year to at least 4 times a year. This ensures maximum protection and a keeps the cars looking good!

For maximum "pop", layer the wax/sealant! Here is my cars layered!

On the Silver Merc there is two coats of SV Insignis V3 and on the Lexus there are 4 coats of Zymol Carbon

Lots to read!

Hope this Helps!

-Andrew

 

[PacificLenny]

Thanks for the advice, the quality and effort put into the replies has been over the top and i really appreciate it.

I haven't disappeared, I'm just researching the products and procedures mentioned.

I'm fully adopting what your saying on every car being different and treat it as such with test spots. That's why i tested the UC on the Yukon and then just stopped and came here for advice.

Ill circle back with a game-plan tomorrow and maybe you can weigh in.

Thanks Again.