Tips on detailing a black 2016 mb c300

T

the fan

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Hi guys! Just got a new car! It's a black mb c300 sport fully loaded with wood grain and red leather interior. My other car is a 2015 wrx in world rally blue. I've never detailed a mb before so I'm not sure what the best route is to tackle it. I'm hoping it's not some crap soft paint like on the subie. Since its brand new, what are some recommended steps/products I should use to avoid getting massive amounts of swirls on the black paint? This is also my first car and I know they are notoriously hard to keep from swirling. I told them not to but they installed the dealer added swirls for free when they ran it through their crap wash. It's nothing super noticeable but I do see some spots that have already swirled up.

So so far my product list consists of:
da polisher and a variety of pads from Orange, white, black
megs 105 & 205
megs synthetic wax sealant
mothers carnuba wax
Griots all in one
griots compound
griots speed shine
clay bars
variety of micro fibers
pinnacle spray wax
Uww+
Wolfgangs metal sealant
and others I can't think of

I need to add some kind of leather cleaner also. Any insight would be much appreciated!
 
Instead of Megs i'd go with the Blackifre Combo, these were developed in conjunction with MB.


Link:

BLACKFIRE compound and finishing polish


BLACKFIRE SRC Finishing Polish
In 2005, BLACKFIRE approached the Menzerna in Germany and asked them to create a state-of-the-art, ceramic clear coat polishes for the enthusiast aftermarket. Working with Mercedes Benz, Menzerna developed a compound and polish to remove defects in the new nano, ceramic particle clear coats. The result of the Menzerna-Blackfire collaboration is BLACKFIRE SRC Finishing Polish. This formula offers the do-it-yourself enthusiast many advantages: BLACKFIRE SRC Finishing Polish will restore gloss and remove minor defects in nano, ceramic particle clear coats. It will restore gloss and remove minor defects in the super-hard, scratch resistant clear coats. It can be applied by hand, dual-action polisher or circular polisher. (However, machine application is required for maximum defect removal in ceramic particle clear coats.

I have these and they are excellent products.
 
MB Paint is considered "hard Paint". I would check to see if your ride has "ceramiclear" coat on it. My guess no, however, you can check the paint code on the door jamb. There would be a "C" (I believe) in front of the number. If so, you have ceramiclear. But my guess no. That being said, IMO your Megs 105 & 205 should do the trick. I like Menzerna FG400 and SF4500 (most like SF4000). Menzerna recently changed their branding for product so I would look at their charts for the new updates.

Since you are going 2-step you do not need to get an AIO IMO. As for your sealant and wax choices, I think your choice is good. But for a great sealant and wax you can't go wrong with Blackfire Sealant and their Midnight Sun or the Wolfgangs or Pinnacle. Your Pad selection is good to go. Your clay and everything else seems fine. As for the DA I do not know if you have one or not, however, the GG 6" seems to be the "Goldilocks" of the DA's. It costs about the same as the PC7424XP but more powerful. The Flex, Rupes or Boss system costs more and are more powerful but again, cost more. Either way you will do fine and it will take longer to correcct than your Subie as it is harder paint. Congrats on your ride. This was a MB I worked on a while back. This had no ceramiclear paint.
 
Kamakaz1961 said:
Thanks custmsprty!
Click to expand...

This hacked up MB pulled up next to me at a traffic light a few weeks ago. The front wheels were black form break dust.

What an abuse of a nice car.

The sun this time of the year in Florida is unforgiving as far as showing swirls in cars as it's not full over head yet during the daytime.

View attachment 46924
 
Sweet! Thanks for the tips. I think I'll go with the blackfire combo linked above. But do you think it's nessassary to do a compound considering the car is brand new? I don't know how abrasive the compound is. Also what pad combo should I go with each step?
 
the fan said:
Sweet! Thanks for the tips. I think I'll go with the blackfire combo linked above. But do you think it's nessassary to do a compound considering the car is brand new? I don't know how abrasive the compound is. Also what pad combo should I go with each step?
Click to expand...

I would do a test spot 1st. It all depends too. If there are a lot of swirls then I say yes. If not maybe not. Again, a test spot would be the best way to determine. If you do need to compound, the Orange Pads would be for that procedure (assuming they are Lake Country Pads). The White for polishing and the Black for the LSP (if they are Lake Country). IMO, any of the good quality compounds wil be fine for removing scratches. The polishing will remove the minute scratches caused by the compounding. I know you will do fine. But please show pics after you are done!!
 
Kamakaz1961 said:
I would do a test spot 1st. It all depends too. If there are a lot of swirls then I say yes. If not maybe not. Again, a test spot would be the best way to determine. If you do need to compound, the Orange Pads would be for that procedure (assuming they are Lake Country Pads). The White for polishing and the Black for the LSP (if they are Lake Country). IMO, any of the good quality compounds wil be fine for removing scratches. The polishing will remove the minute scratches caused by the compounding. I know you will do fine. But please show pics after you are done!!
Click to expand...

So I do have the lake country pads, orange, white, black. I'm afraid to use an orange pad with a compound. I'd rather not add more swirls even though the polish should remove it.
 
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