Help me pick a Compound/Polish/Sealant/Wax!

[OMG35S]

I recently acquired a Black 2007 Infiniti G35S. As far as I know Nissan/Infiniti is known to have a "soft" clear coat finish.



Here are some pictures of the current condition of the paint. The car has been garaged almost all its life. Pictures were taken with my Droid cell phone.





http://i1032.photobucket.com/albums/a402/omg35s/2010-05-31165830.jpg

http://i1032.photobucket.com/albums/a402/omg35s/2010-05-31165818.jpg

http://i1032.photobucket.com/albums/a402/omg35s/2010-05-31165841.jpg





I have a Porter Cable 7336 with Edge 2000 Pads.



I was considering Megs m105/m205 but I think that m105 will be too strong for my paint especially since these cars have a rather "soft" clear-coat.



Now I`m turning to Menzerna kit with SIP?



At first these were the steps I was going to follow until I did some more research.



1. ONR Spray Bottle - Spray Car to lift contamination

2. Wash Car with ONR

(Should I degrease before washing when applying Polish, Wax, etc.?)

3. Clay Bar with (ONR solution or QD)

4. Tape Vehicle

5. Meguiar`s (http://www.autopia.org/forum/autolink.php?id=1117&script=showthread&forumid=134) 105 w/ Yellow or Green Edge 2000 Pad (Not Necessary/Too Much Cut?)

6. Meguair`s 205 w/ Orange or Blue or White Edge 2000 Pad (Replace With Menzerna?)

7. Menzerna (http://www.autopia.org/forum/autolink.php?id=417&script=showthread&forumid=134) PO85RD w/ White Edge 2000 Pad

8. Glaze Needed?

9. Sealant -Collinite #845 or Klasse AIO (http://www.autopia.org/forum/autolink.php?id=1011&script=showthread&forumid=134) or Blackfire Wet Diamond

- By Hand

10. Wax - P21S Carnauba Wax or P21S 100% or Lusso Oro

- By Hand



Let me Know what you think!



Thanks,



Adam

[wannafbody]

Megs Ultimate compound

Swirl X

KAIO

845

[SlantS]

Megs Ultimate compound

Swirl X

KAIO

845



I personally think #105 is far more correction that you will need.

Even the ultimate compound is not necessary IMHO.

If you must hit it with a full cut, try a hand application first.

[Thomas Dekany]

I did an 06 I think and took 37 man hours to correct. Look inside the hood for the "hard clear" sticker. Nothing soft about that paint. :buffing::buffing::buffing::buffing::buffing:

[2005GTPinMD]

I would go for BFWD as a sealant - it is my current favorite!

[wascallyrabbit]

do you all ready have the 105 and 205? if you do i would probably start with 205 and a green or orange pad to see how that does. you should always start with the least aggressive method first and work your way up from there.

[a.k.a. Patrick]

I would have been all over Optimums Hyper Polish with a white or Orange pad........

[OMG35S]

No, I don`t have any polishes/sealants/waxes at the moment.



I`m looking for your advice.



I`m leaning towards menz polishes.

[SuperBee364]

The process/products you have in your line up look good, but as tdekany mentioned, there is a chance that you`ll have hard clear coat. If your car does, then your line up looks *really* good. If it doesn`t have hard clear, the only thing I`d suggest you think about changing is the final polish. I`d change the PO85RD and white Edge pad to Menzerna Final Polish II and an Edge red pad. Take a look for that "Hard Clear" sticker under the hood.



The only other thing I`d suggest isn`t polishing related, but rather maintaining the swirl free finish once you get it there. Pretty much all swirling is caused by marring induced by washing your car. You`ll need to get very good at removing dirt from the car without giving it a chance to scratch your paint. ONR is a very good start. If your car ever gets too dirty to use ONR, you might think about running it through a touchless automatic, then following that up with an ONR wash at home. You should be able to get it pretty clean that way, with minimal marring.



Pre-spraying the tough stuff (like baked on bugs and bird poop) with strong ONR out of a spray bottle and letting it sit for a minute is a good way to get the nasties off without having use hard rubbing.



Edit: As far as glazes go...



If you`re going to use a sealant, then make sure you use a glaze that is meant to be used before a sealant. My fav is Danase Wet Glaze. This stuff is really sweet. It amps gloss, does a good job of concealing marring, and is a breeze to apply. Apply it with your pc and a zero bite pad. It`ll just melt right into the paint. If you use the correct amount, there will be zero residue, but it does help make it look even better if you give it a quick wipe down with a soft MF after application. Follow DWG up with a good sealant, and you`re set. If you`re looking for maximum environmental protection, great looks, and long durability, you might think about getting some Finish Kare High Temp 1000P. You really don`t need to top the FK1000P with a wax.

[a.k.a. Patrick]

Edit: As far as glazes go...



If you`re going to use a sealant, then make sure you use a glaze that is meant to be used before a sealant. My fav is Danase Wet Glaze. This stuff is really sweet. It amps gloss, does a good job of concealing marring, and is a breeze to apply. Apply it with your pc and a zero bite pad.

A.K.A. Wet Glaze V 2, there is no longer a "Danase Wet Glaze"....

[OMG35S]

Y
The process/products you have in your line up look good, but as tdekany mentioned, there is a chance that you`ll have hard clear coat. If your car does, then your line up looks *really* good. If it doesn`t have hard clear, the only thing I`d suggest you think about changing is the final polish. I`d change the PO85RD and white Edge pad to Menzerna Final Polish II and an Edge red pad. Take a look for that "Hard Clear" sticker under the hood.



The only other thing I`d suggest isn`t polishing related, but rather maintaining the swirl free finish once you get it there. Pretty much all swirling is caused by marring induced by washing your car. You`ll need to get very good at removing dirt from the car without giving it a chance to scratch your paint. ONR is a very good start. If your car ever gets too dirty to use ONR, you might think about running it through a touchless automatic, then following that up with an ONR wash at home. You should be able to get it pretty clean that way, with minimal marring.



Pre-spraying the tough stuff (like baked on bugs and bird poop) with strong ONR out of a spray bottle and letting it sit for a minute is a good way to get the nasties off without having use hard rubbing.



Edit: As far as glazes go...



If you`re going to use a sealant, then make sure you use a glaze that is meant to be used before a sealant. My fav is Danase Wet Glaze. This stuff is really sweet. It amps gloss, does a good job of concealing marring, and is a breeze to apply. Apply it with your pc and a zero bite pad. It`ll just melt right into the paint. If you use the correct amount, there will be zero residue, but it does help make it look even better if you give it a quick wipe down with a soft MF after application. Follow DWG up with a good sealant, and you`re set. If you`re looking for maximum environmental protection, great looks, and long durability, you might think about getting some Finish Kare High Temp 1000P. You really don`t need to top the FK1000P with a wax.



Thank you for your input. If I do have a softer clearcoat do you believe I should stick with the 105 or go with SIP from Menz which has less cut to it? I might as well buy the Menz complete kit?

[SuperBee364]

M105 and M205 work amazingly well with a PC. Better than most equivalent Menz products, IMO. However, you can improve on the finish left by M205, and on softer clears, Menz FPII is a darn good choice. *But*, for correcting, I would much rather use M105/M205 than Menz SIP on the pc any day of the week.

[ThrillHo]

Y



Thank you for your input. If I do have a softer clearcoat do you believe I should stick with the 105 or go with SIP from Menz which has less cut to it? I might as well buy the Menz complete kit?



I`m by no means a professional, so take my recommendation for what it`s worth:



You paint looks like it`s in terrific condition. From what I`ve read on here over the months and gathered from some of the other responders, don`t even think about the m105. You just have some swirls you`re trying to get rid of, right? Plus if your clear coat is as soft as you think it is, m105 is completely overkill IMO. The first respondent "wannafbody" hit the nail on the head. Cheap OTC products (with the exception of Klasse AIO) is a good way to go. I don`t believe you need 3 polishing steps. After the Ultimate Compound, hit it with the SwirlX and you will be good to go. LSPs are personal preferences, but I`d say you really won`t go wrong with any of the ones you have listed.



Is this car a daily driver? Does it spend a lot of time sitting in the sun? Freeway commuting? Garaged? If it`s exposed to a lot of elements, I`d say go with the more "protectant" oriented LSPs like KAIO + Collinite 845. This is what I use on my truck that is too large to fit into my garage. I can`t speak for the 845, but based on my experience with 476, you will get a great balance of looks and longevity.



Conversely, if your car is garaged and not thrashed too hard by the elements, you may want to go for the "showier" products like BFWD + P21S. Don`t get me wrong, they will still provide protection, but IMO there`s not much that can compete with Collinite for the price.




If it doesn`t have hard clear, the only thing I`d suggest you think about changing is the final polish. I`d change the PO85RD and white Edge pad to Menzerna Final Polish II and an Edge red pad.





100% agree here.

[imported_RyansAutoDetail]

i just did a full car



electron blue prelude

meguiars gc wash

riccardo clay with mothers showtime as lube

megs ultimate compound

megs swirlX



followed it all up with a thin application of Optimum Car Wax Spray .



so far it looks still good after well over a week !

[OMG35S]

I`m by no means a professional, so take my recommendation for what it`s worth:



You paint looks like it`s in terrific condition. From what I`ve read on here over the months and gathered from some of the other responders, don`t even think about the m105. You just have some swirls you`re trying to get rid of, right? Plus if your clear coat is as soft as you think it is, m105 is completely overkill IMO. The first respondent "wannafbody" hit the nail on the head. Cheap OTC products (with the exception of Klasse AIO) is a good way to go. I don`t believe you need 3 polishing steps. After the Ultimate Compound, hit it with the SwirlX and you will be good to go. LSPs are personal preferences, but I`d say you really won`t go wrong with any of the ones you have listed.



Is this car a daily driver? Does it spend a lot of time sitting in the sun? Freeway commuting? Garaged? If it`s exposed to a lot of elements, I`d say go with the more "protectant" oriented LSPs like KAIO + Collinite 845. This is what I use on my truck that is too large to fit into my garage. I can`t speak for the 845, but based on my experience with 476, you will get a great balance of looks and longevity.



Conversely, if your car is garaged and not thrashed too hard by the elements, you may want to go for the "showier" products like BFWD + P21S. Don`t get me wrong, they will still provide protection, but IMO there`s not much that can compete with Collinite for the price.







100% agree here.



Thanks for your input. After thorough reading I think I will purchase the Collinite 845 as a sealant.



I too believe that M105 is going to provide too much cut for what I need. I`m leaning towards a Menzerna kit as of right now.



I just don`t see how people are using M105 on newer 07+ cars. Is it because it`s quick and easy and it will get the defects out without having to go over certain spots?