What to do with Uber-dry paint?

[Porschephile924]

the paint on my Porsche is 18 years old, and extremely dry. none of the 4 Previous Owners understood the concept of wax, and now the paint is so dry, whatever touches it, it soaks it up and oxidizes.... I was the car, and the hood turns pink. I`ve used Carnuba wax on it, and it`s almost like any wax or product I use needs to be re-applied every 2 weeks, and it`s getting really old... any advice is appreciated :nixweiss

[Porschephile924]

the paint on my Porsche is 18 years old, and extremely dry. none of the 4 Previous Owners understood the concept of wax, and now the paint is so dry, whatever touches it, it soaks it up and oxidizes.... I was the car, and the hood turns pink. I`ve used Carnuba wax on it, and it`s almost like any wax or product I use needs to be re-applied every 2 weeks, and it`s getting really old... any advice is appreciated :nixweiss

[CaliPhotog]

Have you preped the car before waxing it? If not you should definetly do that.



Wash

Clay

Wash

Polish

then if you want you can wax

[CaliPhotog]

Have you preped the car before waxing it? If not you should definetly do that.



Wash

Clay

Wash

Polish

then if you want you can wax

[Prometheus]

You might want to try a glaze like Meguiar`s #7 (I`m assuming it is a single stage paint job, if it is clear coated you will probably want to try #81 instead) and apply that a few times. This will serve to "hydrate" (probably not technically correct, but you get the point) the paint. After that, you will need to remove the old, oxidized paint. This is most easily done by machine like a PC. Klasse AIO does wonders for oxidation, and is probably your best bet. If all else fails, you can get an abrasive, but this will actually remove paint, and being the paint is 18 years old, you will want to remove as little as possible. A mild polish like Meg`s #80 or SSR1 or 1z pp or Menzerna FP (there are others too, these are just the ones that I can quickly think up) would also be a good addition after the AIO to get rid of any small scratches or swirls. AFter that, wax it, and it should look gorgeous.



Hope this helps.

[Prometheus]

You might want to try a glaze like Meguiar`s #7 (I`m assuming it is a single stage paint job, if it is clear coated you will probably want to try #81 instead) and apply that a few times. This will serve to "hydrate" (probably not technically correct, but you get the point) the paint. After that, you will need to remove the old, oxidized paint. This is most easily done by machine like a PC. Klasse AIO does wonders for oxidation, and is probably your best bet. If all else fails, you can get an abrasive, but this will actually remove paint, and being the paint is 18 years old, you will want to remove as little as possible. A mild polish like Meg`s #80 or SSR1 or 1z pp or Menzerna FP (there are others too, these are just the ones that I can quickly think up) would also be a good addition after the AIO to get rid of any small scratches or swirls. AFter that, wax it, and it should look gorgeous.



Hope this helps.

[imported_truzoom]

You definitely need a pure polish to restore some moisture back into the paint. #7 or any non-abrasive glaze will leave a nice shine and depth.

[imported_truzoom]

You definitely need a pure polish to restore some moisture back into the paint. #7 or any non-abrasive glaze will leave a nice shine and depth.

[Black240SX]

From your description, you`ve got some oxidized paint you need to deal with. Paint cleaner is what you need to remove it. If the oxidation is very bad, it might go most or all of the way through the paint. I suppose you don`t have much to lose by removing it, though.

[Black240SX]

From your description, you`ve got some oxidized paint you need to deal with. Paint cleaner is what you need to remove it. If the oxidation is very bad, it might go most or all of the way through the paint. I suppose you don`t have much to lose by removing it, though.

[CalSpeedRacer]

before you try an abrasive polish, it might be interesting to see what a chemical paint cleaner like AIO can do first to remove the oxidation.

[CalSpeedRacer]

before you try an abrasive polish, it might be interesting to see what a chemical paint cleaner like AIO can do first to remove the oxidation.

[White95Max]

AIO is the ticket. Get some and try it out.

[White95Max]

AIO is the ticket. Get some and try it out.

[Accumulator]

Lemme guess, single-stage Guard`s Red?



Yeah, the above advice is good but note that some of the suggestions (e.g., AIO/#7) won`t play well together. I`d clean the paint with AIO or another paint cleaner (Pinnacle Paintwork Cleansing Lotion comes to mind, or one of the Meg`s paint cleaners), removing the oxidation. Then I`d either do A/B/C (marring considerable, oxidation not awful) or B/A/C (oxidation *awful*, marring not as bad, should first do something to remove the AIO if you used that to clean the paint) below depending on how bad the oxidation and any marring are:



A) Polish with #80



B) Treat with #7 in the following manner: Apply the #7 sorta thick, try to "work it into the paint". Don`t buff it off, leave it on there overnight. Next day, buff it off. Inspect, repeat if necessary.



C) Apply #7 (or #3/#5/#81) in the usual manner. Then apply a #7-friendly LSP.



Keep it out of the sun as best you can.



If it`s really oxidized/compromised you`ll have to keep doing this forever (well, until you run out of paint). Once paint *really* gets played it`s just a matter of time but you can help it a *LOT* by keeping it clean/waxed and out of the sun.