Black 2005 G35 hard clear coat

[Retzius]

Hi guys,



I am a newbee and have been reading, reading, and reading the last few days. I've checked out most of the videos on AG and tutorials at DI. Its been a good learning process. I want to polish my 2005 Obsidian Black G35 coupe. It was polished by a member on here a few years ago, Ryan aka "RAG" or "RAGS" (cant remember) and he did a phenomenal job. However, I am no longer in San Diego and would like to learn to polish since I now have a garage.



Before I get into detailing my car I wanted to check with you guys what pads I should use for my future GG DA.



I thought I had it all down with pads but now I am not so sure since I just saw the sticker underneath my hood stating my car has a hard clear. I was expecting to use M105 with a 5.5 LC orange and follow that with M205 5.5 LC white. Can anyone confirm if this is ok to use? Any help is appreciated.



Also, this is what my plan for detailing entails



Wash-CG W&C

Clay - Mothers Clay with Mother QD for lube

Wash again or wipe - CG W&C and maybe IPA wipe for clay marring

Polish-M105 LC orange, M205 LC White

Wash again CG W&C or IPA wipe, CG creme glaze

Seal- Black Fire Wet Diamond by hand or DA with LC gray pad? recommendations?



Watcha think? Can I polish this paint out with those pads? Thanks.



Here are some pics of my car after Ryan "RAGS" polished it 2 years ago,

 

[Alexshimshimhae]

not that i'm any kind of authority on the subject matter but it sounds good--though i dunno if it's necessary to ipa after claybar if you're ganna compound anyways....

 

[Retzius]

not that i'm any kind of authority on the subject matter but it sounds good--though i dunno if it's necessary to ipa after claybar if you're ganna compound anyways....

Thanks Alex, I also thought that all that washing and IPA wiping is a bit excessive. I probably will skip that step then.

 

[maxepr1]

Retzius, sounds good! Car is beautiful by the way! Can't really see the swirls in the paint from the pictures but you can do a test spot to see if it works before you go crazy. My experiance with the G cars is hard clears and aggresive compounds do the trick. I will use LC's Hydro line of pads (cyan,tangerine,finishing)on not to bad RIDS, but I find more times than not PFW does the trick on a rotary. But you can acheive the same results on GG with PFW it just takes longer. Look at some of Barry's posts you can see the power of a GG machine! As for compounds start light 205 and orange since you have it, see if that works. As for using IPA after claying it really is not required. I like to wash 1 time and then clay while the car is still wet with ONR lube. After claying wash 1 more time and then start compounding.

 

[Alexshimshimhae]

essentially AFAIK, IPA wipedowns are to breakdown and clean off any oils or fillers that may be left on your car paint so that you can get a better idea as to what you're truly dealing with in terms of corrections..now, Accumulator stated in a post earlier i think today that IF you're correcting by hand (though I take this as if you're not doing a full correction) maybe it's worthwhile leaving those fillers/oils behind untill you have time to finish it proper..(or something along those lines lol in case i misunderstood that take with grain of salt)

 

[imported_lmg_35c]

Nice pics, nice car!



Are you sure you need to compound it with M105? I'd suggest trying a section with the 205 / white pad first... you'd be amazed at how effective it is. You could also use the orange pad with 205 for a bit more bite, and then step down to the white pad for finishing.



IPA is a good idea before LSP. Both of these non-diminishing polishes seem to leave a fair amount behind.



I prefer to put my finish on by hand rather than machine.



Post more pics when you' re done.



By the way, BFWD is great! ...especially on G35's.

 

[Jesstzn]

Will the sealant bond over the glaze?

 

[imported_Picus]

All G35s I have ever seen have the "Hard Clear Coat" sticker - as far as I can tell, it is a lie. I've yet to run into a G35 with "hard" paint.



Since you're using a DA, I'd definitely start with 205 on a white pad, see how the correction is (it will correct more than you think, probably). Odds are you'll need to move up to 105, but give it a shot. Unless it's a respray I can all but promise it is not hard paint.

 

[Retzius]

Retzius, sounds good! Car is beautiful by the way! Can't really see the swirls in the paint from the pictures but you can do a test spot to see if it works before you go crazy. My experiance with the G cars is hard clears and aggresive compounds do the trick. I will use LC's Hydro line of pads (cyan,tangerine,finishing)on not to bad RIDS, but I find more times than not PFW does the trick on a rotary. But you can acheive the same results on GG with PFW it just takes longer. Look at some of Barry's posts you can see the power of a GG machine! As for compounds start light 205 and orange since you have it, see if that works. As for using IPA after claying it really is not required. I like to wash 1 time and then clay while the car is still wet with ONR lube. After claying wash 1 more time and then start compounding.

Thanks Max! You should not see any swirls because the car was polished by a professional in those pics. My car does not look like that anymore, lots of swirls. I will check out Barry's posts and definitely start with a test section using the least cut and go from there. I've read a lot of this can sometimes be trial and error. I will use your suggestion, I thought I had to dry it first then clay, but yours makes sense. Thanks

 

[Retzius]

Nice pics, nice car!



Are you sure you need to compound it with M105? I'd suggest trying a section with the 205 / white pad first... you'd be amazed at how effective it is. You could also use the orange pad with 205 for a bit more bite, and then step down to the white pad for finishing.



IPA is a good idea before LSP. Both of these non-diminishing polishes seem to leave a fair amount behind.



I prefer to put my finish on by hand rather than machine.



Post more pics when you' re done.



By the way, BFWD is great! ...especially on G35's.

Thanks LMG, your car is a beauty, I hope I can get mine to look like that. I am definitely not sure about using M105 on the G but I figure it wont hurt to buy it. I was going to buy the 8 or 12 oz M105 to try out. Do you think I should opt for the 32 oz. instead? I figure I could use it to polish my headlights and its safe to have incase I need it. To be safe, I will start with M205 white and go from there. I also feel I will enjoy adding the sealant by hand rather than machine. I guess its something about that final step that deserves more TLC after all that polishing, ha. Is this a good idea to use when applying sealant by hand? DI Accessories Polishing Pal | Detailed Image Thanks.

Will the sealant bond over the glaze?

Hey Jess,



I read in Todds tutorials at DI that the glaze helps with cleaning and prepping the sealant. Also, that particular combination works really well together.

All G35s I have ever seen have the "Hard Clear Coat" sticker - as far as I can tell, it is a lie. I've yet to run into a G35 with "hard" paint.



Since you're using a DA, I'd definitely start with 205 on a white pad, see how the correction is (it will correct more than you think, probably). Odds are you'll need to move up to 105, but give it a shot. Unless it's a respray I can all but promise it is not hard paint.

Thanks Picus, thats really helpful because that hard clear sticker did worry me. I will check my results with 205 on white pad and if I feel it needs more I will use more pressure or switch pads.

 

[Legacy]

All G35s I have ever seen have the "Hard Clear Coat" sticker - as far as I can tell, it is a lie. I've yet to run into a G35 with "hard" paint.



Since you're using a DA, I'd definitely start with 205 on a white pad, see how the correction is (it will correct more than you think, probably). Odds are you'll need to move up to 105, but give it a shot. Unless it's a respray I can all but promise it is not hard paint.

I agree, I have a G35 Coupe and if anything it is med soft. The newer models had sticky paint or self healing paint which I believe Infiniti discontiued.

 

[Retzius]

I have another question....My car has that sticker bra on the front hood, door handles, and side view mirrors. Do I just treat these sticker guards the same way as paint when I begin to polish it or am I supposed to use other products/pads? Thanks.

 

[Legacy]

I have another question....My car has that sticker bra on the front hood, door handles, and side view mirrors. Do I just treat these sticker guards the same way as paint when I begin to polish it or am I supposed to use other products/pads? Thanks.

Treat it like paint, but try to stay away from the edges if any.

 

[Retzius]

Thanks Legacy

 

[maxepr1]

No, be a little bit careful around and on the clear bra. Not to much pressure. Start with white for sure on the clear bra. I would even drop down in compounds from what you used on the paint were there wasn't any clear bra. Practice on a mirror before you drive onto the hood. If you screw up the mirror it's cheaper to fix!

 

[Retzius]

Got it Max, Thanks. I am first going to polish my g/f camry that needs a clay real bad. Hopefully I get enough practice there.

 

[imported_Picus]

I think you mean a clear bra (aka, paint protection film?). If so, you do not treat them exactly like paint; well, I don't. If you get too aggressive on them you can make a real mess. What kind of correction do they need, are they swirled up, yellowed? Normally on clear films if I can I leave them alone (aside from sealing them); if they need correction I approach it on a case by case basis, based on how much correction they need, the type of film, etc.

 

[Retzius]

I think you mean a clear bra (aka, paint protection film?). If so, you do not treat them exactly like paint; well, I don't. If you get too aggressive on them you can make a real mess. What kind of correction do they need, are they swirled up, yellowed? Normally on clear films if I can I leave them alone (aside from sealing them); if they need correction I approach it on a case by case basis, based on how much correction they need, the type of film, etc.

Hey Picus,



Its not a clear bra but is like a clear bra. The difference is that its the same color as my car. Its black instead of clear and came from the Infiniti dealership that way. It does have swirls and I think some scuffs, I will snap a pic of it to show you.

 

[imported_Picus]

Oh ok, I know what you mean now. I don't see those very often. I treat them just like paint.

 

[Retzius]

Hey guys,



I am glad autopia is back and running. :up



I got some of my products in this week (m105 & pads) and I figured I would give it a try. I was surprised at how well m105 and LC orange pad worked for me the first time. I hope its not because I worked on my g/f camry back windshield filled with water spots. I managed to get almost all the water spots off except on those darn edges. I did have a 3" backing plate but my g/f was jumping with joy at how clean her windshield looked. I scored some points according to her. Maybe I will got over the lower and top edges with the smaller pads.



I am really impressed with m105 and how fast it cuts. I used the KBM and primed my pad. I also made a newbee mistake by lifting my DA while running. I got M105 all over the car, it was a pain to get off. Oh well, live and learn, I guess.



What do you guys think? Here are some pics, good and bad...



Good

Bad (well kind of bad, but only because I was lazy to go over it with a 3.5" orange pad)