First Time Polish/Wax

R

RedVolvo

New member
Hello, I have a Red 1993 Volvo 850 and have just joined Autopia to learn how to better detail my car. It has been garage cared for most of its life except for the last three years. I have been using it at college and it has developed some oxidization on the hood, top, and trunk. The paint is also fading in those areas. There are also swirl marks from repeated use of drying the car with dish towels.



I would like to do the best job I can on the car. I am willing to purchase off the internet, but I do not have a PC, and I have a moderate budget($250 max).



From some research about the best combination of polishes/waxes with red I thought the following may work well...

1.) Wash car

2.) Clay while wet

3.) 1 X GEPC

4.) 1 X AIO

5.) 3 X SG

6.) 3 X S100



Any feedback with suggestions would be great. Thanks!
 
Hey RedVolvo,

250 bucks should get you started out nicely.Im talking PC $119 from coastal ,sonus pad kits$59.and a slew of chemicals for your car.

Look in the autopia shopping for the sonus pads or go to auto geek for their brand.The chemicals can be brought from either too very good selections so have fun shopping.

Look around in this forum there are some links to coastal somewhere...
 
ALAN81 said:
CAN sombody explain to me why

3 x SG

3 X S100

dont you think that is a little too much
Click to expand...



Because some people like to style thier hair while getting into the car.or maybe thier scared of someone following them and want to see behind them walking up to thier car :nixweiss

Im guessing because of the shine :xyxthumbs



dont forgett the MF'rs at PakShack.your up to 200 $ and counting .

what have you decided? Let me know I like to help people spend money :D
 
Hi RedVolvo, welcome to Autopia. :welcome



For the age of your car and the condition it is probably in, you have way too much emphasis on the last steps and almost zero corrective steps in the plan you listed.



Since you are planning on buying a PC, you would do well to order a minimum of two actual abrasive polishes to take out the swirls and oxidation before you even start thinking about all the other products you listed. What you have right now isn't going to cut it on anything but a nearly brand new finish. If you are really on a budget, get the PC, clay,and a few choice polishes, and then buy a $3 can of Turtle Wax.... I am semi-serious in this suggestion because the car will look far better with good paint prep and "cheap" wax than it will with all those products you mentioned by themselves. It's all in the prep, not the products - don't fall into the trap of thinking you can work miracles with tons of fancy boutique products.



Do some reading up on "swirl removal" and "oxidation" and don't forget about the Learn! link at the very top of this page if you haven't visited that area yet.



You can probably deal with the oxidation and swirls at the same time as each other. Check your work as you go, and make sure you get everything nearly perfect before you get to the steps you listed, because while it's fine to be "extreme" and do all of those, it won't really help if you've neglected the previous steps. Good luck.
 
Yes Yes ,we were going to get him all that stuff too Brian :D He just needs to get back sometime ...Its like he disapeared :nixweiss
 
Thanks for the quick replies! They've helped quite a bit. I've been doing some more reading through the Guide to Detailing;-) Definately posted a bit too soon...



How is the Sonus Perfect Shine Paint Finish Kit? I have to do a lot more research on some polishes. Where could I get a magnetic paint thickness indicator? I searched for it here but could not find a thread.



I'll post again when done thorougly reading the Guide to Detailing. Sorry for wasting your time guys:-(
 
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