I'm new to this forum but I have been reading a lot here, the Autopia guide to detailing and many other sources on the web.
I live in Northeast and the tough winters take a toll on any type of paint protection. From what I have gathered here and from other sources Klasse topped with Carnuba seems to make a winning combination for good looks and durability.
My experimental car (for paint work) and daily beater is a retired '99 Crown Vic police car. The car is medium gray metallic (much darker than silver but not quite a dark gray). The paint is original and in pretty decent shape CONSIDERING the tough life this vehicle has had. There were tons of deep scratches in the paint on the roof (from dragging the light bar on and off) and the hood and trunk lid (from being used as a desk surface, seat etc.). I practice on this vehicle so I don't ruin the pain on my "good" vehciles.
A buddy and I recently spent 28 man hours (14 hours straight each - we do work slow and could NEVER make a living out of this ) working on the paint. It was our first time with a Makita Rotary and wool pad. Did the following:
1) Washed twice with Dawn and water and dry
2) Wiped down entire car with Prep Solv and clean terry cloth cotton towels
3) Washed with Dawn and dry
4) Clayed the car with 3M clay, using soap and water as the lube (amazing what came out -- the clay quickly looked like sandpaper)
5) Rotary buffed, yellow wool with Hi-Temp #3 (we started with Diamond cut bu realized with needed something a bit harsher)
6) Cleaned with QD and a cloth
7) Rotary buffed, new yellow wool with Meguiars Diamond Cut 2.0
8) Washed with Dawn and water and dry
9) Rotary buffed with a foam cut pad and Meguiars Body Shop Professional Dual Action Cleaner/Polish
10) Wash with Dawn and dry
11) Porter Cable DA with foam pad and Meguiars Machien Glaze #3.
12) Wipe off polish residue by hand with a microfiber towels
13) Wash with Dawn and dry (probably a mistake at this step but it was too late when we thought of it)
14) Apply One Grand Blitz wax by hand and remove with microfiber towels
15) Wash with 3M car soap and water and dry
16) Wipe down with Meguiars final inspection and microfiber towels.
As you can imagine this routine made a HUGE improvement in the paint. It is far from perfect and there are still some scratches that will only be removed via wet sanding (that will be another time) but the car really looks great overall.
Now that I have it looking so good I'm interesting in putting on a top coat that will last a while.
I think I want to do this routine
1) Klasse AIO (one coat)
2) Klasse SG (two coats)
3) Blitz wax (two coats over a couple of days)
Is there any point in putting a glaze on before the AIO? I'm thinking that this is pointless because the AIO will remove the fillers and oils from the glaze. What do you guys think is the best way to apply the three items above and should I glaze before the AIO. Thanks. This is a great place for clean car freaks!!!!!!!!!!
Here are a couple photos of our handy work. The car has 100K very hard miles on it. I also gutted the interior down to sheet metal and glass and cleaned everything and reinstalled. That was a two week project. The car was so dirty inside you couldn't see the grain in the plastic pieces. I thought I was going to throw the carpet out (light gray) but managed to clean it so well (not a single spot or stain left) that I reinstalled it. I shampooed the interior (fabric removed from seats) seven times, and dryed them in the sun (did this back in August of '02).
I live in Northeast and the tough winters take a toll on any type of paint protection. From what I have gathered here and from other sources Klasse topped with Carnuba seems to make a winning combination for good looks and durability.
My experimental car (for paint work) and daily beater is a retired '99 Crown Vic police car. The car is medium gray metallic (much darker than silver but not quite a dark gray). The paint is original and in pretty decent shape CONSIDERING the tough life this vehicle has had. There were tons of deep scratches in the paint on the roof (from dragging the light bar on and off) and the hood and trunk lid (from being used as a desk surface, seat etc.). I practice on this vehicle so I don't ruin the pain on my "good" vehciles.
A buddy and I recently spent 28 man hours (14 hours straight each - we do work slow and could NEVER make a living out of this ) working on the paint. It was our first time with a Makita Rotary and wool pad. Did the following:
1) Washed twice with Dawn and water and dry
2) Wiped down entire car with Prep Solv and clean terry cloth cotton towels
3) Washed with Dawn and dry
4) Clayed the car with 3M clay, using soap and water as the lube (amazing what came out -- the clay quickly looked like sandpaper)
5) Rotary buffed, yellow wool with Hi-Temp #3 (we started with Diamond cut bu realized with needed something a bit harsher)
6) Cleaned with QD and a cloth
7) Rotary buffed, new yellow wool with Meguiars Diamond Cut 2.0
8) Washed with Dawn and water and dry
9) Rotary buffed with a foam cut pad and Meguiars Body Shop Professional Dual Action Cleaner/Polish
10) Wash with Dawn and dry
11) Porter Cable DA with foam pad and Meguiars Machien Glaze #3.
12) Wipe off polish residue by hand with a microfiber towels
13) Wash with Dawn and dry (probably a mistake at this step but it was too late when we thought of it)
14) Apply One Grand Blitz wax by hand and remove with microfiber towels
15) Wash with 3M car soap and water and dry
16) Wipe down with Meguiars final inspection and microfiber towels.
As you can imagine this routine made a HUGE improvement in the paint. It is far from perfect and there are still some scratches that will only be removed via wet sanding (that will be another time) but the car really looks great overall.
Now that I have it looking so good I'm interesting in putting on a top coat that will last a while.
I think I want to do this routine
1) Klasse AIO (one coat)
2) Klasse SG (two coats)
3) Blitz wax (two coats over a couple of days)
Is there any point in putting a glaze on before the AIO? I'm thinking that this is pointless because the AIO will remove the fillers and oils from the glaze. What do you guys think is the best way to apply the three items above and should I glaze before the AIO. Thanks. This is a great place for clean car freaks!!!!!!!!!!
Here are a couple photos of our handy work. The car has 100K very hard miles on it. I also gutted the interior down to sheet metal and glass and cleaned everything and reinstalled. That was a two week project. The car was so dirty inside you couldn't see the grain in the plastic pieces. I thought I was going to throw the carpet out (light gray) but managed to clean it so well (not a single spot or stain left) that I reinstalled it. I shampooed the interior (fabric removed from seats) seven times, and dryed them in the sun (did this back in August of '02).
.