Need suggestions polishing car roofs and hoods that flex

E

edistoinn

New member
I live in Vermonta and winters are awful for my vehicles because of the salt and sand they use on the roads. In the past, I go to one of those DIY car washes but they always leave a gritty residue on the car. Does anyone have a winter detailing regimen they can recommend? I would greatly appreciate it!
 
The only way to get salt off your vehicle is to wash it with a chenille or cotton mitt or take it to a cloth car wash. Those touchless car washes that just spray soap and water or the do it yourself wand sprayer washes do not remove the grit of the salt and leave the haze. Winters are horrible for your car especially for us northerners. Do a search on winter and many answers will show up. This question is asked often.
 
So when polishing my truck the other day, i didn't really get the roof of the cab as nice as I wanted as it flexed really bad when I put any pressure on it. I didn't want to dent it, so I lightly went over it with the polisher. Didn't do that great of a job like when I could put some weight behind it.

Any tips for this? My hood has some give to it also, but not near as much so I could get it done quite well. Just want to know for future details, our Vibe and all the other cars I did weren't this bad.
 
I have an 08 Super Duty Crew Cab. My roof gives the same as your talking about I beleive. Does it bow more towards the center?

If so, don't worry. Just give it a smack from the interior(headliner) and it will pop right back into place :soldier:
 
Yeah, right in the middle is awful, no structure at all.

Right now it's out of sight out of mind (it's shiny at least), but I'll try that so I know for customer's cars.
 
I had ran into a few of them, and I just keep going with a little less pressure on that area and had no problems................:wizard:
 
If you use a rotary polisher with a cutting pad, wool or foam, and the right compound, run a little higher rpms and don't press down on the polisher.
 
While it can be kind of scary the first couple of times 'oil canning' is typical on large surfaces with little support. I have never seen a body panel stay distorted and it personally doesn't concern me, but the suggestion of going to a rotary polisher (if applicable) is a great idea.
 
I'm planning on getting a G110v2 after this week (I'm doing 3 cars for a friend of mine, so that'll more than cover it), so hopefully that helps also.

I don't have a rotary, not sure if I'll ever get one since I only detail on the side, maybe one day I'll get the courage to try one out.
 
Indy YZF
If you would like to try out a Megs g100 v2 or the Griots for a day before pulling the trigger, I have both and work down by Greenwood exit 99 . Also have a makita and an assortment of pads available.
Paul S
 
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