Type of car and defect correction strategy

[imported_The Uncle]

I've been reading various threads here where several of you make reference to the difficulty associated with correcting paint imperfections on specific kinds of cars (believe it or not, I read most of the posts here, even if I don't always chime in). For example, several of you have discussed the "hardness" of Audi paint. The sense I get is that a good strategy for maintaining the paint ought to vary according to the specific make of the vehicle (depending on the type of paint and clearcoat the factory uses).



So, to make a long story short, that makes me wonder about my Acura TSX (which is very light colored, and nearly defect free). Is the paint on Japanese cars "softer" than German cars, and should that have an impact on the sorts of strategies and products I use to address paint imperfections?

 

[JasonD]

Uncle,



This is a very good point/question. Most people dwell so much on the products that they don't take the time to really understand the process. In this case, each process is different because, like you said, almost every car is different.



As far as a *general rule of thumb*, I think the only two manufacturers that stand out from the crowd is Audi and Mercedes for being very hard, but even then I take my time with every new car I detail and work with the paint, not against it. Just think of every car as a new learning experience and take your time to figure out what process is going to work best for that car.



To answer your question, yes, the varying hardnesses will result in varying processes but all that will really ever happen is you will have to polish more or less, that's all.

 

[Accumulator]

IMO the biggest differences are in a) how hard you have to work to avoid defects ("what you can get away with doing" ), and b) how you correct defects when they do occur.



As for Japanese cars, the only ones I've done lately are Subaru (sorta "regular" hardness, gotta wash carefully; PI-III MG works well on it) and Mazda (quite hard, can wash with BHBs, seldom have to polish out marring; but must use PI-III RC as a first polish when you do).



From what others post, I gather that *most* Japanese clears are in the "medium/regular" range. That is, you'd have to be sorta careful when washing them but you won't have to wear yourself out when polishing out marring (but you gotta watch how much clear you take off since it "cuts" easily).



I always when I read about "soft German clear", at least when they show an Audi in the accompanying pictures! None of my Porsches were especially soft either, nor was my VW (but that *was* a long time ago). Dunno about Bimmers, but I gather they really are kinda soft.

 

[imported_The Uncle]

I almost hate to ask this, given the thoughtfullness of your responses (and, btw, you guys truly do raise detailing to both an art and a science ), but would the "hardness" of the finish influence your choices for polishes? Reading some of the comments over the last few days, I wondered whether some of us prefer certain products simply because they happen to work well on our paint type. Do you think, for example, that having an Audi leads you to favor 3M products over others?



The reason why I hate to ask this question is that I think I need to learn a lot more about "how to do" rather than "what to use." But, I suppose "what to use" is often a starting point.

 

[Bill D]

At the time it was not on the blacklist, I favored 1z and still favor Menzerna for my hard Audi clear. Yes, as a consequence of the hardness of my paint, I will seek out appropriate polishes and then recommend then whereas other brands or grades may do just fine on other car marques.

 

[imported_The Uncle]

Bill, is it basically the case that you prefer more aggressive polishes for a harder finish?

 

[Eliot Ness]

I prefer the 3M polishes (PI III RC & MG) because they are very user friendly, perform well, and contain no fillers. I also use #80 & #83 and recently ordered SSR2.5 & 1 for use in the sun.



I guess the paint hardness and the level of defects I'm trying to remove do factor into my polish selection. It just seems that some polishes work better in different situations.

 

[Bill D]

Bill, is it basically the case that you prefer more aggressive polishes for a harder finish?

I don't find them technically more aggressive, rather they incorporate different abrasives and ingredients and for whatever reason, my particular paint responds better to them. :nixweiss . I think there is some hint of truth to the "German polishes for German paint" line. That said, it's like pulling teeth to get the stuff to respond to my Caddy's paint. That is without using a rotary though.