At request of MR 325, I wrote up a walkthrough for what I would do to a car for a full paint restoration. I hope this will help some of you prepare your car for bimmerfest. Detailing is often the 1 thing overlooked when you are modding your car and making it perfect.
First of course, I would have to take a look at the car and decide just how much work it needs? Has it been polished recently before? Has it been clayed recently? Is any of the clear cote faded away?
If the paint is extremely swirled, has a considerate loss of depth, and it needs to be made perfect again, I would go ahead and use my best polishes on the paint. If the paint was bumpy, oxidated, and didn't feel like a baby's butt to touch, I would have to clay it.
The very first thing you want to do is find a nice spot in the shade :).
First would come the wash, for a simple wash (and interior cleaning) I would use these items:
- 2x 2-gallon buckets
- Meguiars Gold Class Wash (best traditional wash product, and available off the counter)
- 2x Lrg waffle weave towel, I like Meguiars and pakshak.com the most (don't use a chamois, they create swirls because there is nowhere for the dirt to go in the towel)
- 1 sheepskin wash mitt (I cut off the cuffs on mine and use them like a small towel)
- ~4 terry cloth towels
- ~4 cheap microfiber towels
- Stoner Invisible Glass (cheap, OTC, and the best)
So the first thing you need to do is to fill up a bucket with a little soap and fill it with water. Clean the wheels and tires with the cloth towels and this soap. Get them nice and clean. Next, clean the fender wells with the same stuff. The reason to do the wheels first is so that dirt on the wheels/tires doesnt spray onto clean paint after you wash the car. If you have crappy sideskirts with lots of dirt on them, go ahead and clean them with these cloth towels as well.
Next, empty out the bucket. Fill up 1 bucket with just water, and the other with a good water/soap mixture. Wash the car using the two bucket method. That method is:
- Dip the mitt in the soapy bucket, wash your car
- When it gets dirty, clean off the dirt in the bucket with just water
- Re-soap in the other bucket and continue.
The reason to do this is so that by the end of the wash, you are still cleaning your car with clean water. Improper wash technique is the #1 reason for swirled paint. Dirt that is on your wash mitt is scratching your paint.
Rinse off the paint good. Take one of the waffle weave drying towels and remove most of the water off. Turn to the other ww towel to take care of the rest of the water. Now, take some of the cheap microfiber towels to clean door jambs, trunk jambs, and your wheels that you washed earlier. Your car should be perfectly dry now.
Next would come claying the car. I would approve of almost any clay that is available right now. Use a mixture of soap and water in an empty spray bottle, or use quick detailer as the lubricant for claying. Go around and around the paint until it is soft and clean. You will see some of the paint's depth coming back already after this step.
Rinse off the vehicle and dry again, you are now ready for polishing and waxing. Here is what I would use for a full paint restoration:
- Porter Cable machine polisher (Meg's uses the same exact machine, just with a higher price and 2 year warranty)
- Lake Country polishing pads (1 black finishing pad, 1 orange cutting pad, and 1 white polishing pad)
- Poorboy's SSR 2.5 for medium swirls (this will usually get everything out, but if your swirls are REALLY that bad, bump up to SSR 3)
- Poorboy's SSR 1 for light swirls
- Some type of durable synthetic wax/sealant (I like NXT, it's easy and cures quickly)
- Some type of jaw-dropping carnauba wax (I love P21S)
- ~4 Really good microfiber towels, again, I prefer pakshak.com or meguiars (don't cheap out on these ones)
So first you want to cover plastic and rubber areas of the car with blue painter's tape. You don't want to get wax on these areas and make them turn white. I cover the emblems, side trim, bumper trim, washer nozzles, and grilles (I'm sure I'm leaving something out).
I start the polishing off with The orange pad and SSR 2.5, with the PC at a speed of 6. Go one small section at a time. On the e30, I split the sections into this: 3 hood sections, each fender, each door, 2 halves of the roof, and then the trunk and license plate area (remove your plate). Fit in the tops of the bumpers anywhere you want here, be careful with these. First put a light amount of polish onto the pad (the first time you will need a little extra). Some people like to do an X on the pad, I like to just put three nickel sized dots on the pad. Spread the polish around the section with the PC on speed 1. Then work in the polish slowly in straight lines until it dries/hazes (now on speed 6). Remove it quickly with some QD and a MF towel after.
Next I move on to the SSR 1. Use the same method as before, except with a white pade and at speed 4 on the PC. Make sure you are removing the polish right after you are done with a little QD and a MF towel.
If there is still some residue on the car, which there really shouldn't be (SSR 1 is fairly easy compared to other products), then use some type of non-abrasive polish (I like Poorboy's Pro Polish, others like Klasse all-in-one). Use a new white pad and the PC on speed 2-3.
Almost done! Move on to the black finishing pad, and your choice of wax. I think NXT is easy, and right in the middle in terms of durability and looks. Make sure you are parked in the shade for waxing! Go around the whole car with this stuff and the PC on speed 1. Get a nice even spread. Let it sit for 10 mins and have a drink. Then remove it with another MF towel and some QD. If you are really into it, you can do this last step twice, and possibly with a different wax (one that is more for looks and not so durable like P21S).
Your paint should be perfect now, look at it and be happy with your work. Finish up with some trim protectant and glass cleaner. Then do your interior if it is needed. No tricks with these steps, just make sure to use clean towels.
Here are a couple before/afters of my e30 (crappy pics and crappy weather sorry):
BEFORE
AFTER
Remember to not cheap out on your towels and to use clean towels during the whole process. I stress this because this is how your car gets swirled.
I hope this helped a lot of you!
First of course, I would have to take a look at the car and decide just how much work it needs? Has it been polished recently before? Has it been clayed recently? Is any of the clear cote faded away?
If the paint is extremely swirled, has a considerate loss of depth, and it needs to be made perfect again, I would go ahead and use my best polishes on the paint. If the paint was bumpy, oxidated, and didn't feel like a baby's butt to touch, I would have to clay it.
The very first thing you want to do is find a nice spot in the shade :).
First would come the wash, for a simple wash (and interior cleaning) I would use these items:
- 2x 2-gallon buckets
- Meguiars Gold Class Wash (best traditional wash product, and available off the counter)
- 2x Lrg waffle weave towel, I like Meguiars and pakshak.com the most (don't use a chamois, they create swirls because there is nowhere for the dirt to go in the towel)
- 1 sheepskin wash mitt (I cut off the cuffs on mine and use them like a small towel)
- ~4 terry cloth towels
- ~4 cheap microfiber towels
- Stoner Invisible Glass (cheap, OTC, and the best)
So the first thing you need to do is to fill up a bucket with a little soap and fill it with water. Clean the wheels and tires with the cloth towels and this soap. Get them nice and clean. Next, clean the fender wells with the same stuff. The reason to do the wheels first is so that dirt on the wheels/tires doesnt spray onto clean paint after you wash the car. If you have crappy sideskirts with lots of dirt on them, go ahead and clean them with these cloth towels as well.
Next, empty out the bucket. Fill up 1 bucket with just water, and the other with a good water/soap mixture. Wash the car using the two bucket method. That method is:
- Dip the mitt in the soapy bucket, wash your car
- When it gets dirty, clean off the dirt in the bucket with just water
- Re-soap in the other bucket and continue.
The reason to do this is so that by the end of the wash, you are still cleaning your car with clean water. Improper wash technique is the #1 reason for swirled paint. Dirt that is on your wash mitt is scratching your paint.
Rinse off the paint good. Take one of the waffle weave drying towels and remove most of the water off. Turn to the other ww towel to take care of the rest of the water. Now, take some of the cheap microfiber towels to clean door jambs, trunk jambs, and your wheels that you washed earlier. Your car should be perfectly dry now.
Next would come claying the car. I would approve of almost any clay that is available right now. Use a mixture of soap and water in an empty spray bottle, or use quick detailer as the lubricant for claying. Go around and around the paint until it is soft and clean. You will see some of the paint's depth coming back already after this step.
Rinse off the vehicle and dry again, you are now ready for polishing and waxing. Here is what I would use for a full paint restoration:
- Porter Cable machine polisher (Meg's uses the same exact machine, just with a higher price and 2 year warranty)
- Lake Country polishing pads (1 black finishing pad, 1 orange cutting pad, and 1 white polishing pad)
- Poorboy's SSR 2.5 for medium swirls (this will usually get everything out, but if your swirls are REALLY that bad, bump up to SSR 3)
- Poorboy's SSR 1 for light swirls
- Some type of durable synthetic wax/sealant (I like NXT, it's easy and cures quickly)
- Some type of jaw-dropping carnauba wax (I love P21S)
- ~4 Really good microfiber towels, again, I prefer pakshak.com or meguiars (don't cheap out on these ones)
So first you want to cover plastic and rubber areas of the car with blue painter's tape. You don't want to get wax on these areas and make them turn white. I cover the emblems, side trim, bumper trim, washer nozzles, and grilles (I'm sure I'm leaving something out).
I start the polishing off with The orange pad and SSR 2.5, with the PC at a speed of 6. Go one small section at a time. On the e30, I split the sections into this: 3 hood sections, each fender, each door, 2 halves of the roof, and then the trunk and license plate area (remove your plate). Fit in the tops of the bumpers anywhere you want here, be careful with these. First put a light amount of polish onto the pad (the first time you will need a little extra). Some people like to do an X on the pad, I like to just put three nickel sized dots on the pad. Spread the polish around the section with the PC on speed 1. Then work in the polish slowly in straight lines until it dries/hazes (now on speed 6). Remove it quickly with some QD and a MF towel after.
Next I move on to the SSR 1. Use the same method as before, except with a white pade and at speed 4 on the PC. Make sure you are removing the polish right after you are done with a little QD and a MF towel.
If there is still some residue on the car, which there really shouldn't be (SSR 1 is fairly easy compared to other products), then use some type of non-abrasive polish (I like Poorboy's Pro Polish, others like Klasse all-in-one). Use a new white pad and the PC on speed 2-3.
Almost done! Move on to the black finishing pad, and your choice of wax. I think NXT is easy, and right in the middle in terms of durability and looks. Make sure you are parked in the shade for waxing! Go around the whole car with this stuff and the PC on speed 1. Get a nice even spread. Let it sit for 10 mins and have a drink. Then remove it with another MF towel and some QD. If you are really into it, you can do this last step twice, and possibly with a different wax (one that is more for looks and not so durable like P21S).
Your paint should be perfect now, look at it and be happy with your work. Finish up with some trim protectant and glass cleaner. Then do your interior if it is needed. No tricks with these steps, just make sure to use clean towels.
Here are a couple before/afters of my e30 (crappy pics and crappy weather sorry):
BEFORE
AFTER
Remember to not cheap out on your towels and to use clean towels during the whole process. I stress this because this is how your car gets swirled.
I hope this helped a lot of you!
. Its the high speed polishes that will heal a lot of damage. However, it is true that some of the high-cuts or medium-cut polishes will cause a little marring.. thats why you need to follow up with a lighter polish like I have explained.
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