paint cleaner or polish opinions wanted

[hollerstiltner]

I'm wanting to go over the paint on my girls car, and I'm pretty sure this will be its first ever coat of wax beyond what the dealer did. It's a 2005 TL, so it's seen a lot of road in that time. Looking at the paint in the garage, it's not as bad as I'd expect. Not a lot of huge swirls and so on, but it's def not great.

Right now my plan is to wash with my megs gold class, then go over it with a clay bar. For the next step I'm wanting to do some type of polish or paint cleaner before I add a layer of DP polycoat and maybe some 845.

What would you use to clean the paint with? Im thinking of anything from wolfgang polish enhancer to Duragloss 501. I'm wanting this car to look good (I don't expect perfect) and be bullet proof for winter.

Oh, I have to do this all by hand too. I wish I had a DA...

Thanks in advance guys!:xyxthumbs:

[embolism]

either of the options you've listed will work. I haven't used WGPPE but 501 is a very good paint cleaner which leaves some protection behind.

You may not want this if you are putting a sealer down though unless it's DG105

[shoeless89]

For one, look at the car outside. You will never see defects in the garage like you will outside. For protection I would go with Menzerna Power Lock topped with Collinite 845. But there are many options. Two, I wouldn't try to correct paint by hand. I mean it CAN be done but your arm will probably fall off by the time your done. I would invest in a PC 7424xp or Griots Garage DA. It'll be worth the money, you could correct the paint and apply your sealant/wax with it. I haven't used Wolfgang Polish Enhancer or Duragloss 501 so I can't really say much about them.

[hollerstiltner]

Thanks for the info guys.

Embolism, why wouldn't a sealant over 501 be a good idea? I've heard 105 is good, but I already own the dp polycoat.

Shoeless, I agree with what you said. I should have been clearer though. I've looked inside and outside. It's in decent shape, and a lot better than I imagined. I'd love to get a 7424 or GG, but it's not possible right now. That's why I'm looking into something that will hide or lessen some of the marks before I add the polycoat. Id never be able to do a full correction by hand.

I'm interested in any cleaners or polish you might recommend. I just listed the two I did because they came to mind first.