Regretting buying a black car

[joejoe22]

I bought a black T.A. about 6 months ago. I always loved black and i wanted a black car. After owning it for awhile, i now realize how much of a pain it is to keep it clean. I know i'm preaching to the choir here. I was wondering if there is any special steps or products that work best specifically on black cars. I used menzerna but didn't really see drastic improvement. Here are some pics



bumper, very scratched
http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/6457/p1000119jg3.jpg



The door handles are so swirled it kills me. Any suggestions?
http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/8315/p1000118ey8.jpg

Hood
http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/6268/p1000114nx7.jpg


Also, i used adam's VRT on this. I was very disappointed with the results. Any suggestions on making this a deep black color again?

http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/9531/p1000121ph0.jpg


Thanks in advance!!

[ltoman]

what did you do with the menzerma that it looks like that?

[joejoe22]

Green pad and detail spray as lubricant. I didnt' get to final polish the whole car, but the hood was. I must be very inexperienced with the PC

[ltoman]

did you break the polish down? how long did you work it?
if not done right, the polish can scratch the car.

[ryandamartini]

Green pad and detail spray as lubricant. I didnt' get to final polish the whole car, but the hood was. I must be very inexperienced with the PC

Pick up this:

Pinnacle Complete Car Care System Instructional How-to DVD (http://www.autogeek.net/picocarcasyi.html)

Great tuts for new folks to the PC :)

[budman3]

Poorboy's Trim Restore for the wiper cowl for sure. As for polishes, anything that Autogeek sells for polishes will do, whether its Poorboys SSRs, XMT, Pinnacle or Wolfgange swirl removers, etc. A 'green pad' gives me no information. What company made this green pad? Whats the abrasiveness of it? From the first pictures it looks like product wasn't fully broken down or the pad caused extra marring. Did you use Menzerna Intensive polish or final polish? Or another one of their polishes? IMO, there are much more user friendly polishes compared to Menzerna. What towels did you use to wipe the polish off with? It looks like those may have caused some marring as well. XMT 3 or Poorboys SSR 2 or 2.5 should do the trick to get your finish to your standed (used with a polishing pad). Just do a few searches on whatever products you buy, watch the videos so you'll be familiar with their characteristics. Good luck.

[Nuke33]

I like optimum polish Nattys blue wax and trim restorer will work wonders for you

[ltoman]

Poorboy's Trim Restore for the wiper cowl for sure. As for polishes, anything that Autogeek sells for polishes will do, whether its Poorboys SSRs, XMT, Pinnacle or Wolfgange swirl removers, etc. A 'green pad' gives me no information. What company made this green pad? Whats the abrasiveness of it? From the first pictures it looks like product wasn't fully broken down or the pad caused extra marring. Did you use Menzerna Intensive polish or final polish? Or another one of their polishes? IMO, there are much more user friendly polishes compared to Menzerna. What towels did you use to wipe the polish off with? It looks like those may have caused some marring as well. XMT 3 or Poorboys SSR 2 or 2.5 should do the trick to get your finish to your standed (used with a polishing pad). Just do a few searches on whatever products you buy, watch the videos so you'll be familiar with their characteristics. Good luck.

woah. he really hit it all right there for you. you can fix it - it will be ok!

[abrcrombe]

Black cars are not for the faint of heart. But when properly done, they look awesome. I would watch the videos XMT has made if you haven't already. I think the site is...
XMT Series by Pinnacle; Xtreme Machine Technology polishes & glazes for dual action orbital & rotary polishers. (http://www.autogeek.net/xmt.html)

Good luck!

[HighEndDetail]

Isn't black so fun toi rub on:D
1. For under the door handle, put some compound or polish on a mf towel and rub at it with your fingers. that will help that out.
2. What menzerna product did you use, and what company pads are you using.
3. Where do you live, somebody on here might live near you and might be able to give a hand.

[Grimm]

I agree, black is tough, but those pictures don't look right. Something is amiss, whether it wasn't worked long enough or what. I have a black Bonneville, so I can sympithize with you on that paint.

By the way, when you look at the car in bright sun, does it really look black? Mine actually has a dark brown tint, which to me also detracts from the look.

[Gary Sword]

Black cars are great for people who like to wash their car everyday and detail them once a week.

[Mike T]

Welcome to my nightmare. I told my wife we will never own a black car again. For waxes I've found the best for black to be Souveran, AW, Natty's Blue. I also use Spray Souveran or AW weekly to add some boost to my LSP.
On a side note. Would AW be considered an LSP in its own, or more of a booster?

[Grimm]

I love the black, dark colors just look amazing to me. While it sucks it won't look perfect, I just remind myself that 95% of the population won't even notice the imperfections. And even if it's a bit dirty, with the proper paint prep and protection it still looks better than other cars on the road.

[Mike T]

I love the black, dark colors just look amazing to me. While it sucks it won't look perfect, I just remind myself that 95% of the population won't even notice the imperfections. That and I try to remind myself not to look at the paint any closer than a couple feet away if it's in direct light. :p
Exactly. I've learned to except the imperfections.