Anyone feel like answering a boatload of questions?

[Vinny Tomaso]

Greetings,

Newb here and I'm a little confused and overwhelmed with all the steps and details involved with a full wash/clay/polish/wax etc. I have purchased a Chemical guys kit which includes the DA polisher (torq 10fs), 2compounds (v32-34) and 2 polishers (v36-38). No wax or sealer yet.

I have 2 larger vehicles to work on, my wife's 2015 kia Sorento will obviously be my first test subject lol. Then my own 2019 Honda Ridgeline. (Im including make and models cause i read some hints that some car manufacturers apply thinner or thicker coats of finish, so if anyone has details on honda/kia id be grateful). My 2019 Honda has had a hit and run happen, then my neighbours temporary winter carport lost its anchors and fell onto my pickup so she has had 2 small repaints done on opposite corners. The jobs were done 4 and 9 months ago, anything i should be worried about with regards to the repaint/refinish? Should i tread softly on these areas?

Step 1: Thorough wash, Thorough dry then clay bar.

Step 2: tape up plastic parts? (Is this necessary? Will any part of the process damage plastic?)

Step 3: Compound depends on condition of paint correct?. (V32-34 Either/or). My wifes Kia i will start on v34. But for my Honda i only have 1 fairly deep scratch, can i compound just this spot and use the v36 polish for the rest? I guess i go back over that spot with the v36 after the v34?
-Is compound a once a year thing?
-does compounding more often remove enough clear coat that it will cause a problem after 4-5 years?
-The Kia front bumper is peeling clear coat, I’m thinking it was repainted (poorly) at some point before we purchased it, do i compound/polish this bumper as well?

Step 4: Polish. I’ve watched a fair amount of youtube videos and i dont see much difference between applying compound and polish.

step 5: wax and/or sealer
- Can i skip this for my wifes vehicle? Or is wax/sealer an absolute must after polish/compound? I dont see myself waxing her car religiously the way i plan on doing for my pick up.
-suggestions on brand? I was thinking pinnacle Souveran for my pick up but damn its 80$CAD for 3oz of paste wax. Seems nuts, Suggestions?
-can all waxes be machine applied? Im ordering online and most don't seem to specify in the online description.

Step 6? Is there a step 6 lol? Is Ceramic coating suggested? Any harder to apply than anything else?

The chemical guys kit came with enough product for just about 1 vehicle so before i get to my truck ill need to buy more. Suggested brands for a noob that doesn't cost 80$ for 3oz of product? Website suggestions within Canada? (For compound/polish/wax)

omg longer post than expected lol. If you made it this far i thank you kindly and will be grateful for any help/suggestions you may have.

Cheers.

[MarkD51]

Welcome to the forum.

Do the proverbial test spot with your polishes, you want to usually start with the least aggressive Polish Products and Pads, and see where that gets you. Yes, no harm or foul using a heavier cut compound if needed in a certain area. Then finish with a milder finishing polish in those areas so all looks even.

Yes, an absolute must, you want to apply some form of protectant after Polishing, be it a Wax, Sealer, a hybrid Wax-Sealant, Coating, whatever product you choose to use.

Any product applied as a protectant, it is essential to have clean paint. And as for coatings, these types of protectants commonly need absolutely squeaky clean paint so they bond properly. This means no oils that are left behind from Polishes, and waxes, sealants, the paint must be free of these things.

There are specific products made to prep panels prior to applying a coating. Most companies who make Coatings also make these prep products that must be used beforehand Coating Applications.

Yes, many of the very durable Paint Coatings can be much more difficult to apply, read above.

As for Pinnacle Souveran, this is basically a beauty wax product. I've never used it, but while it may offer a beautiful shine, it very likely will not be the best bang for the buck if you're looking for the longest protection.
There are others less expensive and more durable.

I might then suggest Collinite #845 Insulator Wax, or Collinite #476 Paste, even better as for durability. With either of these, you should be looking at roughly 6 months protection. A can of #476 Paste will last you a very long time for both vehicles. Cost is usually very cheap, but not sure what you might pay for such in Canada?

As for clear coat failure, nothing will replace missing paint.

If you have car parts stores in Canada, which I'll assume you do, then the easiest would be to buy off the shelf products. Meguairs makes very good Polishes and Compounds, and their wax-sealant products are usually pretty good, and easy to work with. Last as long as the Collinite products? Likely not. Not many conventional products do. Duragloss is another good product line, and quite realtively inexpensive. Advanced Auto if you have one there might carry this product line.

[MarkD51]

As for protection of the Bumper with Clear Coat failure, something like this "might" work, and make such areas look a lot better, but also note this is not an inexpensive product.

Rattle Can Clear Paints usually don't hold up that long if you maybe wished to apply a coat of such for a home made fix. 2K Paints honestly don't fare that much better either.

Optimum Clear Coat Restorer

[acuRAS82]

I’ll just reiterate one of Marks suggestions... put protection on your wife’s car (as he mentioned, a must) and you don’t have to do it religiously if you use a 6 month protection he mentioned. Twice a year. Not having protection allows the paint to get grimy and contaminated much quicker, essentially taking away the hard work of your polishing step. It keeps the paint in good shape.

[Vinny Tomaso]

Thank you very much for the suggestions Mark and acuras82 (if that is your real name )

The problem i have with mcguires is if i go to a site like amazon and search mcguires i get a ton of seemingly similar items all with similar descriptions. Example:

-Ultimate Liquid wax
-Ultimate paste wax
-ultimate quick wax -i think this one is a spray
-Gold class paste wax
-nxt tech wax
-gold class caranuba plus premium wax
-hybrid ceramic wax
-mirror glaze high tech wax
-flagship premium wax (marine?)
-Deep Crystal Caranauba wax

And thats just the wax lol. Compounds and polishes are the same thing. Collinite does seem to be available on Amazon ill look into that thank you Mark.

Any Canadians on here order from Eshine? Came up on a google search.

[spazzz]

Mark got it with Collinite.

Skip the Meguiars and get some Collinite 845 insulator wax or the 476 double coat.
I use the 845 because I don't do paste anymore. I apply the 845 with a DA.

Clean the paint with a thorough wash and dry. Most important step!!!!
You dont want anything being picked up later on your drying towels, DA pads or LSP(last step protectant).

Just go for it and learn. After you will feel like an expert.

Slow even movements with the polish and DA. Don't rush but don't overwork it til it dries and gums up.
Try some test spots 2'x2' or so and do a couple passes and wipe off to check results.

Go with clean, shiny results and dont try to rid the car of every defect, thats when the problems start.

[SWETM]

Welcome to the forum!

A this great thing to do when searching for products and then your brain melts LOL. There are so many options out there today that are really great. Most if not every recommendation you will get here on the forum will give you great results. It's what's cought your interest and want to go with that decides which products that you get. When it comes to the protection it's easier if you are detailed in what kind of behavior you want for an example more durability or more for the looks or in the middle. If it's user friendly as bubba proof or you get the little more work for getting the durability and also most products is not very hard to apply. It's more about beeing thorough and get experience with your products. Since in Canada I bet you have a harsh winter weather environment during the winter months. That can make a part into which products that you chose. So you don't come mid winter with a failed LSP that's need to be reapplying. Or a maintance product that you can apply during the winter months and extend the protection you have. Will try to answer your questions on how I see it and experience with them.

1.
Step 1.
Is where you get the paint as clean as possible before you polishing it. IME it depends on the level of contaminants you have on the vehical you work on. In if it's so much of the contaminants that you need to be aggitate the chemicals to get them even more effective. Then start with a prewash and wash. Or if you have an useally amount of contaminants you only need to be applying the chemicals and rinse them off. Here is also a difference if you have a PW or not. If no PW go with prewash and wash. Since it's your first time I would go with prewash and wash to get it thoroughly done.

You have 2 different parts of the prep step before you polishing. Step 1 is chemical decontamination and the step 2 is mechanical decon.
Step 1. I start with looking for the black spots aka tar spots. These you have the most of them on the side panels behind the front wheels and back and also at the back of the car. On the horisontall panels you look for if you have tree sap. If any kind of these contaminants I use a tar and tree sap remover to chemically desolve them. This also makes it easier to clay when you do that.
Step 2. This can be hard to see on darker colored paints. It's the very small and yellow/orange spots aka iron particals and industrial fallout that has rusted. This step you useally do anyways as it's almost present in some amounts. This you use an iron remover. The standard product is Carpro IronX which is top notch in this range of products. That's why you can see IronX instead of the iron remover. This desolves the oxidized part of the iron particals so it gets smaller and you rinse it off. I double check how it worked with a little test spot on where I saw the most bleeding reaction from it. And if it's still bleeds a second application is necessary and I also aggitate it with a mf towel or something like that to make sure to get it off. This also helps you when you claying. As if not used an iron remover and the clay can shave off the iron partical and leaves the rest of it down in the clearcoat. This is the product that you see when it's working as it bleeds in a red/purple color which is the desolved part of the iron partical that has transformed into a water soluble solution that runs off and is easy to rinse it off. And that product that smells like rotten egg and hair perm LOL.
Don't let any chemicals dry on the paint so work in sections you can handle. Test your way how big you feel you can work on. If it's warmer smaller sections if in a cool temperature and or inside you can apply on bigger sections. If you would see you applyied it on a too larger of section just use the hose or PW to wet it again. And you have the time to thoroughly rinse it off.

Do you have a garage you can work in?

Step 3
Now you can start to clay LOL. And it's pretty straight forward. Look at the clay and how much it's picking up. Adjust the sections on how much it picks up. As you want to refold the clay often. It is abrasive product and even more if picking up a lot of contaminants. That's why I is very thorough when chemical decon it. You also have the clay alternatives that is synthetic clay. These cuts down the time when you clay. Much personal preferences on what to use. Also which clay alternatives that suits you can be different between us. In clay alternatives you have these options to chose from that has synthetic clay on them. Clay mitt, disc, block and towel. In your case with large vehicals I would look at the Clay mitt and lube is a slippery car soap solution. Instead of folding it you rinse it clean either in a fresh rinse bucket or directly from the hose. Then dunk it in the wash bucket. I still pretreat the section I will clay with a good clay lube. This is optional and if you get this and your first use. It's important to break in the clay alternatives on all of the windows first. As it comes with a thin protection layer on them and this can get you a lot of clay marring. Look up on how you store this so you can use them a lot times.

Step 4.
Wash it with a car soap that leaves nothing behind as in wax and or glossenhancers. Or do a panel prep wipe product wipe down before you start to polish. Now you have a great clean paint to start polishing on.

That's the decon prep steps I useally do.

2.
The benefit with masking tape the parts near where you are polishing is. It's hard to clean the plastic trim and rubber seals from compound and polish. This makes it easy to get done with just take off the tape. On some textured trim you can damage it if you happens to nudge it just a little bit. A DA polisher as you have is the least possibility that you do any damage on these parts. A rotary polisher on high speed the risk is higher. And some trim is very sensitive as it can be matte finish on them and just a little bump into them can make them no matte anymore. That can be a sore thing to look at. Polish splatter is easy to get. So IMO if you don't want any damage on these parts I tape them up and start to polish LOL.

3.
This is where you do the test spots to dial in what kind of combo with polishes and pads that gives you the results you are satisfied with. So many parameters that you have to take into acount. Start with the least aggressive combo and work your way up in aggressiveness of either part. Much depends on the hardness of your paint. The depth of the defects.

Yes you can do spot corrections. I would write it down somewhere to have at hand the next time you are polishing. If you have got any deeper defects on the same spot it's good to know in the longrun if it's a vehical that you are keeping.

IMO compounding is a one time doing. If not anything happens to your vehical that is. To make it to just need to be polished once a year or every other year. Is to have a great washing and drying technique and great equipment to be safe enough to not install wash and dry marring to be so much and deep that a compound is needed to correct it. Spot correction can be needed to be done if something happens which it's useally does on a DD. And maybe if you have a very hard clearcoat you may need to be useing a compound. So a gentle washing and drying and your paint will look awesome for a long time. Then some deeper defects and scratches is maybe not worth to level down the clearcoat that much to get them away.

Stay away from a safe distance from where you have the peeling clearcoat. The other parts I would just use your final polishing step to do on the front bumper of the Kia.

4.
There are not much difference between the compounding and polishing than the different aggressiveness from them and their ability to finishing clear and glossy finish and their cutting ability from them. The compounds today also finishing very good and some times you can go straight to protecting the paint after that. Also many polishes have a great cut and can be used with a more aggressive pad to get this. This makes also the need to be doing only 2 step on heavy defects. Where you useally did use a medium cut polish in between compound and polish. And sometimes even more steps.

5.
IMO yes it's good to have a vehical protected. First it's a sacrificial layer on the paint to take the first hit that would damage the paint more if not protected. It gets easier to wash as the dirt don't attach as hard on the LSP. And also looks good for a longer time if it is.
Sonax Polymer Net Shield is of great value and last long. If you apply this every 6 months you have a good protection and a good behavior with beading and sheeting and self cleaning ability from it. If you want it to last longer and maybe you wash your wifes Kia every month. You can apply Sonax Brilliant Shine Detailer after the wash and drying. To fresh it up and ads to the longevity from the PNS. It's a little low slickness on this LSP. But the behavior you get from it is ceramic coating like. Other longer lasting LSP is Gyeon CanCoat and Carpro Cquartz Lite. These are great for your vehical too as it's last over a harsh winter. If you like waxes you have the Collinite 476s as a long lasting LSP.
Yes most common paste waxes and liquid waxes can be applyied by polisher. It's the ones that you don't let them dwell that can be easier to apply them by hand. And those that you let dry on the paint is ones that you can apply it on the whole vehical before wiping them off. Ask questions about the specific product in mind how the application is and if it's any off label tricks with them. Apply them as thin as possible is what most recommends with these waxes/sealants. Then you have the ones that you spray on the paint or in the mf towel or applicator. That you mostly wipe on and wipe off and some that you let dwell for a little time before you wipe it off. Then you have the coating and the coating lite range of products where you look when they are flashing and it's time to wipe it off.

6.
We have had some new forum members that as you have got or have used CG polishes. Sadly to say that the abrasive technology in these products is not very good. You have many great polishes here on AGO. I list the brands that comes to mind and I may miss some great ones too LOL. Pinnacle, Blackfire, Sonax, Menzerna, Griots Garage BOSS polishes, 3D, Carpro, Gyeon, Jescar and Polish Angel. These are very good and then you have a special polish or 2 in their line up or other brands that are awesome. The price range of the polishes can be big but great abrasives is not so cheap to manufacture. Optimum Hyper Polish is one where you spray it on the pad with. It's used by many on softer paints with great results from it. This is also very much of personal preferences too. I like some from the Sonax and Carpro and Menzerna.
For compound.
Sonax Cutmax
Menzerna HC400
For medium cut polish and 1 steps.
Menzerna PF2500
Sonax Cut and Finish or EXCut 05-05
And polishes and finishing polishing
Sonax EX 04-06 or Perfect Finish
Carpro Reflect
Then you have the primer polishes for coatings or coating lite range of products
Carpro Essence
Polish Angel Invicible Primer.
Gyeon Primer.
Then you have the many cleaner waxes/AIO. I don't use these much but some really likes them and I can mention some of them.
Blackfire One Step Finish AIO
3D Speed
Meguiars D166
Sonax Cleaner Wax Hybrid NPT

And there are a lot more awesome products. I just mentioned a few of them that I like or have heard many good results from them. Mike Phillips has many articles and videos here on AGO that is very helpfull and in to details. And keep reading threads and gather information about many things. The show and shine threads is great to see what products they use on customer vehicals and their own vehicals. And don't be afraid to ask questions if you have any as many is very friendly and helpfull to answer.

/ Tony

[acuRAS82]

^^Likely the longest post I’ve seen on AGO. Good thorough, detailed discussion!

[Vinny Tomaso]

Welcome to the forum!


/ Tony

Thank you for taking the time to write this up. Very informative. Gonna take some time to absorb and research all your points.

Also you have added a ton of stuff to my shopping list, including a Pressure washer which has been on my wish list for a good few years. (Electric) I have read exactly as you say about the CG products, unfortunately i read them after purchasing my kit lol. Its fine though ill use em up on my wifes car and buy the good stuff for my own lol.

What is meant by pre wash? To me pre wash then wash means wash twice lol. Are there pre wash products? OH and good call on the car wash soap, i do indeed use a soap/caranauba wax mix (which im guessing is no better than just soap) but yea it has additives.

Thanks for reminding me about winterizing, i almost forgot about winder as it only lasts 5 months here in Montreal lol. But yea ill get a more durable wax or sealer. Ill be looking deeper into the collinite as ive seen multiple suggestions.

Seriously appreciate everyone help, Waxing a car seemed so simple before lol.

[PaulMys]

Thank you for taking the time to write this up. Very informative. Gonna take some time to absorb and research all your points.

Also you have added a ton of stuff to my shopping list, including a Pressure washer which has been on my wish list for a good few years. (Electric) I have read exactly as you say about the CG products, unfortunately i read them after purchasing my kit lol. Its fine though ill use em up on my wifes car and buy the good stuff for my own lol.

What is meant by pre wash? To me pre wash then wash means wash twice lol. Are there pre wash products? OH and good call on the car wash soap, i do indeed use a soap/caranauba wax mix (which im guessing is no better than just soap) but yea it has additives.

Thanks for reminding me about winterizing, i almost forgot about winder as it only lasts 5 months here in Montreal lol. But yea ill get a more durable wax or sealer. Ill be looking deeper into the collinite as ive seen multiple suggestions.

Seriously appreciate everyone help, Waxing a car seemed so simple before lol.

All of this seems incredibly confusing at first, Vinny.

Believe me, I was there at first. But the more you read about, and more importantly try the products & processes, it becomes second nature.

Welcome to AGO, man!

No question here is "dumb" or "silly". We are here to help you.