Alright I need serious detail help...

[Commie]

I have a 99 Camaro SS...6K on it....washed maybe twice a month as it was stored alot before I got it....

It's never been waxed and has the swirly marks from a car cover...where should I start....the car has no blemishes or anything but I don't know what the hell to do with a 5 year old car that only has had factory wax...

I figure dawn, than clay, than all the zaino treatment:confused:

[transam4life]

Here is what I plan to do mine once the weather improves a bit...

Dawn
Mothers or Clay Magic clay bar
Dawn again
"Safe Cut" swirl and haze remover (read about this in another thread further down)
Meguiars #7 Show car glaze
Mehuiars NXT tech wax to seal everything up

That should keep you busy for a few hours. :p

[SuperBuick]

Personally I would suggest a more intensive regimen, based on your desire for perfection. If you want it to look good, then the aforementioned method will look fine, if you want perfection, you’re going to need some better polishes and a Porter-Cable Dual Action polisher.

I’d start by washing, claying and washing the car again – this will give you a contaminent free finish.

After this, apply Menzerna Intensive polish using the Porter Cable (PC) and an orange power pad.

Do the whole car with the Menzerna Intensive, and wipe it off using a 50/50 alcohol/water mix.

Next apply Menzerna Final Polish using a yellow cutting foam pad. Do the entire car with this product and again wipe using a 50/50 water/alcohol solution. Now you are ready to Glaze (if you want), or to go straight to a wax or sealant.

Peronally I’d take this opportunity to try the new Menzerna Glaze and Menzerna FMJ sealant, but you can always use Blackfire, Meguiars NXT, Zaino, Tropi-Care, Pinnacle Souveran, or any other quality wax/sealant of your choice after you’ve finished with the polishing. Once you’ve polished the difference in results between all of the different sealants/waxes will be minor, as surface prep is perhaps 95% of what makes a car look good.

Main point – get some good polish (not sealant like tropi-care or Zaino – I mean a REAL polish here) and a polisher and get to work. Your results will be nothing less than perfect.
Here’s a close-up after menzerna IP and FP showing swirl-free finish in direct sunlight.

http://www.ls2forum.com/lydon/swirlfree.jpg

http://www.ls2forum.com/lydon/menzernasouveran.jpg

-Tom

[94NDTA]

The Porter Cable is your friend. If you're interested on how to use it and the products to use, I and some of the guys here can help. If you don't want to buy a PC, you can always get some 3M Swirl Mark Remover and a foam pad. This gets maybe 25% of the swirls out, where as a PC would get maybe 90% of them.

[PC PaiN]

Def look at getting a PC for the ultimate look. I'm still waiting to get mine :o

[Commie]

Aight I'll bite what the hell is the Porter Cable and how much does it cost:p

Where do I get it since I'll prob order it tomorrow...

[94NDTA]

It is a dual action polisher/buffer/sander. Here is a link to some of the accesories. (http://www.autopia.org/forums/showthread.php?threadid=14421&highlight=definitive+porter) Here is a good link on how to use it properly. Properly!! (http://www.autopia.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=14213) You can get it at Lowes, Menards, home depot, etc etc. It usually costs $119 if I remember correctly. Next you need to buy a couple of pads for it (which differs depending on the surface of your paint). I would suggest getting a pad kit that has a pad for every level of paint care incase you get a deep scratch or have another car that is really badly damaged that you want to do. You will also need some products. I chose Meguiars because they are really commonly known for doing a great job in pretty much every aspect of car care. I would also say their polishes are there best porducts they have. That should cover the basics of a PC, if you have any other little questions along the way, feel free to post back here. There are a lot of knowledgable people on here who use PC's as well who can help ya out!

[Jantzen]

Check out my post here (http://www.ls2.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=22376) for some good links that will get you upto speed on the Porter Cable Dual-Action Buffer...

[Commie]

I wasn't expecting 119$ :rotfl:

Oh well I wanna do the new daily driver thats on order once I get her so that'll be worth it...

How often do you guys do this? I guess after polishing it all up I can seal it with Zaino.....maybe the links will answer my question:p

[94NDTA]

After you polish it you need to dawn it again to get the residue from the polish off the surface so you can Zaino. Also, I would remove any Zaino you have on there before you polish. The easiesr way is to use a 50/50 mix of water and denatured alcohol. in a spray bottle. Spray the area, whipe it off with a MF or cotton towel. I use mine whenever I notice swirl marks/light scratches start to apear from every day wear and tear.

[Commie]

denatured alcohol would be?

[94NDTA]

rubbing alcohol, just look for the ones that say denatured on them. It should be easy to find in a grocery store.

[SuperBuick]

eimmoc -
If you are going to polish you do not need to remove the zaino on the car. The act of polishing will remove any product previously applied to the car. Simply wash, clay, and wash the car and you are ready to polish. Just use regular carwash to wash the car (NOT DAWN!)

If you polish using menzerna polishes or einzsett polishes you DO NOT need to do a dawn wash. In fact no matter what you polish with I'd suggest avoiding dawn washes. Using a combo of 50/50 water/alcohol to remove polishing residues will prepare the paint for the sealant/wax of your choice.

My normal procedure is to polish with menzerna and wipe off residues with a 50/50 water alcohol mix and then glaze (if applicable) and seal.

PM me if you'd like a much more thorough writeup.

ATDN49 - not trying to undermine your posts, just clearing up some confusion.

-Tom

[94NDTA]

Yeah, Its been a while since I've detailed my car cuz of the weather. My mind was just kicking in from when it was ok to use dawn :D

[SuperBuick]

No biggie - just thought I'd try to help out where I could :)