Polish
A polish usually contains micro abrasives, they may also contain lots of solvents which clean your paint work. A polish is used to remove light scratches, swirl marks, oxidized / faded paint and to restore and enhance the paint work back to a deep gloss. There are lots of polishes on the market from heavy cutting compounds to mild cleaner polishes, it is best to start with a mild polish first as cutting compounds can cause damage to the paint work if not used properly.

Wax
The purpose of a wax or paint sealant product is to coat your car with a protective layer to protect it from the environmental elements. Wax products contain a blend of waxes and oils. Waxes can be natural waxes and/or synthetic. Waxes and sealants generally last from 1 month to 12 months, be warned they don’t always do what they say on the label. Waxes are designed for slightly different purposes, some people like to wax their car every week and want the best shine they can get, other people want to put it on and forget it for a year.

All In One
There are plenty of products that are both a polish and wax in one. These combination products are very good and a perfect solution for most people, they are quick and easy to use an can give excellent results on paint work that is already in reasonable condition. These products usually contain a very mild abrasive and cleaners to restore the paint work whilst also adding a protective layer. Whilst these products will never give as good results as doing a proper polish and wax they are great for someone that is looking at a quick and easy solution instead of spending hours polishing your paint work then applying a wax.

The owner contacted us to perform a Stage 2 Paint Correction to restore the paint work to a flawless finish with a deep gloss, it took around 8 hours to transform the car from its poor scratched up state to a level where it looked better then the day it came out of the showroom.

The car was first given a thorough wash to remove all the built up grime from over the years, it was then clay barred to remove any contaminants that were embedded into the paint work leaving it with a smooth as glass feel, once this was complete we started the machine polishing process. This involved using a variation of different polishing compounds and machine polishing pad’s to achieve a flawless finish. Every vehicles paint work responds differently when polishing, this is why we carry a variety of polishing compounds and polishing pad’s to achieve the best results. Once we had achieved a flawless finish we then cleaned the car down again before applying a paint sealant to lock in that deep gloss shine and to protect the paint work from the environmental elements.

A Stage 2 Paint Correction was performed on this car over a total of 6 hours, an hour and a half was spent clay barring the car for overspray removal, clay bars are like play dough and are rubbed over the surface with a lubricant, clay barring removes any contamination embedded on the paint work to give it a smooth as glass feel before polishing the paint work.

After the clay barring was complete around 4.5hrs was spent machine polishing the paint work, this involves using a premium cutting polish and polishing pad to remove the heavier swirl marks and scratches, once the heavier swirls and scratches are removed a finer polish and finishing pad are used to restore a deep gloss to the paint work, the end result leaves the paint work looking flawless.

This is because your car is painted with a single stage paint, which means it has no clear cloat to protect the actual colour coat like modern paint finishes. As a result the colour fades quickly and becomes oxidized. Fortunately this can be fixed by a professional car detailer, our Paint Correction packages will remove the oxidization on the paint and restore it to the deep gloss showroom shine it once had.

It is recommended that atleast a Stage 2 Paint Correction is performed for faded paintwork, this 2 stage process will remove the oxidized (dead paint) with a combination of different polishes which will restore it to a high gloss showroom shine, once we have restored the paint work it is then sealed with a paint sealant. It is very important to keep your paint work waxed or sealed with a paint sealant to ensure the paint work is protected from the enviromental elements to stop it from oxidizing again.

Many people think you should not spray your engine with water, this is partly true. However, as long as you do not spray any of the electrics or air intake with water then you will have no problems, we have detailed thousands of engine bays with a high pressure washer and never had a single problem.

When it actually comes to the engine bay detailing, the first thing you should do is make sure your engine is cold – never try and clean a warm or hot engine. This is because products will dry too quickly and leave stains. The next thing you should do is cover the air intake and any electrics. The best material for covering these components is aluminium foil. This may seem like a strange choice, but it actually makes a lot of sense, as it is very easy to mould over awkward shaped parts, and it is 100% waterproof provided you don’t tear it.

Then spray the complete engine bay down with degreaser allowing it to break down all the dirt and grime. Degreasers are readily available at any automotive outlet, they have advanced from the days when they used to be potent formulas that were damaging; they are now quiet weak whilst still being able to break down the dirt and grime.

While the degreaser is breaking down all the dirt and grime – usually a couple of minutes grab a soapy car wash sponge and wash any areas that are very dirty, once you have done this give the engine bay a good rinse with the hose, however we suggest using a high pressure washer as this will blast off the dirt and grime a lot better and use minimal water which is a lot safer.

After quickly removing all of the foil coverings, the next thing you should do is wipe down the engine bay to remove all the water with a chamois, and then start your engine in order to dry all those areas and crevices you can’t reach with the chamois.

With the engine bay now clean and dry you will now be able to apply a dressing to any hoses and rubber areas to give them a nice finish.

This Stage 2 Paint Correction was performed at a total of 7 hours work. Machine Polishing to remove any imperfections in the paint work is a lengthy process and produces far better results then a quick cut n polish performed by most car detailers or car wash café’s, a proper Machine Polish is not something that can be done within an hour or two, this process involves Clay Barring the paint work to remove any contaminants then a Two Stage Machine Polish to remove any imperfections in the paint work and bring it back to a flawless high gloss finish, the end result is simply amazing.

You should use a good quality car wash shampoo, a wheel cleaner product (non acid) or degreaser, sponge and a brush if necessary to get between the gaps and behind the spokes, and also rubber or latex gloves to protect your hands from the wheel cleaner / degreaser.

When washing your car always start with your wheels and ensuring they are cool, your wheels should not be washed with the same water and sponge you use on your car, firstly because the dirt and grime in the water and sponge from washing your wheels will harm your paintwork and leave scratches and swirl marks, always have a sponge dedicated to cleaning the wheels, a car wash sponge cut in half is the best option so its small enough to get between the gaps.

Firstly spray the wheels with a wheel cleaner or degreaser to break down the dirt and grime, allow this to sit for atleast 30 seconds, this will make it easier to wash the wheel and also break down any stubborn dirt that washing with a sponge and soapy water will not remove, it also helps remove grime from those tight areas like around the wheel nuts. Then grab your soapy sponge and wash the wheel ensuring you get between all the spokes and corners, if desired you can use the same process to clean the inside of the wheels with a long brush, if the inside of your wheel has not been cleaned for some time then the brake dust and road grime may be baked on which will need to be removed with an acid cleaner, once you have done this then either use your hose or high pressure washer to rinse the wheels down. We then suggest drying them with a chamois or microfibre waffle weave drying towel.

Most high qaulity car wash shampoos are very gentle on the paint, plastic and rubber. A good car wash shampoo provides good lubrication between the wash mitt and the surface of the car to prevent scratching.

TIPS:

1. Do not wash the car in direct sunlight – If possible, work in the shade. A hot surface causes the water to evaporate too quickly, which will cause water spotting. It is best to park on a slight incline, this allows rinse water to run off moldings, trim and recessed areas better.
2. Wash the wheels first – If you wash the car body first, the water will dry and spot on the paint and windows before you can finish washing the wheels. Do not use the same wash water on your car’s paint as you used on your wheels.
3. Use a car wash shampoo only – Do not use any detergants such as dish washing liquid as these will strip any wax and also dry out the rubber door seals. Car wash shampoos are gentle on the car and designed to lubricate while washing to prevent scratches and contain conditioners to keep a gloss to the paintwork.
4. Use a quality wash tool – Lambswool Wash Mitt, Microfibre Wash Mitt or Foam Wash Mitt are the safest. These tools have a large number of fine filaments or crevises that draw dirt and grime away from the surface being cleaned into their internal structure. Sponges and washcloths can trap dirt, grit and grime on the surface, which will scratch your car’s paint.
5. Wash from the top down – This ensures your not working all the heavy grime at the bottom of the car to the top causing it to scratch the paint.
6. Harsh car washes – Stay away from harsh car washes such as do it yourself car wash bays or automatic car washes, the bristles on the brushes will leave minor scratches all over your paint.

A lot of people use leather or synthetic chamois; whilst there is nothing wrong with this they are however the most common to add swirl marks into the paintwork. People often excessively wipe the paint when drying until it leaves no streaks which induce scratches and swirl marks.

We can highly recommend a Microfibre Waffle Weave Drying Towel, they are soft, made from microfibre and hold 5x their weight in water meaning you can dry and average size car without ringing the towel out. One simple wipe of the paint work and they will absorb all the water without leaving any streaks meaning less wiping is required to dry the car and less likely to induce swirl marks. These towels are textured so they help pull remaining contamination away from the surface they may have landed on the paint after washing, rather then dragging it across the paint like a normal leather or synthetic chamois.

We have previously detailed cars for the Footy Show Grand Finale, Gladiators, Backyard Blitz and more.. We have performed work for Landrover, Jaguar, Audi, Volkswagen, Volvo, Hyundai & Kia just to name a few.

Here are a few pictures from Jaguar Displays we have done in 2010 at different events.