restoring shine to slightly faded paint

[SeiGGy]

anyone have any perferred products or techniques for restoring the paint on our SHO's...my 93 Red MTX is starting to fade a little, and I want to try and restore the color the best possible and wax it so I can get a good protected shine back to my car...also, any perferred ways to restore shine to polished aluminum rims that had been neglected for a year or so...I've used I think it was Never-Dull on them once, and it helped a lot, but they still look a little dull compared to how they used to...I was thinking of going back with the never-dull again and then waxing them...any opinions would be great thanks guys

 

[T.O_SHO]

Well, all I can suggest is what I did, I took one day and just did everything in my power to get the shine back into my paint...it worked very well but it also took about 7 easy hours to do...follow the car domain in my sig to see the list of things I did...try those easy things, if they dont help, I'm not the person to ask...

 

[SHOtimer]

Today I broke down and bought Mequires 3 step wax, they call it their "Deep Crystal System". It is three bottles at $6 a piece. The first one is a cleaner, and the second a polish..neither of the two you let dry. Simply buff real good into the paint and rub off with a clean cloth. They did amazing things, then after that put the wax on (which is the third bottle). I was throughly impressed with them.

It did a great job to remove stains, oxidation, fading, and scratches. It really restored the color and the shine.

Doug

 

[NotSoSlowSHO]

Add a clay-bar treatment to that meguires package and you have a very good way to keep your paint in tip top shape.

Ive been using meguires for years. Great stuff!

 

[F-22 Raptor SHO]

ditto what he said on the clay bar, and if you are really good, you could use a rotary buffing wheel with those meguires products. I have the same 3 step. I just did my car and my truck this weekend. 15 year old car looks and feels like glass.

 

[SeiGGy]

thanks for the recommends guys, can I get the McGuire package at Autozone etc?

 

[SHOtimer]

thanks for the recommends guys, can I get the McGuire package at Autozone etc?

Yup.

Doug

 

[Mike Jones Who?]

but after the three steps follow it every week with the spray mist wax

 

[DDakRT]

I'm also a user of Mequires products, but not nessessarily the "3 steps" as mentioned above.

I usually:
-wash
-clay
-wash with dish soap
-scratch remover (depends on where and if it needs it)
-polish (step 2 polish)
-wax (Mequire's Tech wax)

 

[oh_SHO]

What about light scratches? I left my car outside with a car-cover on it for a winter and now there is light scratches covering the trunk-lid and roof. I used 'Scatch Out' and a good wax. It didn't remove much of the scratches but did take off a little oxidation. So it looks really good from about 10' away...

 

[brokenin]

What about light scratches? I left my car outside with a car-cover on it for a winter and now there is light scratches covering the trunk-lid and roof. I used 'Scatch Out' and a good wax. It didn't remove much of the scratches but did take off a little oxidation. So it looks really good from about 10' away...

Z5 from Zaino brothers does wonders on scratches .

Rome

 

[greenbeanmtx]

When i bought greenbean the paint was very dull. I had the meguirs 3 step process except i had the professional grade that comes in the tan bottles. I washed it, clay barred, and then did the 3 steps with the meguirs and i used a orbital buffer on it. If your bold enough Hunterv lead me to a high speed buffer that Harbor Freight tools sells for about 30 bucks and i learned how to use it on my truck i bought. It WILL burn through the paint like nobodys business if your not careful but ive found if you use the mild mequires products with it on the lowest setting that its pretty hard to screw up however im not liable for any paint damages that take place Anyhow i took the bean from a dull looked like it needed a paint job car to being so shiny it was like a mirror. Every couple months i would do another coating of wax but from there on all i did was use meguires gold class because i washed the car so frequently that buildup of road grime was a minimum so i felt the clay bar and polishes and such were just a waste of time since i kept it up. But that is the method ive used on all the cars i own and its worked quite well.

 

[SHOMA]

and to think , I almost went straight to the bottom and replied, saying the 3 step, but everyone has beat me to it. I am more impressed with the 3 step every time I use it. It is a half day project or longer if you take longer, but WELL worth the outcome IMO!

 

[Markus]

I do everything by hand. I use Turtle Wax Polishing Compound (not Rubbing Compund) as a first step. I use this in place of the clay and get similar (to clay) results. Next I use Megiaurs #9 Swirl and Scratch remover. The #9 easily takes out scratches - it simply amazed me the first time I used it I then use Meguiars NXT paste wax. This is excellent but expensive.


For the rubber trim:
For really weathered and gray looking rubber trim I use Forever Black. Forever Black is a die that contains no silicone and it simply re-colours the grey looking weatherstripping. The first time I used Forever Black was when my car was 9 years old. I applied two coats and the results were amazing. Now I use 303 Aerospace Protectant for dressing the trim and the tires. Nothing I've ever used comes close to the longevity and protection of this product. It leaves a slight sheen rather than a glossy shine and the sheen lasts for months.

For the headlight and tail lights:
If the lenses are really yellowed/dull I will wet sand them with 1500 grit followed by 2000 grit sandpaper. Then I use Meguiars PlastX by hand to polish the lens. Then I use PlastX a second time but with a cloth polishing wheel on my dremel tool. After final polishing with the dremel I rub on a coat of 303 Aeropspace protectant.

Miscellaneous:
I dress the door/trunk/hood seals with a silicone spray. This stops the seals from wearing out and lubricates them so that they don't squeak when the body of the car flexes.


Windows:
Stoner's Invisible Glass is great - way better than Windex. For stubborn window stains I use Jaguar Screen Paste. This is a diminishing abrasive that will not scratch the glass. You can buy Jaguar Screen Paste at any Jaguar dealer.


I know I've provided more information that you asked for so my apologies for the long post.