Got the New Car; Marring Issue

[Monk]

Mike--I picked up the new black coupe which is a replacement for the one you saw in Tampa.

The dealer agreed to let me take it right off the truck and it was not dealer washed.

I washed it and clayed it. There were some odd whitish spots of discoloration, but the clay removed these.

The surface looked perfect until I got it in under the flourescents. I noticed quite a few light water marks.

I used the DA on 5 with a W9006 and M80. This removed all of the water spots and there were also a few light scratches and minor swirling that I focused on and removed as well.

I then used 81 by hand and followed with #16 by hand, and removed by hand.

HOWEVER, in the sunlight today I see a subtle marring over the finish (I recognize this from having worked on the finish of the other car before I came to Tampa). It is a bit more pronounced at the inside curves around the wheel wells (not the bulges--the pre-bulge interior curves)--in other words, where I am working INTO a curve, not rounding over the top of it.

My thought was that I might be buffing just a bit dry. The cure is the issue, however, and my thought was that I might try #9. I don't have 66 and I think when we discussed that #9 and #66 were pretty close.

[Mike Phillips]

Just to note, M82 and M09 are both very light cleaner/polishes with no protection qualities whereas M66 Cleaner/Wax offers cleaning ability like these two cleaner/polishes plus wax protection. Just so everyone reading this understands.

One option you could try would be to use the W-9006 finishing pad with either any of the above three products on around the 4.0 setting with light pressure.

Then go to a couple of coats of wax...


p.s.

That was a nice car!

[Monk]

Thanks, Mike.

One thing that "getting into" this at a hobby level has done is caused me to appreciate all vehicles on a new level--how the various panels come together, how nice the paint is, how well kept they are, etc., instead of the focus being on "what kind" and coveting the "big bucks" vehicles.

Right now my favorite car would be one that has a lot of swirls that someone would let me work on, who would appreicate it if came back de-swirled.

I'll let you know how the #9 with DA on 4 goes.

P.S. Directing this to Mike did not mean to exclude anyone else from responding.

[Monk]

Update:

In the sun today it appears that I was not as successful as I thought in removing the water spots. I' pretty confident that I finished them off tonight though with the #9.

I also had water spots on the front and rear windows, and they came off very easily with the #4 Heavy Cut and the terry cloth rag. So I did not have to fire up the rotary to do this, but then, this was not deep cleaning. I was going to save the #4/Rotary deep clean process for my SUV, but that won;t be necessary now as they broke the windshield when repairing some rust spots today.

I did manage to catch the overhead self-recoiling extension cord in the DA tonight, which was rather exciting, burning through the cord, throwing a breaker and plunging me into darkness. Installing that seemed like a good idea at the time.

[Monk]

Originally posted by Mike Phillips
Just to note, M82 and M09 are both very light cleaner/polishes with no protection qualities whereas M66 Cleaner/Wax offers cleaning ability like these two cleaner/polishes plus wax protection. Just so everyone reading this understands.

One option you could try would be to use the W-9006 finishing pad with either any of the above three products on around the 4.0 setting with light pressure.

Then go to a couple of coats of wax...


p.s.

That was a nice car!

Hi Mike--did the #9 but still feel there is a slight marring, although it does look gorgeous. What is the next step down from 9? Does 81 have any fine finishing properties or is it just oily sort of "darkener" for depth? I applied it by hand as sort of a wipe on wipe off product, but if it has any "burnishing" effect, I will remove my wax coats and go back with 81 with the DA on a slow speed. It is described as having some "cutting power", but is it significant?

And what is the best way to remove those wax coats?

[RamAirV1]

#80 is better at Swirl Removal then #9. If #80 doesn't work you need to step up to #83.

And you don't need to worry about removing the wax. A cleaner polish will take care of that. Neither #81 nor #7 will remove much wax.

RamAirV1

[sneek]

Originally posted by Monk
Hi Mike--did the #9 but still feel there is a slight marring, although it does look gorgeous. What is the next step down from 9? Does 81 have any fine finishing properties or is it just oily sort of "darkener" for depth? I applied it by hand as sort of a wipe on wipe off product, but if it has any "burnishing" effect, I will remove my wax coats and go back with 81 with the DA on a slow speed. It is described as having some "cutting power", but is it significant?

And what is the best way to remove those wax coats?

M09 is as mild as they come, IMO it barly does anything. I guess you could step down by applying it by hand.

[Monk]

Originally posted by RamAirV1
#80 is better at Swirl Removal then #9. If #80 doesn't work you need to step up to #83.

And you don't need to worry about removing the wax. A cleaner polish will take care of that. Neither #81 nor #7 will remove much wax.

RamAirV1

Thanks Ram--But I am going the opposite direction. Swirls, scratches and water marks are gone--I am just looking for a wet paint look prior to 81 and wax.

[sneek]

then you can't go wrong with M07!

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by Monk
Hi Mike--did the #9 but still feel there is a slight marring, although it does look gorgeous. What is the next step down from 9?

Try ColorX or M66 with with a W-9006 on the 4.5 setting, moving the polisher slow with medium pressure, (8-15 pounds).

[Monk]

Originally posted by Mike Phillips
Try ColorX or M66 with with a W-9006 on the 4.5 setting, moving the polisher slow with medium pressure, (8-15 pounds).

Did you mean ColorX by hand? I wasn't sure if the last clause of the sentence applied to both the ColorX and the M66. Thanks.

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by Monk
Did you mean ColorX by hand? I wasn't sure if the last clause of the sentence applied to both the ColorX and the M66. Thanks.

If you're finding the paint on this new car to be prone to micro-marring with everything you've done so far, then you're going to have to up the level of your skill level to work on it whether you're washing it, drying it or anything.

The last two cars we've had at Meguiar's Garage with paint that was easily marred or hazed, we machine polished using a rotary buffer using a W-9006 foam finishing pad, M09 Swirl Remover 2.0 and then followed this with re-polishing each panel using the dual action polisher with a new, clean dedicated W-9006 foam finishing pad and M66 Cleaner/wax.

In a nutshell, the rotary buffer produces a more clear, higher gloss finish than the dual action polisher but the direct rotating contact of the combination of a pad and chemical with the paint tends to leave holograms which are best removed by changing the action of the tool being used next to remove these swirls. This would be the dual action polisher. You'll need something with enough bite to effectively remove some small particles of paint in an effort to flatten, or level the highest points of the paint with the lowest levels of the swirls/holograms. You should be able to accomplish this using either ColorX or M66 with a tan finishing pad, on the dual action polisher with medium pressure, (10 to 15 pounds), and slow, methodical polishing.

Always perform a Test Spot and make sure you can make one small area look good before performing the process over the entire car.

Good luck and keep us updated as to your results.

[Jbirk]

Hi,

You definitly need need a cleaner as Mike and the resto of us have mentioned. The first thing I would do would be to wash and clay. Have you clayed?

Clay will leave the paint very smooth and often removes water spots that are above the paint/not etched in.

Every member is correct in that you will need to use a paint cleaner to remove microscopic amounts of the paint and the contamination when done.

I would use #80 but not with a Rotary becuase I don't trust my rotary skills. I would much rather live with light waterspotting than end up with nasty holograms. Sure the rotary offers a lot more cleaning power, but with the right product and technice, a Porter Cable should do the job.

I always just use #80, but for the newest of cars, I would almost suspect #80 as being more agressive than needed for the job. I am honestly surprized the water spots won't go away after all you have done already.

Usually with a nice cleaner, my water spots disappear.

[Monk]

Originally posted by Jbirk
Hi,

You definitly need need a cleaner as Mike and the resto of us have mentioned. The first thing I would do would be to wash and clay. Have you clayed?

Clay will leave the paint very smooth and often removes water spots that are above the paint/not etched in.

Every member is correct in that you will need to use a paint cleaner to remove microscopic amounts of the paint and the contamination when done.

I would use #80 but not with a Rotary becuase I don't trust my rotary skills. I would much rather live with light waterspotting than end up with nasty holograms. Sure the rotary offers a lot more cleaning power, but with the right product and technice, a Porter Cable should do the job.

I always just use #80, but for the newest of cars, I would almost suspect #80 as being more agressive than needed for the job. I am honestly surprized the water spots won't go away after all you have done already.

Usually with a nice cleaner, my water spots disappear.

Hi--I have a dilemna. I don't want to be rude and ignore your post, and I do appreciate your input, but at the same time, it does not appear you read my opening post.

[RamAirV1]

Originally posted by Monk
Thanks Ram--But I am going the opposite direction. Swirls, scratches and water marks are gone--I am just looking for a wet paint look prior to 81 and wax.

I went back and looked at your original post. You mentioned you had issues buffing into curved areas. If you still do have issues there, maybe the buffer is not reaching into those areas. You may have to do those by hand if that is the case.

If the swirls, scratches, and water marks are gone, #81 will give you that wet look, as will #7. Both will do a great job. I find #7 more difficult to work with but Mikes directions for applying it will be helpful to you. #7 will be easier to find locally BTW.

RamAirV1