What happens to the polish?

[Brentwood]

I have a new Pontiac Solstice stored in my garage for the winter. Eagerly thinking ahead to the spring, I want to polish and wax the car. The black paint is flawless, smooth as a baby's bottom, no swirls that I can see, so I really don't think it needs to be clayed, but would like to polish and wax it. My plans are to used Deep Crystal Polish and Deep Crystal Wax. Couple of questions:

Do I really need to polish it?
What exactly does the polish do? Particularly for a new car?
If I use polish, doesn't it just come buff off with the wax when I wax the car?

Any recommendations would be welcome.

Thanks for your help.

[jfelbab]

Re: What happens to the polish?

I have a new Pontiac Solstice stored in my garage for the winter. Eagerly thinking ahead to the spring, I want to polish and wax the car. The black paint is flawless, smooth as a baby's bottom, no swirls that I can see, so I really don't think it needs to be clayed, but would like to polish and wax it. My plans are to used Deep Crystal Polish and Deep Crystal Wax. Couple of questions:

Do I really need to polish it?
What exactly does the polish do? Particularly for a new car?
If I use polish, doesn't it just come buff off with the wax when I wax the car?

Any recommendations would be welcome.

Thanks for your help.

Welcome to the forum. Good questions for your first post. You've come to the right place for the answers. This forum is loaded with good answers and helpful people. Also do some searching for the methods to care for your car and you will come away with tons of knowledge from experienced detailers.

If the paint is as you describe it you probably can skip the polish. The Deep Crystal polish is a non-abrasive polish, a.k.a. glaze. You might not see much of a difference on a new car. You could use the Deep crystal products and get great results. If it were me, I'd likely use NXT 2.0 or the soon to be released #21 2.0 for the wax.

OTOH, I find it rather surprising that you have a Pontiac that was prepped by a Pontiac dealer and it doesn't have any swirls. That is rare indeed. Have you looked for the swirls in direct sunlight?

And did you test the surface to insure it doesn't need to be clayed? I love to wash, dry and then spray a QD on the hood and gently run my finger tips through it to see if there are any bonded contaminants. I've found that new cars often benefit from clay so be sure to test this.

Lastly, if your finish is indeed that perfect, be sure to read the many suggestions on washing and drying in these forums so to avoid causing any marring. New wash mitts, two bucket method, grit guards, water flooding drying, new waffle weave drying towels, etc.

Good luck with your new toy.

[Brentwood]

Re: What happens to the polish?

Thanks for the reply. No, I have not looked for swirls in the sunlight, but it is under florescent lights, so they should be evident in that light. Maybe I will find some when I take it out in the sun, in which case, I guess there will be more work to do. After reading about the sandwich bag on the hand trick, and running my hand over the car gently, it is really smooth.

Thanks for the advice. Already bought MF towels, two sheep skin mitts (one for the top portion of the car, and the other for the bottom and bumpers) and read all about the two bucket method. Actually have read a lot here, and thanks to all who posted information.

With all of the attention the car is going to get, I am not sure if I own it, or it owns me.

Thanks again.

[jfelbab]

Re: What happens to the polish?

LOL...17 years ago I bought the car that owns me. Upon it's introduction, the 1991 Toyota MR2 was the car I had to have and I fell in love with it. I've taken care of it, with Meguiar's help, and it looks better today than it did when new. Hope you have the same experience being owned by a car Tale a peek at it in my gallery. It only sees good weather these days in it's role as "garage queen" and gets driven less than 500 miles a year but I still don't want to part with it.

If you have a digicam, post a couple pictures of your owner.

[Jeepster04]

Re: What happens to the polish?

http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2409

Read that and it will tell you exactly what a polish is for.

[Brentwood]

Re: What happens to the polish?

LOL...17 years ago I bought the car that owns me. Upon it's introduction, the 1991 Toyota MR2 was the car I had to have and I fell in love with it.
If you have a digicam, post a couple pictures of your owner.

Nice to see others who are "owned". My brother had a MR2, probably the same vintage as yours, and he just loved it. Unfortunately he sold it when he got married. (I thinks he regrets the sale AND the marriage)

I will take a picture of the Solstice when I finish polishing and waxing in a couple of months or so. Right now it is covered in the garage, so the daily drivers parked next to it, don't see it and fling some dirt on it in a fit of jealousy.

Thanks BlueLibby04 for the informative read.

Thanks all.