How do i keep my new Volvo S60 R-Design nice?

[svpett]

Hi there
I just ordered a Volvo S60 R-Design i plain red color; and I have a few questions regarding this car and how to keep it in ship shape.

1. Is Volvo "Non Metallic" paint hard or soft??
2. How should I go ahead and treat my car when I get it delivered(First Time Treatment)??
3. What Meguiars Consumer product shold I use??
4. Any other tips on detailing for this red car??




Regards
Svein
Oslo, Norway

[DogParkGuy]

Re: How do i keep my new Volvo S60 R-Design nice?

My wife drives a ten-year old S60 that sits outside. I find the paint "hard". I haven't done anything special other than a regular detail, washing and waxing. Paint still looks good after 102,000 miles.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: How do i keep my new Volvo S60 R-Design nice?

With all due respect to Art, a lot can change (and probably has) with the paint Volvo used 10 years ago compared to what they're using today.

Svein, what you need to do with the car first is wash and dry it then critically evaluate the finish. That will tell you what the car needs and from there you can formulate a plan of attack.

Once the car is clean and dry, run your clean, dry hand over the surface to feel for bonded contaminants - this is the stuff that sticks to the paint and won't come off during a routine washing process. It's amazing how bad this can be on a brand new car sometimes, but it's a quick check and an easy correction with clay.

You also want to look at the car under good lighting conditions; direct sunlight works well. You're looking for fine swirls or "cobwebs" in the paint. These can be the result of the dealer's washing process or anything that was wiped over the car since the build date. Correcting this is where some muscle, or a good power tool, comes into play. You'll need a good quality paint cleaner like Ultimate Compound to remove these defects. If you don't see any defects below the surface, you can skip the paint cleaner step. Even on a defect free surface, however, you can still gain some depth of color and gloss by using a polish like Ultimate Polish (most likely not available in your area quite yet) or M205 Ultra Finishing Polish. Either one will help to darken and richen the color.

After those steps, as needed, you'll want to apply a good wax or synthetic sealant. NXT Tech Wax 2.0 should look fantastic on your red S60R.

For more in depth info on this whole process, check out our 5 Step Paint Care Cycle.

[svpett]

Re: How do i keep my new Volvo S60 R-Design nice?

With all due respect to Art, a lot can change (and probably has) with the paint Volvo used 10 years ago compared to what they're using today.

Svein, what you need to do with the car first is wash and dry it then critically evaluate the finish. That will tell you what the car needs and from there you can formulate a plan of attack.

Once the car is clean and dry, run your clean, dry hand over the surface to feel for bonded contaminants - this is the stuff that sticks to the paint and won't come off during a routine washing process. It's amazing how bad this can be on a brand new car sometimes, but it's a quick check and an easy correction with clay.

You also want to look at the car under good lighting conditions; direct sunlight works well. You're looking for fine swirls or "cobwebs" in the paint. These can be the result of the dealer's washing process or anything that was wiped over the car since the build date. Correcting this is where some muscle, or a good power tool, comes into play. You'll need a good quality paint cleaner like Ultimate Compound to remove these defects. If you don't see any defects below the surface, you can skip the paint cleaner step. Even on a defect free surface, however, you can still gain some depth of color and gloss by using a polish like Ultimate Polish (most likely not available in your area quite yet) or M205 Ultra Finishing Polish. Either one will help to darken and richen the color.

After those steps, as needed, you'll want to apply a good wax or synthetic sealant. NXT Tech Wax 2.0 should look fantastic on your red S60R.

For more in depth info on this whole process, check out our 5 Step Paint Care Cycle.

Hi Michael
Thanks for a good "attack plan" om how I should go ahead with my new ride when I get my hands on it....:-))

After reading alot on this very good website I came to this:
For the Meguiars consumer product line I was thinking the new Ultimate Polish and the final step with the new Ultimate Liquid Wax, do you think this is the way to go, or??

I have been using Meguiars products since they showed up in norwegian stores some years back.

These two new Ultimate products is impossible to get here in Norway, but I guess I can order them from UK or some other country.

Regards
Svein
Oslo, Norway