Weekend Project

[exploreco]

Ok, as I have talked about in my other thread, I am going to tackle my Pilot this weekend while I am waiting for my products to get here from the Ultimate bundle I ordered from Walmart. Should be here on Saturday. The only thing I have done to the Pilot in the 4 years I have owned it is clay once a year and NXT 2.0 once or twice. June and the late fall if I have time. Last couple of years not so much. So, now this forum has me wanting to take it to the next level because I didn't really think white could do that. So, here is my plan of action.

1. Wash
2. Clay
3. Cleaner wax (Megs Consumer, its what I have on hand)
4. Polish with UP
5. NXT 2.0

Does that order sound right? I am correct by doing the wax before the polish right? Or is the the cleaner wax even necessary since I will be doing polish or is polish necessary since I will be doing the cleaner wax. I am still getting confused on if both are needed. I know clay removed the outer contaminants. Wax or compounds would remove light swirls and scratches, but it is white and I don't really notice those if they are there, and I think polish pops the color. Then an NXT or UP will seal. I don't want to do more work than I need to as I am going to try and tackle the Venza this weekend too.

Thanks for all your help! I have been learning tons and enjoying reading all the threads.

[C8N]

Re: Weekend Project

Personally, I would take out cleaner wax and just spend more time with UP.
When you apply UP after using a cleaner wax, UP will pretty much remove wax portion of the cleaner wax.

[The Guz]

Re: Weekend Project

I agree. I would either use the cleaner wax or UP but not both. Just depends on how much time you are going to spend correcting the defects.

[jarred767]

Re: Weekend Project

Both aren't really necessary, as like C8N stated, UP will polish the wax from the cleaner wax right off. If you want to use them both, it would be best to do UP first, but then the only thing your really gaining from the cleaner wax is an extra layer of protection, and if you want that, you might as well just do two coats of NXT.

Or or to get two coats of protection and save a step, you could do (1)wash (2)clay (3)cleaner wax and (4)NXT. If you don't really see swirls in the paint (or they aren't noticeable on your white paint), you may not need the extra polishing step and could save yourself a little time.

Good luck with it!

[Jarhead0754]

I agree with everyone. I would do just
Wash, clay, up, nxt. Unless any swirls then use the cleaner instead of up. U will use the cleaner down the road again so it's not a waste to let it sit on the shelf for a min.
And in between ur overhauls I would do wash, and ultimate spray wax as a booster. Nxt is great but in my opinion isn't giving u the protection u think for 6 months or so inbetween ur waxes. But u will figure what u like the more u get into it. Just wait anyways sounds ur gonna get really involved in this hobby to the point where ur monthly hauls will b a full detail. Good luck this weekend tho.

[exploreco]

I can't really see any sells in the white but there may be some there. I am sure there are because I used a brush car wash this winter a few times. But when looking I just can't see them. I have always done QD a couple of times a month but now will be using QW instead to boost.

Thanks for all the replies. I will just do the UP and NXT. That will probaly finish up that bottle and then I will probably just stuck with UW from there and experiment with some others.

[The Guz]

Re: Weekend Project

My other car is white so I know how difficult it is to compound and polish a white car. The best way to see if there are any swirls is to wash it and look at the car at various angles using the sun as your light source. UP has a cutting ability just under M205 so it will remove light to moderate defects and it will give you that nice glossy look to that white paint.

[exploreco]

Re: Weekend Project

I think I will go with the UP for now and see how that looks. If I feel like it needs more I can try something more aggressive next time. The UP will be more than I have ever done to it in the past.

[Jarhead0754]

Qd an Qw are different. Qd is more for cleaning and just a quick polish. Others can respond on this

[exploreco]

Re: Weekend Project

Qd an Qw are different. Qd is more for cleaning and just a quick polish. Others can respond on this

Yes, I would agree with you after reading on here now. I had only used QD and not sure why I never used QW and don't think I knew that QD wasn't doing what I thought it was doing. So now I will be using QW after washes in place of where I used QD. And I guess QD is used for when the car is just dusty?

[The Guz]

Re: Weekend Project

I use M135 (UQD pro version) to remove light dust and as a drying aid everytime I wash. I use D156 (UQW pro version) once a month on my daily driver.

[cfilly]

Re: Weekend Project

I agree with everyone. I would do just
Wash, clay, up, nxt. Unless any swirls then use the cleaner instead of up. U will use the cleaner down the road again so it's not a waste to let it sit on the shelf for a min.
And in between ur overhauls I would do wash, and ultimate spray wax as a booster. Nxt is great but in my opinion isn't giving u the protection u think for 6 months or so inbetween ur waxes. But u will figure what u like the more u get into it. Just wait anyways sounds ur gonna get really involved in this hobby to the point where ur monthly hauls will b a full detail. Good luck this weekend tho.

I have to disagree with you on NXT...it does last a while and it gives great protection. I live in South Louisiana where it is in the 90's and raining at some point in time everyday. I have had NXT on my mother in laws Suburban since January, and it still beads now like it did back then. It gets parked outside in the elements 24/7...JMO

[The Guz]

Re: Weekend Project

NXT 2.0 sometimes get a bad rep for not lasting long. Really depends on the environment and how the surface was prepped. But in reality it's pretty good. It's similar to M21 and I have experienced durability of 7 months with M21 and properly maintaining it with M135 and D156. My brother currently has NXT on his car so we shall see how long it lasts on his.

To the OP, post a couple before and afters so we can see the transformation.

[ffboy]

Re: Weekend Project

NXT 2.0 is a great product, quite durable but to me, not the most durable sealant. As with many if not all waxes/sealants, durability can be achieved with proper prep and proper maintenance, especially (for me) proper car wash techniques, and environmental factors as well. Here, rainy season is just around the corner, therefore many waxes and sealants will be working overtime. As for car washes, so much can go wrong when drying or washing the car. I've seen durable products I've used barely lasting a month due to pathetic car wash techniques employed by not too knowledgeable people.

[exploreco]

Re: Weekend Project

Got the Pilot done this weekend. Thanks for all the advice. You are correct, the UP did help in bringing the white out. Feels warmer to me. Whiter. Spent alot of prep time with the clay. Winter ended up being really hard on it. Spent most of the time on the rear tail gate. Wish I had some of that Iron X as I think that would have saved a lot of time. Here are some pictures. I don't really think you can tell a difference in the pictures but I took some before and after anyways.

Seeing how I have never done this many steps in one day, I can't wait unitl I get a DA. I think the results will be even better yet. The Pilot really could have probably used a compound before the polish but I will save that for the DA next spring. I think that will be a Santa gift

Wash, clay, UP, NXT 2.0 (wanted to use it up)

Before

After