Car Wash Question, maybe a little Strange

kkritsilas

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I'm not saying it can't happen. However, leaving cars outside for extended periods of time will oxidize the paint, and make it a lot harder to get a good shine.

I will post pictures up tomorrow of a test section of the same trunk lid after some brief experimentation with some Meguiar's #1 medium cut polish. This will be pretty useless without a picture to back it up, but I am very encouraged. Funny thing is, the more I do things with the paint, not only is it looking better in terms of overall appearance, the color is getting redder as opposed to somewhat orangy coloured the way it was before..
 

kkritsilas

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THere are some rust spots, but not many, and most of the car is quite solid. It has the typical J body rust out of the two "wells" on either side of the trunk, the extreme lower end of the rear quarters (about an inch up, on each side) and one spot on the fender lip just above the center of the rear passenger wheel, but that is it. Door bottoms don't even have rust, nor do the sills. Bottom has surface rust all over, but the floors themselves ,and the trunk floor are solid as well.
 
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Aspen500

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That darn UV exposure. Sometimes the paint can get so oxidized it won't shine no matter what. Like it's oxidized all the way to the primer. My old '81 Dodge D150 was that way. No matter how much or what you tried, the paint looked like flat red.
 

Dr Lebaron

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My Lebaron has a 19 yr old paint and I have never waxed it.
I still get asked 'just have it painted?'
But it's always garaged.

The overnight dew, the sun evaporating, birds/bugs/plants, then the acid rain, farks paint jobs.

I might get rained on once a yr if I can't outrun the rain.
Been left outside overnight only once, then washed next morning before the dew dried.
 

Aspen500

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We just had a '69 Caddy in the shop last week. It's a one owner car with just under 60,000 miles. It's never seen winter and has always been stored indoors since brand new. The owner says it may have gotten wet a half dozen times at the most. The original paint is perfect. Well, as perfect as paint was on cars back then. Not a hint of fade or loss of gloss and I think GM may have still used lacquer paint at the time which makes it even more amazing.
 

kkritsilas

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As promised, pictures after using some Meguiars #1 (I felt that the oxidation was severe enough that #2, a fine cut cleaner, would have been ineffective).

IMG_0070.JPG


IMG_0069.JPG
 
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kkritsilas

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I took the picture this morning, but actually used the Meguiar's #1 the trunk lid last night before I went out. It feels a lot smoother when I rub my hand over it, and we had some rain last night. When I came back, it had stopped raining, and I noticed that in the area that I had applied the polish to I had water beading up (water beading up is an indication of the smoothness of the surface). The area that had not had the polish applied wasn't beading up at all.

I think what I will do is wash the entire car with the dish soap first. Then use the Meguiar's #1 to get the paint cleaned up reasonably well. Wash with car soap, and try the clay bar, just to get the paint really clean. Then wash again with car soap, and repolish with 3M's Imperial hand glaze (a super fine polish, just to try to improve the shine), and then wax. I have a few weekend's worth of work ahead of me.
 

Aspen500

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It appears the paint is coming back to life pretty good! So,,,,,,how are your arms feeling so far?:D
 

kkritsilas

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Right arm is pretty tired. Left arm I don't use; tendon problem in upper forearm. I'm pretty pleased so far. I will keep at it, a little bit at a time.
 

Mopar_Gods

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Looks good to me. I always just wash mine once a week with warm water and a little bit of dawn does wonders. Mine always looks like I have spent hours and hours on it waxing it but it has never been waxed. Thank You

fdfdfdf.jpg
 

Justwondering

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I keep mine washed once in a great while just so the aphids have something to goop up, the oak trees have something to drop leaves on and the packrat can have a home to be proud of. sigh
 

kkritsilas

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I have not had the chance to do much, but did get around to cleanin the paint on the rear passenger side. Seems like that side had less paint damage than the trunk lid did. Took a picture, which will make the difference a lot more visible than the trunk pictures did.

IMG_0138.JPG
 

kkritsilas

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I have not had the chance to do much, but did get around to cleanin the paint on the rear passenger side. Seems like that side had less paint damage than the trunk lid did. Took a picture, which will make the difference a lot more visible than the trunk pictures did.

View attachment 16402

Progress, along with a vinyl roof experiment that seems to be working out well. Pictures as of this afternoon:

IMG_0139.JPG


IMG_0143.JPG
 
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