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My 2002 Boxster's clear coat is just fine even after all these years and exposure to the elements, except in two places. One is the front bumper cover which was replaced and painted/clear coated as part of an accident repair within the last 7 or 8 years. IOWs, the clearcoat on the bumper cover was not "factory".
The second place is the tops of the outside mirrors. These do have factory clear coat on them.
I would never use any abrasive polish no matter how fine the abrasive on these cars. And I would not use a power polisher.
Your rotary polisher should be left to the pros at the body and detail shops. They're basically grinders, and can burn the paint in a moment. Pick up a good dual action polisher like a Flex or Rupes. That's what I, as an amateur use, and I can polish all day, and never worry about harming my paint. Check out the detailing forum on here too.
So here it is buffed with the meguiars ultimate compound and rotary. I then finished it off by hand with some 3m ultrafine machine polish. I think it turned out pretty darn good. I asked my detailer buddy and he said the rotary is the best tool for polishing but you need to pay attention every second you use it. I made sure to be mindful of all the edges and bodylines. I think the areas of discoloring were thin clear areas that might have bern buffed in excess over the years.
TONS of rock chipson the original paint. The clear was thin and burned off slightly on these fwd edges of the lower rockers. Not noticable outside with natural lighting. Clear was also discolored in this area around a scratch on the door. The previous owner had the whole front end resprayed before selling it. Supplied reciepts showing 4k in paint work.
I do a machine polish just twice. Once when I first get the car and second time just before I sell it. In the years in between I use a simple spray on "wax as you dry" detailer's wax and maybe a little spot use of hand rubbed No. 7 auto polish after gentle washing. I receive many compliments on my vehicles' paint and shine.
+1
I've never cut a car's finish with a motorized da/orbital polisher. Using some swirl remover by hand, #7 and wax has always given a look others compliment and that doesn't remove the car's finish.
Your rotary polisher should be left to the pros at the body and detail shops. They're basically grinders, and can burn the paint in a moment. Pick up a good dual action polisher like a Flex or Rupes. That's what I, as an amateur use, and I can polish all day, and never worry about harming my paint. Check out the detailing forum on here too.
+1...there are much better systems out there now than the rotary combo OP used. Rotary is great in the hands of a pro that does it every day, but for diy, you're better off using flex or rupes. What's nice about rupes is that they have a great system of pads and polishes that takes the guesswork out of the equation and lots of how-to videos are put there.
as for clear coat being thin on newer 911s, it's not that thin, rather, it's soft which means easier to swirl and scratch.
You always want to use the least aggressive method to get the job done. Sometimes, the old fashioned hand polish and a carnauba or nano spray sealant maybe just fine.
Honestly the paint on the 996 ( at least the black) is as tough as butter. I use a POS portal cable DA and it was more than enough. As a matter of fact in my finishing phase I had to use Menzerna 4500 with mostly water or I would get orbit marks...
Honestly the paint on the 996 ( at least the black) is as tough as butter. I use a POS portal cable DA and it was more than enough. As a matter of fact in my finishing phase I had to use Menzerna 4500 with mostly water or I would get orbit marks...
what color pad were you using?
was the pad a new one ?
It's been over a year since I did it and this isn't my first rodeo. I think the pad was black or red and yes they were new and were cleaned after each body panel
04-09-2017, 01:34 PM
