Polishing/sealant And Washing Plan For My New Aygo

[toyboata]

Hi all,

I am getting my new aygo in September and i have decided - that as this is my first BRAND NEW car, i want to try and keep the paintwork looking better than A1

So i have been trawling though alllll the information on multiple forums/websites and experts inputs...and i have made a "plan" -- which as i was doing it seemed to turn into more of a guide than a plan for just me.

So (hopefully) you should be able to download the word document with the plan!

If you know a thing or two about car polishing/detailing please have a read through and let me know if i should adjust anything...

for anyone else - the plan might come in handy for you!

Like i say - i have applied what "i know" and what i have read elsewhere (by other people) and typed it down into a bullet point listing of "how i interpreted it"

So i'm not taking any credit for it - just trying to "pool" together knowledge (for my own benefit if anything lol!)

MS doc - It can only be downloaded ten times!

Matt B)

[alfiejts]

Hi,

The plan looks OK, but I haqve no experience of the Meguires products you mention so can't comment on them specifically.

I do however have a good experience of the Werkstat Acrylic Kit which has the same non-abrasive polish, protective sealant and detailers. If you haven't bought already, have a think about these as an alternative.

My review is here...

http://toyotaownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=98485

Put a good wax on the wheels. I used three coats of Collinite 476S wax. I bought three tins from the USA for the same price as one here....

I originally waxed my new Yaris with Collinite wax, which is really protective, but not as good clarity than the Acrylic sealant kit.

I also didn't clay and polish my new Yaris first before waxing it when new, but in hindsight, now that I have properly clayed and polished it six months in, there's a much better shine now than I had originally.

They say that the newly sprayed laquer needs a bit of a polish to smooth the surface up, as its still microscopically rough when it comes out of the paint shop...

I suspect you've already been there, but have a look at the detailing section of the audi-sport.net forum as that's got a load of info in there - more than on this forum....

You seem to have distilled the main points of the various guides quite well already, but if you haven't been there, its worth a browse...

[alfiejts]

I forgot to say that I'm a bit obsessive....

I clean the insides of the wheels and behind the spokes now and then, I polish the exhaust tailpipe with metal polish and after six coats of sealant its built up a lovely glass-like finish....

What colour Aygo are you getting?

[toyboata]

Hi Alfiejts,

Thanks for the reply - most helpful as i haven’t been able to find a suitable wheel wax yet - i have just googled that Collinite 476S wax, some of the reviews are VERY impressive!!

How do you find it on your alloys? does it keep the hot brake dust off ok?

I did have a look at that Werkstat Acrylic Kit - but wasn’t "sure" at what i was looking at - with Meguiar’s, i have used them before and know my way around their product line up so to speak...will have a look at it though.

What colour Aygo are you getting?

I'm Getting the aygo in Metallic Carbon Quartz Grey...so a darkish metalic.

I would like to have the wet glossy look while maintaining the visibility of the metallic flakes -- however its seems you can only truly have one or the other.

I have been thinking IF after applying my sealant, to apply one layer of wax...to try and acheive both --- but this sounds risky!!

Any advice on layering?

Btw - i read that Audi-sport guide - it is excellent! I also read your thread before, i think your Yaris could be a similar colour to my aygo!

Cheers

Matt B)

[alfiejts]

The Collinite is great on the wheels. I put two coats on at first and then just add an extra coat each six months or so.

The wheels still get dirty, but I just use a microfibre cloth and normal car wash detergent (what's left in the bucket after washing the bodywork...) and the dirt just wipes off leaving no brake dust residue...

I can only really speak from excperience. Collinite was wonderful on the paitwork of my silver Yaris and Silver Audi A3, where the flakes were small and didn't reflect and it was really protective - but it was also hard to apply and buff off....

Andi did change the colour of the paint. When I stripped off the wax and used the used the Acrylic kit on my A3, my neighbour thought I'd had it resprayed because the colour was so much lighter....

And it made the dark grey metallic on our new Yaris look poor. It was a shiny wet look finish but if the sun wasn't out, it just looked a dull grey beacuse of the colour of the wax (especially when viewed from a shallow angle), whereas the Acrylic Sealant is very easy to apply annd very optically clear.

Its just an easy spray on & buff off formula, so you can add a coat very easily after almost each wash. After six coats, I've now got a very wet look shiny surface that is very clear, so you can see the flake through it much better than through wax, even viewing from a shallow angle and the water beads off it just like a wax...,

Its the first "polish" in 20 years that I've used up and gone out to buy another of the same one - so that must say something.... (and my obsessive uncle has just bought the kit for his Aston Martin Vantage after seeing my results - so if its good enough for him....)

Its taken six coats (of layering) but as the polishedbliss web forum suggests, it now has a very wet look and beads well - and its easy to keep it topped up each month....

[toyboata]

Sounds good --

Will get a tub of that wax for my alloys, where did you get yours from? seen it on eBay UK for 14/15 quid.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Collinite-476s-Super...id=p3286.c0.m14

Think I'm gonna stick with just a sealant for my paint work - not sure which one yet tho,

Do you have or use a dual action polisher?

Wondering if get one again (used to have one)

[alfiejts]

Hi Matt,

Got mine from the USA.

Got one tin for the body, a separate one for the wheels and sold a tin to a friend.....

I haven't checked his latest pricing (may have changed in 12 months....) but he ships up to three tins for the same postage charge so I bulk bought...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Collinite-4...sQ5fAccessories

I think I got three tins delivered for c£30, compared to £18 a tin over here....

I've always polished by hand until now, but I have been thinking of a polisher....

Applying the sealant and wax is really a manual job anyway, but it did cross my mind to get a polisher to try and make the paint surface even more glass like before I started using a final cut polish as theer is a slight "orange peel" effect on the paint surface of the Yaris....

My worry is that none of my cars has any swirl marks, so I'd be worried that not being skilled I might actually introduce some and make things worse rather than better....

[toyboata]

Hi,

Have you got his eBay user ID - that link isnt working for me? thanks

DA polisher -- when i had one (well, it wasnt a DA polisher but more of a toned down "consumer" rotary buffer) i found it very good at doing "the final buff" - it seemed to achieve a higher gloss finish than what can be done by hand - and of course, it was a lot easier!

Like you say - certain products like Sealants would still have to be applied by hand, but certain items like a low abrasive polish would be fine.

I was thinking of getting one for "buffing off/to a gloss" than applying stuff with it.

Been reading this guide - Excellent Guide on DA Polisher

Thinking of getting the Meguiars G220 Dual Action polisher --- found out with a DA polisher, your a lot less likly to damage your paint...so thats tempting.

Matt

[alfiejts]

http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Dennys-Auto-Parts__W0QQ_armrsZ1

3 tins incl shipping for £31.....

if that don't work, just go onto eBay.com and search for collinite....

[toyboata]

ahh thanks for that, yeh theres a bit of a saving there! thanks!

[alfiejts]

Matt,

I've just been directed to this thread - its a really good read about cheap random orbit poilishers....

Less than £30 incl postage and they've all been tested by people on the thread...

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=83874

Also - if you haven't discovered the forum before, there's loads of other info here too....

Cheers,

Graham.

[toyboata]

Thanks Graham...i joined that forum just the other day - seems a very good resource!

Thanks for bringing my attention to that thread - will have a read through te 160+ pages and see what other options are open to me.

Cheers

Matt

[alfiejts]

By the way Matt, I washed my A3 and the Yaris today and can't believe how brilliant they look finished in the Werkstat Acrylic system.

I've had the A3 for four years now and used every "top tested polish" in the annual Autoexpress tests - Autoglym, Meguirs, Collinite, Turtle Wax, etc.

Many of them might have put a shiny coat on the paint, but nothing allows the flake to reflect through with the clarity of the Werkstat and whilst the surface was "shiny and reflective" with the other products, the Werkstat is giving a "wet look" for the first time....

I ordered a kit for my uncle last weekend (he doesn't trust the internet for purchasing...), dropped it off Sunday lunchtime and by Sunday night he's done both his Audi S3 and Aston Martin Vantage.

He rang saying how delighted he was with it too....

You won't be disappointed if you give it a try..

[toyboata]

LOL -- You know, i'm so torn between the two i'm tempted to just buy both and try them out 50/50!

Cant decide between Werkstat or Meguiars sealant! -- the Werkstat does get excellent reviews...but so does the Meguiars so i really dont know.

Matt

[toyboata]

....dont spose you could post a picy ?

[alfiejts]

....dont spose you could post a picy ?

Well as it happens, I was out in the drive yesterday with my camera taking piccies of these....

And inbetween Spitfires, Vulcans and Hawks, I did take a few snaps...

You can see the "wet look" on the bumper and the flake jumping out from the boot lid....

Here you can see the clarity of the clouds in the reflection, but also the flake is still sparkling through it...

A wet-look shiny bonnet...

And finally, this is the real difference between the Werkstat and my previous Collinite wax.

At this very shallow angle, you can still see all the flake reflecting, whereas with the Collinite wax, you got a great reflection, but you didn't see through that to the flake of the paint below, it was just a dull grey underneath the shiny reflection.

You'd think I was on commission the way I go on about it.....

[toyboata]

That deffo shows the flakes a lot better -

What system did you use then? did you just get the sealant or the polish as well?

Theres a 3 piece kit for 50 quid, wondering if get that.

Matt :)

P.S. Thanks for posting the pics - and the red arrows are amazing!

[alfiejts]

Yes - that's what I got Matt. The three-stage Werkstat Acrylic Kit.

Although if you were strapped for cash and already had some microfibre towels, you could just get the Acrylic Prime polish and the Werkstat Jett sealant.

The Werkstat Glos is a quick detailer that you can use to keep it topped up after you've washed it, but the Jett is so easy to apply, you might as well just apply a coat of that each month and forget about the Glos detailer...

[toyboata]

Thanks for that...I will take a closer look in 2 weeks time...dont get the aygo till 1st sep!

I'm thinking - when they PDI it, they will wash and polish it :( -- this i will need to remove.

I am also thinking of apply a paint cleaner to it before starting - I've read that new paint - on a micro level, the clearcoat layer is not smooth - and this effects the maximum shine you can get.

They say to use a low abrasive polish to smooth out the clearcoat before applying pure polish then your protective layers.

but will see.

I will post picys up shortly after the 1st showing my handy work!

Matt

[toyboata]

...Thats a very nice yaris btw!

[alfiejts]

" I've read that new paint - on a micro level, the clearcoat layer is not smooth - and this effects the maximum shine you can get."

Yes - I'd heard that too.

I was trying to keep it simple....

You want to use a clay bar and that will remove whatever's already on the paint surface. I use the Meguirs Quick clay kit...

And I gave it a hand polish before I applied the Acrylic Prime sealant too, to try and flatten the factory finish. Something like Autoglym Super Resin Polish would be best for that - A very low abrasive, high gloss polish without any "filler".

I used Menzerna PO85RE, but I think that's really meant for machine polishing, so I'm not sure if it really did anything by hand...