How do I get the most out of my paintwork???

[FOX1980]

Hi all, I have been reading on various websites and on this forum and I am a little overwhelmed at the amount of detailing products available, what I am after is a product(s) to make the metallic dolphin grey on my a3 (2006) stand out, the cars paintwork is in the condition you would expect for a 5 year old car.

I have clayed the car and used poorboys black hole followed by poorboys blue paste wax several times but these dont seem to show off the metallic element of the paint and if anything mask it slightly (looks like a solid colour but shiny).

The poorboys products are easy to use and last a fair while but is there anything that you detailers would recommend to give the shine and durablility im after?

 

[Sheikh]

Buy yourself a DAS-6 machine polisher and get to work, or pay a professional to do it. Although it seems to me as though you seem to be missing out the polishing stage altogether at the moment?

Maybe get some polish in there before the black hole as this is just a glaze and won't to much to bring back that 'pop' your looking for. If you don't want to buy a machine polisher just yet get yourself some of this Menzerna Power Finish (203S) | Moderate Strength Ultra Fine Cutting Compound and Lake Country Light Cut Hand Pad | Heavyweight Hand Polishing Pad

After you go over the car with that, you can continue with the black hole and blue paste wax. Should notice a considerable difference!

 

[Juicy Jen]

Potentially the problem you have is that the car is 5 years old and I'm sure that the paintwork will be swirly and scratched.

The swirls have a tendancy to dull paint and make it look flat, lacking in depth and the flecks will be almost non existant.

It will need a polish as mentioned above to restore the clarity of the paint rather than using a glaze.

In an ideal world a machine polish would give you a much better result, however this depends on your budget and thoughts on doing it yourself. Alternatively I would recommend by hand Chemical Guys All In One Polish it has enough cut to correct some of the swirls; it adds shine; and also includes a sealant although personally I would always you another wax or sealant as I dont think at this time of year it has sufficient durability.

Or get a professional to look at the car and give you a quote to carry out the work you require......

 

[Joeyz]

Once the paint it properly correct. I'd use Megs d300 microfiber system and then follow up with a pass of menz power finish. Lastly I'd do a few coats of collinite 476s or menz power lock.