I washed and polished the Accord I just bought for my g/f. Getting it ready to surprise her when she gets back in town

I polished about 75% of it and got alot of oxidation out. It looks brand new! I didn't get a chance to finish but is it okay to leave it for a few days without wax?

I used Meguairs Cleaner to polish out the oxidation and dirt in the paint but no wax so I feel like it's unprotected. Rain tonite/tomorrow and probably won't be able to get back to it for 4 days.

btw, rear view mirrors were so oxidized they were yellowed (it's a white car). I took some 3M rubbing compound to it and wham! they shine like new!
The rest of the paint has great gloss with the Meguiars Cleaner.

I can't wait to finish! It feels so good to see huge improvements- much more satisfying than cleaning a new truck.

Of course a bird crapped on the roof after I was done polishing it!:pat:

 

hey, what Meguiars Cleaner are you talking about? Is it a cleaner wax or some other sort of compound? I would say it would be ok to get back to it in a few days as long as you wash it really good and wax it with a cleaner carnuba wax. Also, what was that 3m compound you talked about, I have been looking for a good/not to harsh compound. Thanks.

 

Get that bird crap off immediately, those accord paints are not that great to bird crap...which is probably the result of this:



my bosses car (also has an accord although his is 2000) still has the same problem and that bird crap eats that paint right up.

As far as wax, I ain't that great for recommendations, I suggest though BEFORE you apply the wax, that you give a small wash so that if there was to land any particles on the paint in the meanwhile up to when you actually get a chance to wax it, it will be washed off instead of mixed in and scratching the paint with the wax. I probably would also make the recommendation to keep that car protected from the rain or add some protection, otherwise you will have a bunch of water spots. Even a small coat of wax will do alright for the four days till you get to it.

Corey by the way is the man for this stuff...

 

Definately get the bird crap off...my dads truck has 3 spots on his roof cause of it...DEVIL POOP!!

Fink

 

It's called "cleaner" and is not a wax. It's Meguiars in the dark red bottle. You use it to remove light swirl marks and oxidation. Works really well.

The 3M Rubbing compound comes in a small bottle. black bottle with a blue label. That gets out heavy oxidation, fine scratches, etc. Works great.

You have to wax afterwards to protect the finish.

Yeah I wiped the bird crap off immediately.

 

This is the 3M stuff I use





This is the cleaner I'm using

 

You're fine for a few days without waxing.

The Deep Crystal line is a decent generic series, and their cleaner is surprisingly good, as you discovered. If you aren't using all three steps, I'd suggest doing so. The wax is surprisingly good, for a carnuba type. It lasts as long as anyone elses carnuba, which is only a few weeks anyhow.

If you ever feel like moving on to some super good, and rather pricy stuff, might I suggest Klasse All In One and Surface Guard?

 

FirstToy:

I was in your shoes about 4 months ago. I took my GF's 97 Legacy which had probably never been waxed in it's previous owners presence and gave it some TLC while she was out of town for a few days. Six hours of labor later the results were awesome. Topic at hand:

Like everybody said, you will be fine for a few days without protection on the honda. He<<, it sounds to me like it didn't have any wax on it for a long time if it was oxidized. It shouldn't be raining down here for a few more days too. When you do go back to finish up the parts you left after washing, you might want to use the Meg's cleaner really quickly again. The last thing you want to do is seal in any contaminants.

Also, you might want to look into a few synthetic waxes to top off the 3M as they tend to last quite a bit longer than Carnauba waxes. To be honest, I am not totally sure that the 3M isn't synthetic. I just haven't heard enough about it. My favorite synth's are Collinite Insulator Wax and Klasse AIO & Sealant Glaze. Collinite claims 6 months out of their wax and the Klasse twins work wonders.

I used Klasse AIO/SG and a carnauba (S100) on my GF's ride (who parks outside every night) and I will be using the Collinite on top of this springs cleaning.

Run your course with what you have and next time you have achance, add a layer of a synthetic to the top of that honda.



You just got ourself a "get outta the doghouse for a few months free" card! Later!

-Stu.

 

I use Griots products. Corey got me addicted to their line of polishes/waxes and I've been hooked ever since. That stuff works pretty good. I usually do these steps

1. Wash car really good
2. Dry with microfiber towel
3. Use paint cleaning clay
4. Griots Machine polish 1, then wipe clean
5. Griots Machine polish 3, then wipe clean
6. Finally Griots best of show wax, then sit back and have a couple of cold ones

Griots Garage

I haven't waxed the beast in a while now. Tons of small scratches are all over it, but I'm sure they can be buffed out

 

Looks like it will be nice (but cold,brr!) today so maybe I'll finish up. Yeah, quick hit with the cleaner again sounds like a good idea.

3M is a full synthetic wax and it does pretty well. I've had that bottle for awhile. I'll probably finish the bottle on the Accord.
Also the 3M Rubbing Compound took out all the fading and yellowing from the headlights. They are crystal clear again, wow!

I'll take a pic when I finish cleaning. I wish it was a dark color so you could see the paint turn from a yellowed matte finish into glossy white!

*******OK any tips on making the leather interior less shiney? I realize it's older so maybe nothing can be done to make it shine less... I hit it with my trusty Blue Magic cleaner and leather conditioner which helped. The back seats are good (I don't think they were used much) but the front seats are "shiney".

Is there something that will knock back the shine? saddle soap?

 

Hey that's not a bad idea...so you just rubbed on the outside of the lens and it came off?

 

This here tutorial will help you out. I know there are no pictures but it's the content thats important. The Leatherique products are on sale now and to my knowlegde can only be ordered directly from the company in FLA. Now that the Rejuv. and Pristine are on sale I'll get some more, stuff is a bit expensive but lasts a long time.

Those two products should fix the Honda and any other leather you have anywhere. If you think you'll only use it for that application I'd buy the rest offa you. My 4R has leather.

-Stu.

 

Yeah the lenses were foggy, hazed and yellowing. I used the rubbing compound and they shine clear, like new. Ver happy.

Here is one side done and waxed. You could not see clean reflections before, just a matte finish with dull, blurred reflections.

 

Alrighty then ...I will definitly try it out when I get my car back (another 30 days), as I remember the lens was indeed foggy and hazy.

Then again...looking at a few pictures I snapped when I first got it, maybe they are already clear, but those side markers are the ones that aren't clear:

 

Looks like a great product but that's alot of work and alot of $. Maybe I'll just try some saddle soap and see how well it softens up.

I'm so tempted to polish again! You know that stage where it's glossy but you know you could keep polishing until it's wet/glossy looking? I might hit the hood, bumper and rear view mirrors again It's so satisfying! I look at the Accord sitting in the driveway more than my truck!
Spraying the black trim/plastic and tires is the last step.

 

If you love your rig like I love mine and want it to look its best, downloading the FREE "Detailer's Handbook" from Griot's Garage is a MUST! Covers everything, including LEATHER care...

http://www.griotsgarage.com/support.jsp