Its all in the detail

[kimball808]

Just finished (well half of it) claying then polished the dearly beloved....and I have to say those clay bars are amazing (first time I have used this, and it was joy to use)...can not help running my fingers over the body work happy thats its as smooth as....well you can only imagine....

finished with a polish which has created a fantastic shine....I used a auto glym detailing kit that came with a small bottle of high resin polish..

The trouble now is that I want more shine...I want a mirror effect..I'm turnining into a car cleaning fanatic.... can anybody recommend a polish or wax to further enhance that shine....

[Thrustyjust]

Autoglym SRP is a filler polish. Works well as a scratch hiding polish, but , although seems to repel water, you will need to wax on top Some people would seal it with a sealant. I like Poorboys sealant and Poorboys products. Mainly because they are reasonably priced and do a pretty good job. I have some Poorboys Natty wax, which is great, on and off. But when I got my XC60, I used Harlys wax, which is about £20 a huge tin. Seems to work well, although my car being silver doesn't show too well.
Below is my Focus, which shows a decent depth of colour which is acheivable


You can also use any Collinite wax, but can be hard work to remove, but grat for long times between rewaxing or Auto Glym HD wax, is more expensive but good. Mine dried up as the pot isn't that well sealed, so wrap it up in a bag.
Lots of reasonably good products at sensible prices.

[kimball808]

Yes..that is a quality shine. I want....so will the sealant/wax enhance the shine or mainly protect the polish...im thinking of doing a detail, polish and now wax a couple of times a year.

[kimball808]

Also will the depth and shine improve as you apply more polish and wax?

[Thrustyjust]

Sealant is that, it will seal the paint. There is plenty of other companies selling stuff. If you venture onto detailingworld.com, you can see lots of peoples views and work on there.
If you plan to wax a couple of times a year, use Collinite 476
http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/wax/co.../prod_207.html
Do not do more than one panel at a time. Believe me, it sets like concrete. Do 2 coats, the second will be a lot easier.
Then, when you wash the car, use the 2 bucket method and I always wipe the car down and use a spray and gloss from Poorboys, to just get it shiny and remove any water spots.
A bargain is the microfiber cloths from Screwfix. Think they are £20 for 50 or so. We use them everywhere in the house as well as the car. From washing the kitchen to scrubbing interior plastics to wiping off the car to dry it off. Really good for lots of jobs.

[Thrustyjust]

This was after wash, dry, clay, wash, sealant and then 4 coats of Harlys wax. It went back to Volvo on Thursday last week and the bloke laughed when my wife said ' DO NOT CLEAN THE CAR' . It came back dusty and I gave it a wash and another coat of wax and a spray and gloss and yes, it does come out better with time. I am hoping to get it to the point at winter, it will shrug the majority of the muck the weather will throw at it.

[Crockers]

I don't let the dealer clean mine either...I'm not sure how they clean cars.

[GMcL]

All these shiny top sides, has anyone taken care of the underside? That's where the winter road treatments get busy.

[Ninja59]

Volvo undersealing has definitely got worse in recent years, I did find a number of newer volvos lacking in some areas or just simply poor quality underseal however try still have more than many manufacturers. Some which now apply none....

[GMcL]

I wish I'd taken some photos last year when I had my P2 S60 undersealed and my M-i-L had her brand new Honda Jazz done at the same time.

We prized off the plastic under tray on the Jazz to find a primer coated underside.