Autopia Car Care

In a perfect world, you wouldn't need to polish your car's paint.  Cleaning and waxing is all that's really necessary to protect and beautify your car's finish.  Unfortunately, we don't live in a perfect world.  Your car's paint is bombarded by contaminants and assaulted by foreign objects every day.

Some automotive appearance experts suggest that it's possible to maintain a car's paint without polishing at all.  I'm not as optimistic.  I recommend polishing when it's necessary to solve a specific problem or to achieve a desired result.  I will discuss advanced uses of polish in later chapters.  For now, you can think of polish as a tool for pre-wax cleaning and improving paint gloss.  A fine polish gently removes surface contamination and improves surface reflectivity.

UNDERSTANDING CAR POLISH

Before we can talk about polishing, we need to establish a common understanding of what polish is.  The word polish is highly misused throughout the car care and appearance industry.

For our purposes, a paint polish is an abrasive lotion or cream used to remove small amounts of the paint's surface.  The cutting ability of the polish will determine the amount of paint removed with each hand stroke or each revolution of a buffer, as well as the resulting finish.  A fine polish will create a bright, glassy finish, whereas a coarse polish may cloud the paint's surface.  Each polish is designed for a specific purpose (e.g., repair or refine) and application (e.g., hand or machine). 

Here's how I classify car polishes:

Abrasive paper or pad - An ultra-fine grade of sandpaper (1200 to 3000 grit) can be used effectively to level a paint finish and remove imperfections.  I mention sandpaper here because it is an abrasive, like all polishes, and it has its place in the polishing chain.

Compound - A compound, often called a rubbing compound, is a cutting polish designed to remove heavy oxidation, some common forms of paint damage and defects, and the scratches created by fine sandpaper.

Polish - A specially formulated blend of components designed to remove minor scratches, surface imperfections, water spots, acid rain spots, light oxidation, and the swirl marks created by compounding with a machine.

Glaze - A very fine polish.  Some glazes are safe to use on fresh paint, as they do not seal.  A glaze does not have enough cutting power to remove imperfections, but will increase surface gloss.

Pre-wax cleaner - A polish containing chemical cleaners to help remove minor surface contamination and dirt not handled by normal washing or claying.

You may be asking why I didn't mention detailing clay.  While detailing clay is an abrasive suspended in a clay or elastic base, its purpose is to remove particles from the paint's surface and not the paint itself.

CAR POLISH SELECTION

The car care market is flooded with polishes, each promising to work one miracle or another.  Selection is difficult at best.  For the purpose of our discussion, it's necessary to create a reference.

It's important to note that polishes may be specifically created for hand or machine use.  The difference between a machine polish and a hand polish is how the abrasive material breaks down in use.  The abrasives in most polishes break down (diminish) into finer particles, allowing the polish to "buff out."  If you use a machine polish by hand, the particles may not break down, and the finish will not buff out properly.

Conversely, using a hand polish with a machine will cause the polish to break down too quickly, and you won't get enough cutting action.  A few polishes work by hand or machine, because they don't use diminishing abrasives or they are not temperature sensitive (buffing pads create heat).

The chart above shows six grades of abrasive finish material.

CAR POLISHING BASICS

No matter what method of polishing you choose (hand, dual-action polisher or rotary buffer), the basic process is the same.  You start by removing imperfections, and gradually decrease abrasive materials until you have achieved fully glazed paint.  In this section I'll address hand polishing specifically, but, as I have said, the basics are the same.  I'll go into machine polishing in the next section.

CAR BUFFING AND POLISHING PADS

There are two basic pad types: cutting and polishing.  A cutting pad is used with a polish or machine cleaning compound to remove oxidation and fine scratches.  Cutting pads make quick work, but will leave noticeable swirl marks, especially on dark finishes.  After buffing with a cutting pad, you will need to make a second pass with a polishing pad and glaze to remove swirl marks and improve luster.

Cutting pads, also called leveling pads, should be wool.  There are a lot of synthetic "wool" pads on the market.  Don't touch them!  Nothing beats lamb's wool.  Nothing is safer than lamb's wool.

Polishing pads, often called finishing or waxing pads, are foam rubber.  These are the only pads safe to use on a clearcoat finish.  Do not use a cutting pad on a clearcoat finish.  That said, some expert body shops will use a cutting pad on a clearcoat finish when blending a repair.

COMPOUNDS, POLISHES, AND GLAZES

Always use the least abrasive polish necessary to get the job done.  No matter what you might have read or seen on TV, no single polish can do it all.  You may need two, even three products to get the desired results. Any polish you use with a buffer or rotary polisher should state "for machine use" in the instructions.

I know I've said it before, but I feel it's worth repeating: Be very careful using a rubbing compound with a machine.  A rubbing compound is nothing more than sandpaper in liquid form.  If your paint needs light compounding, it's best to do it by hand.  If you must use a buffer or rotary polisher, compound flat areas only and stay away from edges.

Next up from rubbing compounds are cleaners.  Paint cleaners are basically a fine cut compound for polishing paint with heavy or moderate oxidation.  Paint cleaner polishes will quickly remove the top layer of dead paint, revealing paint that can be rejuvenated.

Polishes are the paint finish workhorse.  Unlike rubbing compounds and cleaners, a polish has very little cutting action.  A good machine polish will remove small blemishes and restore gloss.  A quality polish contains oils to lubricate paint surface for the best polishing action and a high-gloss finish.

CAR POLISHING SUMMARY

Polishing paint is a acquired skill.  It can take years to master.  If you're planning to use a machine, my best advice is to practice on older cars.  Most importantly, select the correct polish for the job.  Use the chart at the beginning of the chapter to help determine which polish grade you should be using.  Once you've selected the right polish, make sure you use the right tools.