Complete newbie- how to restore faded red paintwork on a budget?

jack of all

I am a complete novice when it comes to this, so please bear with me. I have an car with a (non-metallic) red paint job which is really starting to look awful and I've decided I'll have to do something with it (once this hot weather passes). I had it polished and buffed professionally about 5 years ago but I can't afford to pay someone to redo it now so I am looking for some advice on how to do this myself; I am not looking for showroom finish just something that doesn't embarass me in the driveway! My thoughts on how to approach this are:

1. Clean the car and detar (have an Autoglym product for this).

2. Clay bar the bodywork (have Meguiars Smooth surface claybar). I don't have a "detailing spray", can I use car shampoo diluted with water in a spray mister?

3. Polish car to remove surface oxidation and expose fresh paint? I have Autoglym Super Resin Polish, will this be abrasive enough and can I just apply by hand- I don't have a buffer and don't want to spend money on one either if I can avoid. I know this is the hard part but I've got plenty of time and elbow grease!

4. Buff off.

5. Apply car wax and buff to shine. Recommend an Autoglym product for this?

6. I have some Autogylm rubber and plastic polish for the rest.

Thanks.

Ded_Zebra

What kind and year car is it? If it's not clear coated paint the SRP should make it nice and red again. You probably want to look at autoglym extra gloss protection to go on after your polish. It's cheap but very durable

jack of all

Ded_Zebra wrote: »

What kind and year car is it? If it's not clear coated paint the SRP should make it nice and red again. You probably want to look at autoglym extra gloss protection to go on after your polish. It's cheap but very durable

Thanks for your reply, it's not a BMW, Mercedes or anything like it, it's a humble Opel Corsa! Definitely not clear coated, solid red. Thanks for your advice, I'll get some extra gloss protection also.

cena

jack of all wrote: »

Thanks for your reply, it's not a BMW, Mercedes or anything like it, it's a humble Opel Corsa! Definitely not clear coated, solid red. Thanks for your advice, I'll get some extra gloss protection also.

It would have a clear coat on it. That is what gives the paint a shine

Curran

Nope. Its a single stage paint and thats why its fading. Clear coat doesnt fade in the way older single stage paints did...if with clear coat, your colour faded, it would be impossible to correct as it would be under the clear coat.

smiffy2ky8

as i was reading your first post i knew it was a corsa before you even told us. i had them same problem with a 01 corsa, i would t-cut and polish it montly and the dreded pink would come back.

I was told the fade is due to opel experimenting with the new water based paint instead of cellulose and they didnt get it quite right the first time around.

Ded_Zebra

Curran wrote: »

Nope. Its a single stage paint and thats why its fading. Clear coat doesnt fade in the way older single stage paints did...if with clear coat, your colour faded, it would be impossible to correct as it would be under the clear coat.

Hmmm. A friend of mine has a red Alfa 145 which is clear coated but has faded pink. It has never been painted and is bright red inside the doors and redder the further down the sides you look. No matter how much you polish it, it stays pink. Clearly faded under the clear coat.:(

Curran

Yeah; Shane was onto me about that previously, and I cant explain it - I actually wouldnt mind seeing it!!

jack of all

No clear coat on this car, just badly faded from red to pink! Anyway, couldn't wait to give it a go, so as soon as things cooled down this evening I decided to try out a few panels (I thoroughly washed the car earlier this week). Rinsed down to remove any dirt then went to work with the clay bar and my "home made" detailing spray! Dried it off then worked with the SRP. Happy enough with the result- smooth glossy finish, with few surface imperfections (bar some stone chips), but colour is badly faded and I would probably need to remove a lot of oxidised paintto get close to the original finish. I think I'll settle for a "medium" red. I'll hopefully get the whole lot done between now and the weekend (as time and weather allows) Thanks for the help guys!

Ded_Zebra

Curran wrote: »

Yeah; Shane was onto me about that previously, and I cant explain it - I actually wouldnt mind seeing it!!

Wasn't Shane I was thinking of but that's another example!!