What Polisher?

Galway_guy_33

Hi all,

So im new to the detailing world.... just done the basic t-cutting and waxing with the horrid halford buffer... which i ditched and do by hand.

So heres my story I have a 2005 red toyota avensis with the lacqure peeling on every panel except the colour coded wing mirrors, front & rear bumpers.

So toyota are due to a complete respray next month for me except the bumpers & mirrors as they arent peeling.... they quoted me 450 per bumper and 50 per mirror which seems like a nice even number to me. Anyways its a second car so its not even worth 1000 euros to me so im planning on compounding the bumpers and mirrors before it goes in next month.

I'd like to kill two birds with the one stone here.... i also have a power boat which id like to compound, i've done some by hand and its painful... the compound i'm using on the boat recommends a rotary buffer 1750 - 2500 rpms... so im thinking about getting the Dodo Juice Lightweight Spin Doctor Rotary Polisher (v2) with some polishing/finishing pads.


I've looked on cleancar.ie but all their rotary polishers are out of stock.

I'm hoping some of you guys with more experience could help me out here:

1) Would this rotary polisher be suitable on my car i know its ok for the boat?

2) what type of compound/polisher/wax should i used on the car?

3) Can i use this polisher to apply wax afterwards? if so what would be a good wax to use with it?


I know i have to be careful with it so ill be trying it out on an old car i have lying around here first.

JohnBoy26

Regarding the lacquer peel, it can't be polished out or improved by polishing. You'd be better off getting the bumpers and mirrors repainted if they are in a state tbh.

Galway_guy_33

JohnBoy26 wrote: »

Regarding the lacquer peel, it can't be polished out or improved by polishing. You'd be better off getting the bumpers and mirrors repainted if they are in a state tbh.

Please read my post again.. lacquer has peeled on every panel except the wing mirrors and bumpers hence the reason im looking to compound them

JohnBoy26

Galway_guy_33 wrote: »

Please read my post again.. lacquer has peeled on every panel except the wing mirrors and bumpers hence the reason im looking to compound them

I seen that when I read the post, polishing will only provide a temperary solution though, they will be faded again in a short space of time. Id have them painted because you will more than likely have mismatched bodywork otherwise after a few weeks again.

If you must get a polisher though a DA dual action polisher would be the way to go. I'd imagine that the bodyshop will polish the bumpers after the respray though to match the them to the new paint.

Galway_guy_33

Cheers for that I appreciate ur advice.

So better going for the respray would 450 a bumper be the normal cost seems a bit high to me or maube its more the case the car isnt that precious to me. I have a newer car this is second car that doesnt get used much.

Might try and bargain the body shop down to 300 a bumper

JohnBoy26

Galway_guy_33 wrote: »

Cheers for that I appreciate ur advice.

So better going for the respray would 450 a bumper be the normal cost seems a bit high to me or maube its more the case the car isnt that precious to me. I have a newer car this is second car that doesnt get used much.

Might try and bargain the body shop down to 300 a bumper

450 for a bumper seems very high tbh

These do it much cheaper than that.

http://www.carcraft.ie/price-list.html

colm_mcm

I'd get the bumpers done elsewhere tbh, that's expensive.
That said it'd be good if it was all the exact same shade.

Galway_guy_33

colm_mcm wrote: »

I'd get the bumpers done elsewhere tbh, that's expensive.
That said it'd be good if it was all the exact same shade.

Was thinking it was high alright thats why i was thinking about compounding them myself.... but on the advice here ill be looking to get them sprayed.

You should see the state of the car wife wont drive it as its a disgrace.... its peeling in sheets off every panel. It started peeling about 3yrs ago , i contacted toyota customer care back then and they were not at all helpful.

So earlier this year i saw an article in a daily paper saying that toyota finally had to do something about it as there were so many red toyotas with the same fault.

Even though i reported it to them 3 yrs ago i had to go on the waiting list... they didnt even contact me knowing i had reported it 3yrs before i had to call them and when they looked it up on the computer they had all the details from 3yrs ago.

intially i was told it would be done in April 2014 but this got pushed out to September 14.

The main toyota dealer i bought it from is even taking cars in from other main dealers before looking after people who bought from them... then on top of that they want to rob me blind on the respray cost of the bumpers as they say its not covered.

Have a good mind to tell them to respray the bumpers and when the job is done offer half the cost or maybe even none of it.

Sorry rant over here ... just would hate to spend 1000 euro on a car i hate.... no more toyotas for me.

Curran

Galway_guy_33 wrote: »

1) Would this rotary polisher be suitable on my car i know its ok for the boat?

Yes it will be suitable for your paintwork. Toyota paintwork is quite soft, so be careful using the rotary on this type of paintwork as its quite easy to do damage that will require more spraying to fix.


2) what type of compound/polisher/wax should i used on the car?
As I mentioned, the paintwork is soft, so on the rotary, you will get good results on a medium pad, with medium cutting polish. There are so many options out there, and everyone has their favourite. Chemical Guys, Menzerna, Wolf's Chemicals, Scholl Concepts, Meguiar's, 3M etc all do good polishes.


3) Can i use this polisher to apply wax afterwards? if so what would be a good wax to use with it?

You can but there's no advantage to using the polisher to apply it....its just as easy by hand.
Choosing a wax will depend on numerous factors; cost of the product, appearance vs durability, ease of application, ease of removal, etc