So after spending a day a few weeks ago (before MOT) claying and polishing my Octy (first time in 8 years) to give it a spruce up, I have now decided to trade it in Doh!. Anyway, I am looking some advice on the replacement.

 

I have a deposit on a 3 year old Black Magic Octy Estate, which looks great when it's overcast, but is covered in swirl marks which are very visible in sun light. I recon it has been through the machine wash regularly during it life so far. When I was young and had time on my hands I used to polish my cars (by hand) regularly. now with a family my time is more precious. I would like to get rid of these swirl marks so that I can then start a regime of washing the car more carefully. I am considering getting it done professionally and would be greatful for any comments or advice.

 

I have found a detailer very close with a proper yard/ garage who seems to carry out work on numerous high end cars (Ferrari, Porsche, lambos etc) with good feedback (facebook). I haven't phoned yet, but they quote prices from £125 for Removing light swirl marks: *Safe wash and decon process. *Single stage machine polish *Application of a glaze, sealant or wax. *Tyres and arches dressed, and they say it will take approx. 10 hours. Does this sound reasonable?

 

Thanks

Black Magic is a nightmare to keep properly clean for most normal owners - so it can be a leap of faith for a 2nd hand purchase! Ordinarily I'd advise on looking at other colours, but if the deal looks right and the rest of the car comes upto standard, then it can be tempting...

 

Detailing service and price wise, that sounds very competitive. Are hourly rates in N.Ireland lower usually? As I'd always look at the cost against time spent. If it is 10hrs, then £12.50 an hour is a steal! If they deal with higher end/prestige vehicles, I'd have expected that to be a LOT higher. Normally I'd expect services to start around £300-500 that level of removal/correction. Maybe that's where the 'FROM £125' comes in.....

30 minutes ago, Wardy said:

Black Magic is a nightmare to keep properly clean for most normal owners - so it can be a leap of faith for a 2nd hand purchase! Ordinarily I'd advise on looking at other colours, but if the deal looks right and the rest of the car comes upto standard, then it can be tempting...

 

Detailing service and price wise, that sounds very competitive. Are hourly rates in N.Ireland lower usually? As I'd always look at the cost against time spent. If it is 10hrs, then £12.50 an hour is a steal! If they deal with higher end/prestige vehicles, I'd have expected that to be a LOT higher. Normally I'd expect services to start around £300-500 that level of removal/correction. Maybe that's where the 'FROM £125' comes in.....

I suppose I will only get a proper quote if I get the car and call in with them. I still have some of the Autoglym Super resin Polish and the applicator pads and cloths so I might see how a test panel will come up with a moderate polish. If it does a good enough job (gets rid of 50% of the swirls and restores some gloss to the finish) I would probably be happy enough for now.

 

I've had the "easy to keep clean" cars to date (3 white and 1 silver) and I know how much the black will show up the dirt, but I do like the colour and it has the SE L multi spoke alloys which I like. 

Being a veteran of 4 Black Magic Skodas, I'd say you'll need more than SRP by hand to sort them! 

 

But all depends on what level you want to get the finish upto.

Would you machine polish your car often?

I tend to do it when required; this usually meant an annual machine polish, but to a lesser extent than the initial work to get the paint upto standard. You'll always induce slight scratches during wash and care procedures during the year. So it's about taking the paint back, correcting as necessary then re-applying protection again. 

 

So that would normally mean a one-stage polish with a final finishing level polish, rather than intensive polish.

Would you give you something like this....

 

For context, this was a 6yr old Octy at the time, with about 85k miles. Two previous owners and 'normal' external care - carwashes, bad/careless handwashes etc.

 

 

Buy yourself something like this: 

 

https://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/das-6-pro-dual-action-polisher

 

Watch a few youtube tutorials and have a go yourself.  It will only take 8-10+ hrs once and then if you wash it properly throughout the year (two bucket wash, pat dry, don't rub anything unless theres's some form of lubrication such as a quick detailing spray, etc)  then you'll minimise any surface defects and keep future polishing and defect removal to a minimum. 

 

My approach would be something like this. Not adding loads of detail as it would be a veeeery long post put to give you an idea of the work required. 

 

• Clean wheels 
• This is the point I'd detail the engine bay if required
• Snow foam you can add an all purpose cleaner to the solution to help strip any old layers of wax or sealants
• Wash - Loads of dedicated shampoos on the market.  Use two bucket's, one for shampoo and one to rinse mitt.  I prefer sheepskin mitts.  Those neon colour noodle mitts and sponges are the devils work.
• Rinse
• Spray on all purpose cleaner, leave to dwell
• Rinse
• Spray on iron fallout remover, leave to dwell.  
• Rinse
• Clay car. Plenty of lube and a nice soft microfibre to wipe as you go.  Bilt Hamber clays only need water and they work well. 
• Clean/dry door shuts and boot
• Wipe wheels over with soft cloth and a detailing spray.  You can use a dedicated wheel seal if you want.
• Inspect paint.  Minor swirls and holograms will likely need a light to medium cut compound/pad.  Chemical Guys Hexlogic or Lake County Orange pads are pretty much a safe bet.  You can go harder if you need to but start with the least aggressive and access the paint before switching to a firmer pad.  Most pad manufacturers produce a colour chart and usage for their pads. 
• Polish car - just search youtube.  Chemical Guys have some great video's.  You could polish by hand but it's time consuming and you'll tire after a few hours of working in a compound.  Sonux SFX Pro applicators are a good choice for hand application. 
• Access paint and once you're happy...
• Add a layer of protection.  You can use a softer polishing pad on a low speed to apply a glaze or similar such as Carlack Complete is my current fave
• Add a last stage product such as a wax for extra shine and protection.  Finish Wax 1000P works very well with the Carlack but Carlack also make a sealant which is great over the top of the Complete.  AKA. 'the Carlack twins'
• Clean glass
• Dress tyres
• Roll the car back and forth a few times and work the brakes so your 'glory pics' aren't ruined by rusty disc rotors 

Black Magic is a great colour to work on but a bit of a pig to maintain.  Best to do a full bifta clean and take some pics as 20 mins later it will be dusty again.  . Seriously there's some great products you can use on black pearlescent finishes and you can pretty much use natural products to get a really warm, rich shine or some synthetics to get a clinical sharp shine.  It will come out a treat if you take the time to prep everything.   

Or you can just buy some SRP which has loads of fillers which will work (sort of) until you wash the car again..

 

Take a look on Polished Bliss.  Some great advice and info I often rely on:

http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/car-care-advice.html

Edited 29 August, 20187 yr by penguin17

Do make sure that you have a black magic touch up stick, theres nothing more annoying then having a perfectly detailed bonnet full of chips that have been filled with the polish or wax and have turned white

@penguin17 Cheers for the detailed response. Unfortunately with a young family and the usual day to day chores I don't get the time to spend on the car that I would have 10 or 15 years ago. Also, I have the wife's car to clean and maintain as well. I had thought about buying a DA polisher but the car never sits still long enough when I'm not at work to get it washed, clayed, polished, and waxed. Plus, I to be honest I wouldn't be confident that I wouldn't make a B***s of it. Hence why I was thinking if I got it up to a decent level of cleanliness/ polish then I would be able to spend an hour every so often keeping it that way with a touch of Autoglym SRP and a coat of wax. 

 

If I can get some life back into the paint and get a good finish which will make it easier to clean between polishes I would be more than happy.

 

The Detailers are only a couple of miles from where I work so I thought I could drop it in on the way through and collect on the way home.