This may seem an odd question, but everyone is always so helpful I am hoping there is someone who can advise what to do. What is the best way to bring back the shine to the faded paintwork of a 15 year old car? Its basically in good condition, no bubbles, chips or rust patches, but the paint on the bonnet has almost completely lost its shine and is looking very faded. The rest of the car isn't too bad, however, but the bonnet really sticks out like a sore thumb and spoils the appearance. If its any help, the colour is very similar to British racing green, and its a "normal" paint, not a metallic finish!
Many thanks
KK
Why not try a tin of T Cut......
if its an older car, it is most likely a solid colour paint, ie no clearcoat like modern cars, so all you wil need to do is remove the oxidised layer of paint.
T-cut will do the job, but is an abrasive so will remove some paint (not much, but moe than a chemical based cleaner)
You could try something like Autoglym Super Resin Polish, available from Halfords. If you are happy to shop on the web, then there are loads of alternatives to do a similar job.
If you are anywhere near Manchester I would be happy to help out, got a garage full of the stuff as car paint restoration has gone from hobby to obsession and I should do it as a job :)
When I had a red car, this was fantastic for bringing back the colour....I JUST CAN'T REMEMBER IT'S NAME :-[
It's in a blue container with gold lettering and basically says it can be used for anything - cars, boats, caravans etc.
You can now buy it in Halfords - anyone else help out with the name???
What ever you decide to use, just do a little corner first and be gentle.
Thank you all very much for your help. I mentioned the blue container with gold lettering to a friend and he thinks it might be called "mer". I will take a trip to Halfords in the next few days and have a good read of the various containers!
KK
That's it..........MER. Brilliant stuff and less work than T-Cut
Mer is pretty good.
But there is one thing you need to know for all products....
Use a tiny amount! Otherwise you end up spending ages getting the stuff off! :)
Help on hand to anyone in the Manchester area, and virtual help for those further afield ;D
Thank you, Ant. I live miles away in the deep southwest, other wise I would be very tempted! I will definitely remember about using just a tiny amount, and start in an unobtrusive corner! Just waiting now for some free time to coincide with some dry settled weather.
KK
I do lots of work for friends and neighbours, Sparkly says I should set up as a business but i still have my doubts about the amount of work I would get.
Notables include:
Mates dads MX5 inside and out as a 60th birthday present.
Neighbours dads Vectra that had spent half its life under trees... that looked so good when done he promptly sold it :D
Neighbours 4x4 when she spilt a tub of cabbage soup on the back seat (okay that was a bit minging on a hot day)
If I had a £1 for everytime someone said "you can do mine when your finished" I'd have, ooh... about £60 :)
(http://farm1.static.flickr.com/140/370661759_a494060bae.jpg)
Shiny ;D
I just thought I would post an update. The car is looking very much better now after several applications and lots of elbow grease! There's still a bit more to do before it reaches perfection, but I am very grateful to all the help and advice from everyone here.
KK