Well I got the blues and I think it will take a good exterior detailing to help fix it so here is my questions.

My e150 conversion van sat for about 3 years gubefore I got it and I have had it for about 8 months now.

so basicly we just got it running and on the road after years of sitting so I am guessing this will be the first real detailing it has had in at least 4 years.

Problems.

1 body paint is oxidized bad

2. the fiber glass hightop is super oxidized and nasty (guessing no one bothered with it for a long time since it is hard to reach from the ground).

3 aluminum wheels are in bad shape as far as oxidation and black spots (Not brake dust)

4. headlight lenses are hazing bad

so for 1 and 2 what would be the best cleaner for an initial deep clean, then what rubbing compound seams to work best and last what wax will give me a great shine and lastining protection?

for 3 I have no idea what to do (I have always had steel wheels previously)

and for 4. I have seen several products that claim to make them clear again but don't know if any of them work and if they do what works the best.

thanks for the information....

ps does anyone do windows? LOL J/K

there are pics in my garage if they help to visualize the condition at all

thanks again
Jon

 

Hi JT!

Well, you have a BB/CC paint and one of the most important items to remember is the oem clearcoat is very thin, if it is reduced to less than 3 mil, the shine is basically gone because it is the clear that provides that. With that said and in retention, here is what I would recommend......

1. After washing with hot water & dishsoap (yes, dishsoap) to remove all previous wax/coatings/etc., use a 50/50 mix of denatured alcohol & water (denatured is available at any hardware store & is oil free). It will remove any residual wax/polish and most all environmental contamination & ensure you are starting with a very clean surface. This by itself will likely enhance the shine a bit.

2. Polishing the paint- because you want to minimize removal of the clearcoat, it is really going to be a bit of trial & test to see what level of polish is needed to bring back the shine (if you can). Ideally, there should be a local auto paint supply place in your area and typically, they can eyeball it and tell you right off what polish you will need & even tray a spot to verify, but if that isn't an option, may I recommend BAF/Pro Car Care Beauty Products P21 Swirl Eliminator & Polish- although for 30 years I used 3M products specifically, recently I have not been as pleased with the quality of 3M’s hand glaze. I typically do not like "combination" type products but P21 is very, very impressive & effective from end result, ease of use & overall effectiveness either by hand or with an orbital or buffer. it is mild enough that unless you 'force it" so to speak, it will not damage the clear...on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most course, I would rate this a 6....it is just mild enough to use periodically and yet has just enough polish to take care of an issue in a concentrated area.

For general use after an excellent alternate product is 3M Perfect It Show Car Liquid Wax- a silicone wax/polish but excellent results and very easy to use for general maintenance....available at any auto paint supplier, NAPA auto parts & online (sells for about $11 a bottle). The absolute best ($ for $) IMHO is "Satin Cream" , it is made by BAF & distributed through Pro Car Care products. It is very easy to work with either by hand, orbital or buffer. It has the same acrylic hardener as the high dollar paint sealants but it has 30% German imported carnauba....no, your arm will not fall off putting it on or taking it off & it has a very mild polish in it as well (BAF Industries 800-437-9893)

Use a foam pad for application and good ol fashion cotton felt to remove (about $3 for a yard at any fabric store)

fyi- Clay Bar

Ford/GM/Chrysler/MB/Porsche all have service directives that specifically refer to paint correction/contamination procedures and clay bar is not a referred procedure and specifically identified as a method which only removes the surface level paint contaminants and as such, the "root' of the contaminant remains continues to destroy the paint from underneath the surface layer of the paint.

As an example, Mequire's clay bar is rated at 3500 grit. There are much better clay bar products out there rated at much finer grits- so if you are comfortable and believe your paint needs to be wet-sanded, and that is the only and safest way to correct the flaw/issue, then do so but remember, for 90% for all paint contamination issues there are products designed to relieve/remove/neutralize the contaminants without reducing the mil thickness of the clear coat.

These procedures date back to 1990 and are still published in current oem paint maintenance publications/service manuals.

Aluminum Wheels, get a tub or a couple of plastic bags doubled up, place the wheels inside and submerge is white vinegar (yes, the stuff that is available in bulk st any food/restaurant supply store)...let it soak for a few days, they will be ready for polishing- although kits are available form Eastwood Company, jewlers rouge from any harware store and a high speed buffing pad will work!!!!

Headlight lenses..... there are some really great kits out there.....one that works very good is just a 2 or 3 step chemical kit, can't remember the name of it but it requires no rubbing, buffing, etc. You can also make your own kit, check out any glass shop and they will have "plastic polish" (even toothpaste will work) and you can polish out the lenses by hand or with a buffer. If it seems to be stuborn...then wet sand the lenses with 2000 grit paper (foam sanding unit works great for this), then polish afterwards. The biggist item is that after you finish, apply of coat of urathane- because the protective coating on the lense is gone and it will begin discoloring very quickly (BTW, the kits provide this)

 

Thumbs up for the white vinegar. I work on business jets for a living. One of our large APUs (aux power unit, basilica a small jet engine) calls out for a compressor wash every 1,000 hours. The manufacture calls out a specific acidic acid. The compressor was requires us to use 24 gallons of acid. Ends up the acid they call for costs $50/gallon, and the acid level is identical to white vinegar. When we have a cheap aircraft owner we run down to the grocery store and buy white vinegar.