I'm going to be detailing a classic car for the first time soon, an 80's Benz. I have never detailed anything older than an '01. Does anyone have some advice or stuff to watch out for? I have a Makita and Menz polishes. For wax I plan on using Swissvax Concorso. Are there any chemicals that are unsafe for classic cars, interior or exterior? I want to be really careful. Thanks.
Just a few pics of a 72 Merc I did. I was able to use all of my normal products ( Powermax3, Menz etc ) without any issues. The only problem I encountered was the interior. As the car had come from Hawaii and had spent the majority of its time with the top down, it was quite dirty (not soiled ) and dry. It took 5 hours with a toothbrush and AG Interior Shampoo to gently scrub the grainy leather / leatherette interior so I didn't remove any of the dye from the surfaces. And no, I didn't touch the motor.
Wow that looks perfect. Yeah I would be way too nervous to spray one of those engines. Would I be safe with a steam cleaner in the interior?
Here's a couple I did and posted from last year..my process for each is explained: '42 Caddy '53 Chrysler
Thanks for posting your details everyone, I hope mine comes out that great. The car has an oxidized single-stage paint job (I am not sure how old it is). Will I need to polish out the oxidation before I clay the car? BTW, does anyone know how soft the paint is on these? I don't think I'll need to do a three-step correction...
I would really just proceed as normal with your detail. Staying clear of the engine for sure...not worth it.
Can't comment on the polish before clay scenario as the old cars I've worked on have been in excellent shape but I would think you could clay first as normal. As always, start with the least aggressive combo.
