How many annual (spring) polishing applications can be done on Acura TL(soft paint?) before the clearcoat gets too thin ? Local detailer does not use a paint depth guage.
I pretty much disagree with the person above me, respectfully of course. My advice to you would be to go to a local detailer who has a paint meter and tell them to test each panel. Then after your next maintenance detail in the spring go back and see what your cars readings are then. Check the differences and then figure out on your own how long it will/should last. There are too many factors to make an educated guess in my opinion.
I agree with both above - just to be difficult. Jon has a very good suggestion in only having a shop with a PTG do polishing for you. Unless the paint is really hammered, a single stage polish with a medium polish and pad should be enough to correct it. On most paints, this combo will only remove a micron or so of paint. Even a two or three stage polish will only remove 4-5 microns at most. Polishing your car with a medium polish/pad once or even twice a year will takes years of polishing to burn through the clear assuming the clearcoat readings fall within regular parameters ( 100 - 130 microns).
That is maybe because I speak from experience and you may not detail for a living. 205 you can use annually longer than the OP will own that car. And longer than the next 5 owners. Respectfully
man is it hot in here. i would guess it depends on the polish and pad combo being used. Tdekany has a point and so does JonM
If your car is soft paint, then 205 on finish pad may even take out marring. 205 on finish pad is very mild even for soft paint so if did go to detailer with PTG and then he tell you your car is thin on 1 panel for w/e reason then what? You would polish anyway until you had to get repaint anyway right? Or would you repaint right there? Point I get at is if your car is healthy paint reading, you can definitely polish each spring lightly for the life of the car with you with 205 on a DA. Question is how are going to know what "local detailer" is doing each time? Are you watching him? Plus if you are getting enough marring that it NEED polishing(I know it happen but is it bad is what im saying), washing/ drying method should be looked at too btw
Oh, I'm definitely not doubting that, but considering we have no info whether the car is new/used and not knowing where the current read outs are would just have me worried. If the car has a healthy clear coat then there would be no reason to worry with an annual polish job with 205 alone. :thumb:
Many thanks for the replies ! I am fighting a constant battle with having my car outside 24/7 in the streets of New York City. At best, I am able to hand wash the car once every week or two. I can only wash the car during certain hours of the late afternoon when there is shade. The local detailer (Megs 105/205 user) does not own a paint depth meter (too expensive ?) and a couple other ones I called in the past also do not have one. At this time, I have no clue about how thick my paint is. How much of the reading would be the clear coat layer ? As for washing, I use the 2 bucket method and “blot dry” using 2 high quality towels (from my Zaino days). I switched over to Four Star UPP last year and haven’t used it since as I switched over to Optimum Spray Wax. The Zaino and 4* UPP took too long for it to haze over. The Optimum Spray wax is so easy to use and I use it around once a month. I am thinking about trying Lusso Oro or Collinite next….any comments/suggestions ?
I agree with tdekany on the polishing bit. It certainly does not hurt to be safe though. Accurate paint depth gauges are quite expensive, so I'm expecting the detailers you've contacted to be on the hobbyist side like many of us. As 911fanatic mentioned before, a reading between 100-300 (probably closer to the 120 side) would easily suffice. I'm sure there's someone on this forum in or near New York City that would be able to help you. As for your maintenance, it sounds like you are doing a good job keeping the car clean. I for one like LSPs with longevity. The wax is completely up to you. I know collinite waxes last a while, look great and are inexpensive. Also take a look at the Duragloss sealants (#105 and #111). It's hard to beat those two brands when it comes to money efficiency.
My advice to you would be try to find a detailer that DOES have a paint gauge... I know paint gauges are not cheap, and therefore a detailer that has all professional tools might not be the cheapest in the area either...
Does anyone know of any detailer(s) with a paint meter in the NYC area (Manhattan,Queens and Brooklyn) ?
Try asking in this section Purchasing and Selling - Detailers/Acclaimed Association at DetailingBliss.com/forum/ I'm almost positive someone is bound to show up in a big city like that.
Unfortunately, big city does not mean there are many detailers. Too expensive to rent a space. I know a couple detailers in my local area, but they do not have paint meters...most are 20-25 dollar hand wash places that also do 149 dollar details.
Unless Im missing something, youre making factual statements without knowing the history of the car. Is it a 96 or a 2011 Acura TL? How many times has it been 'polished' by a hack or a dealer? If the clear is allready thin in places, you most certainly can polish through it with 205 and a white pad. Im surprised that someone with your experience would suggest that an owner take a less safe approach.
