AIOs, polishing and maintaining the car

N

Nav45

New member
Hello. I've been detailing my car for the past 4 or so months. I've polished it numerous times (maybe too many?) and tried a few different LSPs. I've gone back and clayed it it a few times again because some sections were still rough. So after claying I polished it, once again. So I believe the car is in good condition now and I just want to maintain it without doing mild-heavy polishing for a long time.

In the past 4 or so months I have learned quite a bit, if I must say so myself. When I started I had no idea what a cleaner wax, LSP, AIO, foam pads, MF pads, etc were. :) Now I have a better grasp of these terminologies and how to utilize them (most of them at least).

Now that the car is where I want it to be, I'm wondering how to go from here. I've got some nice LSPs that I'll be using.

I'm still a bit unsure of AIOs. I understand that they chemically clean the paint deeper than a wash or claying can. They also leave protection and one can apply a new LSP on top of them. But I'm wondering how does one choose to use them vs. a mild polish, like HD Polish. Does one really need an AIO if one has a mild polish that can be used every 8 months or so? Will that mild polish (such as HD Polish) clean the paint just as well? Let's say I want to apply a fresh sealant/wax, is using an AIO better or a dedicated polish?

My concern about using the HD Polish, for example, is that it might remove more paint. However, if one uses a finishing pad, then this shouldn't be a concern right? Then again, the cleaning might not be so good. LOL. :wacko:

I'm confused and need a simplified approach. Thank you.
 
You only want to polish your car once, twice a year max.

with proper protection from a sealant and wax combo, you should not need to use a cleaner wax other than with the polishing step.

i know it's fun and you got all this stuff and want to use it... But f you use it too much, you won't have paint left to polish!

For your car, stick to the polish and then top with sealant. Dedicated products are always better, and it's your car so you won't mind the time invested. AIO's like HD speed are great for paid detail jobs since you can save time.

With what you've done, stick to a good sealant. Do a couple coats of that. Then you can top with wax during your washes every week or two. Maybe use a spray wax for ease of application. That'll keep the car looking sharp.
 
A product like pinnacle cleansing lotion is perfect. Twice a year, then put on a sealant or wax. Paint will look better than new without removing paint.
 
jrock645, I intend to polish as least as I can. I am happy with the way it is now so the plan is just maintenance. The reason for an AIO is to perform a deeper cleaning and remove the existing sealants/waxes so I can apply another sealant/wax (or the same one and start fresh). Thanks.

silverfox, that product seems nice. Do you think it has a good enough cleaning ability? Would a hand foam pad be good to apply it with? Such as this? White Polishing CCS Euro Foam Hand Polish Applicator

I'm liking the idea of the Pinnacle product because it leaves the surface relatively "bare." I was also thinking of using an AIO with deeper cleaning such as DG 501 but I'm not sure that's necessary really. Thanks.
 
One consideration for an AIO is what you plan to top with it. Most AIO are polish with a carnuaba base so convention is that you would not top it with a sealant for durability (sealant goes first). Blackfire Total Polish and Seal, Poorboys Polish with Sealant, and Mothers Synthetic Wax have sealants. You can adjust the cut somewhat with the choice of pad such as the Crimson red HT pad as an example. HD speed and the Meg's have carnuaba.

If you are going to top it, I would just go with a good paint cleaner and then choose your wax/sealant. A dedicated paint cleaner works better but of you are doing it every 6 months it is not as important.
 
IMO the lines between Finishing Polish, All-In-One, Paint Cleaner, and Cleaner-Wax are awfully blurry. Well...OK, a Finishing Polish *usually* doesn't leave anything behind (there are exceptions). And a Paint Cleaner seldom leaves anything "LSP-like" behind. But still..awfully similar categories IMO with a lot of overlap.

Some Finishing Polishes leave LSP behind and are, for practical purposes, just AIOs or even Cleaner-Waxes.

Some AIOs are abrasive, some aren't, ditto for Paint Cleaners.

Some (?most?...?all?) Cleaner-Waxes are, for practical purposes, AIOs.

FWIW, *my* AIOs all leave snthetic stuff behind and I've never had any issues with anything bonding to them.

Some Paint Cleaners (and some other products too) that leave stuff behind still work perfectly well under some sealants.

(Some "waxes" are really "sealants" IMO and I wouldn't be surprised if the coverse is true in some cases. People just make up their product names and descriptions IMO.)

The whole thing kinda defies a simple explanation/recommendationm but IME the one safe and no-brainer answer is to clean the paint with KAIO. It's functionally nonabrasive on most all paints and everything I've ever tried (conventional LSPs only , not coatings) works fine on top of it.

I don't like Finishing Pads with AIOs or any other of the products under discussion, preferring gentle polishing pads.

AND..[WARNING: Autopian Heresy follows!]..often I just reapply the LSP without doing anything other than a wash. No clay, no Paint Cleaner, no problem. Even sometimes change the LSP that way. The vehicles in question look perfectly OK to me and that's all I care about. And no, skipping those steps does not *ever* affect the durability. Of course, "YMMV!" and all that.
 
Nav45 said:
Hello. I've been detailing my car for the past 4 or so months. I've polished it numerous times (maybe too many?) and tried a few different LSPs. I've gone back and clayed it it a few times again because some sections were still rough. So after claying I polished it, once again. So I believe the car is in good condition now and I just want to maintain it without doing mild-heavy polishing for a long time.

In the past 4 or so months I have learned quite a bit, if I must say so myself. When I started I had no idea what a cleaner wax, LSP, AIO, foam pads, MF pads, etc were. :) Now I have a better grasp of these terminologies and how to utilize them (most of them at least).

Now that the car is where I want it to be, I'm wondering how to go from here. I've got some nice LSPs that I'll be using.

I'm still a bit unsure of AIOs. I understand that they chemically clean the paint deeper than a wash or claying can. They also leave protection and one can apply a new LSP on top of them. But I'm wondering how does one choose to use them vs. a mild polish, like HD Polish. Does one really need an AIO if one has a mild polish that can be used every 8 months or so? Will that mild polish (such as HD Polish) clean the paint just as well? Let's say I want to apply a fresh sealant/wax, is using an AIO better or a dedicated polish?

My concern about using the HD Polish, for example, is that it might remove more paint. However, if one uses a finishing pad, then this shouldn't be a concern right? Then again, the cleaning might not be so good. LOL. :wacko:

I'm confused and need a simplified approach. Thank you.
Click to expand...

I use an AIO when my car still has no swirls or scratches that need correction but I need to strip and old LSP and possibly bring some shine back (every 3 months if you wanna be OCD about it). I only Polish when there's old LSP to remove, when I want to prep the paint for a coating, correct wash induced marring, or correct micro-marring from compounding. I only spot compound scratches as my car is fully corrected (orange peel removed).

Yeah, you could polish you car every 8 months but I think that excessive if you have a good LSP on protecting your correction work and a good wash technique to prevent marring you technically should be good for years without repolishing. A very mild polish could be used in place of an AIO like Menz 4500, and yes it will do more than clean it will remove a microscopic layer of clear coat making the paint look new again kind of like an AIO (depending on what pad you use).

If you wanted to apply a different LSP I would just lightly repolish (Menz 4000 or 4500) unless you're going to use a LSP that's compatible with your AIO (like Klasse AIO is compatible with Klasse SG).
 
Nav45 said:
jrock645, I intend to polish as least as I can. I am happy with the way it is now so the plan is just maintenance. The reason for an AIO is to perform a deeper cleaning and remove the existing sealants/waxes so I can apply another sealant/wax (or the same one and start fresh). Thanks.

silverfox, that product seems nice. Do you think it has a good enough cleaning ability? Would a hand foam pad be good to apply it with? Such as this? White Polishing CCS Euro Foam Hand Polish Applicator

I'm liking the idea of the Pinnacle product because it leaves the surface relatively "bare." I was also thinking of using an AIO with deeper cleaning such as DG 501 but I'm not sure that's necessary really. Thanks.
Click to expand...

If all you really need is a deep cleaning, then the Duragloss 501 is a great choice. It does a really great job of cleaning without using little to no abrasives in the process. You could use this product many times without the fear of it removing too much clear. it can also be topped with another sealant such as Duragloss 105 or even a wax of your choice.
 
Bunky said:
One consideration for an AIO is what you plan to top with it. Most AIO are polish with a carnuaba base so convention is that you would not top it with a sealant for durability (sealant goes first). Blackfire Total Polish and Seal, Poorboys Polish with Sealant, and Mothers Synthetic Wax have sealants. You can adjust the cut somewhat with the choice of pad such as the Crimson red HT pad as an example. HD speed and the Meg's have carnuaba.

If you are going to top it, I would just go with a good paint cleaner and then choose your wax/sealant. A dedicated paint cleaner works better but of you are doing it every 6 months it is not as important.
Click to expand...

I am going to top whatever product I use, such as an AIO. I have KAIO that I have yet to use (except on headlights of my car and a smaller paint section of another car). Would this product qualify as a paint cleaner?

Sorry I missed the last part of your post. Are you saying if I'm polishing every 6 months, a paint cleaner is not necessary? Thanks.

Accumulator said:
IMO the lines between Finishing Polish, All-In-One, Paint Cleaner, and Cleaner-Wax are awfully blurry. Well...OK, a Finishing Polish *usually* doesn't leave anything behind (there are exceptions). And a Paint Cleaner seldom leaves anything "LSP-like" behind. But still..awfully similar categories IMO with a lot of overlap.

Some Finishing Polishes leave LSP behind and are, for practical purposes, just AIOs or even Cleaner-Waxes.

Some AIOs are abrasive, some aren't, ditto for Paint Cleaners.

Some (?most?...?all?) Cleaner-Waxes are, for practical purposes, AIOs.

FWIW, *my* AIOs all leave snthetic stuff behind and I've never had any issues with anything bonding to them.

Some Paint Cleaners (and some other products too) that leave stuff behind still work perfectly well under some sealants.

(Some "waxes" are really "sealants" IMO and I wouldn't be surprised if the coverse is true in some cases. People just make up their product names and descriptions IMO.)

The whole thing kinda defies a simple explanation/recommendationm but IME the one safe and no-brainer answer is to clean the paint with KAIO. It's functionally nonabrasive on most all paints and everything I've ever tried (conventional LSPs only , not coatings) works fine on top of it.

I don't like Finishing Pads with AIOs or any other of the products under discussion, preferring gentle polishing pads.

AND..[WARNING: Autopian Heresy follows!]..often I just reapply the LSP without doing anything other than a wash. No clay, no Paint Cleaner, no problem. Even sometimes change the LSP that way. The vehicles in question look perfectly OK to me and that's all I care about. And no, skipping those steps does not *ever* affect the durability. Of course, "YMMV!" and all that.
Click to expand...

Hey Accum, thanks for your great feedback. My goal is to keep the car as free from contaminants as much as I can. It is driven everyday and is always parked outside. I'm starting to move away from constantly polishing it to something that is less abrasive - such as an "AIO" product. I've got the KAIO so I think that's what I'll be using. Do you think it can remove similar contamination that clay can remove? With clay, I likely will polish afterwards so I'm not looking to clay for a while.

Basically, I'm looking for a system that keeps the car clean, smooth and free from contamination ( as well as that can be).

Here is what I'm looking at:

-Regular washing
-Applying the LSP every couple of month
-Cleaning the paint with an AIO type product every 6 months or so and then applying the LSP on top
 
4u2nvinmtl said:
I use an AIO when my car still has no swirls or scratches that need correction but I need to strip and old LSP and possibly bring some shine back (every 3 months if you wanna be OCD about it). I only Polish when there's old LSP to remove, when I want to prep the paint for a coating, correct wash induced marring, or correct micro-marring from compounding. I only spot compound scratches as my car is fully corrected (orange peel removed).

Yeah, you could polish you car every 8 months but I think that excessive if you have a good LSP on protecting your correction work and a good wash technique to prevent marring you technically should be good for years without repolishing. A very mild polish could be used in place of an AIO like Menz 4500, and yes it will do more than clean it will remove a microscopic layer of clear coat making the paint look new again kind of like an AIO (depending on what pad you use).

If you wanted to apply a different LSP I would just lightly repolish (Menz 4000 or 4500) unless you're going to use a LSP that's compatible with your AIO (like Klasse AIO is compatible with Klasse SG).
Click to expand...

This is what I'm thinking as well. If the paint is relatively in good shape, then there is no need for further polishing. For now, I'm going to leave things be and move on from there. To be honest, I'm getting very OCD about detailing :wacko:. I just applied another layer of my LSP a few days ago and I'm already thinking of next plans ,etc. The ideal thing is to just simply keep washing the car now and see how things go.

I'm also thinking that doing a light polish every 6 months with a finishing pad might also be a good way rather than the AIO. We will see ...

Thank you.

bswombaugh said:
If all you really need is a deep cleaning, then the Duragloss 501 is a great choice. It does a really great job of cleaning without using little to no abrasives in the process. You could use this product many times without the fear of it removing too much clear. it can also be topped with another sealant such as Duragloss 105 or even a wax of your choice.
Click to expand...

I've been wondering about that product after seeing some results people have posted. I don't think I really need a deep cleaner on my car though. Does this product work with will different sealants from other companies? Thanks,
 
[Long post deleted after a bit of reflection...]

IMO it's simply impossible to generalize about what needs done prior to reLSPing. Contaminated or not? If so, is the [stuff] abrasive?

But I myself would not use even most Finishing Polishes on a remotely regular basis, at least not if I planned to keep the vehicle indefinitely. Yeah, I know...lots of folks here think I'm Chicken Little on the subject of thinning clearcoat, but the cost of guessing wrong is basically a ruined vehicle...like my '93 Audi that the original owner's "detailer" kept polishing and polishing and polishing.

But hey, if it's a lease and/or you don't care, go ahead and do what you like :D
 
Accumulator said:
[Long post deleted after a bit of reflection...]

IMO it's simply impossible to generalize about what needs done prior to reLSPing. Contaminated or not? If so, is the [stuff] abrasive?

But I myself would not use even most Finishing Polishes on a remotely regular basis, at least not if I planned to keep the vehicle indefinitely. Yeah, I know...lots of folks here think I'm Chicken Little on the subject of thinning clearcoat, but the cost of guessing wrong is basically a ruined vehicle...like my '93 Audi that the original owner's "detailer" kept polishing and polishing and polishing.

But hey, if it's a lease and/or you don't care, go ahead and do what you like :D
Click to expand...

I'm wondering about that long post ^_^

I plan on keeping this vehicle for a long time so I am very hesitant to using any more abrasive products on the paint. I would prefer to use a product that can bring back some of the shine and get things looking good again after many months of regular washing.

The goal I think is to do proper washing and then use the least aggressive polish/AIO every few months or so. Such as KAIO. Thank you.
 
Nav45- The KAIO will clean, but [repeat caveats about abrasive stuff getting on the AIOing pad]. Issues might arrise if there's something really stuck to the paint- clay might shear it off easily whereas the KAIO would have to "scrub" it off. Eh, just sooo many variables..
 
First off the science behind the different levels of polish are to provide a diminishing effect when correcting paint. when you start with a compound or heavy polish it is not uncommon to see minor marring on the surface from both the abrasives of the product as well as the dense foam pad. This is why the more you move towards a waxing pad the softer the foam. This is why we have things like a finishing polish, after your initial polish with a white or green pad you can still see traces of marring especially with softer clear coats. So you want to step down to a less abrasive product in order to keep removing smaller and smaller defects. This is a lot like the sanding concept of stepping down from a 1500 grit to a 2500 grit to a 3500 grit so that you are diminishing the depth of the scratch each time. The diminishing effect is why detailers use the least aggressive approach to ensure they are using just a strong enough abrasive to remove the defect.
On to the AIO, an all in one or AIO is a combination step that is generally utilized in more of your production detailing to accomplish more depth to the paint and protect the paint in one step saving time and product. Most AIOs can be treated more like a finishing polish because they generally remove light scratches and holograms/marring but they are still removing levels of clear coat so use with caution.
I like to pair my AIO with a light polishing pad to achieve the half step providing a little more cut.
I will have to respectfully disagree with the comment made about applying sealants before and AIO because a sealant is a surface protectant, which we want to remove before doing any level of correction. Though a lot of you AIOs will be blended with carnaubas we are starting to see the switch to the sealant blends now as well as more abrasive AIOs such as the new CG polish and sealant AIO (which i highly recommend for an AIO)
Something i don't think is very well known is that though carnaubas yield the best visual result they will begin to diminish in temps over 100 degrees which is mainly a southern problem lol. They also offer roughly 3-6 months of protection vs sealants can offer up to 12 months.
I recommend keeping an AIO for quick fixes to keep from breaking out the polishes and using just a protectant for your maintenance waxes. But i always stack JetSeal on top of an AIO for my personal vehicle or if no correction is needed i apply 1 coat of carnauba for that wet look then top it with JetSeal to give more strength to the protectant. Hope this helps
 
I don't polish without claying but I do will apply LSP without claying. If a car needs some correction and a AIO is called for then it is usually D151. If it doesn't require correction then it is KAIO. Machine applied you may see some very light swirl removal with KAIO but that is more a function of the pad. Both I usually top for durability. Meg's sealant (23?) on the D151 and 845 on the KAIO.

If my car needed polished to remove defects every six months I would have a hard look at my washing technic.
 
rdorman- Glad to see I'm not the only Autopian Heretic who'll LSP without claying :D

And yeah....correction from KAIO will almost certainly be from the pad and yeah#2 about needing to polish on a regular basis unless there's some wildcard in play.
 
I have been experimenting with different wash approaches and that led me to steam cleaning paint on some occasions. So far it's helped to prevent needing to clay the paint on the vehicles with minor surface contaminants. Steam and AIO are a match made in heaven ��
 
C2MobileDetail said:
I have been experimenting with different wash approaches and that led me to steam cleaning paint on some occasions. So far it's helped to prevent needing to clay the paint on the vehicles with minor surface contaminants. Steam and AIO are a match made in heaven ��
Click to expand...

Can you share with us how you're doing the steam cleaning process on the paint? Sounds interesting.
 
mshu7 said:
Can you share with us how you're doing the steam cleaning process on the paint? Sounds interesting.
Click to expand...
It's actually a pretty simple process, it really is nice in the wintertime. For starters I power was the vehicle thoroughly then I use pretty much the same technique as you would for a waterless wash. I use a medium size microfiber and flip almost every pass. I start steaming at the top moving side to side like you were spraying water. Work in sections no more than a shoulders width apart. I use the jet nozzle attachment so I'm not actually touching the paint at any point during the wash. Also with 55 max psi to work with I have no problem quickly blasting off bugs, bird poop or pollen. For fender liners I spray some CG Grime Reaper (it's strong and it doesn't dry really fast) then work from top center down. If you power washed thoroughly then you shouldn't usually have to wipe it at all. I use a nylon bristled attachment to do all the exterior plastics and moldings. In most applications I can do most of the vehicle with just steam reducing chemical cost. I have the McCulloch 1375 canister steamer
 
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