[murphius1118]

I have a black car and was told by a detailer I know that black tinted polish is the best for black cars. I wanted to know if anyone had experience with this tinted polish and has a product recommendation? I was looking into purchasing the 3M Perfect It kit but will consider the tinted polish, if effective.

[BlueCrabMafia]

The "color fill" waxes are just a gimmick. Basically the residue that gets left behind in the scratches is supposed to fill them in so you don't see them. It doesn't work.

You are better served by having a professional detailer machine polishing/paint correct your car to remove imperfections. Then have them ceramic coat your car to protect it from further scratches.

[madmonkey]

As BlueCrabMafia said, it's just a gimmick...up until now we've been doing just fine getting really nice show finishes with normal wax.

If you are looking to fill in the minor scatches without resorting to a paint correction, you should look at glazes. They are meant as an intermediate layer to be applied after polishing, but before waxing. The glaze fills in the small imperfections and gives you a deeper gloss when the wax is applied.

[murphius1118]

Originally Posted by madmonkey

As BlueCrabMafia said, it's just a gimmick...up until now we've been doing just fine getting really nice show finishes with normal wax.

If you are looking to fill in the minor scatches without resorting to a paint correction, you should look at glazes. They are meant as an intermediate layer to be applied after polishing, but before waxing. The glaze fills in the small imperfections and gives you a deeper gloss when the wax is applied.

My car has light scratches and swirls all over the car and some very small chips on the hood and front bumper due to highway driving. I would like to avoid any paint correction, if feasible. I'm not going for a showroom finish but would like to improve the overall appearance of the paint.

Any thoughts on the 3M Perfect It kit? Includes three progressive polishes and pads.

[madmonkey]

Originally Posted by murphius1118

My car has light scratches and swirls all over the car and some very small chips on the hood and front bumper due to highway driving. I would like to avoid any paint correction, if feasible. I'm not going for a showroom finish but would like to improve the overall appearance of the paint.

Any thoughts on the 3M Perfect It kit? Includes three progressive polishes and pads.

So I don't have any experience with the 3M kit, but having looked at it briefly, this is a paint correction product. It is expensive though, at least on Amazon.

This kit will do nothing for the small chips - for that you need to fill with a paint pen or some other product (Dr. colorchip comes to mind).

Don't be put off by the thought of paint correction. If you do it with a random orbital, there's very little chance that you can mess things up. I've done this and I was a complete detailing noob at the time and I got great results.

[murphius1118]

Originally Posted by madmonkey

So I don't have any experience with the 3M kit, but having looked at it briefly, this is a paint correction product. It is expensive though, at least on Amazon.

This kit will do nothing for the small chips - for that you need to fill with a paint pen or some other product (Dr. colorchip comes to mind).

Don't be put off by the thought of paint correction. If you do it with a random orbital, there's very little chance that you can mess things up. I've done this and I was a complete detailing noob at the time and I got great results.

I would definitely consider myself a detailing noob. Never done anything beyond a hand wax. Recently purchased an orbital polisher and an OEM BMW touch up kit that includes the clear coat. I just need to find the right polish for my needs...and yes, that kit is expensive.

[madmonkey]

Originally Posted by murphius1118

I would definitely consider myself a detailing noob. Never done anything beyond a hand wax. Recently purchased an orbital polisher and an OEM BMW touch up kit that includes the clear coat. I just need to find the right polish for my needs...and yes, that kit is expensive.

The key is to take your time and make sure that you work the polishing steps enough. I think too often people get impatient and don't work the polishes until the abrasives break down.

I personally use Menzerna polishes and Wolfgang paint sealant on a Monaco Blue 330i using a Porter Cable and Lake Country pads and the finish came out amazing. But there are other products out there that are comparable. Check out this forum for what products others recommend. There's literally something for every level of desired result and price range. Can be a little overwhelming, but worth the effort in the end.

[Billfitz]

Originally Posted by murphius1118

I have a black car and was told by a detailer I know that black tinted polish is the best for black cars.

You have a black car, but those tiny scratches you see are in the clear coat. You see them as white scratches because of the fracturing of the clear coat by the scratch. When you polish correctly the fractured part of the clear coat is removed, so there's nothing there for a tinted polish to tint.

[vanbmw]

My advise is to contact either detailedimage.com or detailersdomain.com directly. Both are active on this site. Years ago I contacted them about taking eh big step into detailing...orbital polisher, pads and all the extra stuff. They wanted to know the paint on my car (some colours are harder...metallic vs jet). They both came back with a great package for me.
They will set you up with a good recommendation of pads, polish and sealant that they recommend for your paint.

[ooshnoo]

FWIW, my wife recently gotta used black GMC Acadia, and I haven't had the time to do any paint correction on it yet, In the mean time I did get some black wax from Meguiars to "tide me over," and I have to say the difference was night and day. Of course I have no real basis for comparison as of yet, but for now, the black wax did wonders. As always, your mileage may vary.

[BMW11]

I think the black tinted wax is more like a 'filling' to hide the scratches and the wax wears off and the scratches come back; it does not magically correct or repair them, it just hides them. It is really a waste of money and time to keep covering up scratches with tinted wax. The real fix is to have paint correction either buying the machine and materials and do it yourself or take it to a professional to fix it the proper way.

[Soul_Glo]

Originally Posted by BMW11

I think the black tinted wax is more like a 'filling' to hide the scratches and the wax wears off and the scratches come back; it does not magically correct or repair them, it just hides them. It is really a waste of money and time to keep covering up scratches with tinted wax. The real fix is to have paint correction either buying the machine and materials and do it yourself or take it to a professional to fix it the proper way.

+1

[Soul_Glo]

OP you could try it and let us know.

Poor boys black hole show glaze is a good shout and lasts a few weeks - but comes off after a heavy downpour.