# how to make a white car look its best



## butchrs500

hi mike im after advice on making my ford cosworth rs500 really sparkle its in diamond white ive compounded the car as a few scratches on panels what in your opinion should i do next for a brilliant finish ive got dodo juice white diamond and supernatural hybid and most of dodo range ive a show in three weeks and need to get its looking its best ever thanks for any info


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## butchrs500

another piccy


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## Mike Phillips

Sorry for the late reply, last week I was on vacation and for the days before vacation I was charged with some hot projects that took top priority for completion and this knocked me off the forums.

When working on white paint the goal is gloss because you can't get the kind of deep, clear mirror reflections like you can get on black and other dark colors.

To get the paint glossy you need to get the paint smooth and this is done by claying followed by compound and polishing or only polishing if the defects are not too deep.

After the above steps then pick a premium quality wax, synthetic paint sealant, hybrid or coating with a stellar reputation.

Your end-results are always determined by your prep work. If you do the best prep work you can then any quality wax, sealant or coating will take your results to a higher level.

Dodo Juice makes very high quality products and I'm sure you can get the results you're looking for using one of their waxes.

I like the dual wings on you car, reminds me of the Merkur XR4Ti

Here's a Merkur XR4Ti that is owned by one of the girls that have attended my detailing classes, before attending the class her car was a swirled out mess. After putting into practice the things she learned she created a flawless finish on black paint...

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...7826-detail-fest-2012-pictures-day-1-a-7.html

This Merkur XR4Ti is belongs to Kristin aka Steedafocusgirl and she attended one of my detailing classes here at autogeek where she learned to machine polish paint to remove swirls and create a true show car shine.

*Pictures & Comments from July 31st Detailing 101 Class*

*Kristin learning to remove swirls by machine at Autogeek's Detailing Classes* 









*After the class I took these photos of her car as it looked in the parking lot in 2010*





































This photo shows just how swirled-out the paint was at that time...










*Swirl Free Show Car Finish*
And here it is now after Kristin took the what she learned at our class and used to create a swirl free finish with a deep, wet shine. 









I inspected her car very closely while it was here for Detail Fest and just want to commend Kristin for doing a great job on her car.


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## butchrs500

Hi mike thanks for the tips i have compounded car took a while used megs ultimate compound im now gonna study paint got some scratches left there quite light so thinking of using dodo juice lime prime on car with a polishing pad to get them out i did find compounding a white car bloody hard work seeing where you had been with the compound want scratches gone before polishing and waxing again thanks for tips i did use the bags over wing mirrors and have had good results when washing car off ,tips like these make all the difference


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## butchrs500

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## Mike Phillips

butchrs500 said:


> i did find compounding a white car bloody hard work seeing where you had been with the compound want scratches gone before polishing and waxing


That is a challenge... I look at the paint at different angles and try to wipe the residue off immediately after buffing a section.

If you're in a garage or shop, you can try turning the lights off and then inspecting using a flashlight or better yet, a Brinkmann Swirl Finder Light like this,




























:thumb:


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## butchrs500

Hi mike this is what i still have left i know my photos are poor will try harder but if you look at bottom of piccy you will see scratches on there a mech at some time carelessly put them on !! now car has bee compounded with megs ultimate and megs 105 compound do you think i need to keep going or will it need wet sanding ??



















Forgot to tell you my car is derived from the Merkur XR4Ti and here is called a sierra cosworth


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## butchrs500

Forgot to tell you this is in my garage at home and wanna get the scratches gone before i go any further like you said it will be only as good if i do the best prep work i can will wait for tomorrow and see if i can take better pics again thanks for any help or tips you can pass on


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## Mike Phillips

butchrs500 said:


> Hi mike this is what i still have left i know my photos are poor will try harder but if you look at bottom of piccy you will see scratches on there a mech at some time carelessly put them on !! now car has bee compounded with megs ultimate and megs 105 compound
> 
> *do you think i need to keep going or will it need wet sanding ??*


If this is factory paint it's THIN so maybe stick to just compounding.

If you feel confident in your skills, you could carefully sand the paint flat using a very fine high quality finishing paper like #2500, #3000 or #5000

and then use the M105 to remove your sanding marks.

Be careful...



butchrs500 said:


> Forgot to tell you my car is derived from the Merkur XR4Ti and here is called a sierra cosworth


Very cool, I thought the two cars looked similar...

:thumb:


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## butchrs500

Hi mike cheers for info i think paint very thin to car is 25 years old so would imagine it is ive never had it painted . Now i look at paint in depth i see tiny scratches in paint what would youy suggest to get scratches out with out going through paint i have used 105 with some success but some scratches still evident . any tips or help would be appreciated


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## Mike Phillips

butchrs500 said:


> Hi mike cheers for info i think paint very thin to car is 25 years old


If you think the paint is thin, go with your instincts and maybe learn to live with the tiny scratches versus rub through the paint.

Is this a single stage paint?


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## butchrs500

Hi mike not sure but think fords here back then was painted in single stage paint car never been painted as far as i can see and never has been in my ownership but times like this i need a paint thickness guage to be sure


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