mirror of this link . I am reproducing here because -as we all know- links and sites can sometimes be unreliable.

                                            by David W. Bynon
                                            Copyright (c), 2000, Autopia Car Care -- All Rights Reserved

                          People often ask me how I make and keep my cars looking so
                          picture-perfect.  “What wax do you use?” is the question that comes up
                          most often.  Unfortunately, it’s not quite that easy.  If you want the perfect
                          shine, you have to do a little work, and you have to work to keep it
                          maintained.  If your car’s paint is relatively new and in excellent condition,
                          getting the perfect shine is actually pretty easy.

                          What is the perfect shine, anyway?  The perfect shine comes when the
                          paint surface is in good condition, free of all contaminants, polished,
                          protected, glazed and waxed.  Let’s look at each of these requirements
                          individually.

                          Good Paint Condition – For the first 12 to 18 months of a new car’s life,
                          the paint is relatively oxidation free and in good condition.  If you maintain
                          your new car’s paint with regular washing and protection, oxidation will
                          remain minimal and cleaning the paint will be a minor task.  Plan to wash
                          or Quick Detail your car weekly.

                          Free of Contaminates – As you drive your car, debris from the road
                          (i.e., tar, oil, bugs, etc.) will lodge itself on your car’s paint.  The longer
                          this debris is allowed to remain, the more difficult it is to remove.  This is
                          just one reason that regular washing is so important.  Your car also will
                          attract other contaminates as it sits outside.  Birds, bugs and
                          neighborhood kids seem to have a natural attraction to beautiful cars.
                          These contaminates must be removed.  You can’t wax over them and
                          expect to get a show car finish.

                          Polished – Polishing is necessary to remove minor blemishes, including
                          surface scratches, swirl marks, pitted areas (minor road stone nicks),
                          and scuffs.  When polished, the paint finish will feel perfectly smooth.
                          Your hand and polishing towel will literally glide over the surface.  Feeling
                          a perfectly polished car is a stimulating experience for most car nuts.
                          There’s nothing quite like the polished fenders of a Porsche, Ferrari,
                          Corvette or my neighbor’s Woody (woof!).

                          Protected – Paint is protected when it’s sealed from the elements and
                          contaminants.  It used to be that paste waxes, both natural and synthetic,
                          were the best sealants.  Not any more.  The king of sealants today is the
                          acrylic polymer.  These micro-thin coatings are 5 to 10 times more
                          durable than the best waxes.  They offer extended protection from the
                          elements and provide a super slick surface that reflects more light than
                          all but the best waxes.

                          Glazed – Here’s a term that’s grossly misused in detailing products.
                          Glazes are paint treatments used to fill small surface scratches and swirl
                          marks.  Most glazes are made from a blend of carnauba waxes and
                          silicones.  Polymer glazes are also available.   If using a wax-based
                          glaze, the glaze's filling ability generally only lasts a matter of days before
                          swirl marks and light scratches reappear.  If you’ve ever had your baby
                          professionally detailed only to have swirl marks reappear a week later,
                          now you know why.

                          Waxed – Waxing is the final step of the perfect shine.  We’re not talking
                          just any wax, here; we’re talking about a pure, natural carnauba wax.
                          Pure carnauba waxes don’t have cleaning properties or synthetic
                          compounds.  They are made from a blend of carnauba waxes, bees wax
                          and natural oils.  It’s this quality show car wax that gives the paint depth
                          and warmth.  I know, I know, it kind of sound like we’re talking about a fine
                          wine or something.  Just don’t underestimate the value of a great wax to
                          final results of the finished product.

                          Now that you know the six requirements for the perfect shine, I’ll share
                          with you my personal tips that keep my cars turning heads.  The first
                          thing to know is that I treat my toys differently than my daily driver.  It’s
                          very difficult to maintain a perfect shine on a daily driver, unless you only
                          drive it a mile or two a day.  Show cars (toys) are easier, because their
                          job is to stay beautiful.

                          The Show Car Finish
                          My toys get the show car treatment 2-3 times a year.  In between these
                          weekend long events, they get a simple weekly maintenance that I will
                          explain later.  Here’s the basic weekend tasks (paintwork only):

                             1.I wash the car twice with a high concentration car wash from
                               Eimann Fabrik, called Powerwash+.   It’s a professional strength
                               product that removes even the most stubborn dirt and grime.
                             2.After the wash and dry, I examine the paint with my hand.  If I find
                               rough areas, I use a synthetic clay bar and lubricant to remove the
                               contaminates.  I finish the cleaning process by going over all of the
                               painted surfaces with Pinnacle Paintwork Cleansing Lotion.  It’s the
                               best pre-wax cleaner I have found, and it acts as a mild polish to
                               remove oxidation.  To get the best cleaning action, I use quality
                               cotton terrycloth over foam applicators to apply Pinnacle Paintwork
                               Cleansing Lotion, and a 100% cotton terrycloth towel to remove
                               and buff.
                             3.After using the clay bar and the Paintwork Cleansing Lotion, the
                               paint will literally squeak.  You will also be able to see all of the paint
                               defects.  It’s time to get out the polish and treat each area of
                               damaged paint.  If I find heavy scuffs or surface scratches that I
                               can feel with my fingernail, I repair these areas with Eagle One
                               Scratch Remover.  Swirl marks and other minor blemishes I polish
                               out using 3M Imperial Hand Glaze (it’s a polish, not a glaze) or
                               Meguiar’s Professional Hand Polish.  I also use one of these
                               polishes to go over any area where I used Eagle One Scratch
                               Remover to restore the full luster of the paint.
                             4.Once perfectly polished, it’s time to seal the paint and lock in the
                               beauty.  For this I use a product that has been on the market for
                               nearly 14 years, and has proven its quality to me again and again.
                               Klasse All-In-One is a cleaner and polymer that immediately seals
                               and protects paint with an elastic non-chip, shrink-proof, heat and
                               scratch resistant, long lasting acrylic finish.  Did he say “cleaner”?
                               I sure did.  Klasse All-In-One will remove the oils left behind by the
                               polish and your hands, to produce a very brilliant finish.
                             5.When you’re finished sealing, you’ll be looking at a beautiful finish.
                               Your first thought will be “hey, the car looks awesome… I must be
                               done”.  Not so fast, bucko!  In about two hours, after the Klasse
                               All-In-One has had a chance to cure, you’ll begin seeing swirls and
                               other imperfections come to the surface.  Klasse All-In-One is so
                               thin it can’t fill the micro, hair-line surface scratches.  To hide these
                               imperfections, you must use a glaze.  I like the companion to
                               Klasse All-In-One, called Klasse Sealant Glaze.  You can apply 2-3
                               layers of Klasse Sealant Glaze as necessary to hide the swirls in
                               your paint.  This is the most effective product I’ve found for troubled
                               black and dark blue cars.
                             6.You’re almost there.  The final step.  The literal icing on the cake is
                               the waxing.  Many will ask “after sealing and glazing, why wax?”
                               The answer lies in the richness of color, depth and clarity that only
                               a high quality carnauba wax can bring out on a polished surface.
                               For this job I reach for only two products: Blitz Wax or Pinnacle
                               Souveran.  Blitz Wax is a hard wax.  It dries hard and provides a lot
                               of depth and warmth.  Depending on weather conditions, it is
                               cursed with static buildup, which makes it attract dust.  Pinnacle
                               Souveran is a true show car wax.  It’s very pricey ($8.75 per ounce
                               compared to Blitz Wax at $1.40 per ounce), but the results are no
                               less than stunning.   Pinnacle Souveran wax brings out a warmth
                               and depth on my Speed Yellow Porsche 996 that I have not been
                               able to duplicate with any other wax.

                          On steps 4 through 6 I use a quality foam applicator to apply and a
                          Miracle Towel to remove and buff.  Nothing else works quite like the
                          Miracle Towel.  It’s lint free (really!) and it’s tiny micro hooks pull the
                          excess sealant or wax away from the paint for faster buffing.

                          Perfect Shine Maintenance
                          If you’ve finished the six steps to a show car, “perfect shine”, finish, you’ll
                          need to do some light maintenance to keep it looking great.  If it’s a true
                          show car (toy), keep it covered.  Even while neatly tucked away in the
                          garage you should keep your car covered.  This keeps dust and
                          pollutants off of the beautiful finish, and the wax won’t evaporate as
                          quickly (yes, wax evaporates).  Next, plan to do a Quick Detailing
                          (http://www.autopia-carcare.com/quickdetailing.html) on your car after
                          each outing.  Choose a detailing spray containing a quality carnauba
                          wax.  This will replenish the wax lost through evaporation.  The Quick
                          Detailing will normally take no more than 5 to 10 minutes.  With a good
                          Quick Detailing program, you’ll find that you can cut washing back to one
                          every couple of weeks.  So, in the long run, Quick Detailing will save you
                          time and keep your car beautiful.

                          Buffing Up the Daily Driver
                          While all of the steps above will work wonders on the daily driver, the
                          reality is that the hard work will only last a few weeks before you need to
                          do it all over again.  To keep your daily driver looking its best, perform
                          steps 1 through 4 every four to six months, and wash your car weekly
                          with a mild car shampoo like P21S Bodywork Shampoo or Pinnacle
                          Bodywork Shampoo.  Use a good Quick Detailing spray after each
                          washing to restore the shine.