Just returned from the garage (after 4 hours of slavery) and I must say I am one happy gal!
I rinsed thoroughly with a garden hose (noticed that water was beading on the surface, but not as well as it did a while ago).
Then I shampooed with Turtle Wax Zip Wax Car Wash and rinsied again with the hose.
Dried the car with a real leather chamois and drove it into the garage where no sun could interfere with the rest of the process.
Polished with Autoglym Super Resin Polish (got no dust
) and then followed with a thin coating of Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection. Whilst that set and worked its magic I cleaned the wheels, and applied Autoglym Bumper Care to both bumpers, arches and any other plastic bits.
Buffed off the Extra Gloss Protection with a microfibre cloth and applied a coating of Turtle Wax Metallic Car Wax (the liquid type). Whilst that dried I cleaned the interior and then started to buff off the wax - and boy did that take forever!
stumac1985 you were right ... I could barely feel my arms after all that and will definitely be missing out some of the above steps for a few months to come and just stick to a basic shampoo, drying with a chamois and buffing with a microfibre cloth after.
I'm super happy with the result though, I can really see a difference in the paint. It's much more vibrant and shiny than before and even though it felt smooth before ... it feels ultra silky to the touch now
.
Thanks again for all you help and advice!
Will upload photos later today of the shiniest car in the street