BS20 Posted May 29, 2019 Share Posted May 29, 2019 My 2005 Autocruise Starfire has lost its shine and gone to a matt white colour in places. I was thinking of getting a electric car polisher to try and get the shine back to the body. Has anyone tried or done this with a reasonable result, and what type of polish did you use ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teccer1234 Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 I believe the best and cheapest way to get a fantastic shine and get rid of the dull finish is to use WD40, I've been using it for many years now with no problem with the paintwork, all I do is have 2 soft rags and the WD40 spray can, spray a small area roughtly1mt diameter lightly with the WD40 rub it in for only about 1-2 minutes then use the other soft rag to get rid of any powder, just try a small panel first if you don't believe it works, I,m sure after you see the result you will then carry on and do the whole van. I own an 8mt van and can do the whole van in less than 1 hour. before I started to use this method I bought a polisher and used car polish, it took hours to finish the van and also left polish marks everywhere, haven't used the polisher since Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgnbuk Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 I have done this twice. First time was an 8 year old CI Carioca 22 (painted aluminium sides) that was very dull, almost matt. Using a Lidl mains powered random orbital polisher, I used the foam pad to apply firstly Autoglym Paint Renovator then Autoglym Super Resin Polish. It was hard work, but it transformed the appearance of the van from a dull greyish "white" to a bright shiny white that was much easier to wash. The polisher also worked well with Fenwicks Windowize plastic polish to rejuvinate the badly scratched & dull windows on the CI, finished off with Crystal Glo acrylic polish . Latest was my current GRP Chausson a month or so ago, which was looking a bit dull after the winter. As it wasn't as badly deteriorated as the CI, I just used the Super Resin polish with the foam pad on the polisher followed by a coat of Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection, which is just wiped on to the polished surface, left for 1/2 an hour & buffed off by hand. Result again is a bright shiny van that washes down much easier (grey streaks just wipe off) than before. I did the CI in a long day, but spread the Chausson over two days this time - my wrists are "problematic" these days & wrestling the polisher for several hours is getting harder. HTH Nigel B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nigxl Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 3M make a superb polish for cutting back tired paintwork Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david lloyd Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 Is this recommended for gel coat GRP? David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted June 7, 2019 Share Posted June 7, 2019 Autosleeper used to recommend Farecla for their Fibreglass Monocoque bodied vans, it certainly bought back the shine on my Talisman. Easy available online, Farecla G3 rubbing paste 1kg tub lasts for years. for £15. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nigxl Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 david lloyd - 2019-06-07 7:34 PM Is this recommended for gel coat GRP? David It's what I use on my boat, works really well. Normally use Autoglym polish on top afterwards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david lloyd Posted June 8, 2019 Share Posted June 8, 2019 nigxl - 2019-06-08 6:22 AM david lloyd - 2019-06-07 7:34 PM Is this recommended for gel coat GRP? David It's what I use on my boat, works really well. Normally use Autoglym polish on top afterwards Ah, this is where I always get confused - between polish and wax - when we got the Worcester it was a bit dull so used Autoglym Polish first then a good wax on top - one of the Mcquires range - but all done by hand (old ones at that) and it's not back to as good as new yet. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chas Posted June 9, 2019 Share Posted June 9, 2019 I don't know if there is a easier way to reach the over cab area for polishing, without the hire of scaffold stands and spanning ladder across the front bonnet, if there is, please share , sky hooks are no longer available (^) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted June 9, 2019 Share Posted June 9, 2019 Be very careful if using a polisher, as if not used correctly they can cause damage, keep in mind that the sides of motorhomes are often very thinly coated aluminium and Sevel cabs have only a thin coat of paint with no lacquer. Once finished polishing ALWAYS wax afterwards to protect the shine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyishuk Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 If you have the room to store and money to buy these suppliers are useful. https://www.ladders-999.co.uk/scaffold-towers/domestic-steel-towers.html I brought some old units off ebay and supplemented them ( casters & handrail) and quite reasonable cost. Rgds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyishuk Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 Aimed at fjmike for some advice !! How to treat a Rapido roof after a good wash. The roof is a flexible material that has dimples on it similar to those on a boat deck then fixed to a gel type material similar to the body panels. Last time I treated it was with Mer which seemed to attract more dirt, maybe because I did not wax off as much as I should have due to the dimples. Also Mer has a silicone content. The roof being out of sight just needs a good weather proofing and UV retardant. The rest of the vehicle I treat with a marine polish and wax which seems to last a good while. Last time I raised this question, there was some suggestion of marine grp decking treatment, but this might not be suitable as I imagine a non slip surface is paramount on a boat, and may not be acceptable on a motor home roof. I did not treat the roof but I feel it needs some protection now. Any advice would be welcome. Rgds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 tonyishuk - 2019-06-16 1:07 PM Aimed at fjmike for some advice !! How to treat a Rapido roof after a good wash. The roof is a flexible material that has dimples on it similar to those on a boat deck then fixed to a gel type material similar to the body panels. Last time I treated it was with Mer which seemed to attract more dirt, maybe because I did not wax off as much as I should have due to the dimples. Also Mer has a silicone content. The roof being out of sight just needs a good weather proofing and UV retardant. The rest of the vehicle I treat with a marine polish and wax which seems to last a good while. Last time I raised this question, there was some suggestion of marine grp decking treatment, but this might not be suitable as I imagine a non slip surface is paramount on a boat, and may not be acceptable on a motor home roof. I did not treat the roof but I feel it needs some protection now. Any advice would be welcome. Rgds Rapido roofs can be the most difficult van roof to keep clean due to the textured portions. I am currently trialing a hydrophobic sealant and will let you know if it's suitable.?. I don't recommend using anything like wet and forget as it can cause premature oxidation. Meantime it may well be prudent to use an aquawax such as demonshine or hobbydazzler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will86 Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 We had a Rapido for a number of years and am happy to advertise that the roof was never washed or treated at all. The sides were only ever washed with a soft broom when it rained and no detergent. For the wheels I used washing machine powder. The biggest nuisance were spiders which was a night time job with a chemical spray in the joints, but new ones always appeared in a few weeks. The sale price made no difference whether I had spent hours cleaning or nothing so why do anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyishuk Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 Thanks for the advice. Good old Fenwicks seems a good option ! Unfortunately I can see the roof of the Rapido everyday, so tend to get a little paranoid when I see green shoots of something growing in the cracks. Recent power washing by the Rain has made an improvement! That said I took a look on the Fenwick website which seems to be not updated for caravans and motor homes since 2015. The bike side seems to work. Rgds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 tonyishuk - 2019-06-16 5:40 PM Thanks for the advice. Good old Fenwicks seems a good option ! Unfortunately I can see the roof of the Rapido everyday, so tend to get a little paranoid when I see green shoots of something growing in the cracks. Recent power washing by the Rain has made an improvement! That said I took a look on the Fenwick website which seems to be not updated for caravans and motor homes since 2015. The bike side seems to work. Rgds Never rated Fenwick's stuff, nobody has heard of it outside the motorhome/caravan world. It's cleaner is far too strong for regular use, far better to use a car shampoo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyishuk Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 It's a slow job ! Rapido roof has been cleaned, some stubborn black marks removed. I don't know what caused them, but a couple of them have collected the heat and have the appearance of cigarette burns, distorting the area around them. Learning curve with a DA polisher (Dual Action) . Not as easy as shown on YouTube, but what is? 10 years of weathering, is gently being rectified. Points taken about going slowly. Having seen a couple of DIY cleaning of American RVs , very little on UK sized mhomes, l do not know if I am envious of the size and ability to travel, or bl@@dy pleased I don't have to maintain one. Edit, Reason for writing was to ask if any advance on a roof treatment ? Given it a coat of b(h)oobey dazzler as a temp measure. Rgds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 tonyishuk - 2019-06-30 11:58 AM It's a slow job ! Rapido roof has been cleaned, some stubborn black marks removed. I don't know what caused them, but a couple of them have collected the heat and have the appearance of cigarette burns, distorting the area around them. Learning curve with a DA polisher (Dual Action) . Not as easy as shown on YouTube, but what is? Rgds The black bits are moss and it eats into the fabric of the roof. Just remember to change the pads on the DA frequently and often Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laimeduck Posted June 30, 2019 Share Posted June 30, 2019 Actually more likely lichen rather than moss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombies Posted July 1, 2019 Share Posted July 1, 2019 T-cut original Autoglym super resin polish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fjmike Posted July 1, 2019 Share Posted July 1, 2019 zombies - 2019-07-01 3:04 PM T-cut original Autoglym super resin polish Never use Tcut on a motorhome, it contains ammonia and will stain GRP yellow. Autoglym SRP is ok but only contains a small amount of wax, so the shine won't last Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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