How to get Silver paint to "pop" ?
 

Let me start by saying I am really just a wash and wax guy. On my previous car (dark green), i would get it profesionally clay bar, polish and wax once a year and then I would just do a wash a quick wax (FK425) every month or so to get me through the year. I was very happy with the results.

My corvette is a C6 Machine Silver with 60k miles. The paint is in excellent condition with very little physical damage as most of its life it had a clear bra. the car pretty much looks new. It had a few imperfections from the previous owner (swirl marks). So I had it clayed, polished and finished with colonite. The paint looks fantastic, the few swirl marks are gone.

Even though the paint looks great it doesn't have that dripping wet look my dark green car had. I love silver but it just doesn't have that pop that darker hues have. What can I do to get that ultra glossy wet look?

Should I just put a coat of the FK425 over the colonite?

Should I strip the colonite and do a coat of rejex?

Either way I am looking for a simple (if possible) solution. I am not looking for a 3-4 step system.

Try Zaino Clear Sealant. You can follow with a spritz of Z8 Grand Finale. If the car is clean you can do this in about 15-20 minutes. This combo makes the car look wet and it is very durable and "slippery."

polishing is the key to more gloss and reflection. Usually silver then takes on an almost white appearance unless the manufacturer used alot of metallic flake. If the color is the same as my daily driver, Galaxy Silver Lacrosse, then its a very light silver metallic indeed.

I have moved to the Blackfire Sealant as its quite glossy and wet looking. I use the spray sealant over it currently to add a little additional gloss. I am thinking of moving to Dodo's Red Juice Spray as another very glossy and wet looking spray after each wash. If it wasn't driven daily and sit outside 24/7 I would move back to a 'nuba like Wolfgang Fuzion or Pinnacle SSII. Blackfires Midnight Sun would be another short list option.

If you've polished the car to perfection or as near to perfect as you can get it then the next step you might want to try is a higher end "beauty wax". Several good choices out there.
Some like sealants, I prefer what I consider to be the deeper, warmer, wetter look af a carnauba.
I had a silver car as a daily driver and loved the color. I'd have another one now, but my wife told me that I wanted a black one. Bad choice for a DD.
Silver is a great color in that it hides dirt and swirls better than most colors. The downside is that it is harder to get the pop that you get with dark colors. Harder is not impossible though. You can still get it real close.

Its funny what you said about the white appearance. The car was always clean and glossy, but after I picked it up from being polished it seem brighter and lighter.

I can't complain, I would just like to see if I can get that real wet look.

i guess the real question is can I just add something on top of the colonite, like a QD, to get a little more pop out of it? Or do I need to strip the colonite and start from scratch?

This stuff is soooooo easy to use and lasts forever !!!!! :thumbs:

It is all in the polishing. You may have to do a 3-4 step at first but if you maintain it correctly you only have to do it once. I would suggest the Megs MF kit or 105/205 with the Hydro pads. If you have a DA get a kit with 5 inch pads.

There are qd'ers and spray waxes that add gloss and can make a paint look wetter , at least between washes. I would experiment with Optimums Gloss Enhancing Spray and Dodo Red Juice first or our new 360 Spray Wax. These are all quite glossy ...

http://www.autogeek.net/optimum-inst...iler-17oz.html
http://www.autogeek.net/dodo-juice-s...-detailer.html
http://www.autogeek.net/xmt-360-spray-wax-32oz.html

Well I have some FinishKare 425. Will that make the finish pop more if I apply it on top of the exsisting wax?

You will likely note a bit of a difference. The ones I listed above are the glossiest currently and a bit more. In the end youve got to find what works best for you :cheers:

I put a few coats of Zaino Z-2 on my wife's new silver BMW. Nothing fancy....just a wash and a clay before starting. (boy, the 5 series seems HUGE when you have to wax it) When I brought it back to BMW for a repair, it looked much better than anything in silver in their (rather large) shop.

You'll want a sealant that gives a candy shell shine: zaino z2, duragloss 111, klasse twins, Werkstat acryllc jet, Liquid glass, finish kare 1000p high temp wax

Those should add gloss and wetness to your silver paint

Rejex, Rejex, and more Rejex..........

Another vote for Zaino. My C4 was silver and I took it from this

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/pict...ictureid=63338

to this with Zaino
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/pict...ictureid=63339

Of course I repainted, and spent some time wet sanding it, but even the lower Charcoal Grey which was a bit dull after the repaint, picked up a nice shine.
If you look at the door and front fender you can easily see a nice clear reflection of the house next door. Got a ton of compliments on the car after the repaint.
Had people tell me it looked just like brand new aluminum foil.

Our new Blackfire Crystal Seal is getting very "glossy" reviews. Its a WOWA (wipe on walk away) sealant so more protection than just a spray.

http://www.autogeek.net/blackfire-crystal-seal.html