im a proffesional vehicle valeter and have been for the last 6 years.
i have tried pretty much every product on the market and for paint restoration i would recommend the following procedure using the following products:
-wash the car completely using AutoGlym or AutoSmart wash and wax shampoo
the next stage's succes is greatly determined on if you have use of a machine polisher!
-if you have a machine polisher, apply AutoGlym bodyshop cutting compound (fine abrasive, no harsher!) to the orbital head. start on the bonnet and with the machine off spread the product over the panel. turn the polisher on and keep it moving! where people go wrong with this, is thinking 'oh that bit looks bad i'll keep the polisher there for a bit longer' problem with that is a few seconds in the same place will build up the heat and you will burn through the paint. not good! so keep it moving and work up and down the bonnet.
-then do the same with the roof.
- once the roof and the bonnet are done, move on the the sides of the car. stay away from any plastics and dont over apply the product.
- once the whole car has had the cutting compound applied. go over it with a polish using the machine polisher (i recommend AutoGlym super resin polish) this will make buffing it off alot easier.
- once the whole car has had a layer of polish applied over the cutting compound. buff it all off with a clean cloth.
- then eigther by hand or with the machine polisher go over the car with another coat of polish. buff off.
- then ... (i realise this is a long procces, but its well worth it!) go round the car with a coatt of pure wax i.e a polish that has no cleaning agent/cut to it. (AutoGlym ultra deep, Zymol concours or Auto smart platinum) buff off.
by this point your cars paint will be like a babies bum
keep running your hand over the paint to check how smooth it is. if its at all rough then go over it with the cutting compound again (play it by feel!)
- when your happy with the shine and smoothness of your cars paint. lock the shine in with one of the following products:
- AutoGlym Lifeshine (lasts 10 years!)
- AutoGlym Extra Gloss Protection (lasts 8 months)
- AutoSmart Silver Seal (lasts 3 Years)
- Superguard (lasts 4 years)
these are all hard wax protectors that when applied will bond to your paint and seal in the shine you have achieved (note. this will only lock in the shine of the car, it will not improve the shine) they all need to be left for as long as possible to bond to the paint. minimum of 1 hour and a maximum of about a day.
the longer the better. but make sure if you do leave the product on this long that you leave it out of direct sunlight like a garage. then buff it off as you did the polish.
you should now be left with showroom condition paint. washing will be 20x easier and the crap from the roads wont stick to your car!
enjoy