How to clean exterior finish that’s been sitting in the sun for years

[Luke87gt]

Hi guys, when I bought my 69, it had been sitting outside in the sun for years.

Overall the paint looks pretty decent but it’s got some oxidation and pretty rough to the touch.

I’d like to give it a thorough cleaning. What do you guys recommend? Clay bar? Polish and buffing wheel? Mineral cleaner?

I’m all ears here.

Also, on the passenger side, the steel bolts holding the side mirror rusted badly and this rust would drip down the door for god knows how many years in the rain.

Any recommendations on how to get that stain off the door without harming the paint? I’ve included a pic below. You can see the stain on the passenger side door.

Thank you!

[Steeveedee]

I'd use rubbing compound on the whole truck first, with polishing compound after that. That's way out of clay bar territory. Maybe that'll take the rust stain off? For the rust stain, I'd use WD-40 and 0000 steel wool if the compounds don't remove it.

[Rickysnickers]

I'd start with a pressure wash first, then go to a hand wash. After that, you can evaluate the paint and go from there.

[Mid-Pack]

X2 ^^^. I`d probably use 3 or 4 cutting foam pads for the rubbing compound and a few for polishing. If you spread it out, you can wash the pads and just use 3 or 4. Just be careful not to go through the paint, take what the paint gives you. I would clay it after the rubbing compound, then polish. Then clean paint before you add any wax or sealant protection.

[Rust_never_sleeps]

Meguiar's #7 is a pretty good first step to clean and allegedly condition old paint. It's abrasive free

[Sicklajoie]

Google Comet & Scotchbrite or SOS pads.

[Shifty One]

Originally Posted by Sicklajoie

Google Comet & Scotchbrite or SOS pads.

This! Especially if you are going with a patina-look.

[57taskforce]

Originally Posted by Rust_never_sleeps

Meguiar's #7 is a pretty good first step to clean and allegedly condition old paint. It's abrasive free

This… with at least an orange hex logic pad, but I think I’d opt for a yellow on the first pass then move to orange and then to a white, while finishing with a black or red. And running finer product as you go thru the different pad grades, the last pass should be a wax or sealant depending on your preference. I would run a sealant myself.

[67swb72klb]

Comet and a car wash brush will get it pretty clean for a start..
Looks like a nice truck.

[PbFut]

What ever you decide, find a not so noticable section and test all the way to finished result.
All the above ideas are abrasive. The condition and thickness of this original paint is unknown. Be careful. The more aggressive the "cleaning product" the deeper the scratches will be in the remaining paint. Then you have to remove more paint to get those scratches out.
By the time you get to your finished result you have elevated your risk of polishing off all the original paint. Given what appears to be the truck's originality, loosing the paint would be a shame.

[Mid-Pack]

X2 ^^ Pick a test spot to figure out the best process, start to finish. Start less aggressive and go from there to get desired results. If you`re truly trying to save the paint, take your time and put in the effort. It`ll pay off in the end.

[Luke87gt]

Thank you for all the replies

I will start with pressure wash, followed by hand wash, and then assess which option to pursue next.

One more thing, my roof has a bit of surface rust that I’d like to address. What’s recommended there? Thank you.

[mr48chev]

Originally Posted by Sicklajoie

Google Comet & Scotchbrite or SOS pads.

Back in 1969 my buddy and I sat in line at the quarter car wash in Killen Tx and watched a couple of lifer staff sergeants scrub years of outdoor grime off a 55/56 Ford sedan with a couple of cans of Ajax. The car looked pretty decent when they rolled out of the carwash and luckily it was one of those lazy afternoons that we weren't in a hurry on and the only thing going on was washing my 69 Cutlass. A few days later we saw it and they had polished it and waxed it and it looked sharp as all get out.

The only thing that I am going to say about buffers and these old trucks is that you had better have plenty of skill and finesse with with a buffer before you try it on the old original paint on one of these.

[Rust_never_sleeps]

Originally Posted by mr48chev

....
The only thing that I am going to say about buffers and these old trucks is that you had better have plenty of skill and finesse with with a buffer before you try it on the old original paint on one of these.

I got one of these on the recommendation that it was hard to burn through with this type
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/por-7424xp

The pro type 7-9" orbital polishers with the wool pads are definitely going to have a learning curve

[Steeveedee]

I used to hand-ball the heavy grit cleaners. No chance for burn-through, but pretty time-consuming. Nowadays, I have to pay people to do it.

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by Rust_never_sleeps

I got one of these on the recommendation that it was hard to burn through with this type
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/por-7424xp

The pro type 7-9" orbital polishers with the wool pads are definitely going to have a learning curve

I started out with that one . It did very good untill it burned out but I was doing a lot of vehicles. I ended up buying the Flex brand made in Germany if I recall but may be made in China now .
https://www.detailking.com/products/...isher-fc3321-z

OP I would start out by cleaning the paint several times by washing . Test a small area with different degrees of aggressive paint correction products . Always try the least aggressive first then work up to what works on your paint . You might even try 2000 to 3000 sand paper to start . I did this on my 68

[57taskforce]

Originally Posted by Rust_never_sleeps

I got one of these on the recommendation that it was hard to burn through with this type
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/por-7424xp

The pro type 7-9" orbital polishers with the wool pads are definitely going to have a learning curve

I have one of those porter cable’s. Had it for a few years now with great success. As a bit of follow up to my post above, the foam type pads I mentioned earlier are a lot more forgiving to beginners and can achieve the same results as the old school wool pads. I used to do this kind of work in the body shop and I still do it on the side… my 17 year old Camaro and my wife’s 15 year old Denali for instance. I cut that oxidation on the Yukon (which spends its entire life outdoors; life’s busy it’s not always as easy to keep up with its paint the way I wish I could) with an orange hex logic pad and medium compound. Youd almost have to intentionally burn thru with one of the foam pads. They are quite forgiving when used with common sense.

[Getter-Done]

Originally Posted by Luke87gt

Thank you for all the replies

I will start with pressure wash, followed by hand wash, and then assess which option to pursue next.

One more thing, my roof has a bit of surface rust that I’d like to address. What’s recommended there? Thank you.

I had paint fade and small rust spot on top of my Tahoe.

This Iron remover help some.

Link: https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/...%20Restoration

[67swb72klb]

Regular toilet bowl cleaner works great for rust stains also..

[jayoldschool]

Ideal candidate for the Comet wash. Then, cutting/buffing/polish/wax. Or cut/wax, lol

[Luke87gt]

Can someone link me to this comet wash?

[Steeveedee]

Comet cleanser, but I bet Bon Ami would work just as well, and has no chlorine in it. YMMV

[Luke87gt]

Oooh, you guys are actually referring to the powder in the green can that I use to clean my toilets? Really? :-)

[Steeveedee]

Not I.

[c30]

My 67 C30 wore the original orange/red color when I got it. I'd bet it was last hand washed 40 years ago.
I used a good detergent and Scotchbrite pads to scrub it down. Had a nice satin look to it when dried. Next, I used a regular auto paste wax and rubbed it in. It seemed to suck in the wax so I did it a second time and that gave me the look I was after.
It didn't really shine like a fresh waxed new car. It has a flat/satin finish that screamed original paint.