Thanks for the compliment, but there's others a lot more knowledgeable than me.
In answer to your questions, though :
1) If the paintwork is free of scratches and swirl marks then you don't need to use anything abrasive (i.e. polish) as you're only rubbing away perfectly good clearcoat.
2) To make sure you don't inflict any damage by washing, make sure you wash the car yourself (not at the local jetwash or drive-thru), using two buckets - one for the shampoo and one with fresh water. Using a sheepskin wash-mitt, not a sponge, wash small areas at a time (top to bottom) and then rinse the mitt in the fresh water before going back to the shampoo bucket. This makes sure that any crap off the car doesn't go back on again. Dry the car with a waffle-weave microfibre towel (no chamois leathers or old rags).
3) Once the car is clean, it's probably worth a run over with the clay bar to check that there are no bonded surface contaminants on your paintwork. Fuey wrote a
guide to claying which you'll find in the section of the forums.
4) So now your car is clean and scratch-free, you want to keep it that way. You could go straight on with a wax (which you can then build up in layers, 24 hours apart, to a maximum of 3 layers) or you can apply a sealant instead. Or you can apply wax over your sealant. Basically, sealants tend to give a more "bling" finish and are longer-lasting than most waxes. Waxes give a warmer, deeper finish. Microfibre towels or pads should be used for application and removal of these products.
5) Once you've applied your chosen surface treatment, you only need to wash your car every couple of weeks to remove the dirt and uncover the deep shine underneath. After washing, spritz the car with a good quick detailing spray and wipe off with a microfibre to give a bit of depth back to the finish and remove any water marks from the drying process.
6) When rain stops beading on your paintwork, it's time to re-apply your sealant / wax.
7) Done this way, you should avoid ever having to polish your car to correct scratches and swirls in the paintwork.
The reasons I only used wax on the bonnet and roof of the S40 were :
a) The finish from the Wolfgang sealant was so good that the wax wasn't really adding much.
b) Given that the car hardly does any miles, the sealant should last a reasonable amount of time without any additional protection.
That said, I've since done the whole car with a liquid wax (because I wanted to see how it looked on a colour other than the metallic black of mine
)
Hope this helps.
