All you Astro Black owners out there what polish do you use to keep the paintwork looking cool. Some Astro Black Minis look like they are covered in swirl marks which I definately want to avoid.
This is our third Mini Cooper both the others being PW/Blk.
I found the solution after my black Laguna and its many swirl marks. Buy silver from now on!
Problem is that the new water based paints are very soft and it only takes a speck of dust in your polishing mit to run a scratch across the paint. I have a black roof on my Mini and with the black plastic surround I reckon a black pigmented polish is the best solution. I have some black wax bumper polish which seems to do the trick for now. Best bet is plenty of water from the hose first to move any grit particles from the paint. Some people swear by jet washes to get rid of grit but I find them a bit to agressive on modern cars.
As previously owning black cars, I LOVE but they always show the scratches and marks close up. Plus always then give you a let down on p/x re-sale.
You really have to make sure there is no grit/stone or anything near the car when you wash....I have previously got marks from car washes hand and drive throws. Plus the jets are a bit to harsh for the paint work, when they are new. Maybe a new sponge everytime you hand wash your car - might seem silly and expensive but think of the priceless paintwork you will have afterwards!!!
How did you find the Pepper White car for polishing and chip marks etc? As just thinking of buying my first white car!!
Silver/Grey is a safe colour for scratches though not for us this time!! Already have a grey VW.
You need to claybar the paint / clearcoat before you wax or polish. Gets the rail dust off before some yahoo takes a buffer to the wax or polish and makes swirls. Look up Zaino, thats what I swear by.
if you have swirls, you can get a pro detailer to correct the defects with a machine polisher. if thats too much get some poorboys black hole glaze, which contains fillers and enhances the depth of your shine and hides the swirls. you can then top with a sealent / wax for maximum durability.
Yep, claybar, be acareful you dont need to apply much preasure. After claybarring it clean it off with some water then a good wax wil ldo it. Once you have done it the first time you will notice durt doesnt stick to it it settle on it like a dust which is easy to keep clean.
I'd agree with Ultra Deep Shine, it's a all in one product and seems to be ok for a basic no frills but good looks product, for the cost it's worth a go... unless you want a proper detail...
When i bought my Cosmos black Cooper last august it was covered in swirl marks and the paint work just looked generally poor. I machine polished it using cutting compound, Autosmart Evo, and the results were amazing! Was a bit daunting though i admit! Now i just keep it up with a polish using AG super resin, or Autosmart platinum every month or so. Also make sure my sponge and bucket are spotless now.
It is hard work to keep black clean and free from marks but the end result is a depth of shine that you can never get from silver!
Thanks everyone for your experiance. Misspie23 Pepper White / Black combo is excellent as a choice, Pepper White is very good at not showing up stone chips and definately hides swirl marks. White is very "in" at the moment after being seen as un-cool in the UK for many years (lots of Audi, BMW and Fiat 500s currently in white as well as the MINI).
my cooper s is brg an i use maguirs gold class there terry cloths and clay to seems to do the trick with other dark cars ive had. if always gave my cars a good detail and used my machine polisher intialy using a compounds and polish to get the paint work right and and then just kept on top of it.
thats my golf dark blue after id used a g3 to get the sctrachs and bad marks out then i used glazer and polished it with maguirs and got the second pic.
not the best pictures to show it but you can see the my results a little just didnt have any picture before
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Polish for Astro Black 
