Northeast winter on its way. How to protect the finish?

I've read several articles and threads about preparing one's vehicle for the harsh winter months and my head's spinning. Is there one, definitive opinion of what is the best or most used methodology? Please keep in mind that I'm pretty new to detailing and don't own a show car. I'll be prepping a Hyndai Tiburon and a Santa Fe, and my own Dodge Journey. I own a Harbor Freight DA polisher which will be replaced with a Griots likely in the spring, a bucket full of consumer-grade waxes and compounds, and not a lot of knowledge. I just got some uber pads and I'm psyched to try them out this weekend.

I don't want to spend tons of money, although I wouldn't mind spending some coin on a well regarded product that is a proven performer. I also don't mind spending the good part of a day making sure the job is done right. The wave of nano ceramic coatings/sealers and such sound kind of like snake oil to me but the idea behind them is intriguing. Should I opt for that route or should I go with a good wax? I need to cut through the myriad of options with the help of some of the good folk here. Any tips are greatly appreciated.

 

I would say leave out the polishing for now. With the winter upon us and not being able to have a chance to wash our car(s) every week the dirt and grime could sit on the paint for weeks and months. When you remove the grime you're bound to scratch and marr the paint. With that being said I would leave any polishing out until the spring.

Give the cars a good wash, use dish soap (I prefer dawn) to strip whatever is left on the paint. After that give it a good clay and then if possible pick up a bottle of Collinite 845 or Sonax's Polymer Netshield. In my personal experience with both products, have seen 5 and a half months on 1 coat with the vehicle outside 24/7 up here in Canada. IMHO polymer netshield has better beading and sheeting capabilities than 845 but both for sure are fantastic products that you can't go wrong with. If you need anything such as the Collinite or the clay I would suggest utilizing Phil's 15% off deal he has going on right now.

I don't know your skill level so if you need any more tips etc feel free to ask. Also take a look on Youtube at AmmoNYC and /DriveClean videos. They're a fantastic learning tool from a fantastic detailer. Cheers

 

Paint prep is key! Make sure the paint is free of dirt and other contaminants. Clay the paint and remove any left over wax or sealant from a previous application. Then apply a product like Sonax polymer net shield 1 panel at a time and buff off. Check out Phil's YouTube page detailers domain for some awesome videos as well.

 

Coatings are awesome, the car stays cleaner much longer and is easy to wash. If your looking to start with a hybrid coating Sonax PNS is great and easy to use, plus you can use it on everything. Hydro 2 is also great and very easy to use. If you are going to stick with traditional sealants/wax the following will give you 4-5 months protection IMPE:

Collonite 845 or 476s
Meguiars Ultimate Paste Wax
Duragloss 105/601 combo
FKp1000