Detailing is a pain !

[Seth]

I spent all weekend sprucing up my vehicle in the name of paint care. My back still hurts..

just thinking about it hurts.

But hey the car looks awesome.

Here's what I did.

1. Wash using armorall car wash liquid. 2 buckets (one for plain water rinsing) and soft bristled brush with lots of give.
2. Wash again using mitt.
3. Clay (mothers system) using quick detailer.
4. hose, wipe with mitt and rinse. Dry using a fresh microfibre and a fake chamois.
5. Mothers pre wax cleaner (step1)- chemical cleaner probably does not contain any abrasive stuff. Not sure if this is polish stage. Looked a bit dull after this step. Using fresh terry cotton microfibre for wiping after rubbing it in using a pad
6. Mothers glaze and sealant (step2) - Polish? not sure but supposedly clears out any imperfections that may not be visible to naked eye. Sealant part is probably a misnomer but there was some deep wet shine by this stage. Used a separate set of pad and microfibre terry.
7. By step2 I was dog tired and gave up for a few hours. After which, If I was smart I should have put a Klasse SG or some synthetic wax just because of the salt and grime we see in winter up in the great white north. But I didnt have any. So onto step3 (carnauba wax). Mothers step3 is not bad and got a decent coat on.
8. Was pooped by saturday night and came back on sunday afternoon to apply one more coat of mothers carnauba wax (step3 again). Second coat of wax perhaps does not help in longevity but why not. Used the same pad and terry cloth as that of previous day's wax. Used up three sets of pads and microfibres by now not including another microfibre for glass.
9. Cleaned the windows up a bit using glass cleaner and microfibre set aside for glass only.
10. Did some interior dash dusting but had no energy to take on the interior detailing. Figured I'd do that next weekend. Have interior detailer spray and leather seat wipes and a winter mat ready.

After all of this, I read that carnauba wax does not last for more than a month so chock it up for being an idiot and not having a synth wax/sealant on hand. Cause the whole point is to winterize not to get the concourse look.

Otoh, did leave the door to garage from house open to let some warm air into the cold garage. Not sure if it was good enough for the wax to harden or not. It was cold outside.

Anyways, question I have is a month from now on until next spring/summer, what should I be doing? just do wash and wax? or wash/cleaner wax? or wash/quick detailer?

 

[Nyquist]

Find a buddy with a heated garage, and give him a 6-pack for letting you use it to wax next month.

The main thing is to get them washed and flushed off once/week. Do that, and things should be Ok for you.

 

[Seth]

One more on the todo list is the cleaning and buffing alloy wheels that are now off the car. They also need to be deflated a bit for winter storage purposes.

 

[rg200amp]

Dont wash a car with a brush!!!! The softest brush in the world will still give light scratches.

Wash with cotton/Microfiber mit

then clay

then wash again with cotton/microfiber mit




Check out Autopia.org
the best car detailing forum on the web.

 

[Jim 5]

If you went to all this trouble, next time show it off with a picture!

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: rg200amp
Dont wash a car with a brush!!!! The softest brush in the world will still give light scratches.

Wash with cotton/Microfiber mit

then clay

then wash again with cotton/microfiber mit




Check out Autopia.org
the best car detailing forum on the web.


I was going to say... Ive heard of folks using boar bristle (I think) brushes as they supposedly dont scratch.

Light with a microfiber of cut-up sponge mitt (they sell them at classic motoring accessories) have worked well for me.

 

[mshu7]

No need to wash after claying. Just wipe the area clean with a MF towel and move on to the next section.

 

[double vanos]

Might as well hijack this thread...

Here's and interior cleaning tip I use every time the vacuum comes out:

I use compressed air to blow all the stuff that is located under the seats and 'round about the console area, out from under there. Compressed air does a great job of dislodging all that debris and getting it to where you can get to it.

Once the under seat/console area is clean, I use a microfiber towel very lightly moistened with distilled water to wipe up all the dust I just blew out from under the seats - it'll be located everywhere, but at least now it is easily accessible.

Wipe the entire interior down with the distilled water misted microfiber towel, clean all the interior glass and finish with the vacuum. If needed, treat any vinyl / rubber surfaces with the appropiate product - personally, I use these products very sparingly.

I've got this down to a reasonable 40 minute job and I get comments all the time!

I even had one co-worker thinking I had removed the seats and then vacuumed.

Does anybody have a better suggestion? I am always looking a better way to do this chore.

Cheers all!

 

[Ryan]

Jeez I thought I was bad, you guys are geeks! I think I will just take the entire car apart every week and clean each part individually then re-assemble it.

 

[bretfraz]

That's how many pro detailers do it; use compressed air to blow out seats, vents, consoles, etc. Great tip that makes interior detailing a quick job.

 

[Ryan]

Well I admit, I will have to try it.

 

[psudaytona]

Reminds me of last spring. I killed myself one weekend making my car shine again from the salty crud filled grip of winter. Then kept it detailed every few days, my gf at the time said, "I am starting to think you love the car more than me".

Well, its almost December and I still have the car.

 

[Benzadmiral]

Detailing *is* a pain. Try doing it when the temp is 85-90 F. and the humidity is 60% -- in other words, 9 months of the year in The Swamp. I wind up a soaked mess just from washing and drying the car, let alone waxing or polishing.

 

[cornfused]

NO,NO,NO. You guys are doing this all wrong. Just buy your selves an older work truck that you don't worry about so much and then leave the other in a nice heated garage 95% of the time.

Works for me!!!

 

[CharBaby]

Each time I wash my vehicles, I like to use a quick detail type product on the paint. Takes no time! Once I have completely dryed the vehicle, I just spray the detail product on my drying towel(or the drying material of your choice) and go over the whole exterior, panel by panel while I periodicly apply more spray detail on the towel. But as-far-as detailing goes, I try not to let my vehicles get too bad from the start. Yes, after winter for example, the vehicles need a really good spring cleaning. But, when it comes to regular cleaning, this is what I like to do when I wash and spritz my vehicles........

As I mentioned, I like to put something on the paint after each washing but, in addition to each washing I also like to do ONE THING differently each time I wash/spritz, such as:

1)Wash/vacuum interior
2)Wash/leather/vinal /tire dressing
3)Wash/interior windows
4)Wash/check all fluids and tires/spare tire psi
5)Wash/real wax/silicone the exterior(sometimes I only do the top portions of the vehicle such as the hood/roof/trunk)
6)Wash/spritz only
You can mix these up anyway you want to balance out the work load. I drive my vehicles into their teens and they always look great even in the winter...(well ya know!)

 

[redwash1]

try this http://www.tech-products.com (part #2W0574), very easy even works in the sun. people always ask me how I keep my 94 lightning great.

 

[02zx9r]

Originally Posted By: rg200amp
Dont wash a car with a brush!!!! The softest brush in the world will still give light scratches.

Wash with cotton/Microfiber mit

then clay

then wash again with cotton/microfiber mit




Check out Autopia.org
the best car detailing forum on the web.


You can use a boars hair brush but dont try and push it through the panel, just light pressure.

Check out Meguiars.com as well. Much better I have found. Opinions will vary Im sure, but I do go to autopia as well, but normally meguiars

 

[kkreit01]

I agree with others. Next time, skip #1 and #4. I wouldn't use a brush, nor would I use Amorall wash. Try some Duragloss Wash, and a grout sponge from Home Depot. Only 1 wash is needed initially.

 

[wavinwayne]

I admire you guys that have the patience and time to do proper detailing. Once I realized that nobody besides me gives a rip how clean my car is, I stopped worrying about it. Now, I wash Little Red whenever she's really dirty, and I don't fret over it. I never have waxed the car, and the paint still looks as good as new, IMO.

 

[rg200amp]

Originally Posted By: 02zx9r
Originally Posted By: rg200amp
Dont wash a car with a brush!!!! The softest brush in the world will still give light scratches.

Wash with cotton/Microfiber mit

then clay

then wash again with cotton/microfiber mit




Check out Autopia.org
the best car detailing forum on the web.


You can use a boars hair brush but dont try and push it through the panel, just light pressure.

Check out Meguiars.com as well. Much better I have found. Opinions will vary Im sure, but I do go to autopia as well, but normally meguiars


Only a plush cotton/micro fiber mit touches my paint.

As for carwash. Use a quality product. A car wash is not meant to clean as much as it is for lube. It keeps the mit and dirt in the mit lubed thus causing no swirl marks. Meguiars Gold Class shampoo is a good buy from walmart.