*** Car Wash / Valet / Detailing Thread ***

[jpaul]

Anyone have tips on how to look after leather?

My Cayman is less than 3 years old and the leather is already looking a bit weathered. I've got autoglym leather balm which I've used once but wasn't too convinced of the results.

I've used foaming leathermaster cleaner with some preceeding steam on bmw coated leather , and then sonax trim protectant -
spent years wasting time putting leathermaster conditioner on (same as we use on uncoated ekornes leather suite) but it doesn't absorb as it's coated
pretty much as I then saw here https://www.bmwblog.com/2020/06/01/how-to-care-bmw-leather/ just need a UV protectant, bmw also have their own foaming cleaner.
If you have an uncoated leather (caymans probably better quality) then use real leather products.
steering wheel is the only real uncoated leather I have in the car.

 

[Blackhawk47]

Highly doubt a 3 year old Cayman would have uncoated leather.

I would recommend a leather brush and either Autoglym leather cleaner or Dodo juice leather cleaner…both are great. Once gone over quickly wipe up with a microfibre.

Wouldn’t follow up with any conditioners or balms, I just feel they make the leather feel greasy.

 

[MrRockliffe]

spent years wasting time putting leathermaster conditioner on (same as we use on uncoated ekornes leather suite) but it doesn't absorb as it's coated

I thought the same thing but when I spoke with a Geist director he was explaining how you do in fact want to use a conditioner on leather. Wish I could remember why


He did explain that not all conditioners are the same though - some do indeed just sit on the surface and make it greasy which I’ve experienced.


Since using theirs, I haven’t noticed that, and I’m sure other brands offer a similar product.

 

[ShiWarrior]

And remember boys, shiny leather is dirty leather

 

[jpaul]

... left - what I had used LPC&LCC; right - what I now use , the LSC is just a mild foaming detergent + sonax uv/plastic cream
I think using the wrong stuff ultimately contributed to some cracking

 

[MrRockliffe]

Chemical decon wash on the BMW today.


It starts with a normal safe wash with Touchless and contact wash.


Then it’s a case of drying key areas where you notice tar build up, usually wheel arches + sides of car (knee height ish) + rear.


Then you can use a tar remover of choice. Personally have found Bilt Hamber Cleanser Fluid to be immense. It melts tar AS you spray it.







You’ll notice some contamination doesn’t come off. This is most likely tree sap or iron fallout






Some tar removers are effective with tree sap too, but haven’t found the Bilt Hamber one to be. It’s more of a hybrid panel wipe & tar remover than a typical tar and glue remover.
, so effective as a post polish cleanser for applying a coating of choice.



Then you’re looking to use an iron fallout remover of choice. The wheel cleaners which turn purple are typically safe and effective for this job.


I happen to have some CarPro Iron X left over. It seems really decent and VERY rapid at turning purple (an indicator of how effective it is)

This is the most key thing when using on paint as you want it to dwell as little as possible, especially in warm weather so that it doesn’t evaporate/dry on paint - this increases the concentration of chemicals which is what you’re trying to avoid.

The negative with Iron X is that it’s very watery instead of being gel like, which results in it drying out quite quickly in the sun. I think Korrosol is still my favourite.



Method I use is spray liberally on a panel, wash with a mitt and normal car soap, rinse and move to the next panel.






Once done, I like to use an acidic shampoo as the last panel prep stage to remove all grease and any further contaminants (water spots) before applying a coating.


You can see after the cleanser fluid and fallout remover how much the Fusso and BSD has degraded:

imgur.com

Discover the magic of the internet at Imgur, a community powered entertainment destination. Lift your spirits with funny jokes, trending memes, entertaining gifs, inspiring stories, viral videos, and so much more from users.

imgur.com

Done!







There would be a slightly different method if polishing, since you’d clay before - not really any point doing a chemical decontamination before if you’re using a medium or heavy cut.


If you’re just doing some gloss enhancement I’d probably chemically decon so that I don’t introduce any deep scratches from clay.

 

[MrRockliffe]

Got some more training booked with Kelly Harris in June - will be for the end to end process to ceramic coat and paint correct.


Still haven’t got back into full time employment since I was made redundant in Dec and VERY tempted to see if I can make a thing out of detailing.


Got some savings I could sink into it, but it’s quite daunting.

 

[Manbatius]

Ok guys, snow foamed the car today for the first time, came out well, I have two products just about done though:
Waxplanet Eight below snow foam
autoglym shampoo

Got maybe one wash left in each, I think the eight below was recommended from forensic detailing, any recommendations to replace these two products?

 

[MrRockliffe]

Ok guys, snow foamed the car today for the first time, came out well, I have two products just about done though:
Waxplanet Eight below snow foam
autoglym shampoo

Got maybe one wash left in each, I think the eight below was recommended from forensic detailing, any recommendations to replace these two products?

Do you like your shampoo to be foamy?

If so, Gtechniq GWash.

Otherwise Bilt Hamber Auto Wash. 10ml in a 10L bucket of water for decent foamy bucket They advise 5ml but I don’t think it works so well with hard water.


Nothing other than Touchless for snow foam IMO.

 

[Manbatius]

Do you like your shampoo to be foamy?

If so, Gtechniq GWash.

Otherwise Bilt Hamber Auto Wash. 10ml in a 10L bucket of water for decent foamy bucket They advise 5ml but I don’t think it works so well with hard water.


Nothing other than Touchless for snow foam IMO.

Cheers probably going for the Gtechniq Gwash and Bilt and hamber touchless snow foam.
Now just need to see if the places I use stock it.

 

[MrRockliffe]

Cheers probably going for the Gtechniq Gwash and Bilt and hamber touchless snow foam.
Now just need to see if the places I use stock it.

I recommend Clean Your Car up your way. They have excellent customer service.

 

[Robi]

I have a couple of chips and a single scratch (about half an inch) that I need fix before listing my car for sale. Unfortunately they're down to the panels and have rusted.

I'm not interested in respraying entire panels, but I am interested to know what can be done at at home before going down the professional route.

Colour is BMW Estoril Blue (B58?).

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Kenai]

Colour is BMW Estoril Blue (B58?).

Any advice would be appreciated.

The specific paint code is worth confirming, there are two different 'Estoril Blue' colours, make sure whatever method you end up choosing it's the right colour!

 

[MrRockliffe]

I have a couple of chips and a single scratch (about half an inch) that I need fix before listing my car for sale. Unfortunately they're down to the panels and have rusted.

I'm not interested in respraying entire panels, but I am interested to know what can be done at at home before going down the professional route.

Colour is BMW Estoril Blue (B58?).

Any advice would be appreciated.

Treat rust - speak to Bilt Hamber as that’s their speciality before they got into cleaning products.

Fill with a paint/clear coat combo as flat as possible so you don’t need to sand. Toothpicks are good for stone chips - just dent the end to make it a bit hook like so it’s easier to dab in paint.

If it is raised, a de nibbing tool. You’ll want a curved one - do NOT get a square one.


Polish to finish. Don’t sand as you’ll remove the orange peel in just that area and it’ll look funny.



It IS doable but probably worth a “SMART” repair if you’re not confident.

 

[jpaul]

glass fibre propelling pencils are great for precise cleanup of surface scratches - I have one of these.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Modelcraft-PBU2137-Glass-Fibre-Pencil/dp/B000UZ8VNS

 

[vail3r]

Is there a window/glass cleaner that actually cleans windows and doesn't become a streaky mess that requires an arm hurting amount of buffing to actually clean up.

Between my dog and my toddler the back windows need cleaning a lot and I could really do with something that I just give a quick spray and wipe.

Can someone recommend one that works well? I don't mind paying a bit for something that works and makes my life easy!

 

[GravyMonster]

I've tried several, but I find the best way to clean the glass is to first make sure it's not baking hot and certainly not in direct sunlight. Then spray a short pile microfibre with whatever glass cleaner you have and wipe the glass. Once that's dried, take another dry deep pile microfibre and buff the glass with that.

 

[MrRockliffe]

Is there a window/glass cleaner that actually cleans windows and doesn't become a streaky mess that requires an arm hurting amount of buffing to actually clean up.

Between my dog and my toddler the back windows need cleaning a lot and I could really do with something that I just give a quick spray and wipe.

Can someone recommend one that works well? I don't mind paying a bit for something that works and makes my life easy!

If it’s the interior, the best thing for me has always been some soapy water made with fairy liquid & a squeegee.


The issue with glass cleaners is that they’re not always super effective at removing grease.


Otherwise traceless is very good since it clings to the glass rather than running down it = better dwelling time.

 

[Sparky]

Is there a window/glass cleaner that actually cleans windows and doesn't become a streaky mess that requires an arm hurting amount of buffing to actually clean up.

Between my dog and my toddler the back windows need cleaning a lot and I could really do with something that I just give a quick spray and wipe.

Can someone recommend one that works well? I don't mind paying a bit for something that works and makes my life easy!

Cant beat white vinegar/water solution.

 

[Mekrel]

Traceless is good, apparently there's two versions with the second have less of a strong odour. I have the original version and the smell is very strong, it smells like pear but it's like that chemical like pear smell you get with some hard boiled sweets.
My Traceless came with a blue waffle towel and it's a really good towel for glass, it doesn't lint at all but I don't know if you get that towel if regardless of where you buy Traceless from or if you need to order it directly from Bilt Hamber.

The other option which definitely works is rinseless wash. I've used McKees37 N-914 at the rinseless dilution of 256:1 - you soak a low pile microfibre in the solution, squeeze out the excess and wipe the window down then buff dry with a longer pile microfibre.
It obviously requires a bucket of water but I wonder if you could make up a spray bottle with the stuff and soak the MF towel by spraying it? It's only 4ml of product to water for a 1ltr bottle.