*** The Car Cleaning Thread ***

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Not bad, in 3 hours i have managed to shampoo wash the car 6 times and go around the car with the clay bar each time. (mrs helped me the 1st 2 times round,bless her)

I have managed to remove 95% of the paint. Just got the splatters all over my plastics, wipers and seals to tackle...

I didn't split the clay bar in 6 pieces worth though, i snapped it in half and told mrs to crack on with her side. Used all of the lubricant.

Will carry on with it tomorrow.
 
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Rybo89 said:
Not bad, in 3 hours i have managed to shampoo wash the car 6 times and go around the car with the clay bar each time. (mrs helped me the 1st 2 times round,bless her)

I have managed to remove 95% of the paint. Just got the splatters all over my plastics, wipers and seals to tackle...

I didn't split the clay bar in 6 pieces worth though, i snapped it in half and told mrs to crack on with her side. Used all of the lubricant.

Will carry on with it tomorrow.
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You just regularly fold the clay bar over on itself to show a clean side.

I'd seriously recommend Tardix or Tar-X to help remove it. I've seen it used for removing graffiti on cars etc.
 
Django x2 said:
I spent a meagre £109 and got good old Jack to do his work on the Disco, similar to the BM
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Looks epic :) Did you have to send your wheel off to Jack to do? Just had mine done by him and dad quite likes it (he's got a Disco 4) but he couldn't live without a wheel for a week or so. Also, does the heated steering wheel still work?
 
I really want to get mine done in lovely padded leather again but I'm put off by the fact that:

a) There is no wear on mind, I just prefer the different style of leather
b) The one in my E39 just didn't retain that 'wow' finish for long.
 
Voxination said:
Looks epic :) Did you have to send your wheel off to Jack to do? Just had mine done by him and dad quite likes it (he's got a Disco 4) but he couldn't live without a wheel for a week or so. Also, does the heated steering wheel still work?
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Nope, Jack had Disco wheels in stock, but admittedly mine isn't heated. Its on my retrofit list to do. I got 3mm thicker perf and padded and asked Jack to match the JLR badge green for the stitching.

Wheel arrived, swapped it over, wheel sent back.

My E60 had it's wheel done by Jack almost two years ago and still looks the same, no shine has come through yet despite adding some 40k miles on in that time. But then I do leather clean and treat it at least every 2nd week.
 
Can anyone reccomend a decent wax? the wax I usually use is unfortunatly liquid wax stuff, not sure if this is any good, doesnt really produce good beading when it rains, I would say the stuff I have is more like polish, even though its called liquid wax.


My cleaning is usually warm water rinse with bucket and a sponge

Then two fresh buckets of warm > hot water (use the two bucket system), wash with sponge/washmit

Then rinse

Then another warm bucket plenty of shampoo

Rinse

Dry

Apply this supposed liquid wax



I am after a decent wax (weather it be liquid wax) or other types of wax to give good effect, and good protection when it rains, good for the paintwork etc.

Anyone reccomend any? also am I missing anything vital out in my cleaning steps?
 
Anything from Chemical guys / Petes / DoDo / AutoFinesse will do. If you really want to get into the wax scene, you can spend hundreds, even thousands, on a pack of wax that could easily last 2 or 3 years if you wax twice a year.

Collinite seems popular on here, but that's more because it's cheap and nasty compared to other brands :p

Most normal people will drop around £40-£60 on wax.

Then you get waxs which enhance specific colours, deeper colours like blue / black. Petes 53 is an example of that.

I'm looking for something that enhances white, but there are also a lot of "gimmick" waxes which even some of the big boys push out too.
 
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Django x2 said:
Anything from Chemical guys / Petes / DoDo / AutoFinesse will do. If you really want to get into the wax scene, you can spend hundreds, even thousands, on a pack of wax that could easily last 2 or 3 years if you wax twice a year.

Collinite seems popular on here, but that's more because it's cheap and nasty compared to other brands :p

Most normal people will drop around £40-£60 on wax.

Then you get waxs which enhance specific colours, deeper colours like blue / black. Petes 53 is an example of that.

I'm looking for something that enhances white, but there are also a lot of "gimmick" waxes which even some of the big boys push out too.
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Raises the question how often do some of these people use specific waxes, I know some types of wax is supposed to be used say 2 -3 times a year, other waxes can be used after every wash.

Im generally after something for after every wash, which will give me the shine, protection and beading result, and maybe a more refined wax for the "twice every year" kind of use.


Also what about claying, I know this generally is something you do less often, maybe once a year?

Thanks for the info so far
 
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Clay strips everything back so there are no contaminates when you polish.

Bilt Hamber is the daddy when it comes to clay. You get a lot of it, it lasts for ages (if you don't drop it) and it can be used with water rather than expensive clay lubes.

As far as protection goes, I like a sealant / wax combination for durability and finish.

So after a clay and polish I will finish with Autoglym SRP, then EGP then a few layers of Collinite 476.

Then every so often you just top up the 476 after washing until the next big clean.

However, I understand there are better alternatives to the AG products now so I'm just waiting to use up what I've got before buying anything new.

I've got the Blackfire Wet Ice Over Fire kit from Polished Bliss (can't believe I spent that much :o)

It generates an amazing finish but it's not very durable —*if you were going to a show and shine this would be first choice but for regular day-to-day living (and the British winter) the approach I've mentioned above is a much better balance of shine and durability.
 
AGSRP for me has always been a hard one for me to swallow as I hate resin polish with a passion. It does one thing, fill gaps. Like an old haggered thai hooker, the underlying damage is there and "hidden" by resin which doesn't last that long (one, maybe two washes). It's a filler, no doubt the best on the market, but still a filler.

So what's the alternative? Well, a correction to the paint which most don't have the time or experience for.

It sounds like you would be happier with a quick wax / detail spray for after every wash, and then a collinite / chemical guys on the big wash
 
DJMK4 said:
Im generally after something for after every wash, which will give me the shine, protection and beading result, and maybe a more refined wax for the "twice every year" kind of use.
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Autoglym Aqua Wax is what you are after then. Spray it onto any part of the car as you dry it with a microfibre cloth - bonds to the paint through the water giving a great level of protection.

I personally use Autoglym HD wax every so often. Clay, then SRP followed by HD wax. Leaves an impressive finish that lasts for ages, especially if topped up with Aqua Wax.

Django x2 said:
AGSRP for me has always been a hard one for me to swallow as I hate resin polish with a passion. It does one thing, fill gaps. Like an old haggered thai hooker, the underlying damage is there and "hidden" by resin which doesn't last that long (one, maybe two washes). It's a filler, no doubt the best on the market, but still a filler.
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Exactly why you are meant to lock it in with a good quality wax. No polished car should be left untreated. The aim is to create the shine and then lock it in with the wax. SRP leaves a fantastic shine and is very gentle on the paint.
 
Quick one. Car has been in body shop for some work and they are machine polishing it before I pick it up tomorrow.

Question is should I do anything apart from a go over with a detailing spray before I wax it? Was thinking it may be worth jet washing and letting it dry first before the detail spray and wax?

Also is multiple coats of wax worth it?
 
.:SAmSuNG:. said:
Quick one. Car has been in body shop for some work and they are machine polishing it before I pick it up tomorrow.

Question is should I do anything apart from a go over with a detailing spray before I wax it? Was thinking it may be worth jet washing and letting it dry first before the detail spray and wax?

Also is multiple coats of wax worth it?
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What kind of work? paint? if so i have heard its best to leave the new paint for a month or so before applying wax to that area.
 
Yep - Think new paint has to cure properly for a while.

Also I would never put a quick detailer on then wax.
I would want the wax on the paint itself, use the QD on top of the wax, use the QD as the sacrificial layer, not the wax.
 
Yea new paint in lots of areas. Will leave those areas to cure for a bit. What steps should I take before waxing the non painted parts if the car paint could have been contaminated between the machine polish and wax?

By contaminated I mean dust and possibly wet roads driving it home tomorrow which is roughly 2 miles. Just a wash and dry?
 
Maybe don't let them machine polish it?

Personally, I wouldn't want someone to potentially put a bunch of buffing trails/holograms in the paint. Unless you trust the body shop.

And I think a rinse + QD/dry would be more than enough. If the car is clean when you pick it up.
 
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