*** The Car Cleaning Thread ***

[RSR]

might want some tar remover too

and some IronX, that's fanstic stuff.

 

[rhysduck]

I bought smoe Dragons Breath that didn't come with a sprayer... anyone recommend a sprayer thats suitable? everything i've tried so far hasnt worked, the DB is too thick and comes out in gloops

 

[Voxination]

Water blade? Eww. You sinner.

Also, surely makes more sense to blower the vents/badges etc first, rather than after drying the rest of the car? So then the water you blow out just spreads itself over the rest of the car?

I live in a very hard water area, I can either get an Olympic workout from rushing round the car trying to dry it in time, or just wipe it off with a blade. I choose blade You're right about the blower probably making more sense to go first, but that's more time with the water sat on the car drying and leaving very hard to remove water marks.

 

[[TW]Fox]

I just let it dry and then wipe it over with quick detailer? Seems loads less faff.

 

[Voxination]

You live in Devon, your water is about as hard as the pensioners that live there

 

[norm]

Do you think this is a start? I'll get it hand-washed & jetsprayed by the carwash people then this is all for after.

Getting it hand-washed by a local firm is as good a way to get swirl marks as any.

The person washing doesn't care if they drop the sponge/mitt on the ground they'll continue using it on your paintwork. They likely reuse suds/water over multiple cars as well.

If you're spending £60 on a handful of cleaning products you might as well wash it yourself because I'd argue improper washing is where most of the damage occurs (not counting stonechips).

 

[ShiWarrior]

id like to get my inside of my car done soon

I have no idea where to start

any tips ?
Thanks

 

[Raymond Lin]

id like to get my inside of my car done soon

I have no idea where to start

any tips ?
Thanks

Take all the carpets out, wash them
Vacuum cleaner
Fabric or leather cleaner for seats
Interior cleaner for plastics
Perl for bring back the plastic shine
Glass cleaner for the windows
Brushes for hard to reach places.

 

[Cookeh]

Take all the carpets out, wash them
Vacuum cleaner
Fabric or leather cleaner for seats
Interior cleaner for plastics
Perl for bring back the plastic shine
Glass cleaner for the windows
Brushes for hard to reach places.

This, or sub some diluted APC for seats, cloth, and plastic.

 

[helpimcrap]

Getting it hand-washed by a local firm is as good a way to get swirl marks as any.

The person washing doesn't care if they drop the sponge/mitt on the ground they'll continue using it on your paintwork. They likely reuse suds/water over multiple cars as well.

If you're spending £60 on a handful of cleaning products you might as well wash it yourself because I'd argue improper washing is where most of the damage occurs (not counting stonechips).

Noted. I only take it there because I've seen Ferraris going through and they jet wash first before washing. So dirt has been blasted off.

 

[pepsilol]

Noted. I only take it there because I've seen Ferraris going through and they jet wash first before washing. So dirt has been blasted off.

Doesn't work like that.

 

[Raymond Lin]

Noted. I only take it there because I've seen Ferraris going through and they jet wash first before washing. So dirt has been blasted off.

They key of washing the car is getting the dirt off, or lifting it off. The very last thing you want is pushing the dirt hard into the paint.

The hose at the start is to loosen the dirt. When you wash the car with the mitt, you don't need to rub it too hard at all, or actually need that much pressure. Do it in a motion that you lift it up, so start on one side of the mitt, sweep across and as you do, tilt so it's a clean part over the paint. At least that's how I do it. then rinse in a clear bucket before moving to a shampoo bucket.

If I ever drop the mitt, I use another one (I have 2).

You can pre-wash it with snow foam, but you still have to wash it with a mitt anyway.

Same with Clay bar, fold it often, and if I drop it, that goes in the bin. That means I cut the bar up into quarters and so if I drop it, it doesn't all go to waste.

 

[MeAnBoY]

Had time to polish and put a new layer of wax on the car over the weekend. Looked cool with the morning dew today

I use Pete's 53 wax, nearly running out now and just seen it's hiked up in price since I got my first lot a few years ago

 

[AndyCr15]

So, this was the engine bay as I started -

Not too, bad, but not shiny.

Left it as long as I could to dry, but then after 2 or 3 hours, I needed it. Only remembered today to check how it looked once dried (I 'cleaned' it Saturday)

I say 'cleaned' it, as all I really did was poke about for around a minute with a brush. Not bad, I would say.

 

[MoRT489]

So you just sprayed it all and left it on overnight, no wipe off required?

 

[helpimcrap]

Thanks for the advice from a few. Much appreciated detail!

I'll practice washing and claying and polishing Focus tonight as a practice.

 

[AndyCr15]

So you just sprayed it all and left it on overnight, no wipe off required?

Sprayed the cleaner on, agitated with a brush a little, hosed off then sprayed on the vinyl cleaner. A few days later, it looks like that

 

[Silent_Scone]

Just thought I'd throw my 2 pence in here with some Xpel content. Had paint protection film fitted to my Evo last month on front end, roof and carbon

Resin polished the rest of the bodywork, then used Auto Glym extra gloss sealant, Dodo Light Fantastic and a few squirts of Megs Spray n' Wax.

(Then I used it all week and it got filthy again )

 

[MoRT489]

What do you use to remove carbon stains from the exhaust?

 

[Silent_Scone]

What do you use to remove carbon stains from the exhaust?

It's only 2 months old so not much as of yet, Gyeon Q2M Tar seems to fill that void though