*** The Car Cleaning Thread ***

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Not a great picture but I am well pleased with the results. The BH wax shines up really well. One thing I forgot to buy is fallout remover; theres little orange specs on the paintwork which annoyed me as I couldn't get them out
 
Hi all.

Just bought myself a Pearl White Ford SMax. The car is in great condition for the age and I wanted to delve into the world of detailing.

I want to keep things fairly simple.
Just wanted some advice on the polish and waxing part.

From reading the early parts of the thread I have decided to go for.....
Autoglym Super Resin Polish which seems fairly well rated.
For the waxing afterwards I’m looking at Collinite 476.

Are these decent choices for a Pearl white coloured car if not can you advise me what I should go for instead ?

Many thanks
Lee
 
Bcfclee27 said:
Hi all.

Just bought myself a Pearl White Ford SMax. The car is in great condition for the age and I wanted to delve into the world of detailing.

I want to keep things fairly simple.
Just wanted some advice on the polish and waxing part.

From reading the early parts of the thread I have decided to go for.....
Autoglym Super Resin Polish which seems fairly well rated.
For the waxing afterwards I’m looking at Collinite 476.

Are these decent choices for a Pearl white coloured car if not can you advise me what I should go for instead ?

Many thanks
Lee
Click to expand...

476 is a good but not easy to apply wax.

I'd get some bilt hamber wax as that is very user friendly and still gets good results.
 
mrk said:
Popped into Halfords yesterday and noticed they now stock the full range of Autofinesse stuff. Excellent! The way Tripple hides swirls and light scratches is magic.

rps20190616_001520_089.jpg


I've also changed my wax from Collinite 915 to 845. I got tired of how much effort is required to apply and buff off the hard based wax so liquid wax is the way going forwards. Same lengevity, just way easier and quicker to work with.

rps20190616_084810_488.jpg
Click to expand...

Great wax but like said above, before use put in a bowl of warm water to liquidfy it or it will be very hard (literally) to get it out of the bottle.

I've never tried it in a spray nozzle however, i suspect you will need to put warm water through it afterwards to stop it clogging.
 
Ok so if I swap the Autoglym SRP for the poor boys white diamond.

And swap the collinite for the 845 version which is the same as the 476 but easier to apply ?

Also excuse my ignorance the car is a pearl white does that mean I need a special type of wax/polish for it or are they all fine etc..

One last thing obviously I wash the car.
Once it’s dry I apply the polish one panel at a time. Once I’ve completed that do I go straight onto the wax ?
IE is it best if it polish then wax immediately after or can I leave it a few hours or a day etc.

Thanks for all your help.
 
Last edited:
Dis86 said:
@Nazbit apparently a standard 0.5l coke bottle will fit... seems like a really cheap option to try!
Click to expand...

I can confirm that this works! Thanks.


Normally use Collinite 476 in winter and FK1000P in summer but was given some AG HD Wax as a gift and wanted to give that a go. Pretty happy with the results.

Valet Pro Snowfoam, CG Maxi Suds II, CG Bug Bugger, AG Tar Remover
AG Super Resin Polish, CG EZ Creme Glaze, AG HD Wax
Valet Pro Glass Cleaner, Aerospace 303, Gyeon Q2 Tyre Dressing

car1.jpg

car2.jpg

car3.jpg
 
Bcfclee27 said:
Ok so if I swap the Autoglym SRP for the poor boys white diamond.

And swap the collinite for the 845 version which is the same as the 476 but easier to apply ?

Also excuse my ignorance the car is a pearl white does that mean I need a special type of wax/polish for it or are they all fine etc..

One last thing obviously I wash the car.
Once it’s dry I apply the polish one panel at a time. Once I’ve completed that do I go straight onto the wax ?
IE is it best if it polish then wax immediately after or can I leave it a few hours or a day etc.

Thanks for all your help.
Click to expand...
Polish then wax, if you leave it you have the chance dirt will rest on the paint and get rubbed in when you wax
 
What's the best way to look after red leather seats? They aren't too bad at the minute but there is some slight cracking so I'd like to restore and keep them in the best condition possible!
 
Is it sealed leather? If so, just keep them clean with a mild leather cleaner (LTT or Colourlock are good) and then use any number of the leather sealants on the market (GTechniq L1 or Dodo Juice Supernatural leather sealant).

To test if its sealed just drop some water on it - if it soaks in and spreads its aniline leather. If it sits on the surface its sealed.

Cracks can be minimised to some extent using steam, but if severe enough they have to be filled and dyed. Again, Colourlock or LTT.
 
Bcfclee27 said:
Ok so if I swap the Autoglym SRP for the poor boys white diamond.

And swap the collinite for the 845 version which is the same as the 476 but easier to apply ?

Also excuse my ignorance the car is a pearl white does that mean I need a special type of wax/polish for it or are they all fine etc..

One last thing obviously I wash the car.
Once it’s dry I apply the polish one panel at a time. Once I’ve completed that do I go straight onto the wax ?
IE is it best if it polish then wax immediately after or can I leave it a few hours or a day etc.

Thanks for all your help.
Click to expand...

if it's your first time I'd do a bit more.. once/twice a year I will go full whack and do -;

traffic film remover
iron
prewash(snow foam etc)
two bucket wash
clay
pressure wash off again
polish
pre-wax clean(panel wipe/wax etc remover)
seal(wax/ceramic/etc)

prep before wax is super important, without good prep wax will not bond properly.
 
The weather was good yesterday and car was a little mucky so I decided to give it another clean. I also decided to touch the engine bay with some gunk and it came out nicely.

I prewashed the car with snowfoam, hit it with autobrite purple rain + BH auto wheel cleaner.
Then used AG polar wash and seal which I'm really impressed with.
Cleaned the glass with autobrite crystal.
Finally dressed the engine, leather, interior and rear diffuser with poorboys dressing.

IMG-20190625-120329.jpg



IMG-20190625-153037.jpg
 
Engine bay came up nicely, I would love to pressure wash/snow foam mine, not sure I'm brave enough!

Yesterday I applied Gtechniq C5 wheel armor ceramic coating to a set of freshly refurbished wheels for my A2 before leaving them overnight to cure.

48158632142_dc5aa59612_c.jpg


Will report back how it fares for cleaning etc.
 
This weekend I bought the Katsu DAP from Amazon, along with the TackLife 180mm polishing pad set.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/KATSU-1003...=gateway&sprefix=dual+action+,aps,135&sr=8-10

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Polishing-...olishing+pads&qid=1561906735&s=gateway&sr=8-5

I've just put some SRP on my car's bonnet and for ~£70 combined, I'm really impressed with the usability of and results from this tool and the pads are very sticky.

Recommended for sure, especially since the Maguire's equivalent would be ~£200.
 
grudas said:
if it's your first time I'd do a bit more.. once/twice a year I will go full whack and do -;

traffic film remover
iron
prewash(snow foam etc)
two bucket wash
clay
pressure wash off again
polish
pre-wax clean(panel wipe/wax etc remover)
seal(wax/ceramic/etc)

prep before wax is super important, without good prep wax will not bond properly.
Click to expand...

Interesting that you clay straight after washing without rinsing first. Most posts I've read on this seem to recommend wash then rinse then clay with a lubricant, with another rinse being optional at that point?

Or have you just missed out the rinsing steps, as reading again you've not mentioned rinse steps?

Total amateur talking.
 
I hate black cars.

Hard water? Stains!
Warm day? Stains!
Wax worn off and cloths too wet? Stains!
Stone chips? Mega visible!
Bah.
 
Finally managed to clean the car and have the sun stay out long enough to get some pics!

o1gYrhs.jpg


6hvSokW.jpg


b6kBtfF.jpg


VP Dragon's Breath wheel cleaner
BH Snow Foam
Rinse
Megs Ultimate Wash & Wax - picked this up cheap to try and does a good job
Rinse
BSD
Megs Endurance High Gloss Tyre dressing (not in pics as I did this after moving the car)

She could do with a clay and wax too as I haven't done it in a few months, but I ran out of time. The BSD gives a good, if not long lasting, finish though.
 
Lovely interior. Really like the colour of the seats and the contrast between the black wood and the seat controls / Burmester speakers. Were the seats an option on that car? Are they leather or Artico?

Spunkey said:
Megs Endurance High Gloss Tyre dressing (not in pics as I did this after moving the car)
Click to expand...

What do you apply that with? I find it a good product but a PITA to apply properly.
 
Thanks. The seats are standard with Premium Plus pack. They're 'Comfort seats' in Artico, so not the softest leather in the world, but with a couple of young kids it's saved some real headaches :)

I use an old Muslin square folded over a few times, while wearing rubber gloves as it's a git to wash off... anything.
 
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