*** The Car Cleaning Thread ***

[grudas]

Dont see many of them. I do have a soft spot these.

They're interesting cars love it as a daily driver. Very few in UK too. Going by the group on Facebook admin suggested around 40ish if that.

 

[inflames]

Afrer some recomendadtions on snowfoams, i will be buying a new one soon. I have used Autofinesse Avalanche, found it foamed well and helped to shift some of the surface muck. I am current using Krystal Kleen Blizzard, been using for a few months but i havent found it to not to foam very well or help shift some muck.

 

[grudas]

Afrer some recomendadtions on snowfoams, i will be buying a new one soon. I have used Autofinesse Avalanche, found it foamed well and helped to shift some of the surface muck. I am current using Krystal Kleen Blizzard, been using for a few months but i havent found it to not to foam very well or help shift some muck.

My to go foams:

Autobrite magifoam - very thick and sits on the car for ages, cleans well too and is cheap.
Bilt hamber auto foam - not as thick and runs off quicker but has very good cleaning power, gotta watch out in the summer so it doesn't dry out.

 

[inflames]

They're interesting cars love it as a daily driver. Very few in UK too. Going by the group on Facebook admin suggested around 40ish if that.

That figure i can believe, bet you get a few people ask what it is. I bet it is very comfy? There is someone who lives near my parents and there is always a few JDM cars on the drive way. Other the years i have seen on their drive Toyota Chasers, Crown's, Aristo's, they current have a Supra and a GTO on the drive and I drool everytime i go past. Like i said i have a massive soft spot for JDM cars of the 80's, 90's and the 00's.

 

[inflames]

My to go foams:

Autobrite magifoam - very thick and sits on the car for ages, cleans well too and is cheap.
Bilt hamber auto foam - not as thick and runs off quicker but has very good cleaning power, gotta watch out in the summer so it doesn't dry out.

Awesome they are two of the one's i have been looking at, after watching some youtube reviews. Thanks.

 

[inflames]

Can anyone recommend some products for getting rid of bird **** and also a good alloy wheel cleaner.

I have heard Bilt Hamber is supposed to be very good, I take it that is PH neutral so wouldn't cause any damage?

The cleaner for the bird poop is just when I happen to be out and about and need something to use quickly to remove it.

Thanks

For removing bird poop, i have been using poor guys bird S@@t remover. I have found it to be very good. Just spray, let it soak in of a mo and wipe of with a wet cloth, mit what every your choice is. For stubborn, baked on poops i have found spray it and then placign a wet sponge set on it for a few mins helps.

 

[Cookeh]

Did a quick wet-sand a polish on my partners headlights, which were in a subpar condition to say the least.

Rolla headlight before
Rolla headlight after

Took about an hour to do both sides, working from 800 grit through to 1000, 1500, 2000 grit and finishing at 3000 grit. I then used Ultimate Compound to restore clarity. I used the sanding pads and headlight coating provided in a Holts Headlight Restoration Kit which I picked up for £7 from ECP on a sale. Would recommend it, as you get a drill adaptor, polish, sealant and two sets of each grit for the money. The sanding pads are actually of good quality too, which a nice foam backing to help ensure even pressure.

 

[AiiR]

Looks brand new!

 

[GravyMonster]

Fantastic job! Did you have to remove the headlight unit to sand it?

 

[Cookeh]

Fantastic job! Did you have to remove the headlight unit to sand it?

No, no need. You can remove it if its got particularly tight corners or if you're worried about marking the paint. It's definitely easier to polish when bolted in, as when off the car it will move around a lot under the rotational forces of the DA/drill/whatever you're using. If you're worried about marring the paint you can just tape around the headlight instead. As you can tell from the dirt on the bonnet vs the rest of the surrounding area, opening the bonnet gives you better access and one less edge (depending on headlight design) to worry about.

 

[jpaul]

they look excellent yes - still on offer
- my first question - googling - does look as though kits are for plastic/acrylic lenses, had got my hopes up.

 

[sad099]

Did a quick wet-sand a polish on my partners headlights, which were in a subpar condition to say the least.

Rolla headlight before
Rolla headlight after

Took about an hour to do both sides, working from 800 grit through to 1000, 1500, 2000 grit and finishing at 3000 grit. I then used Ultimate Compound to restore clarity. I used the sanding pads and headlight coating provided in a Holts Headlight Restoration Kit which I picked up for £7 from ECP on a sale. Would recommend it, as you get a drill adaptor, polish, sealant and two sets of each grit for the money. The sanding pads are actually of good quality too, which a nice foam backing to help ensure even pressure.

That does look good - need to do mine.
Was it difficult to to do, was there anything you need to pay particular attention to when doing this ?
Assuming you had to mask off the paintwork ?
Thanks

 

[V_R]

they look excellent yes - still on offer
- my first question - googling - does look as though kits are for plastic/acrylic lenses, had got my hopes up.

I used that very kit to do the lights on an old Vectra, they came up pretty well. (excuse the watermarks)

 

[Cookeh]

they look excellent yes - still on offer
- my first question - googling - does look as though kits are for plastic/acrylic lenses, had got my hopes up.

Glass shouldn't need polishing due to fading/yellowing. You can polish glass to remove fine scratches/embedded dirt. A rayon pad and CarPro Ceriglass will work for that. Incidentally, no need to spend £25 on a kit when you can get Holts ones for £7 on sale from ECP.

That does look good - need to do mine.
Was it difficult to to do, was there anything you need to pay particular attention to when doing this ?
Assuming you had to mask off the paintwork ?
Thanks

It's childs play really:-
- Wash the headlight and surrounding bodywork (to avoid contamination)
- Wet sand the headlight working up through the grits with each new grit being perpendicular to the previous direction (this ensures all high spots and ridges are knocked down).
- Compound it. Use whatever you have, included polish or a proper compound if you have it. By hand is possible, but drill attachment better and DA/rotary better still.
- Then clean the headlight again, if possible using IPA or similar to remove oils from the compound, then seal it up. Car wax works, products included in the kits work well, ceramic sealants work very well.

You can mask if you're worried about catching edges of the paint.

 

[rhysduck]

Excellent job that. The Holts kit is currently £80 on ECP, might pick one up

 

[sad099]

Glass shouldn't need polishing due to fading/yellowing. You can polish glass to remove fine scratches/embedded dirt. A rayon pad and CarPro Ceriglass will work for that. Incidentally, no need to spend £25 on a kit when you can get Holts ones for £7 on sale from ECP.



It's childs play really:-
- Wash the headlight and surrounding bodywork (to avoid contamination)
- Wet sand the headlight working up through the grits with each new grit being perpendicular to the previous direction (this ensures all high spots and ridges are knocked down).
- Compound it. Use whatever you have, included polish or a proper compound if you have it. By hand is possible, but drill attachment better and DA/rotary better still.
- Then clean the headlight again, if possible using IPA or similar to remove oils from the compound, then seal it up. Car wax works, products included in the kits work well, ceramic sealants work very well.

You can mask if you're worried about catching edges of the paint.

Perfect - thanks for the clarification.
Might try and give this a go over the next few weeks, will order the kit you mentioned

 

[jpaul]

You can polish glass to remove fine scratches/embedded dirt. A rayon pad and CarPro Ceriglass will work for that. Incidentally, no need to spend £25 on a kit when you can get Holts ones for £7 on sale from ECP.

as you say, for glass headlights, the Carpro kit ~£12 seems more appropriate option
Review: CarPro CeriGlass

Spoiler: method

Methodology
• Clean glass to remove dirt, dust or road grime from surfaces
• Use masking tape to protect windscreen rubber sealing
• Apply clay (Magic Clay®) and lubricant solution (WooliteTM / Water 5:1) onto the glass surface (
• Carpro CeriGlass is a special glass polishing technique developed by the innovative special ceramic, Cerium Oxide, together with some other nano components that can be used by hand or machine and is so effective, it even removes fine to medium scratches and it leaves glass crystal clean and crystal clear.
• Apply a quarter (coin) size amounts of the glass polish using an LC Glass polishing pad, is made of dense polyurethane foam with very small cells.
The pad’s density enables it to keep the glass polish on the surface, rather than soaking into the foam. You’ll use less polish to get the job done, despite its density; the pad still has plenty of flexibility to conform to the curvature of the glass, speed #4 on a PC random orbital polisher
• Heat caused by abrasive polishing can soften and damage glass; foam pad and product used must minimize heat build-up. Since glass is a poor heat conductor any friction heat built up from polishing must be kept to a minimum by using sufficient product and regular misting of both the polishing pad and glass surface with distilled water.
• Apply to half of the windshield, polishing first in an up and down motion then in a left-to-right motion and then repeat on the other side, proceed to other glass surfaces.
• Go over the glass several times in each direction, glass will polish virtually residue free.
• Wipe off any residue, and polish with a clean dry 100% cotton Micro fibre cloth.
• Inspect glass for clarity and smoothness. Repeat if necessary.
• If the glass has PPG Industries Optech clear coating a more aggressive polish may be required

Cerium Oxide (CeO2)


Is considered one of the most efficient agents for precision polishing of optical components is primarily used as a glass polishing powder and it has been used for the past six decades, and has been proven to be an effective polishing agent. During the process of polishing glasses, cerium Oxide reacts with the glass surface to produce a cerium-oxygen-silicon compound which is softer than glass, and is therefore easier to work with to produce the final polished surface.

 

[beachBOYken]

For removing bird poop, i have been using poor guys bird S@@t remover. I have found it to be very good. Just spray, let it soak in of a mo and wipe of with a wet cloth, mit what every your choice is. For stubborn, baked on poops i have found spray it and then placign a wet sponge set on it for a few mins helps.

Thanks will check that product out.

Need some wheel cleaner as well, have heard something called Bilt wheel cleaner is decent.

 

[Cookeh]

Bilt Hamber AutoWheel. Arguably the best active wheel cleaner on the market, if you're looking for an active cleaner (i.e. acts like a fallout remover at the same time).

 

[inflames]

Thanks will check that product out.

Need some wheel cleaner as well, have heard something called Bilt wheel cleaner is decent.

Bilt Hamber AutoWheel. Arguably the best active wheel cleaner on the market, if you're looking for an active cleaner (i.e. acts like a fallout remover at the same time).

Yes I have to agree that Bilt Hamber is the best active wheel cleaner I have used. Don’t think I’ll be using anything else for the foreseeable future.