Cleaning and Polishing your car

[briancol 3]

Tips on detailing your car

As a lot of you know, I have worked in the motor industry most of my life.

Cleaning, waxing and polishing cars was a daily ritual for me. So here are a few tips to get your cars ready for the Show'n'Shine, or just having it look good.

I make no apologies for recommending Megiuars products because in my opinion they are the best product on the market and are my product of choice. (I am going to assume that your car's paintwork is in reasonable condition and does not need a cut)

WASHING

Wash your car using water and a specially formulated car wash and conditioner. Detergents can dry your paint out leading to a loss of gloss and shine. All Meguiar's washes are also environmentally safe

Rinse the car off with clean water from top to bottom and keep it wet durring the washing process

Wash you car in the shade or in the cool of the evening. Use 2 buckets, one for the car wash and the other to rinse out your sponge. This will prevent dirt particles clinging to your sponge and scratching your paintwork.

Always wash the car from the roof downwards.

Rinse the soap off throughly with fresh water then put it in your garage.

Dry the car thoroughly with a chamois

CLEANING

Washing and cleaning while they sound similar, they are vastly different procedures. A car wash removes loose contaminants from your finish like dust, road grime, and fresh bird droppings. A clear coat-safe paint cleaner removes stubborn, bonded contaminants, stains, blemishes and oxidation. A clay bar is the perfect choice for removing bonded contaminants like overspray and tree sap mist that won't flush off with washing.

Fine scratches and swirls are most noticeable on dark coloured cars and are usually caused by particles of contaminants on wash sponges and drying towels. The most effective way to remove below surface paint problems like oxidation, fine scratches and swirls is to use a non-abrasive clearcoat safe paint cleaner like Meguiar's ScratchX 2.0.

WAXING & POLISHING

Polishing your car is the next step. This will protect and add a brilliant gloss to your paint's surface. Meguiars Ultimate Polish or Deep Crystal Polish is recommended especially for dark coloured cars to help create the ultimate in high gloss.

While some modern-day marketers have caused confusion by naively misusing the terms, the definitions are clear. As in polishing a diamond, the sole purpose of polishing is to create brilliant high gloss. For car show enthusiasts who are obsessed with having perfectly clear reflections, a pure polish is the perfect choice. Waxing a car falls under the larger heading of protecting the paint finish from the elements by coating it with waxes, polymers, resins and silicones.

The waxing must be done in your garage away from the heat and harsh sunlight. Once your car is properly cleaned and polished, it is time to wax. I use Meguiars NXT Generation II wax. Personally I do the entire car applying the wax with the applicator supplied with the product. Once the wax has completely dried (I usually do the interior of my car while allowing the wax to dry and work it's way into the paint) then take the residue off with 100% cotton, terrycloth toweling or premium microfibre toweling to eliminate this problem and to reduce the time and effort required for wipe off. Do not use old T shirts, towels etc as they will collect dirt particles and damage the finish. Remember two thin coats of wax are far better than one liberal coat.

MAINTAINING THE FINISH.

By using a quick detailer such as Meguiars NXT Generation Quick Detailer dramatically extends the durability of your wax protection. This comes in a spray plastic bottle. Once again, do this in your garage and allow the car to cool before applying. Spray onto small areas and wipe off with microfibre cloth. If you find it takes a while to wipe the Detailer off, it is usually a good indication that it is time to re-wax your car.

BODY MOULDINGS, DOOR HANDLES AND WINDOW RUBBERS.

NEVER USE SILICONE. Personally I like to use an Automotive grade Bees Wax. I buy it from Pacer Products but you should be able to purchase it from a good Auto Accessory shop. Use it sparingly, it goes a long way. I put a little on a microfibre cloth on my forefinger and wipe it over the area it needs to go on. Be careful not to get it on the paint work. It won't damage it, but you don't want other wax over your recently waxed surface.

I hope this is of some help to those of you who are getting your cars ready for this months Show'n'Shine or those that want their cars to look their very best.

Edited January 4, 2012 by C0SM0S

[bimmer boy 21]

Very good tips here! My recomendation is to never use a sponge though, use a woolen wash mitt. It can either be synthetic or natural lambs wool. Just gives better results with less chance of dirt etc being dragged across the paint being between the sponge and the paint surface.

[nath 129]

Great advice!

But alas, I just dont have the time/ bother to do this these days.

[Forrest 35]

Also, although I don't know how valid, my recommendation is to rinse the soap off the car without the nozzle on the hose, otherwise the jet/spray out of the hose blasts all the wax out of the just applied car wash, works for me anyway.

Edited January 4, 2012 by Brams

[briancol 3]

Very good tips here! My recomendation is to never use a sponge though, use a woolen wash mitt. It can either be synthetic or natural lambs wool. Just gives better results with less chance of dirt etc being dragged across the paint being between the sponge and the paint surface.

I totally agree that the lambs wool is best for washing your car, however, most people do use a sponge but the use of two buckets of water remains constant for both. A lambswool mit can still hold particles of damaging dirt and should be rinsed off regularly.

[leithcm 0]

Followed this to the letter today, including claying the car prior to polishing. I thought the car was spotlessly cleaned after the wash and clean (including spot work with the Scratchx 2.0) but no; the CRAP that came off into the clay bar! There was quite a difference in the smoothness of the paint once the claying was finished! I just would not have believed the difference. Thanks, COSMOS, for the thread, the results were well worth the effort!

[dubman 39]

quick questions:

is it necessary to use paint cleaner before polish? i.e step 1 and 2 in the megiuars polish/wax steps. doesnt it do the same thing basically - it removes the top micro layer of paint?

also, how do you tell the difference between oxidation and sun fade? i had both rear quarters sprayed nearly 2 years ago, yet the more shaded side of the car seems more "reflective" and shiny. the car's white and its a bit hard to tell

cheers for any advice.

[Beeker2 69]

What about watermarks? I get it allot. Naturally, drying the car with a microfibre towl makes a massive difference.

I'm considering one of the 2x stage water filters for my outside tape. The first is a pure filter, the 2nd makes the water 'soft'.

eg: http://www.autogeek.net/deluxe-filter-system.html

Any experience here ?

Edited January 21, 2012 by Beeker2

[_ethrty-Andy_ 2122]

Vote for sticky...?

[Beeker2 69]

I totally agree that the lambs wool is best for washing your car, however, most people do use a sponge but the use of two buckets of water remains constant for both. A lambswool mit can still hold particles of damaging dirt and should be rinsed off regularly.

What about those microfibre covered sponges? Opinion?

[Nobimmer 694]

What about watermarks? I get it allot. Naturally, drying the car with a microfibre towl makes a massive difference.

I'm considering one of the 2x stage water filters for my outside tape. The first is a pure filter, the 2nd makes the water 'soft'.

eg: http://www.autogeek.net/deluxe-filter-system.html

Any experience here ?

I wish I had the money to wash my car with filtered water, jesus christ.

[Allanw 1051]

Get one of those 1000L tank's from trademe, and hide it around the back under a downpipe.

I have rain water at my place (country, 50,000L) and after washing the car, there are NO watermarks. I don't even chamois it down most of the time. Even looked good on my old black Accord (until I drove it anywhere).

I think the plastic tanks are about $100? Then just need a pump (or use gravity, if you have somewhere high to put it). The rain water is only really needed for the rinse, to wash the hard water away.

I like the "filter rejuvinating tablets" in the link above :-) . They mean salt. It will work well, just rinse the filter before using on the car!

The resin beads in the filter "absorb" calcium and magnesuim etc and the sodium "recharges" it. They should be able to be reused 100's if not 1000's of times.

Our water softeners at work treat at least 45000 litres per week, and regenrate once per week, using about 25KG of salt :-)

[kev_ 0]

Wow, this is awsome; thanks for taking the time to post this.

One question; what is 'glaze', and at what step would it fit into the picture?

[my_e36 43]

From what I read, glaze is used after polish and before wax. Essentially is a micro-filler that top up the minor scratches that you don't/can't/won't polish away before a wax covers and protects the whole thing.

[jeffbebe 1559]

I don't have a garage and our carport/street parking gets the sun pretty much all day. I've also got a black car so it gets pretty warm even in winter if the sun's on it. I'm just wondering what the impact of cut/polish and waxing in the sun actually is on the paint as I don't have too many other options short of driving the car somewhere else to clean it... Which isn't very practical.

Incidentally, I bought a pot of beeswax and jojoba oil about a year ago, from Larry the shoeshine guy (what a character!) - http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article....jectid=10548034 - and it is spectacularly good for vinyl and plastic, etc (dash, wiper blades, mirror fixings, door and bumper mouldings, etc). Makes leather look great too but probably not as good as a conditioner as it sits on the surface rather than soaking in.

Edited June 7, 2012 by jeffbebe

[briancol 3]

Julian, What partf Auckland do you live in?

If it's near Papatoetoe, then you're welcome to use my garage to polish your car.

PM me or text me on 021393334

[jeffbebe 1559]

Julian, What partf Auckland do you live in?

If it's near Papatoetoe, then you're welcome to use my garage to polish your car.

PM me or text me on 021393334

Thanks Brian! Very decent of you... I live in the city so not that near unfortunately but I'll definitely drop you a line if I'm planning to clean my car and I fancy a drive to boot!

[Mark 178]

I don't have a garage and our carport/street parking gets the sun pretty much all day. I've also got a black car so it gets pretty warm even in winter if the sun's on it. I'm just wondering what the impact of cut/polish and waxing in the sun actually is on the paint as I don't have too many other options short of driving the car somewhere else to clean it... Which isn't very practical.

Buy a cheap pop up Gazebo from the Warehouse or similar? Polish at night under a work light?

[PFS 1]

What about those microfibre covered sponges? Opinion?

The primary reason for avoiding the use of sponges is that the 'flat' surface of the sponge traps the dirt & grit that is on the car against the paint surface as you move the sponge over the panel. This is what causes the majority of swirl marks and minor scratches. (followed closely by using a single bucket, instead of having a separate one to rinse out the dirty mitt, as the OP mentions)

Lambswool is best - deep pile microfibre also works - the trick is having a mitt that allows the dirt to be drawn away from the paint as you wash. (And ensure that you keep the mitt clean by rinsing it out after at least each panel)

quick questions:

is it necessary to use paint cleaner before polish? i.e step 1 and 2 in the megiuars polish/wax steps. doesnt it do the same thing basically - it removes the top micro layer of paint?

The 'Paint Cleaner' in the Meguiars product range performs the same function as a clay bar. Its primary job is to remove bonded contamination like tree sap, bug remains, tar spots, industrial fallout, etc. from the paint. (actually, it goes a little further than the claybar and also removes oxidised paint as well)

The whole point of the clay bar / paint cleaner step is to ensure that you have a paint surface that is properly prepared for polishing. To get the best possible results, you need the paint to be perfectly flat so that the polishing pad can effectively 'work' (break down) the polishing compound. Also, regardless whether you're polishing by hand, or by machine - if any contamination gets picked up by your polishing pad, it's just going to cause further scratches to the paint as you work.

Great post IMHO ...definitely worth a sticky.

The principles are spot on - it doesn't often get any more complex than that - the key is to maintain clean tools throughout. (Be that your wash mitt, your drying towel, your claybar, your polishing pad, or your wax applicator) ...if you drop any of them on the ground, do not be tempted to pick it back up and keep going - get a fresh one. (if it's a claybar - sorry, you'll need to bin it) ...only one minor point that i'd change is the use of a chamois - these can be pretty 'scratchy' - even if they're well maintained - I prefer the use of a purpose-made microfibre drying towel. (Meguiars have a couple of options if you wish to stick with their products)

Keep it sparkling guys

[jeffbebe 1559]

Buy a cheap pop up Gazebo from the Warehouse or similar? Polish at night under a work light?

Cheap Gazebo's not a bad idea... Think my good lady would take exception if I spent the evenings mucking around with the car as well! haha

[Mark 178]

Topic has been cleaned up to remove useless posts. Vendt, if you cannot make a contribution to this forum without throwing immature insults at other members then your account will be suspended.

Please clean up your spelling and grammar as well. Text language is not acceptable.

If you have any further issues, please contact me or another of the moderators directly using the PM function. Do not post here.

Cheers, Mark.

[liyi_92 37]

Topic has been cleaned up to remove useless posts. Vendt, if you cannot make a contribution to this forum without throwing immature insults at other members then your account will be suspended.

Please clean up your spelling and grammar as well. Text language is not acceptable.

If you have any further issues, please contact me or another of the moderators directly using the PM function. Do not post here.

Cheers, Mark.

Sorry Mark

[liyi_92 37]

On another note, when I washed my car, I noticed that just infront of my rear wheels on my side skirt there are a lot of tiny white specks of material scattered around on my paint. (paint of some sort???) . I was able to pick them off with a nail but if I was to do that I would spend over a years time. Any recommendations for removing these??

Edited June 17, 2012 by andy_e39

[jeffbebe 1559]

On another note, when I washed my car, I noticed that just infront of my rear wheels on my side skirt there are a lot of tiny white specks of material scattered around on my paint. (paint of some sort???) . I was able to pick them off with a nail but if I was to do that I would spend over a years time. Any recommendations for removing these??

Clay bar, and if that doesn't work you could use a cutting compound.

[Allanw 1051]

Spraying some kerosene on might soften it a bit too, before you start.