Booo, my favourite Detailing World thread is ruined by Photobucket: http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=38692&highlight=dyson+detail 🙁

For once-yearly:
Wash wheels first (Autosmart Red 7 PH-neutral wheel cleaner)
Wash (Bilt Hamber Auto Wash – best shampoo ever, super-concentrated and only need 5ml in a big bucket)
De-tar (Autosmart Tardis)
Wash each panel after detarring as I go along
Clay (Meguiars Quik Clay plus random lube)
Wash
Polish (Autoglym Super Resin Polish if applying by hand, or I use various grades of Chemical Guys Hybrid polish applied by dual-action machine if paintwork needs it)
Sealant (Poorboys Black Hole or White Diamond depending on car colour)
Wax (Collinite #476) x 2 layers if I can

But regular washing I just use the usual 2 buckets (one shampoo, one to rinse the wash mitt in case anyone’s unsure what the 2-bucket method is), dry with a microfiber, occasionally spray on some Autoglym Aqua Wax to top up the wax already on there, and that’s enough. And grit guards in the bottom of the buckets to catch anything off the wash mitt when you rinse it in bucket.

Always best to try and get tar off BEFORE using a clay bar, hence the Tardis stuff. You can end up dragging the tar/bits across the paintwork if you try and get them off with a clay bar – tar remover gets the big stuff off first.

Another vote for Collinite #476 – I’ve tried a few other/newer supposedly better waxes but can’t beat it for price, durability and ease of use.

And 2nd renton’s suggestion of DAS6 dual-action polisher. I’m not brave enough to use a rotary machine for fear of burning through paintwork. I’ve had a go of one where I was allowed to deliberately burn through the paint (spare panel!) and it was incredibly easy to do.

It is shockingly easy to go through the paint with a fast rotary machine.
More so if you don’t have a paint thickness gauge so you can see what the coating is like before you start.

Everyone’s different, but here’s my usual routine:

-A decent pressure washer to start, very happy with my Nilfisk.
-Two bucket washing, with a wash mitt and AngelWax shampoo.
-AngelWax Bilberry wheel cleaner is pretty good too.
-Bilt Hamber clay bar.
-Wash again, dry with microfibre towel.
-A thin coat of Meguiars tyre gel is nice too.
-Autoglym Super Resin polish.
-Collinite wax. Two coats if I have time. Not the easiest to use, but lasts a good few months.

Cripes, you lot amaze me.

…

My car needs a bit of a clean … p’raps one of you could pop round, give it a spruce up.

Ta.

😆

Have a look at G-technic products.
The C2V3 is excellent as a finish coat and is pretty durable.
I use mainly Auto finesse triple as a polish followed by dodo juice supernatural hybrid wax and topped with c2v3.

Take a look at Ultimate finish website as there is much to go at there and they are good to deal with.

Bloomin ‘eck, I would LOVE to do all that to my car but I already (so I’m told) have a reputation in my street as being the bloke who is always washing his car and to be honest I’d rather spend my time riding my bike then washing it with milk of virgin alpaca and drying it with Bulgarian rose petals.

Argos do a fair da for little money. it’s not got the power for heavy correction but neither does the standard das6. Lead is a bit short but workable, backing plate is too big but even with a smaller plate and some pads it’s a fair intro tool.

youtube “car detailing” its another world!

bikebouy – Member
Cripes, you lot amaze me.

You’re not alone in being amazed – it’s a whole different world that I’ve never been a part of.

Another Collinite vote here, Ideally topped with a coat of Jetseal 109.

8 industrious and enterprising Polish gentlemen take care of all my car “detailing” needs for 4 quid.

It takes them about 5 minutes every month.

bikebouy – Member
Cripes, you lot amaze me.

Prepare to be amazed further (and utterly befuddled at the same time): http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/index.php

wilburt – Member
youtube “car detailing” its another world!

All this time I could have made washing up seem more glamorous. From now on I shall be ‘detailing’ the dishes. 😀

it’s a whole different world that I’ve never been a part of.

Same here – and the one bloke in my street who’s like that I sneer at everytime I go into my garage to buff and lube my bikes.

The Detailing World guys are a different breed. I’m just not enough of a perfectionist for that sort of thing.

It is satisfying to do aa nice job and transform a car though. My old Merc with its solid Barolo red was great for it.

From

To

A quick read of that detailing forum shows they actually answer questions as opposed to telling the op they are asking the wrong question or wanting to achieve the wrong outcome.

Strange.

^ 🙂 Harsh but fair.

Awesome shine on that Merc, too.

A quick read of that detailing forum shows they actually answer questions as opposed to telling the op they are asking the wrong question or wanting to achieve the wrong outcome.

Sounds boring, I’ll leave it.

I often think about really looking after my car, but I just CBA, I’ve had my current car for 2 months, I’ve cleaned it once with the products they gave me at the dealers, and it’s been through the IMO at the weekend. I finished the wheels off a home so it looked finished though, I’m not a complete slob 😆

Talking of hood reproofing, anyone suggest a decent “back to black” and a reproofer

Renovo – bit pricey but superb results: http://www.renovointernational.com/

woodster – Member
My old Merc with its solid Barolo red was great for it.

Nice Merc, I want your Merc but I cannot afford one … 😆

I have a company car that covers 25k a year. I’m time poor but do like a clean car, especially as my car is a dark midnight blue so is much the same as a black car for keeping clean.
After trying Meguiars, autoglym,Purple haze,etc I have now settled on sonax products. I use sonax protect and shine once or twice a year then use a quick spritz of sonax xtreme detailer after each wash.
Beads water beautifully and stays much cleaner between washes.
A preclean with the pressure washer and a snow foam , normally gets the car 90% clean then a shampoo wash with a mitt and few squirts of sonax before it dries, makes it an easy wash routine.
Probably not as nice a finish as purple haze but when the car is driven 2500 miles a month I trade a little of ultimate finish for durability and ease of use.

Top info, thanks all.

Does Zymol wax have a “use by date” ? I have found an unopened jar but it’s 10 years old. Could give it a whirl on the wife’s car first 😉

Quick question for those that know: if taking delivery of a new car, what’s the best way of treating it to keep it looking shiny? Or do clay bars/polishes actually improve the factory finish?

Do the full decon, including clay ( which damages finish but preps it for correction and protection) then protect with LSP of your choice.

including clay ( which damages finish but preps it for correction

Clay bar won’t damage the finish unless you are doing it wrong ?

Any rubbing off the paint can mar it. The clay picks up sintered contamination and you drag it across the paint, it’s very fine if you lube properly, but it can mar. However yes, if the paint hasn’t been cared for it will already be married to s***, so simply pulling the dirt off will make an improvement.

In an affluent town there is money to be made detailing cars.

http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/detailing-services-service-options.html

That said if you buy a car that costs in excess of a million pounds I guess spending near £2000 on a wash isn’t that mental.

a11y – Member
Prepare to be amazed further (and utterly befuddled at the same time): http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/index.php

POSTED 9 HOURS AGO # REPORT-POST

😯

So I’m just back in from work and a bit frazzled, so I clicked the link and settled down with a large mug of sweet tea.. and neigh on spat the first mouthful out 😆

Astonishing is a simple word for the commitment these folks have.. I’m amazed. And I’ve knicked a few tips too, so thanks chaps 😀