The Official Car Care Thread

[MG Man]

9 year old corolla with a 6 year old windscreen
The windscreen was replaced by toyota and got water stains almost instantly! The entire area not swept by the wipers.........the stains don't block view or anything but they look bad from inside...especially when u now wash the car and it looking like the windscreen dirty

[Karim Khan]

^^^ Sounds like you have a serious problem there!
To remove a water stop you need to understand how it got their in the first place,

What is are water spots
Water spots are mineral deposits that have etched their way into the glass and they can be very tough to remove. When a drop of water evaporates, all the minerals contained in that water remain on the surface. Etching is a gradual process, but those little spots will accumulate before you know it. The best way to avoid them is to dry your vehicle each and every time it gets wet. If that sounds too ambitious, at least dry it after washing and after a rain. (taken from autogeek.com)

[pugboy]

r3iXmann,
you can use a shop vac to suck out the water from the seat
I use the little hangup one
you would be surprised at how much dirt is in the seats
when you use those foam cleaners a lot of the dirt goes into the seat

[TriniGT]

Nemesis, what sealant can be used to lock it in? I still wanna try a different pad again and go over and then use a sealant. What pad you recommend to try next time?

[Rainman]

Nemesis, what sealant can be used to lock it in? I still wanna try a different pad again and go over and then use a sealant. What pad you recommend to try next time?

You have plenty options to seal. I use Klasse AIO and then top it with Klasse HGSG.

[DSM_05]

Excellent combo. What pad/machine do u use the Klasse AIO with?

I'm eager to add this to my arsenal.

[Rainman]

Excellent combo. What pad/machine do u use the Klasse AIO with?

I'm eager to add this to my arsenal.

I use the 7424xp with a 6.5 ccs red for both products, sometimes the hgsg is a bit difficult to buff off so I use distilled water in a spritz bottle for the tough areas. I do this twice a year and use sonus acrylic glanz to boost after normal washes. I love the combo because I rarely have time to wash my car and this protects the paint really well.

[Karim Khan]

Today was a nice day for some auto detailing. What did you all do today?

[Stephon.]

Drove the Mazda 3 through Peaks and vacuumed the interior of the CX-5 and used meguiars interior detailer on them both, then I went to sleep. It's been a lazy day in this house lol

[DSM_05]

Drove the Mazda 3 through Peaks

gotta be careful with those automated car washes. Does the peake's one use brushes? (I've never set foot in it....nor do I ever intend to).

The stuff/soaps they use will most likely strip the waxes from your paint. Plus the brushes aren't exactly 100% cotton or microfibre, so you can bet your last dollar that they'll probably be adding tons of swirls to your paint. ALso, I doubt those brushes are cleaned often.

Ask Karim if you don't believe me. AUtomated car washes are a detailer's nightmare.


Stephon, why don't you sell off that whole heap of Megs stuff you bought/posted some pages aback? It's only being wasted if this is how you're treating your car (no offense kid). I've never met anyone on ANY detailing forum (MOL, DetailingWorld, AutoGeekforums, autopia etc etc) in any part of the world, who is this dedicated to doing all of the "NO's"/"sins" of detailing

Today was a nice day for some auto detailing. What did you all do today?

Washed my own car today.

Mothers Wash and Wax, added a light spray of some Wolfgang Deep Gloss Spritz Sealant (car uses WG DGPS 3.0 sealant already), wheel wax on the wheels, megs enurance tyre gel. Engine washed with adams APC.

took about 2 hrs or so - not bad

[jdeen]

Got Karim to do a detailing job on my dad's rx7 yesterday. The results were great. Some pics of the finished job.







Thanks Karim! Please post better pics if u have.

[cinco]

sell me dat rx7 nah

[Karim Khan]

I really enjoyed working on that RX 7

[Karim Khan]

This is what i did today,,,

Check out how much bonded contaminants was pulled out from the paint using the clay bar



This is what the car looked like after

[cinco]

good work man
i know that owner

[K74T]

Sweet 7

[Stephon.]

Mazda 3s are just perfect to look at on the whole!!!!!

[dok_tec]

karim, i dont understand how u can clay an entire car every time,i could barely make large body panels at a time.

do you clay the entire car or are you selective?

[Karim Khan]

karim, i dont understand how u can clay an entire car every time,i could barely make large body panels at a time.

do you clay the entire car or are you selective?

Hey man i clay the entire car. Yes claying does take time. the average timeframe for properly claying a car is aproximatly 45 mins to 1 hour sometimes even more.

A proper Detail is very time consuming, on average it takes about 7-8 hours or more. That is why i charge what i charge.

Detailing is very hard work and you got to love it to succeed.

If you want your to look its best feel free to call me

[dredman1]

Not sure if this is the right thread for this question, but it seems appropriate.

My car got drops and splashes of paint from some workers painting the wall behind it in a carpark (they weren't painting in the vicinity of my car when I parked, and they were supposed to call me to move the car when they reached my area, but didn't ). Still trying to see what recourse I have from them.

Anyway, how it happened isn't important now - in the meantime, I want to try and see if I can get it off when I get home later. It's normal emulsion paint, and it's on the back bumper, trunk, lip spoiler, and lights. Any suggestions? Would it have damaged the paint?

Not sure if it makes a difference, but the car was still dirty from all the rain last week when the paint fell on it, so maybe that provided a layer of "protection". Then again, I dunno if it may just make matters worse.

Appreciate any advice.

[nemesis]

Nemesis, what sealant can be used to lock it in? I still wanna try a different pad again and go over and then use a sealant. What pad you recommend to try next time?

As mentioned before there are many options for sealing. Many, many options. For pads I'd suggest using a harder foam pad, orange or white from Lake Country or the Orange from Griot's garage are commonly used ones.
The CCS pads do keep the product around a little longer if you want to try them.

Nice RX-7 there. Looking stock which would be uncommon and amazing.

For the claying Dok Tek you should do the whole vehicle most times. However, I think if you're doing it every detail and you detail relatively often sometimes the roof/hood areas are worse than the sides. Those at least need to be done.

[nemesis]

Recently tested products :

Wolfgang sealant vs Autoglym EGP : did half and half on the hood, EGP still beading, Wolfgang not. And yes I know beading isn't the only indication of protection but considering that they started off looking the same I'm using it in this case. Will be testing Wolfgang on a darker vehicle soon to see if it looks better on dark vehicles to add to it's advantages. That test will be Wolfgang vs Blackfire sealant on a vehicle that was previously done entirely with EGP.

Griot's wheel cleaner : Not bad at all. Mild. Works better than just soap, but less strong than most wheel cleaners I've used. Still not really worth having to bring it. Custom wheel cleaner still my fav.

Griot's long lasting tire dressing : Amongst the worse I've ever come across for tires for my taste. Very difficult to spread thin and evenly enough after which it results in shiny/matte spots. Picked up all the dust in the world while sitting. Had to be washed. Most of it came off after washing with car wash...so not so long lasting? But the tires did look better after the wash, so maybe that's the right amount on it now. Basically a lot of work for not what i want. Won't be buying it again. Much prefer to stick to the basic sprays like AG, Mother's, Meguiars.

[Rainman]

I've been using the stoners tire shine for the last couple of months, it last around 3 weeks driving around in constant rain. I used 303 aerospace on tires with good results also.

[trvs]

Get a claybar kit and look at some claying tutorials on YouTube and you should be good to go.

Just take your time.

Not sure if this is the right thread for this question, but it seems appropriate.

My car got drops and splashes of paint from some workers painting the wall behind it in a carpark (they weren't painting in the vicinity of my car when I parked, and they were supposed to call me to move the car when they reached my area, but didn't ). Still trying to see what recourse I have from them.

Anyway, how it happened isn't important now - in the meantime, I want to try and see if I can get it off when I get home later. It's normal emulsion paint, and it's on the back bumper, trunk, lip spoiler, and lights. Any suggestions? Would it have damaged the paint?

Not sure if it makes a difference, but the car was still dirty from all the rain last week when the paint fell on it, so maybe that provided a layer of "protection". Then again, I dunno if it may just make matters worse.

Appreciate any advice.

[Karim Khan]

Since we are on the topic of claying the vehicle one may ask why should i clay my car or what are the benefits of claying.

Using a clay bar will assist to remove any bonded contaminants on the paint that regular washing would not remove. Most bonded contaminants are not visible to the naked eye but it can be felt if you pass your hand over the paint. If the paint feels rough or your hand drag on the surface, your paint probably need claying.

Why clay
- Claying remove bonded contaminants that can damage the surface of the paint. If some bonded contaminants is left to long , it can damage the paint. Contaminants such as embedded brake dust, iron fillings can cause damage to the paint overtime.

- Claying restores a smooth paint surface

- Claying let the polish or wax work and bond better to the paint

- Claying help the wax last longer on the paint.

How often should i clay my vehicle ?
I recommend you should do it twice a year or before you detail your vehicle.

Brand of clay ?
Use what you like

How to use the clay
1. Wash and dry the vehicle
2. Break off piece of clay and shape it into a flat surface.
3. Get some clay lube. Detailing spray works best - does not matter the brand
4. Spray the surface 18x18 inches with detailing spray and work the clay back and forth then up and down.
5. Work the area until the surface feels smooth. Make sure and do not work the clay on a dry surface.
6. Fold or kneed the clay before you move on to a new section.
7 Repeat the above steps until the vehicle is completed.


Note: if the clay bar falls to the ground trow it away.

Here are some pics for your viewing pleasure

Here is a clay bar. The brown spots are the bonded contaminants stuck into the paint.


This is what the car looked like after the detail job was completed.

[pyung99]

dis is d bess ched in trinneeechuna

[dredman1]

Get a claybar kit and look at some claying tutorials on YouTube and you should be good to go.

Just take your time.

Thanks - will go searching for a kit tomorrow and give it a try.

Always wondered about what you need to do when the clay bar is eventually full of muck/dirt from the paint, even after folding it in each time. I mean it must eventually get to a point where after working and folding the bar to get clean clay to rub on the paint, it gets saturated with dirt...

The bar is so small, I just figure it's not enough to do an entire car, especially if it was never clayed before.

[cinco]

ah the swift looks real nice
want me take a pic of it in a week?

[dok_tec]

im gonna try sunday to do my genuine best at detailing my car even though it may not be worthy....pics to follow

[DSM_05]

Wolfgang sealant vs Autoglym EGP : did half and half on the hood, EGP still beading, Wolfgang not. And yes I know beading isn't the only indication of protection but considering that they started off looking the same I'm using it in this case. Will be testing Wolfgang on a darker vehicle soon to see if it looks better on dark vehicles to add to it's advantages. That test will be Wolfgang vs Blackfire sealant on a vehicle that was previously done entirely with EGP.

When you did that first application of Wolfgang (to the half of the bonnet), did you let it sit for at least 20-30 mins before removing?

Also, after buffing off, did you keep the car parked down for at LEAST 8 hours for it to fully cure?

I initially got similar results using WG DGPS about a year ago. THought it didn't last that long.

But my problem was that I was buffing it off too quickly, and the car had seen some moisture about an hour or so after.

WG specifically states that the sealant must not be exposed to water of any kind for the first 8 hours or so, for it to fully cure!

Recently, I tried the WGang sealant again. Applied in the morning - buffed off after 30 mins, and let sit for the entire day. That sealant has been giving strong beading for the past 2 months, and has no signs of letting up.


I dare say it's the equivalent of EGP, but with tighter beading, and EGP is alot harder to work with IMHO (hard to gauge how much to apply, and you have to let it sit for at least an hour! Yikes!)