The Official Car Care Thread

[dok_tec]

^^^^agreed

[Karim Khan]

Hey guys thank you very much for the support. This certification is my 3rd and it would not be my last.

I usually do these kind of training more for intrinsic satisfaction. I love detailing it's my passion .

[Karim Khan]

Who remembers this brand of car polish

[Allergic2BunnyEars]

Clay bar is devil ting!
Started claying a cefiro. The difference is amazing.

[Stephon.]

Clay bar is devil ting!
Started claying a cefiro. The difference is amazing.

nice

[Bacon]

Gave Pixie a small exterior detail and wax with various Meguiars products yesterday.....not a fan of the wheel cleaner though......But more than satisfied with the other stuff as always....

Due to time constraints did not get to wax the bumpers and skirts this rounds...

Really wanna try a clay bar though...

ps....Karim if you ever on my side...Will trade lodging for detail...Seriously...

Some after shots....












Car looked like complete shlt several hours after though

[shogun]

Looks amazing. you decided against the spoiler, eventually Bacon?

[Bacon]

Thanks shogun....

Not really.....Another ride did call for some paper...So holding off on throwing away more cash until I replace the tires on this one....

[DSM_05]

Work Emotion XD9's? Very nice wheel there bub.

Not seeing your car in the second batch of pics tho....where is it? The MP4-12C looks dope

[S_2NR]

nice car Bacon.
have a friend who's in college there and has a 350Z also, a black one. and that is rel $$$ in gas boy.
idk how u making out na

[cinco]

oh i washed 3 cars yesterday so expect rain and lots of it

[trvs]

I did a little claying on Saturday along with a complete quick detail application.

Then I sprayed some water on a section just to see the beading action

[DSM_05]

^^Might be a good idea to polish and wax following your claying.

Many detailers contend that claying will remove wax protection. I haven't confirmed....but I'd probably wax the area I've clayed just to be sure.

Also, which QDetailer did you use? MOst QD's don't provide true surface protection, and need some time away from water for them to reach their maximum beading and gloss (like UQD).

[shogun]

Thanks shogun....

Not really.....Another ride did call for some paper...So holding off on throwing away more cash until I replace the tires on this one....

Doesn't matter. Car still gonna turn heads, either way.

oh i washed 3 cars yesterday so expect rain and lots of it

Ent.


Fact: Rain hates clean cars.

boi! sometimes weather fine, until i decide to go for a "now wash" victory spin.

[Bacon]

Work Emotion XD9's? Very nice wheel there bub.

Yes they are DSM....Thanks....

Not seeing your car in the second batch of pics tho....where is it? The MP4-12C looks dope

Yeah was having the same problem.....Thought it was stolen but then the Mclaren drove off.... Yeah words cyar describe the beauty of the MP4....

nice car Bacon.
have a friend who's in college there and has a 350Z also, a black one. and that is rel $$$ in gas boy.
idk how u making out na

Thanks S......I doh bother studying gas prices again......Swipe card full up on 94 and bounce starter.....I honestly doh bother watching the total..... No cats and free flow dual pipes doh help either, but I would not have it any other way......

Doesn't matter. Car still gonna turn heads, either way.

Thanks again shogun...

[nemesis]

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!)

I always let sealants cure more than an hr before removal. I figure that's good enough for everything. And when I do a personal vehicle it is normally not driven for 24+hrs and then checked again before it is moved. So I think it was a fair comparison.


So I've tried the Dodo Juice Purple Haze pro and Supernatural now. Great looking/feeling waxes. But, I've had hazing problems on the bonnet. I have been talking to them for some time now and have tried everything I possibly could, but everytime I run the car it comes back. Bad enough that right now my car is wearing a different wax on the bonnet and the rest of the body.
Basically it seems that in vehicles that heat up ridiculously you can melt some of the contents of their products. At first they expected it to be UV damaged paint but that can't explain why it doesn't appear until I run the car hard nor the fact that it still happens if I use layers of sealant below. At least that's the theory it has come to. So I'll be testing on some other vehicles and update this later. Unless someone has an extra bonnet that needs doing and wants to test it for me.

[nemesis]

Congrats on the certification Karim. Really dedicated to go all that way to learn detailing.

[trvs]

^^Might be a good idea to polish and wax following your claying.

Many detailers contend that claying will remove wax protection. I haven't confirmed....but I'd probably wax the area I've clayed just to be sure.

Also, which QDetailer did you use? MOst QD's don't provide true surface protection, and need some time away from water for them to reach their maximum beading and gloss (like UQD).

I got the regular QD at bel air on Saturday. They had no UQD which I usually buy. I only did a little section on the hood and applied some UQW after I dried it.

http://www.meguiarsdirect.com/zoom.do?edp=84692

[nemesis]

You can try testing if there are any symptoms of wax left after claying by washing the car again to remove any excess lube or clay and see if there are signs of wax. Easiest to tell with water behavior. Anyway, I've seen some clays appear to completely remove wax, and some not so bad. I guess it depends on the strength of the clay. Still, at the very least you're going to make it uneven, so rewax either way. Just to be sure, if you're not going to polish at least use another quick wax remover to ensure your surface is clean.

[S_2NR]

Nice. Thread renamed. Somebody took my advice

[DSM_05]

Nemesis posted some good advice, as (almost) always

I remember reading the "wax test" on DW forums.....for all the hype and mucho dinero DOdo Juice costs, it didn't fare well at all! SwissVax, Ag, Megs, etc all did better if memory serves.

Sounds like marketing on Dodo's part to me.

Yes Nemesis, I know you use Miglore, and the Dodo Juice car wash works well for you too.

^^Might be a good idea to polish and wax following your claying.

Many detailers contend that claying will remove wax protection. I haven't confirmed....but I'd probably wax the area I've clayed just to be sure.

Also, which QDetailer did you use? MOst QD's don't provide true surface protection, and need some time away from water for them to reach their maximum beading and gloss (like UQD).

I got the regular QD at bel air on Saturday. They had no UQD which I usually buy. I only did a little section on the hood and applied some UQW after I dried it.

http://www.meguiarsdirect.com/zoom.do?edp=84692

Can't open the link for some reason. Anyway, is it the red bottle one? I use that when claying sometimes...but I can't stand the smell for some reason. I hate the smell!!!! UQD and NXT speed detailer smell much nicer.

The red bottle QD beads nicely, but I much prefer the beading on NXT Speed Detailer or UQD. UQD is insane in beading, but you MUST let the paint be completely dry for 12 hours after application before it reaches full strength. Hence, I tend to opt with NXT Speed Detailer, or Griots Speed Shine (da bomb). These two have no real time restriction, and the beading is resilient.

But then again, if you're looking for adding some quick beading, why not just move right to a spray wax? Remember, a QD spray is mainly for light film/dust removal (and clay lube), not necessarily as a LSP booster (but some are).

[trvs]

My bad, I was posting from my iPad and could not copy the image link properly.

Yes it's the red bottle one. It burns your hand too! I forgot to pick up some gloves.

I had to poor some milk on my hand to get the burning to stop.

[Allergic2BunnyEars]

@Stephon that's a Porter-Cable 7424XP

@Allergic2BunnyEars, I think I will order a Porter-Cable soon! Tell me how much it costs to clear when you get it in your hands.

Got Porter Cable yesterday.
Breakdown:

U$ 118.99 on Amazon
U$ 30 to skybox in via Transexpress.
TT$ 105 to clear customs (50 duty, 45 VAT)

[shogun]

About time! with that title change Karim.

[DSM_05]

@Stephon that's a Porter-Cable 7424XP

@Allergic2BunnyEars, I think I will order a Porter-Cable soon! Tell me how much it costs to clear when you get it in your hands.

Got Porter Cable yesterday.
Breakdown:

U$ 118.99 on Amazon
U$ 30 to skybox in via Transexpress.
TT$ 105 to clear customs (50 duty, 45 VAT)

That's a mighty good price there bub.

WHat polishes are you planning to use with it again? Also, what are you gonna practice on?

[trvs]

@Stephon that's a Porter-Cable 7424XP

@Allergic2BunnyEars, I think I will order a Porter-Cable soon! Tell me how much it costs to clear when you get it in your hands.

Got Porter Cable yesterday.
Breakdown:

U$ 118.99 on Amazon
U$ 30 to skybox in via Transexpress.
TT$ 105 to clear customs (50 duty, 45 VAT)

Sweet!

[Allergic2BunnyEars]

@Stephon that's a Porter-Cable 7424XP

@Allergic2BunnyEars, I think I will order a Porter-Cable soon! Tell me how much it costs to clear when you get it in your hands.

Got Porter Cable yesterday.
Breakdown:

U$ 118.99 on Amazon
U$ 30 to skybox in via Transexpress.
TT$ 105 to clear customs (50 duty, 45 VAT)

That's a mighty good price there bub.

WHat polishes are you planning to use with it again? Also, what are you gonna practice on?

Not sure again nah. When I bought it I thought pads were standard and whatnot. Now I have to research backing pads.

My initial plan for new jetta: mothers car wash ---> autoglym high definition cleanser----> autoglym high definition wax.

Initial Plan for 9 year old cefiro: mothers car wash----> autoglym surface detailing clay kit---->autoglym high def cleanser--->autoglym high def wax.

Plan was to practice on cefiro first.

New to this so :dunno:

[Rainman]

I've detailed brand new vehicles that had contamination, nothing wrong with claying the jetta. Just make sure and use proper technique to prevent marring the finish.

[DSM_05]

I don't normally recommend AG HD Cleanse. It's not one of their best products. Hard to use, and no really correctional ability.

If I were you Allergic2BunnyEars, I'd start off with an all in one polish/cleaner. Assuming you don't have much swirling, and you would have clayed prior, consider looking at Mothers Step 1 and Step 2 (Cleaner and Glaze). Or if you want to use Megs, consider using their ultimate polish. There is also Mothers Power Polish...which works well with DA buffers (or so I've been told. Never used it personally, so I can't say).

Keep in mind most OTC polishes (Megs, Mothers, AG) all have fillers, so you can't be sure if you've actually (physically) removed all swirling, or just "masked" them with filling oils (filling oils or glazing oils will hide swirls, but not fix them). It's a good idea to do an IPA (or similar) wipedown after to strip off any filling oils to see exactly how much surface marring was physically removed.

YOu could also use Ultimate Compound (no fillers), but again, you'd need to determine the condition of your paint, and how the paint responds to Ultimate Compound.

Chances are that on a new car, you won't need it.


And as I've said many times, make sure and maintain that finish with a proper wash technique and qd sprays from time to time. It makes no sense spending money on XX products and expendsive DA buffers, but you're swirling up your paint right after using a single bucket was method and a dirty wash mitt that was lying on the ground.

[DSM_05]

Here is a nice link from the MOL forums. It shows that you MUST do a TEST SPOT on your paint to see the effects of a compound/polish on THAT paint.

Most of the time, Ultimate Compound works well on some paints, but sometimes, it may not!

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/sh ... ound+Civic





Hazing left behind. A followup polish would need to be used to clean that up. This could only be determined by using a test spot. The last thing you want to do is to use a compound/polish on your entire car, then to take it out into the sun, and see that swirling I showed above^^^, everywhere on your car!