How do you wash your car...?

[EuroSip]

I know this is totally outta topic...but I have a euro so decided to post here....
just wonder how often and how you guys wash your car...

i use to wash it like once every 1.5 weeks...but then it just got too time-consuming...cause everytime i do it...i polish like everything (i know it's bad for it but yeh...)...i even clean out little stones stuck in the tires...but now i just give it do people to wash it instead...

so what's your view on car clean care?

[Type R Positive]

I wash my euro probably every 2 weeks. I would wash it sooner but our water up here is full of calcium. Not good, it leaves those ugly white water spots on your car. This is really time consuming to get rid of, so 2 weeks between every wash.

[EuroAccord13]

With my handpower :D

[fongyfong]

i use to do it every fortnight, but now when ever, when i finish up with car care products im gonna get some one else to do it

[Slugoid]

Around once ever week/fortnight during summer, and like once a blue moon during winter cos Melbourne weather is so crap and unpredicatble and my BLACK accord gets dirty in a matter of days.

[h22a accord]

i wash my car about once a week, depending on how dirty it is. Winter time less often as it gets so dirty so quickly. i use a wash & wax car wash with a sponge, some wheel cleaner for the chromies and fart can. I chamois it all off including door jams and apply some shine to the tyres afterwards. comes up alright for a quick job.

[A'PEXi]

i dont actually wash it properly or anything, normally a wax once in a while, then every few days it gets dirty, just wipe it down quickly with some water etc.... keeps the car clean.... and everytime before the wax ill give it a proper wash

[urtwhistle]

every weekend for me fella's, but i only wash and chamois it , i never get time to polish the whole thing

[Benji]

i wash it once per week/fortnight if i have time. i use a bug&tar remover on the whole car (gently, because you have to scrub too long with a normal sponge) and it dosn't cause any visible scratching (have done this for the last 2 years with no probs), and dry with a chamois. never polish, can't be bothered and it stays shiny anyway, i might do it one of these days if i'm bored.

[bird]

whenever its dirty :)

[blueeuro]

On average about every second week. But only if it's going to be fine for the next day or 2, if they are predicting rain I don't bother.

[FORGED]

i wash mine once a week cause i cant garage it, so it just gets crap all over it.. anyone know if there is any product that will stop sun bleaching of paint? cause my roof is starting to bleach!!

[h22a accord]

i wash mine once a week cause i cant garage it, so it just gets crap all over it.. anyone know if there is any product that will stop sun bleaching of paint? cause my roof is starting to bleach!!


Thats a new term , i havnt heard the term "bleach" before

anyways, give me the model, year and colour- ( solid or metallic) of your car and if u can a pic of the affected areas and i'll get you sorted.

[FORGED]

well by bleeching i mean the sun basically screws the clear coat and it goes all cloudy and white-ish, so bleeching is probably the best word to describe it.. here is a picture anyways, look closely at the roof and you can see the cloudy patches:
http://www.brokedowndesign.com/accord/accord-roof.jpg

[Pum[Z]]

Every Fortnight for me... I house the Euro is mainly indoors when i am at home... Black is hard to keep clean.. Got swirl marks, water spots show up real easily and after u wash it... Give it 2 hours and u can see some dust settling on the car....

Water, Meguiars products, sponge, chamois & a sguidgee to wipe the windows...

Lucky Euro's brakes don't cause a lot of brake dust unlike european cars like Bmers & Mercs...

[h22a accord]

well by bleeching i mean the sun basically screws the clear coat and it goes all cloudy and white-ish, so bleeching is probably the best word to describe it.. here is a picture anyways, look closely at the roof and you can see the cloudy patches:
http://www.brokedowndesign.com/accord/accord-roof.jpg


firstly, it needs to be buffed with a lambswool pad and a rotary buffer, then buffed again with the same compound but with a stiff foam buffing pad, then it needs to be glazed using 3M machine glaze with a soft foam pad on a rotary buffer., then it needs to be protected with something good like meguiars NXT next generation wax.


Well, this is what i would do if a car came into my shop looking like yours.


the proper term used for this type of paint condition is "oxidisation" its just the oxidisation of the clearcoat and if u leave it for too long without rectifying it the clear coat will deteriorate to the point where it breaks down to a point where the only solution is to repaint it.


if u are in the melbourne area i can recommend a place for you to get it fixed. just remember there are detailers and there are detailers, it pays to look at the work they have done and to ask lots of questions about the process involved. That way you can get a fair idea if they know their sheit or not.

I have seen paint jobs alot worse that yours come into my shop and roll out the door almost looking like they have been resprayed.

[FORGED]

cheers man, that really helped out, i will look into getting it detailed very soon, i have already started noticing a couple of places where the clear is chipping off, only in a small area, but it may mean i need to get it resprayed. to stop this happening in the future, what products should i use and how often should i use them? because i really dont want my next car looking like this.... thanks a lot again.

[FORGED]

ps - I live in brisbane so ill have to look around here for a place that will do a decent job. is it generally the more you pay, the better the job or what?

[Type R Positive]

mobile detailers can be good, you can keep an eye on them :) To stop it happening could be as easy look at where you are parking your car. Heaps of sun = no good. Heaps of trees = no good (tree sap and bird crap). cool shade = good

[FORGED]

yeah, the problem is im one of four children in my family who all have cars and my house doesnt even have a garage! just a big driveway, and lots of big trees around that cant be cut down because we are renting the place. im considering one of those shade cover things you buy at super cheap and the rigging up a tarp over the top of it. my car is sold anyways at the moment, so i just wanna make sure it doesnt happen to my next accord!

[Type R Positive]

those shade cover thingy's are a good purchase, just secure it real good to the ground. Extra tent pegs and lines. They are pretty cheap and you could take em down the beach as well!

[FORGED]

yeah the last thing you would want is it falling on your car and adding some nice dints... ps - sorry h22aaccord im not down with all the detailing terms

[4thGenExi]

Once a week, because it lives outside

[yfin]

I wash probably every 2-3 weeks with a high pressure cleaner. I then use meguires mitt to hand wash the car and chamois dry. Every few months I use Glide on Glaze which seems to be ok value. That is it - paint looks good - no swirl marks.

Euro paint seems to scratch easily though...

[EuroAccord13]

At least once a week, generally, with time, twice a week and a good polish and wax every 3 months and quik wax in between.. MEGUIAR'S ALL THE WAY!!!

[Chi]

I clean my car once a fortnite, with my collected stock of KFC wet towlets.

And my car smells nice too.

[Type R Positive]

MEGUIAR'S ALL THE WAY!!! :thumbsup: :D

[VirIIx]

who says i wash it? get some hot babes in bikini's to do it for you ;)

hey it is spring now .. and it only gets hotter >=D

[h22a accord]

cheers man, that really helped out, i will look into getting it detailed very soon, i have already started noticing a couple of places where the clear is chipping off, only in a small area, but it may mean i need to get it resprayed. to stop this happening in the future, what products should i use and how often should i use them? because i really dont want my next car looking like this.... thanks a lot again.


You cant go past meguiars NXT next generation wax, its expensive ( rrp 43 bux for a 575ml bottle) but it goes along way and its awesome sheit.


use them at least once every 6 months and your paint will be safe.

[Reagan]

What is Meguiar?

The dealer said I have to always use this special product due to that colour protection crap, I wonder if any of you guys have the same thing? do you use other crap?

[Type R Positive]

Meguiars is just a yankee brand, but a real great brand to use. They make everything, polishes, waxes, carwashes, interior cleaners. The reason everyone loves Meguiars is that you can buy the stuff from K-Mart, and it is cheap. The quality is one of the best in the world, if you want show car shine, go Meguiars. The equivelent product manufacturers are the real expensive brands like pinnicle and other european ones. What makes it so shiny is the carnuba wax. the more high quality and quantity of this stuff, the better.

I don't have paint protection, but it is a great idea. I don't think you have to ever worry about polishing your car ever again (with in 10 years or something). You can just wash your car with water if you want. The paint protection contains teflon (think frypans). Shit slides straight off. I don't think a wax will hurt, but I wouldn't polish.

[h22a accord]

yeh, paint protection isnt bad but the price the dealers charge is bullshvt!!

I have a cupboard full of the stuff as its the left overs from the dealership i do paint protection work for.

they give me full bottles of the stuff for each car and the truth is the bottles do about 4-5 cars easily. So at last count i have enuff for about 300 cars hahahaha.


oh yeah, almost forgot, the stuff i use is MING

[Type R Positive]

So, what do you reckon? can you wax and polish with paint protection?

[will_pop]

damm .. y am i the only one here who wash car in rain....

i just want to save some water.. so i soap up my car in rain .. so the rain will rinse my car after i applied the soap ekek..

[Reagan]

Would anyone happen to know if I use other products besides WaxGuard products it should be alrite?

what Meguiar products shall i use for paint protection =)
I really wanna polish some scratches out!

[NeoNode]

ZainoBros!!

[h22a accord]

truth is, polishing the paint protection wont hurt it. get some meguairs NXT generation tech wax, it will do wonders for your duco.

[Type R Positive]

thanks, that's all I needed to know

[~*b*~]

I have mine cut and polished every month or two to keep the paint in good condition and then just wash and chamois it every week or whenever I decide not to be lazy lol.

[h22a accord]

thanks, that's all I needed to know


there is a matching car wash too.

[Black R]

i was my car bout twice a week dependent of the weather and apply after the was some Mother's show car shine....works wonders on my car...

[h22a accord]

I have mine cut and polished every month or two to keep the paint in good condition and then just wash and chamois it every week or whenever I decide not to be lazy lol.


holy shit dude, cut and polish every month, after 2 years you wont have much paint left.

Although, my idea of a cut is buffing it. Whats yours?

[Type R Positive]

Yeah I seen it in mags, I just have to wait for it to filter through to K-Mart or Repco. That's all I have where I live, or I could order it up from Perth. I'm in no hurry, I gotta use up all the crap I got now! waxes, polishes, paint cleaners.... the list goes on.

[Type R Positive]

I have mine cut and polished every month or two to keep the paint in good condition and then just wash and chamois it every week or whenever I decide not to be lazy lol.
You should only have to wax it after you polish it, should last a lot longer than every month or two.

[~*b*~]

You should only have to wax it after you polish it, should last a lot longer than every month or two.


Ahh well. Work does it for me. So they just do the whole thing for me every few months *shrugs* :rolleyes:

[Usual Suspect]

once every two weeks on a friday, coz i have a free day on friday.

[yfin]

You cant go past meguiars NXT next generation wax, its expensive ( rrp 43 bux for a 575ml bottle) but it goes along way and its awesome sheit.


use them at least once every 6 months and your paint will be safe.Thanks for the tip - my goodness - just used NXT today for the first time and it is awesome. Never have I seen my paint look this good. Not only does it look fantastic but it is soooo easy to apply and buff off. It just glides off with hardly any effort. Washed car, chamoied dry, NXT, cleaned windows. Whole process only took 1.5 hours.

If you have never used NXT - give it a try - bloody brilliant. By the way - my Euro is 12 months old - can't believe it as i have no major scratches or dints.
http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/vbgarage.php?do=getimage&id=515http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/vbgarage.php?do=getimage&id=516

[Reagan]

true that it scratches like anything, i cant get rid of my scratches or where i cut and polished it
damnit!

[VTC-8OY]

yeah so hard to keep a black EG clean! i clean it bout every fortnite. I go to car wash n spend few bucks on high pressure soap spray n high pressure rinse (never use the brush unless u want scratches!) to get all the dirt/dust off then i come home n do a hand wash myself top to bottom. I use wash n wax with sponge and i chamois it dry. It shines crazy afterwards but d moment i use it n come back ders already dust/dirt on d car.. Especially the back of my civic gets very dirty more den any of the other sides!

[yfin]

yeah so hard to keep a black EG clean! i go to car wash n spend few bucks on high pressure soap spray n high pressure rinse (never use the brush unless u want scratches!) to get all the dirt/dust off then i come home n do a hand wash myself top to bottom. I use wash n wax with sponge and i chamois it dry. It shines crazy afterwards but d moment i use it n come back ders already dust/dirt on d car.. Especially the back of my civic gets very dirty more den any of the other sides!
I used to do what you do - go to the "do it yourself wash bays" like Car lovers and wait and wait and wait for a bay. Then I would pay for a time limited wash and not use their brushes.

I then realised the high pressure machines are like $60 at Bunnings. Great purchase! Good bye Car Lovers - I don't miss you. :D

[VTC-8OY]

I used to do what you do - go to the "do it yourself wash bays" like Car lovers and wait and wait and wait for a bay. Then I would pay for a time limited wash and not use their brushes.

I then realised the high pressure machines are like $60 at Bunnings. Great purchase! Good bye Car Lovers - I don't miss you. :D
oh shiet really? i was gona buy one before at supercheap auto for bout 80$. Have u seen this one? is the one at bunnings the same thing? Coz i want to say goodbye to them too! lol

[yfin]

oh shiet really? i was gona buy one before at supercheap auto for bout 80$ i fink do they work the same way?.. kewlThey work great - and you can take as long as you like! You can also attach a soap dispenser to most makes.

i haven't seen the one at Supercheap. Go to bunnings and ask them for advice - the question I asked was which one comes back the least for warranty claims! I ended up buying one made by GMC (a yellow one). It has a really long warranty - 2 years or something like that and is made in Italy. Cost $90 about 12 months ago. I also got $30 back from my water supplier for buying a water saving product.

The last time I was at Bunnings they had more models and they seemed to be fairly cheap. You can't go wrong as you must be spending at least $3-4 for your existing do it yourself wash. You said once a fortnight - so that is $80-$100 per year.

[REV888]

I used to do what you do - go to the "do it yourself wash bays" like Car lovers and wait and wait and wait for a bay. Then I would pay for a time limited wash and not use their brushes.

I then realised the high pressure machines are like $60 at Bunnings. Great purchase! Good bye Car Lovers - I don't miss you. :D

Question....... Got a black Euro need to give it its 1st wash very soon, for anyone living in sydney can I use a high pressure hose or is that not allowed ? under the current water restriction laws ?

[yfin]

Question....... Got a black Euro need to give it its 1st wash very soon, for anyone living in sydney can I use a high pressure hose or is that not allowed ? under the current water restriction laws ?hmm - I thought Melbourne water restrictions were tough. There is no mention of the use of high pressure hoses on vehicles in Sydney. I suspect it is not permitted but you should check with your water supplier. In Melbourne it is specifically mentioned as an exclusion.

http://www.sydneywater.com.au/SavingWater/WaterRestrictions/

[REV888]

hmm - I thought Melbourne water restrictions were tough. There is no mention of the use of high pressure hoses on vehicles in Sydney. I suspect it is not permitted but you should check with your water supplier. In Melbourne it is specifically mentioned as an exclusion.

http://www.sydneywater.com.au/SavingWater/WaterRestrictions/


So in Melbourne you wash it with a bucket ? then another Bucket and so on :( :( Did that with my old car but it never really the same as giving it a good wash down.

I got paint protection and have some teflon based cleaner to use when washing so if I can use a pressure hose would really be sweet!

[yfin]

So in Melbourne you wash it with a bucket ? then another Bucket and so on :( :( Did that with my old car but it never really the same as giving it a good wash down.

I got paint protection and have some teflon based cleaner to use when washing so if I can use a pressure hose would really be sweet!
In Melbourne you can use a bucket. I can also use a high pressure hose as it is exempt from the restrictions for washing cars.

[EuroAccord13]

I did a little experiment on my own before I got my High Pressure Cleaner...

Hosing the car after washing it uses less water than with a bucket...

But with STAGE 2 restrictions... it means buckets all the way as opposed to STAGE 1 where hosing can be used to wash the car after washing...

Anyway... A little home TIP...

If you have Tree Saps or Bird Droppings that you need to get rid of, wet the area, with car wash on the sponge, dap the area INFECTED :P and leave the sponge on top of the INFECTED AREA for a while, it will make cleaning the Saps and Dropping easier to scrub off..

Oh another Home Tip...

Tea Tree Oil is a very effective remover against all these crappy thingys without damaging your paintwork/polish/wax.....

Hops it helps!

CHEERS
Nick

[stephen8512]

hmm i usually use MEGUIARS products since they are the best brand for cleaning crap off any car (i believe meguiars is anyway)... AUTO GLYM is also really good too i hear.
and for chamois's dont get the cheap ones cuz like the old saying, you get what you pay for. i bought a 5 buck one before and it was the worst decision ive made. left soapy marks etc etc. even if its a bit more expensive, get that......i use the KANEBO chamois. its really really good. been usin it for about 3 years now. perfect every time
^^
dont settle for 2nd best. and always go for quality.

[aaronng]

I think in Sydney you can use those powered high pressure washers, but run it off a bucket. You don't need much water, just enough to dislodge the dirt before you get at it with the car shampoo. For rinsing, I find a watering can creates less suds and just sheets the car shampoo off the body easier and uses less water than a hose.

[albii]

my satin silver euro gets washed once a week and waxed once a month using zymol products. man i could open my own auto care store. i cannot drive a dirty car

[albii]

worst thing you can do is use a sponge to clean your car (dirt gets in the little holes)
high pressure hose to rinse (washes away wax coating).
try using baby cotton nappies to clean,polish ,wax etc the car and a steady flow of water on the car by taking the head off the hose and your wax will last.
you can tell how good your wax is by beading and how quickly you can chamios the car dry.

[stephen8512]

hmmm high pressure hose rinsing washes away wax coating? wow....never knew that. thanks for the tip
been high pressurisin my car (and old camry....soon to be 2005 euro in the next 2 weeks) for ages.....wax is probably long gone already. hahaha never bothered to wax again.....

[LOC888]

Does anyone take theirs to the car wash?

[albii]

no way car wash is evil....(good for pinstriping and swirl marks though)

[stephen8512]

i took mine to carwash all the time.......not the automatic car wash thingos.....the ones where u can go into a bay and do it urself.....mainly because of the water restrictions

[albii]

if you have to you have to hey...we dont have restrictions in queensland

[stephen8512]

no restrictions eh....thats pretty good.....cuz the restrictions here were pretty harsh since we havent been gettin any rain in sydney.
but i took them to car wash even before they implemented the restrictions.....hahah too damn lazy....and as a result....my car is just lookn like poo. but after a wash, shiny poo ^^

[albii]

ahh but the euro is not far now and that will be nice and new

[Reagan]

i hate bird shit on my car

[EuroAccord13]

i hate bird shit on my car
Tea Tree Oil works a treat in removing grime like birdie poop..

Or leave a car washed filled sponged on top of it and let it soak in for a while, aids removal...

[plasma169]

Thanks for the tip - my goodness - just used NXT today for the first time and it is awesome. Never have I seen my paint look this good. Not only does it look fantastic but it is soooo easy to apply and buff off. It just glides off with hardly any effort. Washed car, chamoied dry, NXT, cleaned windows. Whole process only took 1.5 hours.

If you have never used NXT - give it a try - bloody brilliant. By the way - my Euro is 12 months old - can't believe it as i have no major scratches or dints.
http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/vbgarage.php?do=getimage&id=515http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/vbgarage.php?do=getimage&id=516

Could you please confirm whether this is the one you're talking about?
http://shop.speedmate.com/CS/handler/cashup/kr/ProductView-Start?CategoryID=00035&ChannelID=00010&ProductID=04032406383

Also is this liquid wax or solid wax? I wanna make sure that I buy the correct one. Sounds like the NXT is really good thing though.

[yfin]

That looks different to what I used and I note is called "protectant" and is a spray. This is the one I have - it is called Tech Wax and is in a tube.


http://www.meguiars.com.au/Images/new_products/2004/nxt_techwax.jpg
NXT GENERATION TECH WAX $42.95 RRP

Delivers the darkest, richest, deepest shine yet.

Eliminates fine scratches and swirls. Provides the ultimate in protection and gloss. Super easy wipe off and doesn’t dry white.

G12718 18oz/532ml

[h22a accord]

nappies and cotton are a sure fire way to scratch your car. a sponge will suspend the dirt while the suds will lubricate, theis is why u should always dip your sponge in the bucket to rinse it out, all the dirt goes to the bottom and thats why u shouldnt use the bottom part of the water in the bucket as its full of dirt.


first rinse car, then use only sponge with lots of suds and a good quailty chamois and ONLY EVER use microfibre for taking off polish etc.


i detailed a car for the summernats car show in canberra recently, i spent 9 hours on it. the owner entered it in the rare spares real street show'n'shine and came away with most outstanding car, which meant his car was better detailed than the other 200 plus cars entered. he got a phat trophy, 400 bux prize money and i got the summernats film crew filming the car with my business name scrawled along the back window.

http://img143.exs.cx/img143/2531/to53gh.jpg
http://img148.exs.cx/img148/4188/to64bd.jpg
http://img148.exs.cx/img148/5021/tori19ik.jpg
http://img148.exs.cx/img148/7355/tori29zy.jpg
http://img148.exs.cx/img148/5111/tori37pl.jpg

[zco]

drive it through the rain

[Type R Positive]

That is one sick ass Torrie!

The last time I was in Perth, it rained straight after I washed it. Bugger me, the friggin thing whas that covered in shit, I had to wash the friggin thing again!

meguiars NXT gen tech wax is great!

[h22a accord]

i use meguiars nxt tech wax on all the cars we detail at the shop, many happy customers.

depending on the type of paint defects the vehicle we use a combination of buffing/glazing/burnishing techniques to remove/hide scratches and/or oxidisation, then apply nxt wax.

or if the car has great paint we just clay the whole car with overspray clay to remove sap/industrial fallout, road grime etc then apply the tech wax....there is just so many different steps you need to take depending on what type of paint defects there is to acheive that flawless new car shine on any type of vehicle.

[albii]

[QUOTE=h22a accord]nappies and cotton are a sure fire way to scratch your car. a sponge will suspend the dirt while the suds will lubricate, theis is why u should always dip your sponge in the bucket to rinse it out, all the dirt goes to the bottom and thats why u shouldnt use the bottom part of the water in the bucket as its full of dirt.


first rinse car, then use only sponge with lots of suds and a good quailty chamois and ONLY EVER use microfibre for taking off polish etc.


mate check my car and you wont find one scratch on it...i always use nappies...and you dont use microfibre for removing polish ,its for removing excess wax on you car.......you wanna tell me you know more about detailing than the zymol people.

[h22a accord]

mate check my car and you wont find one scratch on it...i always use nappies...and you dont use microfibre for removing polish ,its for removing excess wax on you car.......you wanna tell me you know more about detailing than the zymol people.


For arguments sake I do this for a living and have been for years. It is not about giving your car a "thorough clean " on a sunday afternoon, i own and operate my business and if i dont provide a service that customers are satisfied with then i would not survive.

I will not dispute that 'the zymol people' know more about it than myself but you have to remember that this is my livlihood and has been for years, my techniques are not from what i read on the back of a bottle, they are my own, from trying and testing different techniques which only come with years of experience.

The red torana in the pictures i posted earlier had oxidisation and water spots, it required a full cut, glaze and hand polish/wax ( in this case, meguiars nxt tech wax) which i removed with a microfibre cloth.....summernats judges are very critical of paint, the car was judged on an oval in full sunlight where any paint defects are easily seen. The fact that it won most outstanding car is testament that the job is did on the paint is 1st class.


heres another 3 cars i detailed for summernats.
this particular ford escort looked like it belonged on the scrap heap when it came in, it had severe oxidisation, scratches from a dog jumping all over it plus cooked on tree sap all over it. The owner was prepared to pay what ever it was worth to detail the car to a show standard. the paintjob is acrylic and is 15 years old.

21 hours labour later and this is the end result,

http://img123.exs.cx/img123/3333/es68uk.jpg
http://img123.exs.cx/img123/3208/es19ib.jpg
http://img123.exs.cx/img123/1315/image02036gj.jpg

heres one of my favorites, its a 75 caddy with 20" wheels and airbags. the paint had some major defects which required heavy cutting of the clear coat as it had been damaged with what evidently looked like a pot scourer. The affected area's required a machine buff with cutting compound cream in conjunction with a wool pad, followed by a buff with the same compound but a different softer foam pad. aftyer that the whole duco was machine glazed using 3m glaze/swirl remover folowed by a hand application of meguiars nxt tech wax and removed with a microfibre cloth, once again, no minor scratches, spider webbing, smudging, cut marks, or swirl marks, just a flawless finish which looks like you could dip your whole arm into. the interior was a challenge too.

http://img123.exs.cx/img123/2855/pn100kz.jpg
http://img123.exs.cx/img123/6461/pn32qp.jpg

ok, a black car, the paintjob wasnt very old but being black it magnified every imperfection in the paintwork, all that was required was a machine glaze followed by a nice gentle coat of meguiars nxt tech wax removed with a microfibre cloth.

thse pics were taken with the sun directly behind and above me which clearly demonstrates the flawless finish acheived.

If anyone saw this hilux at the summernats, no doubt you saw a lot of ladies breasts in it too lol.

http://img129.exs.cx/img129/8431/lux41by.jpg
http://img111.exs.cx/img111/8697/lux58db.jpg


i better not forget my car, it doesnt get as much attention as it needs but detailing your own car is the last thing you want to do after a 10 hour day.

http://img111.exs.cx/img111/2839/dtaila3bg.jpg

[Type R Positive]

Shit!!!!!!

You can come around my place anytime and polish my cars mate! Top stuff!

[yfin]

this particular ford escort looked like it belonged on the scrap heap when it came in, it had severe oxidisation, scratches from a dog jumping all over it plus cooked on tree sap all over it. The owner was prepared to pay what ever it was worth to detail the car to a show standard. the paintjob is acrylic and is 15 years old.

21 hours labour later and this is the end result,
Wow that is impressive. :thumbsup: 21 hours labour would not have been cheap for the owner though. Probably more than an old escort is worth :D

[albii]

For arguments sake I do this for a living and have been for years. It is not about giving your car a "thorough clean " on a sunday afternoon, i own and operate my business and if i dont provide a service that customers are satisfied with then i would not survive.

I will not dispute that 'the zymol people' know more about it than myself but you have to remember that this is my livlihood and has been for years, my techniques are not from what i read on the back of a bottle, they are my own, from trying and testing different techniques which only come with years of experience.

The red torana in the pictures i posted earlier had oxidisation and water spots, it required a full cut, glaze and hand polish/wax ( in this case, meguiars nxt tech wax) which i removed with a microfibre cloth.....summernats judges are very critical of paint, the car was judged on an oval in full sunlight where any paint defects are easily seen. The fact that it won most outstanding car is testament that the job is did on the paint is 1st class.


heres another 3 cars i detailed for summernats.
this particular ford escort looked like it belonged on the scrap heap when it came in, it had severe oxidisation, scratches from a dog jumping all over it plus cooked on tree sap all over it. The owner was prepared to pay what ever it was worth to detail the car to a show standard. the paintjob is acrylic and is 15 years old.

21 hours labour later and this is the end result,

http://img123.exs.cx/img123/3333/es68uk.jpg
http://img123.exs.cx/img123/3208/es19ib.jpg
http://img123.exs.cx/img123/1315/image02036gj.jpg

heres one of my favorites, its a 75 caddy with 20" wheels and airbags. the paint had some major defects which required heavy cutting of the clear coat as it had been damaged with what evidently looked like a pot scourer. The affected area's required a machine buff with cutting compound cream in conjunction with a wool pad, followed by a buff with the same compound but a different softer foam pad. aftyer that the whole duco was machine glazed using 3m glaze/swirl remover folowed by a hand application of meguiars nxt tech wax and removed with a microfibre cloth, once again, no minor scratches, spider webbing, smudging, cut marks, or swirl marks, just a flawless finish which looks like you could dip your whole arm into. the interior was a challenge too.

http://img123.exs.cx/img123/2855/pn100kz.jpg
http://img123.exs.cx/img123/6461/pn32qp.jpg

ok, a black car, the paintjob wasnt very old but being black it magnified every imperfection in the paintwork, all that was required was a machine glaze followed by a nice gentle coat of meguiars nxt tech wax removed with a microfibre cloth.

thse pics were taken with the sun directly behind and above me which clearly demonstrates the flawless finish acheived.

If anyone saw this hilux at the summernats, no doubt you saw a lot of ladies breasts in it too lol.

http://img129.exs.cx/img129/8431/lux41by.jpg
http://img111.exs.cx/img111/8697/lux58db.jpg


i better not forget my car, it doesnt get as much attention as it needs but detailing your own car is the last thing you want to do after a 10 hour day.

http://img111.exs.cx/img111/2839/dtaila3bg.jpg
so please dont tell me my tried and tested way doesnt work then....

[BlueSiR]

laser wash

[h22a accord]

you own a silver car dont you? anyone can give a silver car a quick wash and wax and it looks half decent. i could give you a dark coloured car and you would fvck the paint job in no time.

if your happy with the way you care for your car then im happy for you to. Fact is your not a pro detailer, you are an ametuer, the real difference is in the eye of the beholder, what you think looks good and is acceptable is to you is what a pro detailer would call dodgy.

its people like you that come into my shop looking for work pronouncing that they can detail cars. Its obvious after the 1st car they detail that they just dont cut it, sure they have half a clue but they just dont cut it.


its a disgrace that you are telling ppl here to clean their cars with nappies, yeh, they might have been the best way to do it back in the old school but in this day and age with much more modern paint technology and clear coat finishes combined with superior products that are available compared to years gone by, there is absolutly no need or any reason why you would want to use nappies. microfibre is the new nappy.

I dont want some poor mug to go clean his black euro the way you told him to then wonder why the clearcoat looks shithouse.

this is not a competition of who knows more, you need to realise that this is a forum which some people take as gospel especially with something as important as cleaning/detailing their vehicle and you are trying to tell me that my way is the wrong way? do you want people to damage their cars?

i think my work speaks for it's self.


so, its up to our regular forumers...... wash your cars in nappies and make it look like shit

or do it the way a pro detailer advises you to and reap the rewards of self satisfaction knowing your paintjob looks as good as it did the day.you bought it no matter how old it is and only because of the correct and superior techniques you use on it.


period.

[albii]

man you have issues and by the way yes my euro is silver but my work ute is dark blue and iam constantly getting comments on how well kept immaculate my paint is and how deep and glossy and scratch free it is..........i regard these comments valid as they are coming from not only car enthusiasts but a zymol rep and and a friend who is a panel beater of a place here in brisbane who works on ferraris ,lamborghinis mercs bmws and so forth , not toranas and chevys........
dont rubbish my beleif in what works for me as iam not rubbishing what works for you..so get it right buddy
period

[albii]

by the way i dont just wash and wax.......
you dont have to be a so called(where are your credentials) professional to achieve brilliant results