Detailing and car care 101

Ok i thought it was time some one did this correctly,

This write up will cover the exterior of your car, the next one will be the interior.

I have not put extensive detail into this as i didnt think it was required, if any one has any questions please ask. If anyone is not clear on somthing or wants to know y i do a certin thing or use a certin product please jst ask.

1. washing your car.

I have some simple rules here firstly never wash hot body work, never wash in the sun, never use wash bays,and if you use a bug remover you need to re wax that panel as it will remove the wax, ONLY use dishwashing liquid if you intend to do the detailing part of this write up.

Of you use glass polish do this befor the wash.

Firstly ill cover why you should not use wsah bays.
1 - you paint work will be hot.
2 - the chemicals used at these places will strip any wax on your car.
3 - the brushes there are extreamly dirty and will scratch your car.

now when you wash your car use a good quality wash not some wash n wax crap. follow these steps for washing.

1 - fill a large bucket with water and car wash. ( the deeper the bucket the better, any dirt particals will fall to the bottom and you dont want to run these over your unprotected paint)

2 - rinse off excess dirt

3 - wash the car from top to bottom and rinse as you go (use a sponge with large holes to pick up more dirt)

4 - use a different sponge for wheels and inside the guards (you will pick up nasty crap from these areas and you dont want them on your paint work)

5 - rinse car completly

Now if your car is well waxed you can let it air dry, also if its well waxed you can skip the next few sections. if not use a chamois to dry you car.

detailing

now were onto the hard work, the detailing of the paint. you will need the following products.
A paint cleaner
B scratch remover
C polish
D wax

use a terrytowl cloth and a micro fiber cloth, you will need a few and ensure you car is COMPLETLY dry other wise it will be a major pain in the ass

Apply all the above products using the method below.

I use a random orbital buffer but you can do it by hand, mind you its more work and the finish is not AS good but it will protect your paint.

Mask up all the black plastic and rubber, if you dont do this you will end up with a faded white mark on them from the cleaning products.
1. apply the product to one panel at a time, ensure the panel is cool and in the shade ( if your doing it by hand apply with horziontal lines not circles, if you doing this by hand apply with a application pad or a terrytowl cloth)

2. allow the product to dry usually to a haze (do not allow them to completely dry as they will stick to non protected paint)

3. remove product (use vertical lines this time, use a terrytowl cloth)

4. buff the remainding product off (use a micro fiber cloth)

Use a different cloth for EACH product as they have different propertys.

Ok so you paint is all protected now, you have a few options now for your next wash, these are, use a bucket and water or a waterless car wash.
I use both, usually i use a bucket and water, then let my car air dry and remove any watermarks with the waterless car wash or quick detailer.

also use the waterless carwash for the door jambs, boot jambs and hood jambs. Most of these products can be used on glass to.

Wheels,

Treat painted wheels like your paint work this is very important, they are jst as likely to scratch as your paint well, alloys and chrome i use chrome polish on. the same goes for the exhaust, i also found 'so easy" the best tyre shine on the market.

Black plastic and rubbers.

Belive it or not i use a non secented fish oil on these items, you can use the run of the mill plastic care stuff but i find fish oil is much better.

Products i use

Autoglym is by far one of the best,
So easy tyre shine is great
sonax glass polish
miguares (spelling) cut, scratch remover, polish and wax (the pro. series stuff tho and you will need a buffer for them)

I know this was breif and quick but there is seriously not much else to it. as long as you keep you car waxed with the correct prep, less things will stick to your paint, less scratching will happen and it will look sexy :)

thanks ppl ill be writing the next one soon