I've never performed a wax job before (used turtle wax paste, wiped on with damp applicator, let dry, wiped off with lint-free cotton cloths, buffed lightly afterwards)... it was interesting!
I have a question though- The process took a long time (1.5-2 hours I believe), is this normal? Are there any equipment I could buy to speed it up? (maybe a buffing machine, i.e. wipe the wax off with a cloth and use a buffer to touch it up?)
Perhaps most of this is in a FAQ somewhere, but what else should I wax--headlights/taillights/etc with 3M Plastic Polish? anything in the interior?

Sorry if any of these have been answered (and beaten with a dead horse), but I'm a at detailing

 

how's your arm?

that sounds about right. takes me like 2 hours to wax and clean the windows etc. i use wash, then apply meguiars gold class wax. total time about 2 hours or more.

 

oof... I don't plan on doing this crap more than once or twice a year

Did a search through previous posts... I'm amazed at how elaborate you can be with detailing! I have a question though-

The use of a "clay bar"... sounds like many people clay their whole car (kinda like waxing?), but how does it come off--do you rinse it off, or do you wipe/buff it off like wax? Can clay be used for individual spots (my 2K SE's paint isn't too bad except in a few locations where I see some junk on the paint), and after you use clay, do you have to re-wax that area?

I think I'm a little too lazy to do a whole Dawn dish detergent wash/clay/polish/wax process, so I'll stick with using car-wash soap with wax (always used it) and the occasional hand-wax once or twice a year... and use clay for trouble-spots. I think that'll be a happy medium between "absolutely crazy" and "negligent", since I accept the fact that a car loses value no matter what, and it's a huge waste of time to make a car look brand-new its whole life (plus I live in the sticks and it's parked on dirt...)

It sounds like I should buy some clear plastic polish/wax for the taillights & headlights, and I already use Stoner Invisible Glass on the glass and it works very well... plus I use Armor All on the interior plastics and Meguiar's leather cleaner/conditioner cream once a month or 2, with the occasional Armor All leather wipes to give it that "slippery" feeling.

 

haven't actually tried claying my car yet. but you suppose to spray on this lubricant and drag the block of clay across the paint. it'll remove any crap on your paint and leaves it really smooth (or so i've heard hehe)

 

damn 2 hours!!?!!?! I do the Ibiz 2 step to my car in 45 mins man...

 

yeah, i try to clean every little part. from the interior to outside. kills the time rather quickly.

 

spirilis,

read through some of the posts here and you'll learn a lot. You can also check out the forums at www.autopia.org, www.detailcity.com, and a new one at www.showcargarage.com. All have more information than you would probably want to know.

Claying is not an everytime thing. I do it one to two times a year. Working small sections (of a washed car), spray on the lube, and lightly wipe the clay over. Wipe off excess lube with a microfiber towel. Claying lifts off contaminants that regular washing and polishing can't get rid of. When done claying, some people wash the car again to make sure no clay residue is left on the paint (from a lack of lube). Then polish, and top off with wax. Clay will remove wax according to most people, but some have said it won't. I always wax after.
You'll feel a dramatic difference after claying, even if your car is well cared for. It will be smoother than a baby's butt. I think this step makes polishing and waxing more effective, giving the additional "pop" people notice.

You can get a free copy of your paint car RX at www.meguiars.com. It asks questions specific to your individual needs/desires, and makes recommendations from there. It is good in that it takes in to account environmental issues relative to your location (acid rain, dew, humidity, sun exposure, industrial fallout, etc...).

Dave

 

Dave- That Meguiar's RX was excellent, thank you very much!

Looks like they recommend:

1. Wash at least 3 times a month (already do this), using an automatic car wash during winter months if necessary
2. Use a Surface Prep (e.g. Meguiar's Deep Crystal System Cleaner) at least twice a year, starting right now (never used it)
3. Polish around 5 times a year (!!!???) using something like Deep Crystal System Polish, and they mentioned dark colors (mine's dark green) benefit greatly from polish
4. Wax at least 6 times a year (!!!???) with something like Deep Crystal System Wax
5. Use Meguiar's Quik Detailer to remove junk before it becomes baked-in

Questions-
What's "Quik Detailer"? some kind of strong quick detergent you wipe off with a paper towel?
Polishing... does polishing take as long as waxing? Can you start polishing right after washing, or do you have to somehow remove the wax before polishing? I'm not doing those 5-6 times a year, maybe 2 times at BEST...

 

i use eagle one's wax-as-u-dry in between wax jobs to help keep that shine. i guess you can call that stuff a quick detailer. i wax the car like once every 2 months or whenever i'm really bored.

 

A quick detailer (like Meguiar's Quik Detail) is basically a spray on, wipe off product for quick touchups when you don't need or want a full blown wash. Good products, but can get you in to trouble if the car is too dirty (you can cause swirls/micro-scratches from the dirt). If you use it, I recommend dusting with a California Car Duster (CCD) to get the majority of the dust/junk off first. Then spray the quick detailer and wipe LIGHTLY with a microfiber cloth, then buff with a clean one. Also good to carry in the trunk for bird bombs and bugs so they can be removed before etching in to your paint. If not sure if your car is too dirty to use a quick detailer, I suggest doing a wash. They are mainly for dust, not actual stuck on dirt. They are also used as the lube for clay bars.
Never wipe your paint with a paper towel! They will cause micro-scratches everytime. They are a wood product and are not soft enough for paint. Save them for windows if you want to use them. Use 100% cotton terry cloth or microfiber on your paint, as they won't scratch.
Polish after the paint is clean (whether just a wash, or a paint cleaner like Meguiars step 1). Polish really brings out the depth and wet look in paint. Polish is what makes the car look good. Wax protects it. And yes, polish is really effective on darker colors, making it look deep and wet.
No, you do not have to remove wax before polishing. Polish will remove the wax on the car. You'll need to re-wax after polishing, as polish offers no protection.
You've probably read of some people using Dawn to strip their wax. This usually isn't necessary, unless you are going to use something like Zaino that won't adhere to other products.
Polishing for me is a little quicker than waxing, because you don't have to wait for polish to haze like wax. With polish, work one panel at a time, and remove it after you've worked it. With practice, you'll be able to polish and wax a lot faster than you can now.
Eagle One Wax as U Dry is nice to use after a wash. But I would never use it as a quick detailer, because it doesn't have enough lubricant properties. Quick detailers are basically just a lube so the dust/dirt doesn't scratch across your paint when wiping with a cloth (some have "shine enhancers and other stuff, but their true purpose is as a lubricant). I use the EO after washes between waxes to add shine and prolong my true wax coats.
I'd bet that once you do a polish/wax and see how your car looks, you'll end up doing it more than 1 or 2 times a year. It's addictive, especially when people take notice of how well your car looks. To make it less time consuming at once, do something like horizontal surfaces one week and vertical surfaces the next (polish and wax). You can break it down any way you want depending on time. And wash the whole car often, using an actual car shampoo or wash, not dish detergent.
When you have time, check out those other links I posted and read through them. You'll see what obsessive people do with their cars. But you'll gain valuable info that you can custom tailor to your needs.

Hope this helps, and sorry about the length. If you have any other questions, you can email or PM me.

Dave

 

aaaaahhhh, this is like staring into the eyes of an upcoming addiction

The local Autozone and Walmart seems to have all this stuff if I recall, so I'll have to check it out (and get some toothbrushes to get out the caked wax in the grooves/lines of the vehicle... looks nasty)

 

Another Q- What exactly does "polishing" do? I know waxing adds a wax finish (pretty obvious), but polishing... polish is very mildly abrasive, right? So polish actually acts on the paint or clearcoat itself, spreading it out more evenly? or does it remove contaminants from the paint?

 

Polish will remove a small amount of the clearcoat. That's how swirl marks and minor scratches are removed. There are different levels of abrasives in different polishes. Menzerna has 2 types, Griot's has 3. A clay bar is used to remove contaminants in the paint. Use a clay bar after washing but before polishing.

You're right....keeping your ride clean is addicting!! But as Dave said, it's worth it when you hear the compliments!!

 

The major difference between waxes and polishes is that polishes contain varying degrees of abrasives. For example, a swirl mark remover is a type of polish that removes swirl marks from the clear coat or will fill them. A cleaner is a type of polish that removes oxidation. Klasse all in one and Zaino Z5 (or Z2, i forget which) is a type of polish as well.

The key thing you have to realize is that you must determine what condition your paint is in before you tackle a detailing project. Considering that peeps here (myself included) tend to be quite particular, the finish on our cars can be quite stellar (right, blues. )

But the thing I try to stress as the moderator of this forum is that no matter what wax you use, the best results come mainly from surface preparation. That's why people like blues, sqard, Bman, maximadave, Y2KSESteve and myself go through so much but the end results are nothing short of stellar. Take a look at the Showoff thread and you will get an idea.

Another thing that doing a detail takes is patience. When I first did an exterior detail on my '02 it took me 8hrs (with breaks in between). However, once you get used to it and start gleaning tips from this forum and the others, you will start shaving off time.

BTW, here's a pic of my '02 after that 8hr detail.



Products used: Clay Magic Clay Bar, Klasse All In One, Eagle One Never-Dull for exhaust tips, Eimann Fabrik Tar Remover, Eimann Fabrik Hi-Intensity, Pinnacle Souveran

 

Just a comment about the clay bar from my own experience and the advice of a pro detailer. He suggested just using water as a lubricate with the clay bar. I"ve done this many times successfully. After the car is washed, use the clay bar (Clay Magic) with lots of water. Do one panel at a time and rinse frequently. It goes much faster than with using a quick detailer and it's cheaper. Works great for me ...

 

Cool. I bought some stuff from Autozone and AAP (Mother's clay kit, Meguiar's Deep Crystal System Paint Cleaner, Polish, and Wax), and I'll bust 'em out one of these weekends for the whole 8-hour job.

Another quick Q- Paint Cleaner (claims to remove oxidation/other crap) and clay... which order? I was thinking Paint Cleaner first, then clay

So the whole job will be-

1. Wash car
2. Use Paint Cleaner (wipe on, wipe off)
3. Clay the whole car
4. Apply polish/wipe off
5. Apply wax/wipe off

 

I see. So does the clearcoat eventually wear down? (i.e. requiring a repaint job, or are there "restorative" polishes that add clearcoat?)

 

Well first of all, congratulations on wanting to take better care of your Max. There's nothing like a freshly detailed car.

To help you answer your question, yes, every time you use some polish with some abrasive quality to it (not all do) you'll be removing a small layer of paint. Don't sweat about it too much because abrasiveness levels vary widely and with proper washing and care techniques and materials, subsequent yearly polishing jobs don't have to be very aggressive. BTW, that Deep Crystal paint "cleaner" is one of the gentlest abrasive products. Don't really expect it do polish out a lot of imperfections/swirls or bad oxidation. That said, DC Step 1 Cleaner isn't really a "cleaner" at all - it's a mild abrasive product and sometimes they're called pre-wax cleaners/cleansers for light oxidation and minor swirls/scratches. They are not for removing dirt or contamination, really. Save that job for soap and clay. Also, the Step 2 Polish is a glaze, not really a polish as people tend to think of the word. So your plan would go:

1) Wash car
2) Clay car
3) Step 1 paint cleaner (rub in and work thoroughly)
4) Step 2 glaze (some say work in, some say wipe on/off... see what the product says maybe)
5) Step 3 pure wax (wipe on/off)

HTH, good luck!

 

Thanks

 

You bastard! Now I've got TWO more detailing forums to read...NOT GOOD!!!

Yea 2 hours is nothing though. I spent 7 hours one day this summer and I wasn't even finished...and I have the PC!

 

spirilis, I've used turtle wax paste forever, but damn it requires alot more work than some other waxes. yes, it does a nice job, but once again, the paste form requires alot of work. in my sig you can see what 3 waxes in 3 straight months car begin. its building up a nice lustre. you look on the side of the car you can see the reflections of trees.

 

& hrs top detail a car? Are you missing an arm? Why not drink a cup of coffe and muscle up....

 

It took me 8 to do my '02 one Saturday.

 

I did the full detailing job recently, took me 4 hours (clay/paint cleaner/polish/wax)

 

Man, you guys are FAST!