Best way to get a shiny car???, What are your secrets? Options

[massbrandon]

Hey guys I thought I would start a thread because I wanted to know some of you guys secrets to making your car very shiny. In other words, what cleaning products do you use (i.e. car wash, wax, clay bar, etc). I wasn't sure where to put this so I put it in general discussion. Thanks guys and please do share your secrets unless you just really do not want to.

[daazndood]

i usually just wash my car and that does the job. i've never waxed it ever and it always looks very skiny after i wash it.

[lagos]

wash the car
use a clay bar kit
wax it.

[Celica_Kid95st]

NTX wash, Maguiers(sp?) Color X wax. That stuff is awesome imo. Armorall cleaner for the interior. Trying to remember the stuff I use on my wheels...Maguiers something. Make sure u wash ur car in the shade too. O ya and Invisible Glass for the windows. I love that stuff.
John

This post has been edited by Celica_Kid95st: Aug 12, 2007 - 8:58 PM

[elvasoshexai]

meguiar's gold class shampoo
meguiar's clay bar
klasse aio
klasse sg
stoner's invisible glass
poor boy's wheel sealant
meguiar's tire shine

[massbrandon]

^^ holy crap man is that in one sitting?? And by sitting I mean one day? This is great I am getting all kinds of ideas now. Normally I just use Meguiars NXT series wax, Eagle one car wash, and armorall tire gel (lasts about a week).

[97lestyousay]

meguiars nxt shampoo often with microfibre rags 8 or more per wash so not to
pick up dirt and rub in other areas.

I wash in zones.
bug off should have been already used and rinsed if needed.
along with wheel cleaner
1 roof and hatch
2 rear
3 driver side down to body line where chip guard is
4 pasenger side same
5 hood to front highest to lowest
6 lower drivers
7 lower passenger
8 scrub wheels and tires
new rag for each zone maybe more depending on build up.
careful inspection of water and rags to not bring contaminants back onto
paint.
constant re wetting of areas washed previously.
Final rinse with no nozzle to get a good sheeting action before drying.

micro fibre towels for drying and waxing
meguiars nxt paste wax 3 to 5 times a year
meguiars scratch x once a year complete car

dawn to strip wax base about once a year then fresh wax right after

[jason]

well... for a shiney car that lasts...

wash the car, clay bar it, wash again, 2 step polish, then 2-3 coats of wax

should keep ya good for like 2-3 months, you shouldnt clay or polish a car too much (more than 3 times a year) but it really does do a good job, when ever you polish it take it easy and dont get some very abrasive stuff.

in between washes & waxes, detailing spray is always a good idea, bird poop, bugs, etc... keep a bottle of meguires quick detailer or turtle wax ice along with a clean, soft towel, very simple, spray the area, wipe it up with one side of the towel, then flip it over to a dry side and "buff" the area

also, dont do anything in circles, do it all in a back n forth motion along the long ways of the car to avoid swirl marks & minimized marring, doing so along the lines of the car helps keep the marring less noticable, its bound to happen, so try n do the best you can to keep it outta sight

also... autpoia is a GREAT website for detailing, i own white cars except for the celica, so i havent had much difficulty in having a nice looking car beyond washing off dirt, and i havent tackled the celi yet too in depth

craftsman makes a $20 waxer/buffer/polisher thats easy to use, 6" good enough for doing panels and also getting the hood with the goofy headlight lines, simply wash the car, clay it (turtle wax liquid clay bar is good for starters) then wash it again to get any residues off(just half ass it the second time) rinse the car very well (taking any nozzles off and just letting the water flow freely from the hose and letting it sheet off makes for an easy time drying, also avoids spots and streaks to some degree) then put on an applicator pad, put some wax on the pad, then gently without pushing on it move it back n forth to apply the wax, then put on a cleaner pad to remove the wax, then put on a soft GENTLE polishing pad and lightly go over the surface till it looks good, also, watch out for the water that continuously drips outta the side mirrors down the door, and also for the rubber strip between the hood & fron bumper, water always manages to ooze outta those spots to ruin a nice shine ya have, and then it gets the pad all wet....

heres a good write up for general care, read alot first because once you get into the buffing polishing restorative parts, you can actually do more harm then good, i advise anyone to start with a slow random orbital waxer/polisher first then work up to the big time porter cable stuff

http://autopia.org/forum/guide-detailing/


anywho, list of products:

ice/armorall/meguires car wash
meguires/Twax liquid clay
dupont wheel shine
armorall wheel cleaner, also use under car in some spots
sonus polishes
zymoil/Twax/Mothers/Meguires/ultra wax

meguires, ice qiuck detailer




edit: to add to randy's i wash my wheels n tires first then get new water&soap then wash the rest fo the car, i do this because if you save them for last, the rest of the car is going to start to air dry while your still doin the wheels, do the wheels first, n the water that runs off the car will keep them somewhat wet, i also do the lower parts of the car & also heavily soiled areas with the wheel water first (mud that got splattered)

This post has been edited by jason: Aug 12, 2007 - 5:30 PM

[massbrandon]

^^ good lord!!!

[massbrandon]

When you guys say shampoo is that the same thing as the liquid car wash stuff?? Also if you have any before and after pics please feel free to post them.

This post has been edited by massbrandon: Aug 12, 2007 - 6:20 PM

[lagos]

claybar and wax.
she is getting a buff job soon too.

[saleeka]

dawn to strip wax base about once a year then fresh wax right after

I always have heard to NEVER use household detergents because they strip wax and the oils out of the paint itself... I don't remember where I read this exactly, but it's stuck since I was a little kid... Is this not true? I've used a step 1 "cleaner wax" on my cars about once every 1-2 years to strip old wax reside away...

[97lestyousay]

dawn to strip wax base about once a year then fresh wax right after

I always have heard to NEVER use household detergents because they strip wax and the oils out of the paint itself... I don't remember where I read this exactly, but it's stuck since I was a little kid... Is this not true? I've used a step 1 "cleaner wax" on my cars about once every 1-2 years to strip old wax reside away...

I don't think it is good to do it all the time, once a year is all I do it. I haven't
found a cleaner wax I like yet, most say they won't remove wax base, I have had
no problems so far. I am planning on new paint in a couple years so I will
do some more research before then, I figure for the time being it shouldn't hurt.

[elvasoshexai]

i wax my car once to twice a year. since my car is silver, i find it really doesn't show the shine as much as a dark colour car. my best attempt to show the after result of a full wash/clay/wax:



comparison pics for my civic:

before:


after:


for exterior, since i don't drive my car too often, i wash it about every 2 weeks (it's not too dirty unless it's raining or i go on a highway) and it's fine.

every other wash i'll use the invisible glass + tire shine

i also have some wheel cleaner. (i got 2.. p21s or something and meguiars.) i try to avoid using it too often as it isn't too gd for wheels. (same with all cleaners) so i just use it if it's really dirty and hard to get rid of dirt/brake dust.

since i switch between summer/winter wheels, i use wheel sealant on my summer wheels twice a year (once around spring, once around mid/late summer) then i just clean then off b4 storing them.

um... clay +aio+sg is usually once near beginning of spring and once some time in fall.

if i do everything in one day, it takes me 8hrs (i work slowly)

when washing i do wheels first, then top to bottom. i just wash the side that the sun isn't shining on first, and then do the side is shining on. then i rinse/sheet water off sunny side first and dry that side first.

This post has been edited by elvasoshexai: Aug 12, 2007 - 8:54 PM

[jason]

before:


after:


there is ALOT of photo noise in the second picture because i didnt edit it, but pretty much 7 hours about will make an entire car like a mirror if you somewhat know what ur doin


edit: newer cars also have a rediculously advanced clear coat compared to our cars, so just hosing them off will give the same effect as spending alot of time on old paint, however, when you add carnauba wax to the mix on a new car, it gives the paint alot of depth, giving it that show car 3D look

This post has been edited by jason: Aug 12, 2007 - 8:58 PM

[massbrandon]

Thanks for moving this Jeff I wasn't sure where to put it. Where do you guys buy all of your stuff, Autozone or something like that? Also is the car shampoo that you are talking about the same as the liquid car wash?

[elvasoshexai]

yea. car shampoo is just liquid car wash.

a lot of ppl also recommend using dawn dish detergent to strip away old wax when you are applying a new wax job on2 ur car

[tomazws]

http://www.6gc.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=50481&hl=

;-)

[95CelicaST]

I wash probably every other weekend, once a month I will claybar and put on 2 coats of my paste wax that my dad bought in the early 90's. Works better than any other product I have tried.

[playr158]

http://www.jemmautodetailing.com

this is where he did my jetta and what was done
http://autopia.org/forum/click-brag/77617-...o-56k-warn.html


/enough said

This post has been edited by playr158: Aug 13, 2007 - 11:33 AM