Detailing

Actually, you'll find that wheely clean comes in cheaper than most other ferrous dissolvers on the market and performs right up there with the best of them. I'm with you on avoiding most OTC junk but, truth be told, most bowden's gear doesn't fit into that category. More like they are ALSO sold OTC. I certainly don't like everything in the range, but some select products are excellent and every bit as good as boutique products. That's not to say for an instant that you shouldn't shop at the detailing boutique stores, like Detail Central, ZAS, Waxit, CCP, etc - I back them 100% and order through them and they have a huge range of products that will largely out-perform most of what you can buy in auto stores. Long and short of it is that I wouldn't use the products if they didn't work and if I didn't find them to help with my profitability.

As with anything, I'm not suggesting anyone take my word for it - best to form your own opinions

Any wheel cleaner will be more effective with some agitation and brush work - that's just the nature of things. Aside from trade wheel acid, there's not much out there that is a truly spray and rinse type product - and even then, acid will still need to be worked if the wheels are feral.

I'd be happy to do it!

 

I haven't had to clean anything too nasty out of the VF interiors yet, but it will clean up like any other microsuede interior. The autobrite alcantara cleaner from CCP is ok, depending on the stain, but it's quite a heavy cleaner, meaning you need to take some time making sure you get rid of all of the cleaner with a damp microfibre towel (or towels). I get best results following that by blowing all the fibres back up with compressed air - helps the surface to dry as well - the traditional way is to run the vac over the surface and again when it's dry but I find compressed air more effective. Another option is a product called HD Total from Detail Central. It's a really good all purpose cleaner - you can use a weak mix of it misted on the surface and worked in gently with a brush. Use brushes to clean the fibres, rather than scrubbing with a towel or you run the risk of matting the fibres down. Always test for colour fastness and results in an inconspicuous area first, just to be safe.

I would definitely advise having a quality fabric protection product (not from a dealership) applied to micro-suede, particularly if it's a light colour.

 

Have to agree its a very informative thread,some very handy tips indeed..hats off to Cuda for kicking it off and tinsnips and others for weighing in with expert/valuable tips :beer chug:

One further question I have,if Tinsnips(or somebody else)knows..recommendations of a gentle yet effective engine bay cleaner/degreaser type product? Also,ive asked another good fella on here but what type of water pressure level(eg is a gurney pushing too much pressure?)is fine to wash off the dirt,dust and cleaning agent?
Finally I should avoid the alternator definitely but what other components may not like direct water spray,assumeing the rest of the bay should be fairly resistant to direct water spray? cheers in advance...

 

Your engine bay shouldn't need degreasing unless some thing is leaking/busted.
With that, I just use a damp mirco fibre cloath.

 

Search for a product called p21s total auto wash. Its a citrus based degreaser. Very pricey but also effective and safe on virtually any surface.

Don't use high pressure on the engine. Cover any electronic parts you can see with plastic bags/cling wrap for extra safety.

Dry using compressed air or even an electric leaf blower. Then turn the car on and let idle for 10-15 mins or so (or even take it for a short drive) to dry any remaining water out. Dress the plastic and rubber with 303 aerospace after it has cooled down again.

 

Tinsnips,

What sort of products and accessories would you recommend for a basic home kit?. i want to get my car care products in order for the Caprice.
Thanks mate, informative thread. and will come in handy.

One day maybe i'll be able to get you to do my car Tinny, i like the photos i've seen of your work!.

 

im in the Pilbara(= red dust)plus im buying a few carbon caps for the bay(just like yours..thought I would give it a tub that's all..cheers.

yours looks sweet,spesh the bonus s/charger

 

Thanks to WAGONBEAST also..will look for that product(ps im loving ebay,2 days or less actually for some meguiars NXT car wash from Victoria!!)on said great source for buyin lotsa **** :smoking:

 

Dri-Lube I think its called

 

Good grief! This escalated quickly! lol

^^^ That's a good guide. Just to add though, with the VE/F bays (and most modern bays) there's no real issue with using high pressure -obviously don't get the lance right in there and force water where it shouldn't go, but if you hold it at a bit of a distance, it's perfectly safe and you'll be flooding a lot less water through the bay than using a hose.

Also, those with OTRs, stuff the mouths of them full of plastic bags, or cover the end to avoid filling it up with water and soaking the filters.

P21s is great, but you'll find that most APCs will take care of light duty cleaning just fine. Some will rinse a bit better than others, some you don't need to rinse at all. Just play around with some different ones until you find one that suits your needs.

Nice! And you're spot on for a regularly cleaned bay. If you don't keep up on it though, you might still find that a lot of road film and grime gets sucked up in there, as well mechanics hands, so you might still need to use an APC or degreaser to clean if its not part of your regular maintenance.

Instead of just using a damp towel, try misting a microfibre with a quick detail spray or spray wax when you're wiping down the plastics. You'll find it will leave a very subtle lustre that will look much fresher than just using water.

There's a product from 1Z Einszett called Gummi Pfledge. It's a rubber conditioner that works to help soften and maintain rubber over time. Dri lube will still stop the noise, but if you brush up against it, it can stain your clothing. Gummi Pfledge will soak in and not be an issue. It's sometimes not an instant fix though, as it's working to condition the rubber - so if the squeaking really bugs you then, as you said, dri lube or even vaseline will be a faster solution.

Thanks mate, I appreciate the compliment. I'd be happy to take care of it for you.


As far as your "which products" question, it's kind of a case of how long is a piece of string?

You can make it pretty much as in depth or as simple as you like. Have a think about how much time you're willing to spend maintaining the car and how frequently and choose from there.

A bare bones kit IMO would consist of:
•either a quality shampoo or a rinseless wash (there are pros and cons to both and both have their place)
•a quality quick detailer spray to help with drying and for general touch ups
•All purpose/multi purpose cleaner
•a non-slinging tyre dressing - preferably not a gel (matte finish for my taste but choose whatever you like)
•glass cleaner
•protective product for paint (be it wax, paint sealant, spray wax, electrostatic coating, quartz or ceramic coating, or whatever - that is an entirely separate discussion)
•a clear or at least semi-transparent bucket
•LOTS of good quality microfibre towels.


Now what you choose from that list will depend on how you are able to maintain your car and how frequently you are able to do it. For instance, if you live in an apartment building without access to a wash bay, rinseless washing is definitely for you. You can wash the car where it's parked, there is no run-off and any contaminants picked up in your towels will be washed away in the washing machine where the water is treated, rather than being flushed down the storm water.

If you're able to maintain your car regularly but don't want to spend a lot of time on it, a spray wax or electrostatic coating will be a good option.

You'll notice too that I haven't listed wheel cleaners, wash mitts or drying towels and only one bucket. Like I said, that is a bare bones list. If you have a good supply of towels, it's not so critical to run out and chase down mitts and drying towels. The same goes for a second bucket to use the 2 bucket wash method. What I mean by that is, in the 2 bucket method, you're using one bucket for soap, one for water - the bucket with water is for rinsing your mitt out before putting it back in the soap bucket, so your wash water and your mitt are always clean when you're touching the car. If you're only using one bucket, soak 8-12 towels in the water... wash a section and put that towel straight into the washing machine, picking up a new towel to do the next section. By doing this, you're running no risk of contaminating the wash water and you're guaranteed to have a perfectly clean wash tool touching your car every single time. Yeah, there is more washing to do at the end of the process, but it takes exactly the same amount of time to push "Wash" on your washing machine, whether you're cleaning 5 towels, or 25. And most people don't go to the effort of washing their mitts after each use - you should.. rinsing it under a hose is not cleaning all the grit out of it, just pushing it further into the fibres ready to be released when you put it back into a bucket.

As far as cleaning your wheels, if you keep up to it, you can often do without wheel cleaners all together - particularly if you have some kind of protection on them. If they're a bit grimy, APC will often take care of it. It's only when you start getting really caked with brake dust, or you run high dust pads that you can need to reach for something stronger. Also, if you're someone who is pedantic about keeping shiny exhaust tips clean, a regular wipe out with APC will usually be enough to not require hard polishing with metal polish.

I also didn't list any interior dressings or cleaners. You can dilute APC to use safely on most fabrics and leathers and QD makes for a great hard surface cleaner - many also leave behind some UV protection and can be anti-static, so that keeps with the bare bones line of thinking as well.

 

No dopey questions mate.

APC is All Purpose Cleaner. There's a million different ones out there, some good, some average. Best to buy in concentrate so you can dilute to suit whatever you're cleaning.

A non-slinging tyre dressing is simply one that doesn't end up throwing tyre shine up the sides of your car when you drive it - like when you get new tyres and the tyre shop goops them up with gel and you have nice black stripes down the side of your car by the time you get it home. You want one that will form some kind of bond to the tyre and dry to a level where it won't fly off when it's spinning. Gel tyre dressings are normally the worst for flinging themselves down the sides of the car as they go on so thick, clogging up all the side wall texture and never really set up.

I wasn't putting the two bucket method down at all - it's a very safe way to wash the car - I was just giving another option. I need to stipulate though, that one sponge or mitt in one bucket is a bad idea. When using one bucket, you need to have a bunch of towels in there, so you can continuously swap out to a clean towel to do the next section of the car.. Hopefully that's making sense. If not, let me know and I can post a video showing what I mean. It's just a slightly safer method again of washing the car as an alternative to the 2BM - it's what I recommend particularly for cars with sensitive finishes

 

That's a massive compliment, I really appreciate it. Happy to help out if I can.

 

Havn't touched a can of degreaser for 30 odd years. Kerosene and a paint brush does my filthy bits like chain and sprockets and is harmless to o-rings etc.
For my bike motors CT-18 truck wash is OK if left to soak in. Then wash off with car wash. Cheap silicon spray for tyres and the exy CRC silicon spray for all Black plastics and rubber on my Jap bikes but not sure enough to use on my Ducati yet. No harm for 5 years or so on track bikes. Hose is safer than preasure washers.

 

Yep "tinnie" thanks from me too for your valuable input throughout this thread,loads of very useful info..am sure plenty of others do/will appreciate it going forward too..cheers Bud! I also have recently converted to the 2 bucket method and thoroughly cleansed microfiber wash pads(meguiars)just bought another two off ebay actually.Need to get some microfiber cloths though!
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Dri-lube huh? I thought it may have been KY given Cuda was the author of that post... :smoking: