Detailing chat

RainInSummer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120274205#Comment_120274205

Thanks PsycoPete, appreciated.

Gerard93

Hi

Is there anything available to bring Wiper Arms back to a decent finish they have gotten very dull was considering respraying but not sure if a DIY would make a mess of it😁

hoodie6029

Bump

Anyone tried what Sam’s Detailing describes below- spray on ceramic boost instead of waxing?

Haven’t seen his stuff for sale here but the motor factors has an AG ceramic boost.

https://youtube.com/shorts/TNak_LlI2G8?feature=share

sligopaul

good to see bumped, hoping against hope as we move into spring some of our seasoned contributors are there in the background and can add something to the chat

Mike2006

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120390617#Comment_120390617

I tried one of these recently. Not that exact one but it was a Gtechniq product (Easy Coat). I knew buying it that it was not going to be a good substitution for a ceramic coat detail but what I hoped to achieve was that the car would be easier to clean for the next month or so...

What I found:

Went on really easily and just had to rinse off.

Beading was excellent after applying - very impressive.

After next wash, beading was still there but was not as good. Car was not noticeably any easier to clean (pre-wash and power wash).

After second clean, no real beading visible so product was gone in my view.

Would I use it again: Maybe in the summer months where it would last longer. The shine from the car after applying was really nice so perhaps if you are cleaning/detailing the car for a special event then yes, it would be worth the €10 or so.

Mike

hoodie6029

Cheers Mike, that’s great info. I was doubtful of Sam’s longevity claims alright. It would work out pricey per wash but in time saving it could be worth it. I’ve a C5 and there is a lot of paint to wax on it so this might suit me.

PsychoPete

I use labocosmetica benefica, get 6 or 7 weeks protection out of it. Light mist on the panel then rinse off. Give nice beads and slick feel to the paint. I also use Geyon wet coat it's pretty similar and an excellent product

RoryMurphyJnr

Anyone know if Gary from Autoshine in Blackpool is still around?

Love his videos on youtube but he hasn't posted anything in months, hope all is well

https://www.youtube.com/%40autoshineblackpool

drunkmonkey

Any recommendations for cleaning up Aluminum/Magnesium Oxidation in a bmw engine bay?

Car was in storage for a long time under a cover and now it looks pretty old under the hood. Don't really want to start taking it apart to clean the individual parts.

burger1979

Evening folks, looking for some advice for a car wash that I want to do on my dads car (Merc 1990 560 SEL). He has some grey plastic trim around the bottom of the car, the grey door handles, chrome trim around the windows/doors/grille etc. I've attached some of the photos showing the current state of them below. I am looking to get some products to get them to shine/protection after cleaning the car.

Going to do pre-wash, snow foam, 2 bucket wash, decomtaminate bodywork, polish (hand polish only - dont have a DA machine), wax (Fusso coat), seal (autoglym gloss).

So what would people recommend first for the chrome trim. Was thinking a polish first then some sort of coating to make it shine nice and sparkly, but dont know what. I'm only going to use hand polish as i dont have a DA machine or access to one.

For the plastic trim the same after the washing has been done, any suggestions?

thanks in advance.

PsychoPete

Carpro Dlux is a wheel and trim coating, it will do both the plastic and the chrome

DaveyDave

Two questions.

Washed the car last week, used Bilt Hamber shampoo. Windscreen is now mad greasy. In the past it's not as bad but definitely see snowfoam and/or shampoo drying into the windscreen and leaves loads of marks when the wipers are needed. At the end of the wash it's rinsed off and dried with a microfiber. Glass cleaner doesn't seem to help, likely my sponge isn't aggressive enough for a scrub. I have to break out the glass polish and pad with elbow grease.

Second, car is light grey. It hides dirt well, literally didn't wash it for about 5 months, problem is I don't notice it getting that dirty. Now it's sparkling. Is it safe to use snow foam as shampoo or just use water and two bucket as a weekly? I'd like to give it a wipe down weekly without doing a full clean, similar to those doing a waterless wash.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120630136#Comment_120630136

It could be dirt smearing off your wiper blades, I always give them a wipe with the mitt and shampoo and then dry them with a cloth at the end.

padyjoe

I've hubcapc bought in Lidl. The paint is flaking off them in different spot already, saw no kerb. I'm using Turtle Wax redline wheel cleaner, claiming to be neutral. Is it possible that the cleaning caused it or poor quality paint?

PsychoPete

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120646741#Comment_120646741

I'd probably lean more towards poor quality paint or maybe the force of the power washer

padyjoe

Thanks, Pete! I've never gone near to them with the power washer. Always taken off, sprayed with cleaner, agitated with brush, then rinsed. I suppose, they won't scratch, rather flake instead.

Whocare

Any recommendations for a good de tar for car ? Car wasn't de tar in few years so pretty bad

rodge123

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120648595#Comment_120648595

I used to use carpro tar x, spray it on and maybe give a rub in places.

Doing a full detail of car last week and decided to use an old bottle autoglm intensive tar remover that I had, didn’t realise id no tar x left!

I poured some onto a microfibre cloth and gently rubbed around bottom half of entire car, done a great job. Far far better than constantly spraying and waiting for spots to dissolve, be there forever.

Just make sure you have power washer ready to go straight away after, not supposed to leave it ok paintwork more than 5 mins or so, possibly less in this warm weather.

Oh and probably dispose of microfibre after, the reek of the stuff will never leave it!

Lockheed

My windscreen and roof seem to be covered in little black dots, essentially sap I think. 10m across the road from my parking space are some very tall trees. The spots on the roof seem to come off with very hard scrubbing - windscreen spots slightly harder to remove by hand and don't budge with the wipers. I don't want to remove them through mechanical force like that of the risk of ruining my paint - is there any product that can remove this kind of residue effectively?

PsychoPete

Vasco would be my go to if you can park the car inside, spray on and leave for a minimum of an hour then rinse off. I normally spray on and leave it over night

Cass

Second vote for Vasco.

I've many tar removers ranging from the aerosol cans (which should be avoided like the plague) to Autoglym and more but Vasco has been the best for not only tar but other contamination removal such as sap, bugs, etc.

As it's gel based it never dries, so long as it's parked inside and out of direct sunlight.

No scrubbing, rubbing or any mechanical agitation needed. Spray, leave to sit, wash off.

micks_address

Hi folks,

I'm too lazy to search the thread..what's the safest way to remove tar spots? I have a bunch of auto Glym product from buying cars..have seen wd40 mentioned as well?

Cheers,

Mick

Ps nevermind seen above post!

hoodie6029

This guy is suggesting a synthetic chamois and water to clean your windows perfectly. It’s hard to tell even from his video if this works.

Anyone ever tried it?

https://youtu.be/gYS2f06_CVc

Tzardine

Have relocated to Germany for a bit. Picked up the Kona N.

Really miss doing some detailing on my car. You are not allowed to wash your car here on the street. You need to do it in a car wash. They are mad about cleaning chemicals running into the ground. Which is fair enough I guess. You are also not supposed to do anything on a Sunday, so if you were working on the car, you would have some very disapproving neighbours. Takes some time to get used to.

Back home, I would spend the day detailing my car. Here I have to settle for a car wash, and a sneaky rub down with quick detailer. The above are the results.

Probably have to find a proper detailer soon, as the car could do with it.

DaveyDave

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120630136#Comment_120630136

Still fighting with this. Noticed the inside door glass was getting milky/greasy and could wipe with the finger. Saw a video on YouTube of a detailer who said a foolproof method was a shammy with water, two passes and a buff dry. Don't have a shammy but have a semi-waffle style kitchen cloth. Not ideal but best on hand to 'scrub' the surface as all I have are microfibers that seem to push grime around. Even if I use glass cleaner when I go to buff I still see marks in the glass. It's easier to see on the outside due to the reflection in the glass.

It seems I'm going to need to be more aggressive, on occasion I use a cheap Auto Glym glass polish on the windscreen as when the wipers pass I end up seeing the 'dried in' marks but I don't use it often. I don't do glass that often, mainly fighting with the windscreen inside and out. I think I'll need to start polishing the glass on occasion, maybe clay bar the outside with every other wash as it's a bit less elbow grease.

I need to buy a new glass cleaner, any tips for what method to do glass inside and out and what cloths work well? I see waffle weave cloths mentioned often. I see Ammo NYC on YouTube clean with a thicker cleaning agent and squeegee away to perfection making it look easy...

Cass

For really bad windows I have used a new microfibre conical pad, 2", with window cleaner and then followed up with pure isopropyl alcohol on a microfibre afterward due to its high evaporation rate means it removes residue and leaves none of its own.

I'm currently using ADBL Glass pro followed by isopropyl alcohol. Use liberally and rub well, in alternating vertical-horizontal strokes.

Used with microfibre cloths, multiple ones, and keep using a clean section of the cloth. Don't use the same cloth for the entire car or the same ones for the inside as the outside

goochy

any tips on getting oil stains off a bonnet ?

Cass

Oil stains?

Have to ask, how?

A tar remover should break it down and allow for removal. Oil would have the same constituency as tar so will be safe to remove in the same way. Use a good brand with no/minimum scrubbing needed to avoid scratching the paintwork.

If there is a "ring" mark left then I'd try clay bar, but you would want to make sure the entire bonnet is done and decontaminated prior to claying.

If the clay barring fails completely or in part it may need a cut back. Start small with a scratch remover and medium/soft pad and work up depending on results.

Are you sure it's oil? Have you a picture? Shouldn't be an issue as the above will work on most stains and will be safe. IOW regardless of the effectiveness of the removal the method and chemicals will be safe.

wandererz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121358692#Comment_121358692

I normally use something like CarPro Streak Free followed by Glaco Ultra as a protector.

Have a look here:

https://www.reflectautocare.ie/product-category/glass-care/

wandererz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121359250#Comment_121359250

Have a look at CarPro Eraser.

Should do the trick.

https://www.reflectautocare.ie/product/carpro-eraser-intensive-polish-oil-remover-500ml/

hoodie6029

Mad4motors undoes the damage to a modded A6.

https://youtu.be/KW2cC-yiisM?si=c__4OpYsrs1x1jWE

PsychoPete

Looks like he was inflicting more damage to the paintwork than actually rectifying it

hoodie6029

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121716766#Comment_121716766

How so?

DaveyDave

Any tips for cleaning the window seals? My Golf hasn't been washed as it's parked up most days while the missus is on maternity leave. Gave it two passes with the pressure washer but stuff looks rough like it needs a scrape, could probably do with something being sprayed on to soak in?

Damp cloth when the window is down? A toothbrush could also work. Just wondering the best way to tackle it.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121727778#Comment_121727778

Detailing brush and a quick detailer then wash away.

If your still getting gunk and stuff when putting the window down and up if you have a credit card and a microfiber cover the card in the cloth and use it up and down to clean away the stuff

LIGHTNING

Anybody got any recommendations on how to get stickers off bodywork? My old 90's import has faded half gone stickers that I want to get off.

hoodie6029

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121731736#Comment_121731736

Heat gun to loosen the glue and peel them off. But of tar remover to remove the residue of glue.

wandererz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121731736#Comment_121731736

https://www.homestoreandmore.ie/detergents/de-solv-it-sticky-stuff-remover/109374.html

You can get it there or Tesco or Art & Hobby shops.

They also do an HG brand sticker remover.

PsychoPete

Toffee wheel will make light work of it

LIGHTNING

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121734205#Comment_121734205

huh never heard of a Toffee wheel. Will purchase one along with some of that De-Solv-it. Cheers lads

Bluefoam

I've got a new car & motorbike cleaning plan using the power washer, but I think I might be missing a step…

1.   Snow foam shampoo coat

2.   Rinse

3.   Power wash wax coat

4.   Rinse

Is there another cleaning step that I need to include… I’m confused by people discussing prewash etc… BTW, this is for general cleaning, not detailing… It’s just for maintenance… At the moment I have Turtle Wax Foam/Shampoo & Autoglym Polar Rinse. The most important bit is getting the bike fully cleaned down, into all the nooks etc... and to use the Polar Wax to repel water on the bike, because it lives outside... I also use a brush & noodle mit... so I'm not trying to avoid effort.

PsychoPete

I'd go with citrus pre wash or snowfoam, rinse, contact wash with shampoo, rinse then dry or apply the autoglym polar seal then dry the car. Best to use a snowfoam like bilt hamber autofoam or touchless or a citrus pre wash, they will actually pull dirt off the car as a lot of snow foams are weak and don't do much.

I'd stick to the noodle mitt or a microfibre mitt, brushes are pretty bad for causing damage to the paintwork. You could pick up some detailing brushes to work the foam into the nooks and crannies

Bluefoam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121747985#Comment_121747985

Thanks! I have 5 litres of Turtle Wax, but that only equates to about 5 washes. I was planning to pick up Bilt Hamber Touchless once it's gone.

I'll have a look at what liquids to use for the contact wash...

Supergurrier

Hey guys

Was restocking the last weeks as i want to fusso up the VXR and still need afew small ancilliary bits

• Power washer (Needs a proper snowfoam attachment and i'd like a stubby trigger) It's a Mac Allister (Bosch fitting for snowfoam ?)
• Wet vac
• Cheap industrial style vacuum with a blow function ?
• My 10 year old DA is also dead, whats a good cheap model these days and a good brand of medium and light cut ?

Thanks

hoodie6029

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121810847#Comment_121810847

Reflect autocare have a huge range and are very knowledgeable. They’re probably your best bet for most stuff.

RainInSummer

Right so my 9 year old supply of .50 Cal 20:20 glass cleaner has finally run out.

Is there anywhere in Ireland still doing it or is there a better/identical product out there for the windows and mirrors that I can pick up within Ireland? My google foo is normally strong, but coming up blank.

mountain

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121823970#Comment_121823970

Give this a go,

https://washme.ie/products/labocosmetica-nitido-high-clarity-glass-cleaner-500ml?_pos=10&_sid=91d5f6085&_ss=r

PsychoPete

Blok51 sells 50 cal

RainInSummer

Thanks to you both. Didn't know that blok were up the north.

micks_address

Hi folks,

Bought a car that has a slight smell of smoke in it, I guess previous owner smoked in it. Done a bit of looking at people seem to suggest ozone machines are the best option? I guess using scents will just mask the issue?

Cheers,

Mick