Exterior Detailing...Help please!!

[hexapod]

So this has nothing to do with mods but I'm just starting to detail my own car and I just wanna know if anyone has any suggestions and which products to use. I've read about a turtle wax? and I've also been directs to Griot's Garage.

Please if anyone has an suggestions or methods that they would like to tell me about, please let me know! thank you!!

[mmkeller]

I use Zymol Carbon wax for my blue coupe. It is an awesome finish but pricey. I use a buffer at low RPM. I use cheese cloth wrapped around a micro fiber towel for the final buff with my arms/hands. Only thing with this wax you can't let it dry on the car so I do small sections at a time. I used Meguiar's Gold paste for a long time and still do on my wheels.
Zymol also makes a Titanium wax that a member uses.

[hexapod]

Dang that's crazy. I got are my hands, liquid wax, the application pad, microfiber towel, and some elbow grease :\ I guess i'll settle with that

[insaneturbo13]

ive been using meguires tech 2.0 wax lately, ive had really good results with it, its really easy to go on and come off, lasts a long time and gives it a really good "wet look"

[hexapod]

Oh yeah I actually jus tried that today and it works quite well! My cousin jus gave me the set with the car wash an everything thanks for the tips!!!

[big_rig]

i picked up a big a** gift set of turtle wax at k-mart the other day for 4.95!!!! steal of a deal, too bad i just had my coupe painted and i have to wait a month to wax

[hexapod]

LOL thanks. My cousin just gave me a set of Meguiars and he got it for about $5 too. Idk where at though. But thanks! I've heard good stuff about Turtle Wax also!!

[Rmuth25]

Well this is what I do.
Wash
Clay Bar (Mothers but I dont think brand makes a difference)
cleaner wax (Meguiers) There used to be this Mother's Paint cleaner but I cant find it anymore.
Meguiers NXT Tech Wax 2.0
Mothers Sealer/Glaze
Meguiers liquid caranuba wax.

Honestly I do this two times a year and my car looks great dirty or clean. And my car is black. . .

[hexapod]

Well this is what I do.
Wash
Clay Bar (Mothers but I dont think brand makes a difference)
cleaner wax (Meguiers) There used to be this Mother's Paint cleaner but I cant find it anymore.
Meguiers NXT Tech Wax 2.0
Mothers Sealer/Glaze
Meguiers liquid caranuba wax.

Honestly I do this two times a year and my car looks great dirty or clean. And my car is black. . .

Actually the first 3 steps that I did are exactly the same as yours. Same exact product. Both given to me by my cousin and I love the way they smell :X and look. Especially the cinnamony-ness (not sure if it's a word) of Mother's lubricant.The Meguier's wax smells pretty nice too and I like how smooth and shiney it finishes. I haven't tried sealer yet. Do you recommend it? What's the difference between the Tech Wax and the caranuba wax that you listed?

[Rmuth25]

Well this is what I do.
Wash
Clay Bar (Mothers but I dont think brand makes a difference)
cleaner wax (Meguiers) There used to be this Mother's Paint cleaner but I cant find it anymore.
Meguiers NXT Tech Wax 2.0
Mothers Sealer/Glaze
Meguiers liquid caranuba wax.

Honestly I do this two times a year and my car looks great dirty or clean. And my car is black. . .

Actually the first 3 steps that I did are exactly the same as yours. Same exact product. Both given to me by my cousin and I love the way they smell :X and look. Especially the cinnamony-ness (not sure if it's a word) of Mother's lubricant.The Meguier's wax smells pretty nice too and I like how smooth and shiney it finishes. I haven't tried sealer yet. Do you recommend it? What's the difference between the Tech Wax and the caranuba wax that you listed?

Well the Tech wax is a synthetic wax. Be sur eto only do small parts of the car at a time. The bottle says you can do the entire vehicle at once...DO NOT DO THAT! lol. First time I used it a few years ago I did that and it took a good month until the rain/washing the car got all the caked wax off. Caranuba is the natural stuff.

I like the way the sealer works. Before I read about this process I used to do the mothers 3 step process (Cleaner, Sealer, Wax) and then every so often just use the sealer.

At the end of the day, what I do may be overkill, but I have all the products and I like detailing so I just do it. I think the most important part is the clay bar and tech wax. You could probably get away with doing just those and it would look great if you arnt into spending a day detailing your vehicle.

[hexapod]

Yeah I couldn't do the whole car at once. I don't know where you're located at but I'm in LA County right now and the temp is 100+ everyday!! :\ Even if I'm waxing it in my garage and it's nice and shaded it's still probably around 90 ish and I just can't take the heat! lol. Darn Cali for being a giant desert!! lol. But thanks for your help! I'm thinking next time I wanna try the sealer just to see what it looks like and what the difference is!

Oh and I just had another question. As I was Claybarring (not sure if that's a word. I feel like I'm just mkaing things up now lol), but I noticed that there are a lot of chips and dings on my hood and front bumper. I'm assuming those are from rocks or debris from the road. Is there anything I can do about that? Besides getting that ugly black mask that people put on cars -.-

[Rmuth25]

Yeah I couldn't do the whole car at once. I don't know where you're located at but I'm in LA County right now and the temp is 100+ everyday!! :\ Even if I'm waxing it in my garage and it's nice and shaded it's still probably around 90 ish and I just can't take the heat! lol. Darn Cali for being a giant desert!! lol. But thanks for your help! I'm thinking next time I wanna try the sealer just to see what it looks like and what the difference is!

Oh and I just had another question. As I was Claybarring (not sure if that's a word. I feel like I'm just mkaing things up now lol), but I noticed that there are a lot of chips and dings on my hood and front bumper. I'm assuming those are from rocks or debris from the road. Is there anything I can do about that? Besides getting that ugly black mask that people put on cars -.-

Well I live about an hour away from Philly, PA,a nd its been crazy crazy hot here for like a month. 90+ everyday just about.

And about the chips, not much you can do about it really. I guess when one would first get the car they could get that clear 3m film on, which I think I may do if I ever get a black car again.

[boston824]

I recently bought a new (2010) Altima, Super Black. Same as others, the dealership "washed" the vehicle before delivery, and when I got home I noticed that there were a TON of swirl marks. I decided to rewash it myself. Here is what I did.

Wash car with soup and water (Mequiars Car Wash)
Clay Bar Treatment (Mothers, the store was out of Mequiars)- apply in ONLY one direction, ensuring that there is plenty of lubricant (provided)
Polish by hand (Mequiars Ultimate Polish)- Apply in a circular motion, applying in 2' x 2' sections, removing immediately working your way around the entire vehicle.
Wax by hand (Mequiars NXT Tech 2.0 Wax)- Apply in an overlapping circular motion over the entire vehicle. Once you have applied the wax to the entire vehicle, allow to dry to a haze. I complete this step twice, 48 hrs apart to allow the wax to set up

Because of the color being black, I only use the following when cleaning and waxing- Microfiber wash sponge, Microfiber applicators to apply polish and wax (one for each), microfiber towels to remove polish/ wax, Shamie for drying, and additional Microfiber towel for final wipe.

[nogears909]

i use almost the whole lineup of products from Adams Car Care products, awsome stuff

[boston824]

How easy is it to use, and where can you get it? Can you show a photo of your vehicle detailed, I would be interested in checking it out. I am always look for something better to use on my car.

[Rezbak]

Just to add my 2 cents,

No matter what wax you use, its in the "prep" that counts. You have to prepare your car for the wax.

This is what i do in order,

Wash (every 2 weeks)
Clay (every 6 mos)
Wash
Ultimate Compound (annually)
Klasse AIO (every 6 mos)
Tech wax for dark colored cars and Synwax for whites. (every 2 weeks)

I use California Duster.
You can learn more about detailing at autogeekonline.net
If you want a durable wax, try Collinite. They say it last for 6 mos to 1 year.

[boston824]

Rezbak,

I agree with the prep before wax. I took delivery of my new Altima and when I got home, I washed it and then used the Clay bar. Everyone thought that I was nuts. But it looks great. PREP IS THE KEY.