Today I did some detailing...

Stunning car ^^^

myshirt wrote: »

MarkN, what do you do for a living and how can I do it!

Very nice car, well wear.

Ha well don't forget, it's an 8 year old car. Some people are paying the same as I got that car for on a new Fiesta ST (nothing wrong with the ST) just mean if a plate number isn't too important, there's some nice metal out there.

I had washed the e46 last week and had great intentions of waxing it too, but alas I didn't have the time. Today I decided to simply rinse/quickly wash and dry and then wax it. My method probably wasn't ideal but ah well. I'm glad I finally got to wax it. I used some Chemical Guys Pete's '53 Carnuba Wax, which I've had an age and has worked very well. It makes such a difference to the car once applied and I find it lasts a ridiculous amount of time too.

damo86 wrote: »

My goodness, that generation of 6er is aging beautifully. Its like the design was ahead of its time and now its sitting quite nicely amongst the newer car designs.

Well wear!

A little search tells that the designer is called Adrian van Hooydonk and he also seems to have designed the F10 5 series - the 6 series came to life when he was only in his 30s :cool:

Great day for it alright YB, 2 Bucket Wash and dry and finished with Kleen Freaks Detailer for mine

I haven't posted here for a while (probably since the arrival of stimpson 2.2), but a new car gave me the motivation to get stuck in. Unfortunately I didn't get it before the dealership had washed it (presumably with a Brillo pad). It's depressing to see more swirl marks on a brand new car than on the 5 year old car you just traded in. Anyway...

I started off with snow foam. Then de-ironed with ferrX. Basically the same as iron-x, but with a cherry scent to try and mask the stink. It doesn't though. That was followed by a wash with Megs Hyperwash and dried (must get a new towel...). I clayed with a Megs claybar but it was coming up clean (no chance for any bonded contaminates to stick to it yet)

To rid the car of swirls I got stuck in with my DA and Megs #205 on a HexLogic white pad (the mildest polish in my arsenal) this was enough to get rid of 95% of the swirls. Good enough for me. I wiped down with IPA ready for LSP.

I picked up some Megs Step 3 wax from Amazon on Black Friday, but reading reviews it seems like it doesn't have much staying power so I went with Collinite #467. After buffing the first panel I remembered the golden rule for this stuff - if you can see it then you've used too much. 2 coats and the metallic paint really pops...despite the fact that there is still orange peel. I also noticed that the rear bumper fitment is not 100%. Bad form Toyota.


So now the paint looks 1000% better than it did this morning. I didn't tackle the wheels - I'll take them off next week and do them properly. I'm tempted to spring for a set of ECB black stuff brake pads - the Toyota ones make a huge amount of dust.

Where are you based danger?

Danger781 wrote: »

Similar boat Stimpson.. Picked up my new motor this week (2013 Scirocco) and the dealership did an awful job of cleaning it. They obviously gave it a once over with snow foam, lightly rinsed then let it dry naturally. Water marks everywhere, and plenty of paint swirls all over. I do not have a machine polisher so those will have to wait, but the water marks and leftover shampoo marks are being addressed this weekend!

Autoglym SRP will do a good job at hiding swirl marks until you can fix them. Add a layer of EGP and it should look good for a few weeks. Easy to apply with a foam applicator and a microfibre for buffing.

It really is a disgrace how some cars are presented at dealerships....especially brand new!

Ah lads you're all so sound :pac:

I plan to get my own one eventually, and then figure out how the heck to use it. I finally got a snow foam cannon about a month ago.. baby steps!

Ron Burgundy II wrote: »

I'm in discussions with the dealership about swirls on my car only 6 weeks old. Only picked up on it on a sunny day two weeks ago.

As a matter of interest what's better a sponge or lambs wool mitt??

If you're using a sponge it would explain the swirl marks. A sponge will trap any grit and drag it over your paintwork creating fine scratches. A mitt (even a microfibre noodle mitt) will keep the grit away from the paint. Using the two bucket method with a mitt is the safest way to wash your car.

Ron Burgundy II wrote: »

Yeah that's my method when washing cars. Haven't used a sponge in years. But the dealership told me that mitts would cause the swirls.

That's bull****.

It's grit that will cause swirls, so the trick is to remove it from the paint as gently as possible and keep it away. That means keeping the car waxed so dirt won't stick to it, using snow foam to loosen the dirt, always using the lance at a shallow angle against the paint, using a wash mitt and TBM.

Nothing that touches my paint goes on the ground. If I drop a MF cloth, it goes into the wash (or the bin if it's a cheap one...) and I grab a clean one. I also wash my drying towel and mitts regularly to ensure they are clean.

Another thing I do to reduce swirls is that I pat the car dry rather than rub it. This way if there is anything between towel and paint it doesn't get dragged over the paintwork. It's a constant battle

Finally after 6 months got to give the car a quick detail today. Have small baby so only had a few hours so had to take some shortcuts.

- powerwashed with nilfisk c110 & 50cal snowfoam
- washed with one :eek: bucket with incredimitt (and grit guard)
- dried with dry me crazy towel
- used bilt hamber autowheel & wheel woollies on wheels, didn't have time for dressing









- hoovered with miele bagged hoover
- armourall matt wipes on dash
- buffed shiny bits with halford cloth
- dr leather wipes on seats
- autoglym interior shampoo & nail brush on floor mats
- orchard autocare APC & cloth for lower door sills & plastics







Thanks to detailingshed for all the products & advice!