Valeting / Detailing / two bucket wronguns

[sierraman]

Worth giving the engine bay a wipe down but I’d keep the hose away, its just inviting trouble into damp electrical connectors.

 

Not sure why he is bothered about it ‘appearing’ a looked after car, the scrap man won’t give a shit which on a 2001 Astra with 275k in the clock is frankly it’s next port of call.

[Kiltox]

Far more merit in shining old turds like that than detailing a brand new one imho!

[oldcars]

Far more merit in shining old turds like that than detailing a brand new one imho!

This, its easy to keep a 18 plate motor clean. 

[Aston Martin]

Another one, £30.71 down from £47.99. I think it's about £60 for the bits on Amazon.

 

 

https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/meguiars-6pc-gold-class-carnauba-plus-kit-3071-with-code-eurocarparts-3015871

[fordperv]

This, its easy to keep a 18 plate motor clean.

You havnt met my inlaws

[oldcars]

You havnt met my inlaws

My Dad is the same. He has a 15 plate, its dirtier that my 83 Rialto.

Always plan on giving it a good going over when he is on holiday. 

[richardmorris]

Well, I came home at lunchtime as I wasn’t feeling great and work as light for once. I decided to clean the fiat ready for Saturday at the Capel Classic show. Oddly a couple of hours bent over with my head lower than my chest seems to have helped my sinuses a lot.

Anwyay I used autoglym -interior cleaner, vinyl and rubber cleaner, glass cleaner and dark resin polish. And meguiars tyre gel. Plus some gorilla glue as it seems that during the hours of clutch hydraulic repairs this Sunday the door rubber was broken. It looks pretty good, which isn’t bad for thirty years old.

[Aston Martin]

Because I park my car in the most polluted place this side of Kazakhstan, it's not looking it's best.

 

B&m had RAC bumper shine for £3 so I bought that. But then poundland had squirty bottle bumper care at £1. I'm going to do one side squirty and one side aerosol and we'll see what happens. I did see a satin shine, which may look better. But I'll try that next time.

 

Hopefully going to do it on Saturday if I can be arsed.

 

 

I mean, it's not exactly £1. But might be handy for some of you.

£25 down from £52

https://www.halfords.com/motoring/car-cleaning/car-cleaning-kits/auto-finesse-complete-protection-kit?utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=drytinder&utm_campaign=phgreferral

 

I bought this too, wether I clay bar it or not depends on how hungover I am.

[reb]

I like to keep my cars nice and shiny now that they're not rot-filled multicoloured VAG shite. I've not washed the Car Formerly Known as Mavis since just before I took ownership, I attempted to polish it but got halfway across the bonnet before giving it up because it was just far too warm and the polish wasn't happy. Every other day of opportune weather I've either been at work or out of the country. I will get round to it soon. Thus, it's slightly filthy but at least it hides the swirl marks.

The pug does far fewer miles, but seems to get dirtier quicker since they're almost exclusively on muddy back roads. It got a deep-ish clean just before the MOT, a quick polish with SRP and some bilt hamber wax. Between now and the winter I want to get both looking as good as I can get them, and hopefully well protected enough that I can spray them off with the pressure washer to keep them clean.

 

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[SierraMikeHotel]

I have some sticky residue on glass (stop sniggering at the back there) - the remains of headlamp adjusters on the front, and the remains of a sticker on the rear screen. The stickers have gone, it's just the horrible goop that's been left behind. I've had a go with a glass scraper (razor blade in a plastic handle) but there are some stubborn bits left.

 

Is there a product that dissolves this stuff?

 

Thanks in advance.

[Talbot]

sticky residue

White spirit or nail varnish remover. Depending on what the glue was, one of these should do it.

[oldcars]

Autosmart tardis or autoglym tar and glue should do it.

[HMC]

Baby wipes.

 

I discovered this weekend these are excellent at removing excess waxoyl from body panels, and at removing it from the operator’s body (ie mine) No doubt insufficient detailing to win a concours, at but at least I didn’t look like I’d been swimming in crude oil anymore. Brilliant stuff.

[Timewaster]

Wd40 breaks down old glue pretty well.

 

Then a scrape with a Stanley blade.

[purplebargeken]

Well it's not that often that I will rave on about a product, the last one was Autofinesse Verso, it is bloody ace. 

 

I thought I'd try a 20 bag of those white foam 'magic erasers', saw a lad using them on YT and he was quite impressed. They cost me a couple of quid on ebay so it was worth a go.

 

I cleaned the interior of Mrs PBK's Micra last night, paying special attention to the steering wheel. Thought I'd done a good job until I used a combo of Verso and one of those little sponges. Fuck me. Colour me hugely impressed, it cleaned off a huge amount of shite, the sponge was a dark muddy brown when I'd done. What a difference!

[Timewaster]

I failed at snow foam.

 

Bought some AutoGlym polar blast.

 

I tried the recommended 5/1 dose. Nothing.

Doubled it. Still not much.

Tried it neat.

 

A few suds. A bit soapy maybe.

 

Maybe my pressure washer isn't man enough?

It's only a Screwfix own brand.

 

Kids were disappointed. I had promised to turn the cars to snowmen.

[HMC]

What does snowfoam do? I love the look of it but obv there’s some technical detail I’m missing.

[Timewaster]

I think it's supposed to deep clean by clinging on and soaking for several minutes before rinsing off.

 

Unless you are me.

[tapir]

I've just got the cheap Karcher snow foam gun (£15 from halfords) and the polar blast at the recommended dilution  - got very thick snowy foam that clung to the car well (and then driveway for hours!) I'm not really sure it does a lot but it is fun. 

[oldcars]

I failed at snow foam.

 

Bought some AutoGlym polar blast.

 

I tried the recommended 5/1 dose. Nothing.

Doubled it. Still not much.

Tried it neat.

 

A few suds. A bit soapy maybe.

 

Maybe my pressure washer isn't man enough?

It's only a Screwfix own brand.

 

Kids were disappointed. I had promised to turn the cars to snowmen.

I use mine in a pump sprayer, seems to work better and less product waste.

[Ohdearme]

Baby wipes.

 

I discovered this weekend these are excellent at removing excess waxoyl from body panels, and at removing it from the operator’s body (ie mine) No doubt insufficient detailing to win a concours, at but at least I didn’t look like I’d been swimming in crude oil anymore. Brilliant stuff.

Since having kids I don’t know how I survived in a world without baby wipes...

 

Bird poo on the bonnet? Wipe

Dog snot on back window? Wipe

Dusty dashboard? Wipe

Caught short checking the oil? Wipe

Spill boiling hot coffee on your nads/leather? Wipe

I also use them to give power tools, etc a quick once over post job to remove grime.

[Andyrew]

Had some Mr fix 9h ceramic coating arrive today so decided to give it a tester on the rather shagged bonnet of my disco.

 

It's a clear resin that you smear on, leave to go tacky a buff away.

 

Worked well on my microscopically thin lacquer. Ive ordered some 99% isoprop alcohol for pre coating degreasing. But I may have improvised and used brake cleaner today!

 

Some pictures to show some 50/50.

 

[DSdriver]

Whats best for cleaning the cloth headlining on my Saab? I am worried leaving watermarks if I go at it with the Bissell carpet cleaner.

[fordperv]

Well f.i.l fp is no good at car cleaning, he works as a fabricator so his car gets covered in fallout from the extractor and gets freckles on its white paint, so today I have taken my stuff around, thoroughly cleaned the steel wheels, washed, fallout remover, re washed, then tar removal, a damn good polish and trim dressing

 

Some pictures

 

 

It was the triple QX fallout remover mainly due to price a blooming bargain in fact, it doesn't bleed red as much as the more expensive fallout products but it did a great job of removing the fallout

 

 

Here it is after a good polish

Not bad for 5 hours work I think

[purplebargeken]

Nice outcome ^^

[Aston Martin]

Went to mums to borrow the pressure washer.

 

"Clean mine"

 

Nearly 2 hours later. Polished and waxed, the pictures make it look better then it is. Couldn't be bothered to clay bar. The Auto Finesse Radience smells amazing.

 

The RAC bumper shine isn't the best, I haven't got time to wash mine properly. So I'm off to the Uzbek car wash in the Cacti and I'll maybe wax it when I get back.

[Aston Martin]

I went to Yugoslavian car wash, then I added the poundshop plastic bumper spray, which looks a bit too silicony for me. (Doesn't contain it) but the bumps were a bit faded tbh.

 

Then a quick Polish and wax. I know I shouldn't have done this on top of the polski wax and wash.

 

The iPhone has done something weird to the colours here. Maybe HDR I dunno. Anyway, meet slightly clean Bumblebee.

[Aston Martin]

Poundshop bumper spray is a failure, it leaves grey streak marks.

 

...

 

 

 

 

A neighbours red Alto is identical.

[bramz7]

One thing I've long detested in cars is filthy door shuts. Just buy cheap baby wipes and enjoy the results. Takes the whole packet for stuff particularly grotty mind you.

[bolognasal spray]

I would prioritise keeping it clean underneath and some sort of sealant, wax oil treatment applied rather than doing the bits I can see. I much prefer a filthy, vile car to a clean one as a general rule. I just hate rust beneath and around sill and wheel arches. And I do not as a rule believe that washing them helps to prevent that, not even in winter when there's salt around. Products such as ACF50 prefer to be left alone or else at very least, reapplied. And they attract filth.

 

Secondly, I prefer driving a car to washing it. If I have a limited amount of free time - which, of course, I do - it's spent driving it. Yes, the car may not last as long as it would have had I cleaned it more. But I console myself with the compelling proposition that very few people lay on their deathbed wishing they'd spent more time polishing their car.