Hi all,

I am a newbie here, but picked up my VX turbo on Saturday, love it to death. I am going to give it my first big clean on Saturday, does anyone have any recommendations as to what to use to clean it, want to make it look awesome for a photo shoot.

Thanks for your help.

Cheers
Steve

2 bucket method,

due to your time limit meguars from halfords is probably all you will get in terms of top notch cleaning products.

so gold class car wash
gold class polish
nxt liquid wax

all by meguars

some glass cleaner (any brand) and alloy cleaner followed by alloy wax (I use the turtle wax stuff)

and some meguars trim detailer for the rubbers and black plastic

and some meguars metal polish for the exhause pipes!

oh and never use a sponge to clean the car only a wool wash mit!

If you want to go mental on the cleaning front (and some people spend a LOT of money), try these guys:

www.detailedobsession.co.uk

If you email them and let them know what colour you have, they can recommend polish / wax that suits best.

Shamelessly poached from somewhere else.

Good Washing Techniques

Starters guide to Claying

Further Guide to Claying

Swirl Removal By Hand

Swirl Removal - The Basics

Carpet Cleaning

Cleaning the interior

Reviews

Car Wash Shampoo

Paint Polish

Sealants

Waxes[/quote]

Have a little browse on

Detailing World

Thanks for all your posts. I have a little more time on my hand now as the photo shoot has been delayed until next week.

Really appreciate the feedback.

Cheers
Steve

yeah, have a look on detailing world. In the 'showroom'. It gives a good explanation of what products are used and how to do it.
Some of those guys spend 30 hours + cleaning a car.

I most often wash - meguiars claybar - meguiars nxt liquid wax.

Definately worth buying a Clay bar if you dont already have one.

Also get some decent wax like one of these: Cleanyourcar.com

This post has been edited by mcarrick69: Mar 5 2008, 08:12

The chap running detailed obession lives in Wickford which is handy for collection

also a clay bar I used and found good was the Bilt Hamber autoclay that needs no special lube, jsut tap water. They are based in Billericy so again, easy for collectiong and not mincing about with deliveries.

Thanks for all your help. Do people not recommend using a sponge? I have emailed detailed obsessions so I will see what they say.

Thanks again.
Cheers
Steve

Apparently something like a Meguiars lambswool mitt is supposed to be better for washing than a sponge. It absorbs grit and dirt better thus not leaving ultra fine scrapes on your paintwork.. http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=4637

I use a sponge still but plan to machine polish the car very soon to deal with the small scratches its aquired over the years.

most ppl will frown at this but i reccomend that you use fairy liquid on a first wash with the two bucket method..

reason for this is it takes off ALL the grease and grime, then you can follow on and polish the car..

its what i do every month.. wash it down with fairy then repolish from a clean fresh base.. always with good results.

i have done the same here...







when i was it this was i get hardly any marks on the clay, but with car shampoo its always dirtier.. go figure lol

my usual routine is

fairly liquid + 2bucket method
clay
dry off using drying towel
autoglym super resin polish
nxt gen meg wax

then the tyres and stuff i use turtlewax tyre dressing.

then through the weeks just wash with water or car shampoo.

I do my cars with autoglym super resin polish then seal them with autoglym extra gloss protection(halfords stock). They end up like a mirror!

fairy paint killer. it will dull it with repeated use.

please provide proof that this is the case...

I remember someone from John Bee's paintshop saying it will ruin the paint, but a couple of quotes ripped off from other forums to add fuel to the fire:

"The reason it is shiny is that there are important oils on the surface which give it a "wet" look. The newer the car, the more oils there are on the surface. Using the wrong detergent will literally wash the oils off the paint and leave it with a dry, dull look which gradually becomes cracked or flaky. This is known as oxidation. The paint is being starved of what it needs to stay alive and you will find a dead layer forming on the surface and this is exactly what you don't want. But using something like washing-up liquid or washing powder will cause oxidation. What you should use is a proper car shampoo, and you can get this at any good car care shop."

or:

"Don't do it!! It contains salt which kills the lacquer on your car and after a while your car will lose its shine and will need respraying"

I think car shampoo has things that nourish the paint rather than removing layers like a degreaser would, a bit like ph balanced soap (christ I sound like a girl...) anyway, I'm sure the odd time won't kill it, but I'd hate to ruin the paint for the sake of a few quid spent in halfords

A friend of mine had a white car and you could tell the difference after a couple of years of using fairy as the paint went really flat

HTH

They are brilliant! I emailed them day before yesterday asking for recommendations on products for a mandarin VX, and I specified some requirements, and the next day I got an extensive email back advising me which products to go for, together with some other useful information.

Really friendly and helpful

Going to give the VX it's first clean since picking up last Saturday. Problem is there's so many different types of mitts, shampoo, polish, wax etc to chose from it's near impossible to decide...

Any chance you could forward me the email? Would be interesting to see what they had to say

This post has been edited by DundeeVX220: Mar 6 2008, 23:09

You're lucky, you've got one of the best car detailing companies in the country up near you - Polished Bliss. Drop them an email telling them the colour of your car and what you want to do and you should get some really useful advice back. They're a top bunch of guys and won't just try and recommend their kit. If you ever want a pro to detail your car, then check out some of their work, it's pretty amazing stuff.

wow who would have though washing a bloody car could be so complex

I use the

Cosovan's every now and then

then when I do it
the 2 bucket
and then clay and polish

but i use a sponge

dose this make me a bad person ?

should I invest in yet another product ?????????

How long does it usually take to clay your car?