Exhaustive Guide: Car Detailing Basics
- Thread Starter Dr MUDHAN
- Start date
Really brother? I thought you have already understood it. ![[roll]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Roll.gif "Roll Eyes [roll]")
DR and me have given details about it many times here. However, it all depends on which polishing product you want to use. For that specific product, you can find details on their website or in Autogeek.
Polish is to done right after clay bar or right after compound if you are doing any paint correction. It does not contain wax and those that say so, is more of a AIO product then polish.
As you know clay bar removes above surface contamination, polish removes below surface contamination. i.e cleaning the scratches. And also removes very light scratches (caused by compound when doing paint correction work). Finally it brightens the paint or clear coat. Like a gold polish
Now that you have sealed your car paint, you don't have to use polish until the sealant life is ended. Otherwise you will strip it.
So next time when you start detailing again, use polish so that it removes any product is that left, making the surface very clean for new product application.
DR and me have given details about it many times here. However, it all depends on which polishing product you want to use. For that specific product, you can find details on their website or in Autogeek.
Polish is to done right after clay bar or right after compound if you are doing any paint correction. It does not contain wax and those that say so, is more of a AIO product then polish.
As you know clay bar removes above surface contamination, polish removes below surface contamination. i.e cleaning the scratches. And also removes very light scratches (caused by compound when doing paint correction work). Finally it brightens the paint or clear coat. Like a gold polish
Now that you have sealed your car paint, you don't have to use polish until the sealant life is ended. Otherwise you will strip it.
So next time when you start detailing again, use polish so that it removes any product is that left, making the surface very clean for new product application.
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Hi cracing, "As you know clay bar removes above surface contamination, polish removes below surface contamination", if so polish clears of everything right then why we need clay bar because scope of the polish is below surface contamination then it clears surface contamination too right. Am I missing thin line between them, still not convinced technically.
-suryaputhra
-suryaputhra
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AFAIK, calying is non abrasive, I.e. it only cleans the surface of minute particles and will not make good the imperfections like light scrstches, swirl marks etc.
On the other hand, polish has abrasive ability and will cut the clear coat to a small extent and it removes minute scratches and swirl marks.
If you go one step further, there are products like Meg Ultimate Compound, PB SSR series 1, 2 3, which are more abrasive than the polishes and would remove scratches and swirl marks on the clear coat, i.e. they cut the clear coat more than what polishes do.
Your question whether clay can be avoided, answer is No. Clay has cleaning ability and polsh and compound have cutting ability. Both perform different actions.
KK
You can skip clay if you think the surface is clean enough but if its not, you have to use clay first. Read here and here for more info about clay.
Its recommended to use clay only once a year and polish twice a year (Every 6 months).
For example, a car that is more then a year old and has never been detailed. The paint surface would be medium to heavy contaminated so you cannot use polish to clean that. Otherwise you would be buffing the contamination over the surface, making it worse. So for that you need clay which is safe.
Polish is least considered as a cleaner because its main purpose is to remove light scratches and brighten the paint. It also helps to remove previous glaze, sealant or wax coating for fresh application.
You'll also find experts saying to do IPA wipe down after polishing because polish leaves some oil on the surface which is not good for bonding of next products so to remove that, its advised to use IPA. However, the IPA should be good quality, pure and must not leave any residue. I did not find a good one so didn't tried it yet. Some use quick detailer but we cannot be sure whether it removes the oil.
Its recommended to use clay only once a year and polish twice a year (Every 6 months).
For example, a car that is more then a year old and has never been detailed. The paint surface would be medium to heavy contaminated so you cannot use polish to clean that. Otherwise you would be buffing the contamination over the surface, making it worse. So for that you need clay which is safe.
Polish is least considered as a cleaner because its main purpose is to remove light scratches and brighten the paint. It also helps to remove previous glaze, sealant or wax coating for fresh application.
You'll also find experts saying to do IPA wipe down after polishing because polish leaves some oil on the surface which is not good for bonding of next products so to remove that, its advised to use IPA. However, the IPA should be good quality, pure and must not leave any residue. I did not find a good one so didn't tried it yet. Some use quick detailer but we cannot be sure whether it removes the oil.
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Now technically convinced but Cracing as you said how to remove oil from polish? best method otherwise it will impact sealant other applications.
-suryaputhra
-suryaputhra
Fine we don't get good IPA here any other possible methods to clear polish residue and its oil without damaging paint.
-suryaputhra
-suryaputhra
![[:D]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Big%20Smile.gif "Big Smile [:D]")
Today I did a quick detailing of my Corolla and wanted to share a brief review of the products used and what I did.
Am planning for a full detailing sometime this month end and wanted to make sure I touch upon all the parts of the car and bring it to a good shape by the time I dwell into full detailing, so that I can do a better job for full detailing.
1. Engine bay cleaning -
For a long time, I wanted to do a engine bay cleaning but was skeptical of doing it, since the engine bay has lots of sensitive inlets and electrical items and I had read some horror stories on the after effects of engine bay cleaning using power wash. So I was doing my R&D on the safest method to clean engine bay with minimal efforts and I have some answers now. Will post the details and some more useful information on engine bay cleaning along with the pics in a separate post.
Products used:
- Autofresh APC - Does a good job, since APC gives more foam even in diluted form than the waterless wash concentrate, I chose APC.
Do I recommend this? - May be Yes
Would I buy this again? - Yes. But if I come across any other good APC, I may try them as well.
- Vista Dashboard Cleaner - VFM and a Ok product. Nothing extraordinary. I had bought this since I had read that most of the dashboard cleaner would give a more of glossy look and would reflect on the windshield and may disturb while driving.
Do I recommend this? - May be No
Would I buy this again? - No
2. Wheel & Alloy cleaning
Product used: Muc-off Frequent Wheel Cleaner
Muf-off is not a concentrate and it is a 1 ltr bottle to be sprayed on the wheel & alloys directly from the bottle. Once it is sprayed, leave it for 5 to 10 mins and agitate with a brush and then wash off.
I had actually hoped to get quite good results using this since this was a dedicated wheel cleaner. I would say the results were almost same as when I had used Autofresh APC to wash the wheels & alloys, if not less. Another point here is, Muc-off is not a concentrate and would get over quickly. Instead I would prefer a concentrate liquid which could be diluted and used, to give more VFM.
Do I recommend this? - May be No
Would I buy this again? - No
3. Body wash
Product used: Muc-off Ubershine Luxury Shampoo
I was contemplating between buying Muc-off ULS or Sonax Gloss Shampoo and thought of giving a try with Muc-off. After searching all over internet and contacting quite a few people to get the Muc-off shampoo, I feel the effort is worth it.
I have previously used Megs NXT Generation Car Wash and had felt it was a good product, but had no benchmark to compare since I had not used any other good shampoo till then. Only drawback I had was the cost. A 500 ml shampoo bottle is available from Rs. 450 online and as per the instructions on the package, 1 ounce of shampoo is to be used for 1 gallon of water. 1 US ounce is 30 ml of shampoo to be used in 3.78 ltr of water (1 US gallon = 3.78 ltr), which is not at all a value for money. So for one time wash, if you are consuming 15 ltr of water you would need 119 ml of shampoo and 500 ml would only last for 5 washes at the max.
After using Muc-off shampoo, I feel that there is more depth in the look of the body than compared with the Megs and also it takes less effort to remove dirt using Muc-off.
Added advantage is that Muc-Off has a really good smell.
I used 50 ml for 10 ltr of water. If you are using the same 15 ltr of water for washing you would need 75 ml for one wash and 1 ltr bottle would last for above 14 washes with Rs. 550 for 1 ltr bottle.
Do I recommend this? - Yes
Would I buy this again? - Definitely yes, provided I am able to source the product again
4. Quick detailer
Product used: Sonax Xtreme Brilliant Shine Detailer
I had read lots about Sonax BSD as a quick detailer and its water beading abilities, so wanted to try this for a long time. It comes in a 750 ml pack along with a combo of Sonax MF cloth bought it from Carpowergrid.
https://www.carpowergrid.com/sonax-...detailer-and-microfibre-cloth-exterior-combo/
Its quite easy to apply and will take only 10 mins to apply for the whole body. Just spray little quantity on the panels, spread and wipe off using MF cloth. After spraying and wiping off I felt the exterior felt more smooth. As I have read Sonax BSD has no protection qualities and may last for a month.
Reason for using Sonax BSD are:
1. BSD layer sits on the body and it would be easier to dust the fine dust with Jopasu Duster on a daily basis
2. Adds a little shine on the body
I am yet to test the actual results and would update my recommendation later.
Hope this is useful.
Regards,
KK
Am planning for a full detailing sometime this month end and wanted to make sure I touch upon all the parts of the car and bring it to a good shape by the time I dwell into full detailing, so that I can do a better job for full detailing.
1. Engine bay cleaning -
For a long time, I wanted to do a engine bay cleaning but was skeptical of doing it, since the engine bay has lots of sensitive inlets and electrical items and I had read some horror stories on the after effects of engine bay cleaning using power wash. So I was doing my R&D on the safest method to clean engine bay with minimal efforts and I have some answers now. Will post the details and some more useful information on engine bay cleaning along with the pics in a separate post.
Products used:
- Autofresh APC - Does a good job, since APC gives more foam even in diluted form than the waterless wash concentrate, I chose APC.
Do I recommend this? - May be Yes
Would I buy this again? - Yes. But if I come across any other good APC, I may try them as well.
- Vista Dashboard Cleaner - VFM and a Ok product. Nothing extraordinary. I had bought this since I had read that most of the dashboard cleaner would give a more of glossy look and would reflect on the windshield and may disturb while driving.
Do I recommend this? - May be No
Would I buy this again? - No
2. Wheel & Alloy cleaning
Product used: Muc-off Frequent Wheel Cleaner
Muf-off is not a concentrate and it is a 1 ltr bottle to be sprayed on the wheel & alloys directly from the bottle. Once it is sprayed, leave it for 5 to 10 mins and agitate with a brush and then wash off.
I had actually hoped to get quite good results using this since this was a dedicated wheel cleaner. I would say the results were almost same as when I had used Autofresh APC to wash the wheels & alloys, if not less. Another point here is, Muc-off is not a concentrate and would get over quickly. Instead I would prefer a concentrate liquid which could be diluted and used, to give more VFM.
Do I recommend this? - May be No
Would I buy this again? - No
3. Body wash
Product used: Muc-off Ubershine Luxury Shampoo
I was contemplating between buying Muc-off ULS or Sonax Gloss Shampoo and thought of giving a try with Muc-off. After searching all over internet and contacting quite a few people to get the Muc-off shampoo, I feel the effort is worth it.
I have previously used Megs NXT Generation Car Wash and had felt it was a good product, but had no benchmark to compare since I had not used any other good shampoo till then. Only drawback I had was the cost. A 500 ml shampoo bottle is available from Rs. 450 online and as per the instructions on the package, 1 ounce of shampoo is to be used for 1 gallon of water. 1 US ounce is 30 ml of shampoo to be used in 3.78 ltr of water (1 US gallon = 3.78 ltr), which is not at all a value for money. So for one time wash, if you are consuming 15 ltr of water you would need 119 ml of shampoo and 500 ml would only last for 5 washes at the max.
After using Muc-off shampoo, I feel that there is more depth in the look of the body than compared with the Megs and also it takes less effort to remove dirt using Muc-off.
Added advantage is that Muc-Off has a really good smell.
I used 50 ml for 10 ltr of water. If you are using the same 15 ltr of water for washing you would need 75 ml for one wash and 1 ltr bottle would last for above 14 washes with Rs. 550 for 1 ltr bottle.
Do I recommend this? - Yes
Would I buy this again? - Definitely yes, provided I am able to source the product again
4. Quick detailer
Product used: Sonax Xtreme Brilliant Shine Detailer
I had read lots about Sonax BSD as a quick detailer and its water beading abilities, so wanted to try this for a long time. It comes in a 750 ml pack along with a combo of Sonax MF cloth bought it from Carpowergrid.
https://www.carpowergrid.com/sonax-...detailer-and-microfibre-cloth-exterior-combo/
Its quite easy to apply and will take only 10 mins to apply for the whole body. Just spray little quantity on the panels, spread and wipe off using MF cloth. After spraying and wiping off I felt the exterior felt more smooth. As I have read Sonax BSD has no protection qualities and may last for a month.
Reason for using Sonax BSD are:
1. BSD layer sits on the body and it would be easier to dust the fine dust with Jopasu Duster on a daily basis
2. Adds a little shine on the body
I am yet to test the actual results and would update my recommendation later.
Hope this is useful.
Regards,
KK
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Note to Mods: Request you NOT TO merge this with my previous post, since this is post is entirely on engine bay cleaning.
How to do Engine bay cleaning
Engine bay is one part of the car which most of us neglect to take care of regularly (including me![[lol]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Laugh.gif "Laugh [lol]")
) for various reasons, (1) it is comparatively difficult to do engine bay cleaning than any other part of the car, (2) it is risky as well, (3) and most important reason we neglect it because, there is nobody to peep into your engine compartment and appreciate your hard work ![[sad]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Sad.gif "Sad [sad]")
.
Till now, I had not even cleaned my engine bay once and my itch to clean the engine bay took off after seeing the Dr. Mudhan's shining engine bay here in this thread. All thanks to Dr. Mudhan.
Still, I was quite skeptical of doing it, since the engine bay has lots of sensitive inlets and electrical parts and I had read some horror stories on the after effects of engine bay cleaning using power wash. So, I was in search of a waterless and an effective way of engine bay cleaning with minimal effort, and there is none other than Mike Phillips to help in these circumstances.
I came across two threads (and much more infact) in AGO forum written by Mike Phillips on the engine bay cleaning.
More detailed and traditional way of engine cleaning here:
How to clean an engine compartment
Quick, refined and effortless way of engine cleaning here: - This is called Cosmetic Engine Detailing:
How to do cosmetic engine detailing
I was actually interested in following the Cosmetic Engine Detailing method with some small modifications, given the products what I have. Below is what I did:
1. Dust off using a big brush and using toothbrush for areas where big brush cannot reach - In this step, I was able to dust off most of the fine dust and engine was looking quite good after the 1st step itself.
2. Using the toothbrush applied and agitated the parts with Autofresh APC (I did not spray diluted APC directly on the engine bay, but sprayed on the toothbrush and applied). Note that, APC generates more foam even in the diluted form compared to any of the waterless wash products, hence I preferred using APC. One may even try with waterless wash also.
In this step, while cleaning with the toothbrush using APC I also simultaneously wiped off the APC concentrate so as to take out the dust. If you only use brush continuously without wiping it off with a cloth, the APC may get dried on the surface and would be difficult to clean later.
3. Clean with another clean cloth / MF cloth and use APC if required as a lubricant. This step would help in further removing the dust using a new cloth.
4. Once I felt that the compartment is clean enough, I applied Vista Dash Board Polish on the plastic parts (I did not spray directly on the parts, but sprayed on a MF cloth and spread even on the plastic parts). One may even use any Tire & Trip Polish / Protectant for this purpose.
5. After leaving to haze for 5 mins, buffed the dash board polish to give a shine.
Note that, my intention was not to clean the engine compartment to make it as new (this is only possible in a detailed way of engine bay cleaning using engine degreasers, power wash, where you have to be extra careful of covering all the parts where you do not want the water to enter). My intention was only to clean wherever the brush / cloth / hand can reach and aim was to clean 70% of the compartment with minimal effort. Guess I took around half hour to do this exercise and may be even less the next time around.
I would be happy if anybody can highlight what best can be done to clean the balance portion of the compartment without using power wash.
Here comes the most important part of the post, the Before and After pics:
Pics here - Hope you can easily identify the before and after ones.
Regards,
KK
How to do Engine bay cleaning
Engine bay is one part of the car which most of us neglect to take care of regularly (including me
) for various reasons, (1) it is comparatively difficult to do engine bay cleaning than any other part of the car, (2) it is risky as well, (3) and most important reason we neglect it because, there is nobody to peep into your engine compartment and appreciate your hard work .Till now, I had not even cleaned my engine bay once and my itch to clean the engine bay took off after seeing the Dr. Mudhan's shining engine bay here in this thread. All thanks to Dr. Mudhan.
Still, I was quite skeptical of doing it, since the engine bay has lots of sensitive inlets and electrical parts and I had read some horror stories on the after effects of engine bay cleaning using power wash. So, I was in search of a waterless and an effective way of engine bay cleaning with minimal effort, and there is none other than Mike Phillips to help in these circumstances.
I came across two threads (and much more infact) in AGO forum written by Mike Phillips on the engine bay cleaning.
More detailed and traditional way of engine cleaning here:
How to clean an engine compartment
Quick, refined and effortless way of engine cleaning here: - This is called Cosmetic Engine Detailing:
How to do cosmetic engine detailing
I was actually interested in following the Cosmetic Engine Detailing method with some small modifications, given the products what I have. Below is what I did:
1. Dust off using a big brush and using toothbrush for areas where big brush cannot reach - In this step, I was able to dust off most of the fine dust and engine was looking quite good after the 1st step itself.
2. Using the toothbrush applied and agitated the parts with Autofresh APC (I did not spray diluted APC directly on the engine bay, but sprayed on the toothbrush and applied). Note that, APC generates more foam even in the diluted form compared to any of the waterless wash products, hence I preferred using APC. One may even try with waterless wash also.
In this step, while cleaning with the toothbrush using APC I also simultaneously wiped off the APC concentrate so as to take out the dust. If you only use brush continuously without wiping it off with a cloth, the APC may get dried on the surface and would be difficult to clean later.
3. Clean with another clean cloth / MF cloth and use APC if required as a lubricant. This step would help in further removing the dust using a new cloth.
4. Once I felt that the compartment is clean enough, I applied Vista Dash Board Polish on the plastic parts (I did not spray directly on the parts, but sprayed on a MF cloth and spread even on the plastic parts). One may even use any Tire & Trip Polish / Protectant for this purpose.
5. After leaving to haze for 5 mins, buffed the dash board polish to give a shine.
Note that, my intention was not to clean the engine compartment to make it as new (this is only possible in a detailed way of engine bay cleaning using engine degreasers, power wash, where you have to be extra careful of covering all the parts where you do not want the water to enter). My intention was only to clean wherever the brush / cloth / hand can reach and aim was to clean 70% of the compartment with minimal effort. Guess I took around half hour to do this exercise and may be even less the next time around.
I would be happy if anybody can highlight what best can be done to clean the balance portion of the compartment without using power wash.
Here comes the most important part of the post, the Before and After pics:
Pics here - Hope you can easily identify the before and after ones.
Regards,
KK
Attachments
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Guys, here are two questions from my side:
Anyone used Collinite 476 or 915 Marque De Elegance? If yes, then how well do they fare against the C845? I am planning to get one of these this time. I have slight experience of 476 but none of 915.
Anyone waxed the windscreen or windows ever? If yes, is it advisable to do so? I did once and found the results really good during rainfall but wipers do chatter.
Anyone used Collinite 476 or 915 Marque De Elegance? If yes, then how well do they fare against the C845? I am planning to get one of these this time. I have slight experience of 476 but none of 915.
Anyone waxed the windscreen or windows ever? If yes, is it advisable to do so? I did once and found the results really good during rainfall but wipers do chatter.
I used to coat my windshield with Meguiar's Ultimate Quik Wax Liquid Spray. Final result are super smooth, dust repellent, rain repellent and no wiper scatter. I am afraid to apply other so called windshield coatings because of their chemical combination and smell they produce I feel the odour itself more chemically induced and feel may damage glass in long run.. You can read Meguiar's Ultimate Quik Wax Liquid Spray on windshield part 1 and part two online.
-suryaputhra
-suryaputhra
Hello Suryaputhra,
Since you are very serious in car detailing, I would like to advice you to buy a DA polisher. As you are using different products, a machine would make it easy and perfect then hand application. It can be used to apply any products, from compound to waxes.
Today I have ordered some stuffs in Detailed Clean India website and noticed a DA polisher for reasonable price. DAS-6 Dual Action Polisher for 11.6k with 10% discount.
I cannot afford DA polisher so I bought rotary polisher few months ago. It is also good but got to be extra careful while handling. Most pure waxes cannot be used with rotary because of its high RPM (Low is still high). Compound, Polish or even AIO can be used though. I think you have seen my Skil 9080 review thread in Product Reviews section.
DA Polisher would be good for you so I thought to let you know.
Thanks...
Best Regards
Since you are very serious in car detailing, I would like to advice you to buy a DA polisher. As you are using different products, a machine would make it easy and perfect then hand application. It can be used to apply any products, from compound to waxes.
Today I have ordered some stuffs in Detailed Clean India website and noticed a DA polisher for reasonable price. DAS-6 Dual Action Polisher for 11.6k with 10% discount.
I cannot afford DA polisher so I bought rotary polisher few months ago. It is also good but got to be extra careful while handling. Most pure waxes cannot be used with rotary because of its high RPM (Low is still high). Compound, Polish or even AIO can be used though. I think you have seen my Skil 9080 review thread in Product Reviews section.
DA Polisher would be good for you so I thought to let you know.
Thanks...
Best Regards
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Hi,
After quite some time I enjoyed reading a full paint restoration / detailing, whatever you would like to call of a old classic car by none other than Mike.
Read this here, if you are interested:
How to restore a Barn Find!
Regards,
KK
After quite some time I enjoyed reading a full paint restoration / detailing, whatever you would like to call of a old classic car by none other than Mike.
Read this here, if you are interested:
How to restore a Barn Find!
Regards,
KK