The Official Car Care Thread

[nemesis]

hmm.............I just use a damp cloth and a detailing brush.........

While that will keep it clean, it will still eventually get dry and crack. Most interior detailers are intended to extend the life of vinyl and plastics in addition to cleaning them. If you don't like the look or feel of any of them you should at least coat it, let it soak a few hrs, then remove all at least once a mth, especially if you park in the sun a lot.

I always dread cleaning my rims, whats a good brush to geT?

Also, even after I wash and use quick detailer...a lil rain and after the dust beads up and looks horrible.

SIgn that it need waxing again?

I don't think that's a sign of needing waxing again. If you're beading you probably don't. Dust will always do that on static water. If you're moving and still get a lot of dust collecting everywhere on the car then yes, you probably do need to rewax. Most of the water should run backward on the vehicle while moving and carry the dust with it making the back of the vehicle much dirtier than the front (assuming it's just dust and not a lot of crap splashing on the car from other vehicles).
As for a wheel brush it depends heavily on the design of the wheels. The Daytona speed brushes work well for some wheels, but are very close to useless on mine. I'd suggest the Jr if you are getting that brand of brush because it will cover a wider range of spokes since it can fit in the small ones also. I find the Mother's wheel brush quite good and works on most wheels. You may need to keep more than one brush around.
If you have thin spokes, the best thing I've found to do is go to the hardware and get a good soft 1" paint brush. Make sure the bristles are bound with something other than steel so it won't rust, and get a brush with the longest bristles you can find. I use a Stanley 1" paint brush for between my spokes. Cost 10tt and outperforms the other 3 wheel brushes I currently use(Daytona Speed Master, Speed Master Jr. and Mothers wheel brush) at least between spokes.

[Karim Khan]

I always dread cleaning my rims, whats a good brush to geT?

Also, even after I wash and use quick detailer...a lil rain and after the dust beads up and looks horrible.

SIgn that it need waxing again?

Crazy you have a very expensive paint sealant on your vehicle and there is no need for waxing or sealing so soon. With respect to the water dust droplets on the paint, its just a sign that you need to wash your car more often,,,lol but seriously you really cant do nothing about it , its just a naturally occurring thing and it happens to all of us. This is just a sign that there is a lot of dust in the air and you just need to either garage the vehicle of wash it more often.

[cinco]

gettin a refresh on my paint a white with a clear
how soon after can i seal that paint and what can i use to keep it fresh from the get go?

[Karim Khan]

Hey Cinco if you are going to repaint it, the usual time frame for the paint to de-gass is 1 month. But to be safe ask your painter.

As for maintenance you can use the Meguiars Ultimate wax or any other quality product.

[cinco]

cool i figure 1-3 months to degas but what so would you recommend to use just a sealer?

[Karim Khan]

After the 1-3 months waiting period i am sure there would be an accumulation of bonded contaminants, so i recommend you clay the paint to remove any bonded contaminants then use a nice polish to bring out the shine and protect it with a nice synthetic sealant or carnauba wax.

[crazychinee]

I always dread cleaning my rims, whats a good brush to geT?

Also, even after I wash and use quick detailer...a lil rain and after the dust beads up and looks horrible.

SIgn that it need waxing again?

Crazy you have a very expensive paint sealant on your vehicle and there is no need for waxing or sealing so soon. With respect to the water dust droplets on the paint, its just a sign that you need to wash your car more often,,,lol but seriously you really cant do nothing about it , its just a naturally occurring thing and it happens to all of us. This is just a sign that there is a lot of dust in the air and you just need to either garage the vehicle of wash it more often.

Jah!
Day after I wash my car, it does look like a bag of cement explode over it.

[Karim Khan]

lol crazy i know how you feel, i washed my vehicle over the weekend and it also looked like i drove through a sand pit...

[nemesis]

After the 1-3 months waiting period i am sure there would be an accumulation of bonded contaminants, so i recommend you clay the paint to remove any bonded contaminants then use a nice polish to bring out the shine and protect it with a nice synthetic sealant or carnauba wax.

3 months seems like a long time for exposed paint. I dropped wax on a new paint job after 1mth and it was fine. Ask your paint shop, but I doubt it'll be more than 1.5mths.
Karim I assume when you say "nice polish" there you mean one with mostly oils and very low abrasives right? Cause he shouldn't need to do much to the smoothness of the finish since it just got new paint.
Personally for paint in good or almost new condition I'm really liking those oily pre-wax cleaners these days. Give an amazing finish with wax.


Agreed on the very dusty atmosphere we have. I normally wash 3-5 times a week because of that crap. Sometimes you just don't have the time though and have to live with it.
One great advantage I've noticed with sealants over waxes is that they build up much less dust when parked.

[cinco]

ok after research im ordering some of this
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how ... y-wax.html

[nemesis]

Ahh the boat wax. That's supposed to be good cheap and durable protection. I guess in your research you would have read that it's reasonably difficult to work with. Let us know what you used to prep and how it turns out!

[cinco]

the prep is easy they say just clean paint and put on
it lasts forever!
btw i can skybox in polish right?

[nemesis]

Yes you can skybox polish.
People seem to use all sorts of stuff to clean the paint before that wax. Ideally I would guessed the Collinite 840 would be the natural choice, but it seems to be rarely used. That's why I said to let us know what you use, and how it worked. Because I'm sure different AIO polishes/glazes etc will affect the wax in some way.

[cinco]

i have a friend in canada who clayed then applied it from a fresh paint job
this is 2 weeks after applying the 845 and it is a carbon fiber hood

IMG-20110723-00074.jpg

[nemesis]

Yeah that's not bad. I just never tried it because of the reviews saying it's difficult to use and even on their site they specify conditions in which it would be difficult to use and the upper end of their recommended temp range is lower than the average day temps in Trini. Personal preference I guess. It's shiny though!

If longevity was your aim though, any particular reason for choosing the 845 over the JetSeal 109?

[cinco]

its not difficult to use apparently just use it very sparingly kinda like 3m hand glaze
the 845 came highly recommended that is all and it seems from my research it even lasts if you wash the car with dishwashing liquid since my car spends alot of time outside i figure its worth the try

[copper_shot]

dog jumped and walked on top my new carbon hood

seeing some faint nail scratches

what can i use? that can be acquired locally..


anything for matte paint as well? some faint scratches on the matte as well

[Karim Khan]

Karim I assume when you say "nice polish" there you mean one with mostly oils and very low abrasives right? Cause he shouldn't need to do much to the smoothness of the finish since it just got new paint. .

Yes a nice polish like the Meguiar's Ultimate Polish will be great for his use. It will add gloss and depth to the finish.


Copper shot,

Once the carbon fiber has a clear coat, yes the scratches can either be removed or the visibility reduced.

[DSM_05]

[quote]anything for matte paint as well? some faint scratches on the matte as well/quote]

Can't polish matte paint in the normal sense. Polish will cause the paint to lose the matte finish and get "glossy".

So normal "scratch removers" are out of the question.

[nemesis]

Never tried matte paint, but I have seen special cleaners for them. Don't know about any form of polishing though. Might have to take a do-over.

[Karim Khan]

Yes he has to do over there is no quick fix for Matte paint.

Actually there is one fix ,, its called the 5 feet rule ..lol Nemesis care to explain the rule ..lol

[nemesis]

Haha.

Basically stand 5 ft away or more, and if the car looking good and you can't see anything, call that good.

Exception to the rule :
Owners who know it's there and think about it every time they get near the car, or dream about it while they sleep.

[Stephon.]

[trvs]

Loll I'm in the exception category.

[S_2NR]

Loll I'm in the exception category.

Me too

[Aaron 2NR]

karim boy.....job well done again!!!!

[copper_shot]

Haha.

Basically stand 5 ft away or more, and if the car looking good and you can't see anything, call that good.

Exception to the rule :
Owners who know it's there and think about it every time they get near the car, or dream about it while they sleep.

lol the 1ft rule works as well..

scratches real faint on the matte... but i rather there be none..

almost like a swirl mark

[Karim Khan]

karim boy.....job well done again!!!!

Aaron it was a pleasure working on your vehicles once again.

[DSM_05]

Haha.

Basically stand 5 ft away or more, and if the car looking good and you can't see anything, call that good.

Exception to the rule :
Owners who know it's there and think about it every time they get near the car, or dream about it while they sleep.

lol the 1ft rule works as well..

scratches real faint on the matte... but i rather there be none..

almost like a swirl mark

Well SwissVax makes the "Opaque" Wax, which will help protect the matte finish, and if you're lucky, MAY hide a few blemishes.

They're the only brand I know off which makes a product for a matte finish.

Should cost your around 600-700 TTD for a 40-50 ml sample, if you can find it.

[aidan]

Looking for a no touch tire shine like this



bought a 3pack in pricesmart early last year, but the last can just finished.it works great, just spray on and boom. I don't see it again there. Can anyone recommend anything.