DIY Auto Detailing Thread

[mkadl]

If no cleaning products work, you could try a buffer and some glass compound. Like you’re correcting a paint defect, but glass in this case.

razor blade scraper.

 

[mkadl]

Just purchased my first "nice" vehicle and decided to dive into learning how to wash and detail it myself. It's been a more fun and interesting rabbit hole than I expected. Curious if anybody else has embarked on the same hobby? Would be great to have a thread to share experience and feedback on different processes, products, maintenance routines, etc.

I've done a couple 2-bucket washes with Meguiar's Wash and Wax + wheel and rim cleaner and dressing, but just decided to jump all in and plan on doing a full foam cannon wash, clay bar decontamination, and ceramic spray seal this upcoming weekend or whenever weather cooperates.

I detail our two vehicles 3-4 times a year. Love it. Therapudic is a correct word for me. In fact I have people wanting me to do their cars. Nope. 2017 F150 and a a 2018 Jeep. They look as good as they can. I had a 2008 black dodge ram, boy was that sharp cleaned up. My all time favorite truck. But buying a vehicle costs money, point a to point b cars in my house, drive it till I dont trust it.

 

[NWICY]

Auto detailing imo is horrible, even worse than weed eating. lo

I wonder why a dirt track racer would have a adverse reaction to auto detailing?

I drive a lot of gravel,clean yes detailed nope.

 

[dmclone]

From 18-50, I was obsessed with car detailing. Went through so many waxes, polishes, protectants, etc.

Pinnacle Souveran
Zymol (before it changed)
Klasse
Liquid Glass
S100
I'm forgetting a bunch I tried

Two things changed:
Ceramic spray came out and seemed to change everything. A protectant that's easy to apply and lasts for a long time. If you wash by hand, it lasts so long. I use Turtle wax ceramic spray.

I now drive an SUV that i have no interest in making look perfect, I still keep in clean, but not like when I had sports cars and bikes. I do usually have a clear bra installed on new cars.

 

[cowboycurtis]

I like black vehicles. I have 3. They look awesome when clean but it’s hard to keep them that way.

If you hate detailing, don’t get into trucks. The last time I detailed my Pete it took 2 days. The chrome polishing will give you Popeye forearms. The guys that do the truck show circuit must have brain damage.

 

[Malty Flannel]

I nearly forgot to mention this.....not sure if anyone here has tried Lithium brand auto detailing products? So far, I have been very impressed with their stuff. The Trim Serum is awesome stuff, specifically.

Lithium products on Amazon

Thanks for the recommendation. So many newer and niche premium brands out there that its hard to know if any are worth exploring and paying the premium for compared to older established brands like Adams or Meguiar's or TW.

 

[Malty Flannel]

What works to just take one spot of bird droppings off? I kinda hate paying $15 just to do that.

Any good detail or waterless wash spray and a microfiber cloth. You may need to do two or three rounds of it but its quick and easy. spray directly onto the droppings, let it dwell for 10-20 seconds, wipe with one side of the cloth and then buff with the other side. Repeat until done

 

[Malty Flannel]

Thought about trying some Turtle Wax spray graphine wax. Graphine seems to be the new thing that tops ceramic coatings. I like the idea of spraying on and wiping off as opposed to liquid wax. I do have a car wash membership so I can wash my truck every two days. I don't feel I really have the time to devote to washing my cars by hand but I do try to wax my vehicles when I get a chance. Spray wax I don't think is as durable but I like the convenience.

I'll be curious about your experience with graphine. I'm sticking to plain old ceramic/SIO2 sprays for now, but have been keeping my eyes out for firsthand graphine reviews

 

[madguy30]

Any good detail or waterless wash spray and a microfiber cloth. You may need to do two or three rounds of it but its quick and easy. spray directly onto the droppings, let it dwell for 10-20 seconds, wipe with one side of the cloth and then buff with the other side. Repeat until done

Thanks! Well as of now my car is getting a good rain on it so hopefully it gets taken care of.

 

[BoxsterCy]

When I put the snow tires on last winter (on their own rims) I scrapped the 10 year old summers so had the wheels with no tires this spring. Perfect time to give them a good cleaning and get rid of 10 years of brake dusk grim on the inside of the rims that's so hard to get at with the disc brake assembly in the way. Some tough stuff, ended up using mineral spirits on inside of the interior rim part.

 

[KennyPratt42]

One thing I have found is what I notice the most is really clean, streak free glass. The thing other people, that may or may not be car people, will notice are really clean wheels and tire dressing. They usually won't mention it specifically, but are much more likely to comment on how clear my car is after I've done it.

I predominately use Chemical Guys products and have been happy with the price/quality of them. I have generally liked them more than the big brands' products.

Ceramic coating and PPF are a topic all of their own, but I really like getting protection film put on at least the front half of my vehicles. I found a local shop I like that did a nice job and cost less than some other options like a dealership.

 

[Malty Flannel]

One thing I have found is what I notice the most is really clean, streak free glass. The thing other people, that may or may not be car people, will notice are really clean wheels and tire dressing. They usually won't mention it specifically, but are much more likely to comment on how clear my car is after I've done it.

I predominately use Chemical Guys products and have been happy with the price/quality of them. I have generally liked them more than the big brands' products.

Ceramic coating and PPF are a topic all of their own, but I really like getting protection film put on at least the front half of my vehicles. I found a local shop I like that did a nice job and cost less than some other options like a dealership.

I like Chemical Guys, but man they make it hard on newbies trying to figure out where to begin when they have 97 different products that do the same 5-6 different things

 

[AgronAlum]

I was never that into it but have been reading a ton over the last few weeks. I bought a 93 Ford that needed some serious work because it had been sitting in the sun unmoved for nearly a decade.

I have about 8 hours into it so far with a Bauer DA polisher, a Griots Garage orange pad and some Meguiars Ultimate Compound. I’m about half done with the compound and will polish and/or wax after. It’s a single stage paint so I have to be careful with how much I’m cutting.

It’s super quick to clog up the pad too. I have some spots with a crappy finish because of it. I’m hoping it’ll even out with the polish.

I’ll eventually work my way into my daily driver. It’s got a black pearl paint that has a decent amount of swirls and scratches. Willis PPFd the front clip and the door edges when I bought it. I’m not sure how I feel about PPF though.

Before:


In progress:

 

[dmclone]

I was never that into it but have been reading a ton over the last few weeks. I bought a 93 Ford that needed some serious work because it had been sitting in the sun unmoved for nearly a decade.

I have about 8 hours into it so far with a Bauer DA polisher, a Griots Garage orange pad and some Meguiars Ultimate Compound. I’m about half done with the compound and will polish and/or wax after. It’s a single stage paint so I have to be careful with how much I’m cutting.

It’s super quick to clog up the pad too. I have some spots with a crappy finish because of it. I’m hoping it’ll even out with the polish.

I’ll eventually work my way into my daily driver. It’s got a black pearl paint that has a decent amount of swirls and scratches. Willis PPFd the front clip and the door edges when I bought it. I’m not sure how I feel about PPF though.

Before:
View attachment 149852

In progress:
View attachment 149853

View attachment 149854

View attachment 149856

View attachment 149855

Wow, that looks great. It's much more satisfying when you can see a huge difference.

 

[HOTDON]

Bases are well covered here, but I'll throw in something I learned recently. We have a spare beater and the teenagers never washed the poor thing. Rims were getting some heavy rust staining from the brakes before I got them changed out. I assumed they would just look like that permanently. I hit them with CLR (which I would NOT have done with rims I cared about) and it took every bit of that rust off and left a very clean surface I didn't think was still intact under there. Totally blown away. I bought a bottle of automotive rust remover that turns purple to highlight the rust. Game changer when you are stripping the surface down to clay bar and recoat. Such a simple step to add to the routine.

 

[AgronAlum]

Wow, that looks great. It's much more satisfying when you can see a huge difference.

I was nervous going into it because I thought it was a two stage paint job and that the clear coat was just gone from the majority of it. It's turning out better than I ever thought. It should look pretty slick when I get the bumpers and grille cleaned up and painted.

I wasn't sure I was gonna keep the truck or flip it but I think it's worth hanging on to now. It's a 7.5L 460 with a manual transmission and only 117K miles at 30 years old. It's gotten some use so far and is pretty fun to drive around town. I was a truck/jeep guy in my teens and early 20s but I gave that up. It's nice having something like this to work on again.

 

[ISU Clone]

Just did this for the first time a few weeks ago.

Step 1 hand wash.
Step 2 clay bar with soapy solution and rinse.
Step 3 Griots correcting cream. Already had Milwaukee batteries so purchased the M18 polisher. Totally worth it. Hand wipe excess compound away.
Step 4. Hand wipe in Griots 3 in 1 spray wax. Amazing stuff and easy to apply.

 

[dmclone]

Zaino....A week later I remembered another product I used.

I've used 303 for my interior for decades. Back when I first started using it, I think the only place I could buy it was at a hot tub dealership in Grimes.

 

[AgronAlum]

The paint on the truck above is super dry. Anyone have a good recommendation on a polish with a high oil content? I was reading about M80 but it looks like it has been discontinued. The plan is to go to Meguiars Ultimate Polish unless there's something better. It needs to be pretty low on the aggression scale after the round of Ultimate Compound.

Also, where is everyone getting pads for your polishers? It doesn't seem like anywhere local keeps a selection.

 

[ackatch]

The paint on the truck above is super dry. Anyone have a good recommendation on a polish with a high oil content? I was reading about M80 but it looks like it has been discontinued. The plan is to go to Meguiars Ultimate Polish unless there's something better. It needs to be pretty low on the aggression scale after the round of Ultimate Compound.

Also, where is everyone getting pads for your polishers? It doesn't seem like anywhere local keeps a selection.

Amazon.