My (Every Other) Sunday Car Detailing Regimen
11-30-2012, 04:31 PM
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11-30-2012, 09:34 PM
#23
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and I just bought my first cleaning item because of this thread. a Sonax wheel cleaner!
By the way, how come nobody suggests using four zero steel wool to clean the exterior windows? Is that not recommended anymore?
I used to do that a lot when my Passat was still new as it was highly recommended in the VW forums.
By the way, how come nobody suggests using four zero steel wool to clean the exterior windows? Is that not recommended anymore?
I used to do that a lot when my Passat was still new as it was highly recommended in the VW forums.
12-02-2012, 10:04 AM
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- After sitting down, bang feet together outside of car to knock any loose dirt debris off my shoes before bringing my feet into the car.
- - Me Too.
- Large towel on trunk floor to protect carpet (would have this even if I had a trunk liner, much easier to wash)
- - I keep a movers furniture pad folded in the trunk. Comes in very handy when keeping things in place or can be used on the back seat.
- Microfiber cloth in glove box to dust interior if/when necessary.
- - Mine's in the door compartment
- No dogs in the car (My house belongs to the dogs, we just live there. But the car is MINE)
- - No dogs owned right now; thinking about getting a pet goat, though
- During detailing clean the door sills, and the inside of the doors along the bottom and sides(not sure why I didnt do this with prior cars)
- - Same here.
- Periodically wipe down inside of engine compartment (about once a month)
- - Will add this to my list
- Cargo of any kind in the back seat requires a large towel to be put down first.
- - See moving pad above..
- Bird dirt (or sap for that matter) on the paint is a cause for serious alarm. Must be cleaned off immediately if not sooner.
- - Yup. Bugs too.
- - After I do a detail, I consult the weather report and avoid driving if precipitation is forecast I work part-time at home so this one is pretty easy).
- - I will not park under trees
- - Park way in the back of a parking lot (need the exercise anyway)
- - Will often pull over and let the teenager yakking away on their hand held cel phone go by
- - Avoid driving/parking near seagulls and never near those horrible geese
- - Will not use a microfiber cloth if it touches the ground until cleaned
- - If I see a speck of dust on the dashboard, console or dash trim, I wipe it right away with my trusty microfiber cloth, even if while driving. (Other drivers beware).
12-02-2012, 02:31 PM
#25
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Sonax wheel cleaner was purchased and used on my previous cars. I used it on my A6 after letting my rims go for 3 weeks without washing them. It did nothing, no color change nothing. It cleaned my rims just as well as my regular car soap and brushes does.
12-02-2012, 02:37 PM
#26
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Hmm. I tried it after reading many excellent reviews and it works great on my wheels, especially on the sticky brake dust that sometimes isn't easy to get completely clean with soap only. If I wait about 5-10 minutes after applying, the color does change to red as shown in the videos.
05-06-2013, 07:42 AM
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Yesterday was a good day for a nice detail of the A6. Thought I would add here (good thread) as I tried some new products that I really liked a lot. A friend set me up with a nice collection of Adams Polishes products. Details below, but the net is that I really liked them a lot.
The car was NASTY - two trips to Denver International - both after the snow storms that hit Colorado over the past couple of weeks. It was plastered with road grime, Mag Chloride, and a nasty layer of construction dust on top of all of it from being parked at DIA. The wheels had a bad layer of caked on brake dust (dust, get wet, more dust, mag chloride, more dust... you get the picture).
I've tried quite a few different wheel cleaners (not yet Sonax BTW) with very mixed results. Yesterday, I used the Adams deep wheel cleaner, which I suspect is a very similar formulation to Sonax. Goes on clear, turns purple, smells good. I got excellent results. The barrels are the best I have seen them since buying the car. It still took some elbow grease to get them clean, but the Adams stuff loosened it right up.
I used their "All Purpose Cleaner" on the tires. This stuff is serious, not sure I want it near the paint. The bottle has warnings about not using in the sun, and NOT to let it dry. Having said that, it, it clearly loosened up a bunch of nastiness.
After a good rinse, I washed it up with Adams Car Shampoo. Using the two bucket method, and only about 1oz of the shampoo, the grime came right off (mag chloride is messy stuff - Snagit, Im sure you remember it well). A quick mist of Detail Spray before I dried it dropped the surface tension on the water beads, and I had the most streak free dry I have seen yet.
I followed that with wax - Adams "Buttery Wax". This was different than any wax I have used in the past. I think it really is designed for a power polisher, but I did it the old fashioned way. Oddly, the instructions call for applying it to the entire car at once (with the applicator dampened with detail spray). It went on easily, and I hand buffed it out. I REALLY like this stuff. It has one of the deepest shines I have seen on any of my cars, and makes the Dakota Gray absolutely POP. My wife, who NEVER notices when I have detailed the car commented when she came home about how great it looked.
The next step was the exterior plastic parts and tires. I used their Super VRT (water repellent, Vinyl, Rubber, and Tire Dressing). They supply a square block of dense foam, I applied it to all the exterior plastic and rubber (rear valence, ACC surrounds, window molding etc etc). Again, very nice stuff. I had started to get some spotting on some of these parts - VRT erased it. I will say this... I got a little on the windows, and it was kind of a pain to get cleaned off.
Topped the whole thing off with a good window cleaning, and interior cleanup (no detail this time, I did that last time).
The car looks spectacular. Jeff is smiling. Now I have to drive around puddles again :-)
jc
The car was NASTY - two trips to Denver International - both after the snow storms that hit Colorado over the past couple of weeks. It was plastered with road grime, Mag Chloride, and a nasty layer of construction dust on top of all of it from being parked at DIA. The wheels had a bad layer of caked on brake dust (dust, get wet, more dust, mag chloride, more dust... you get the picture).
I've tried quite a few different wheel cleaners (not yet Sonax BTW) with very mixed results. Yesterday, I used the Adams deep wheel cleaner, which I suspect is a very similar formulation to Sonax. Goes on clear, turns purple, smells good. I got excellent results. The barrels are the best I have seen them since buying the car. It still took some elbow grease to get them clean, but the Adams stuff loosened it right up.
I used their "All Purpose Cleaner" on the tires. This stuff is serious, not sure I want it near the paint. The bottle has warnings about not using in the sun, and NOT to let it dry. Having said that, it, it clearly loosened up a bunch of nastiness.
After a good rinse, I washed it up with Adams Car Shampoo. Using the two bucket method, and only about 1oz of the shampoo, the grime came right off (mag chloride is messy stuff - Snagit, Im sure you remember it well). A quick mist of Detail Spray before I dried it dropped the surface tension on the water beads, and I had the most streak free dry I have seen yet.
I followed that with wax - Adams "Buttery Wax". This was different than any wax I have used in the past. I think it really is designed for a power polisher, but I did it the old fashioned way. Oddly, the instructions call for applying it to the entire car at once (with the applicator dampened with detail spray). It went on easily, and I hand buffed it out. I REALLY like this stuff. It has one of the deepest shines I have seen on any of my cars, and makes the Dakota Gray absolutely POP. My wife, who NEVER notices when I have detailed the car commented when she came home about how great it looked.
The next step was the exterior plastic parts and tires. I used their Super VRT (water repellent, Vinyl, Rubber, and Tire Dressing). They supply a square block of dense foam, I applied it to all the exterior plastic and rubber (rear valence, ACC surrounds, window molding etc etc). Again, very nice stuff. I had started to get some spotting on some of these parts - VRT erased it. I will say this... I got a little on the windows, and it was kind of a pain to get cleaned off.
Topped the whole thing off with a good window cleaning, and interior cleanup (no detail this time, I did that last time).
The car looks spectacular. Jeff is smiling. Now I have to drive around puddles again :-)
jc
05-06-2013, 07:55 AM
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05-06-2013, 12:21 PM
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