Two buckets

[Liam-O]

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/index.php ... oc&docId=5

For everything you'll ever need to know about washing your car

[Bing]

Clay - does not take that long. Ask Gannet - he did sell his car after I clayed half of it though

Do you do it in small sections PVR? And if so where do you start/finish?

According to friend of mine you should do this with polish and wax too - and overlap the bit you've just done to blend it in. She reckoned 4hrs to do the whole exterior properly from dirty to waxed.

What brand of microfibre do you use inkey$ ? I've never managed to figure out which are best, so just stuck with chamois.

I am loving this thread, though having to hide it from the other half...

[Turbokid]

I would recommend having a read on a detailing forum before trying new processes like claying, if you get it wrong you will inflict swirls & RDS's. I learnt alot from reading how to's from the pro's.

[Nickm]

No no no to chamois....a drying cloth is the way to go. Chamois keeps so much grit, single biggest cause of swirls after a dirty wash mit....

[inkey$]

Clay - does not take that long. Ask Gannet - he did sell his car after I clayed half of it though

Do you do it in small sections PVR? And if so where do you start/finish?

According to friend of mine you should do this with polish and wax too - and overlap the bit you've just done to blend it in. She reckoned 4hrs to do the whole exterior properly from dirty to waxed.

What brand of microfibre do you use inkey$ ? I've never managed to figure out which are best, so just stuck with chamois.

I am loving this thread, though having to hide it from the other half...

4 hours?!? Thats valuable driving time! Microfibre wise I've got a mix. From Sonus (good quality) to a batch of cheapies I spotted in supermarket (6 for £2). Probably get chastised for using them but the cheapies actually arent bad and leave no bits of fluff etc.

[Bing]

Liam-O's link above is great - I shall have a read. As far as I can tell, the four hours of work only needs done once or twice a year max, if it's done right and you then wash & wax the car regularly, properly.

Seems that whilst I have already been trying hard to love my car, I am still not doing well enough and she will cost a bit more money yet - day by day, more and more like a second wife...

So far I need - another bucket, another mitt, some proper quality microfibre cloths to add to my collection, and of course 'product'. Then a good read, and a day free of work, family and rain. Followed by another to drive her around feeling smug

[inkey$]

Liam-O's link above is great - I shall have a read. As far as I can tell, the four hours of work only needs done once or twice a year max, if it's done right and you then wash & wax the car regularly, properly.

Seems that whilst I have already been trying hard to love my car, I am still not doing well enough and she will cost a bit more money yet - day by day, more and more like a second wife...

So far I need - another bucket, another mitt, some proper quality microfibre cloths to add to my collection, and of course 'product'. Then a good read, and a day free of work, family and rain. Followed by another to drive her around feeling smug

We look forward to that day and follow up thread with baited breath Bing

[andysat]

Im the same as Inkey$.

[Bing]

Yeah, me too... Still got 9 days holiday to take before end of March, and that's with a week off booked next month already. I feel a weekend staring on Thursday coming on - I'll need a night's sleep for my arms to recover so I can drive

Don't hold your breath though, as it will likely not be till mid/end Feb now because yesterday I went all impulsive... But that's a story for another thread

[Citation 650]

Bing, here's some other things you can do with all that time off.

More fun stuff

[shambolic]

Few guys mentioning sponges, DO NOT use a sponge as it traps dirt on the surface and can cause swirling on paintwork.
Always use a mitt as mentioned, two buckets(although I put a smaller amount of shampoo in second bucket too).
Then rinse, dry off, clay using meguirs kwikfit detailer as lube then wash again and dry using micro fibre towels.
I normally do wheels first using a couple of different brushes and a different coloured mitt.

[inkey$]

Bing, here's some other things you can do with all that time off.

More fun stuff

Fantastic link

[Turbokid]

Few guys mentioning sponges, DO NOT use a sponge as it traps dirt on the surface and can cause swirling on paintwork.
Always use a mitt as mentioned, two buckets(although I put a smaller amount of shampoo in second bucket too).
Then rinse, dry off, clay using meguirs kwikfit detailer as lube then wash again and dry using micro fibre towels.
I normally do wheels first using a couple of different brushes and a different coloured mitt.

Some sponges are ok to use, some would say better than a mitt. The Zymol sponge is one, due to it's cellular structure and used correctly it won't cause scratches. This is an on going debate amongst the detailing community....sponge or mitt? I would say however as with any products use what works for you.

[Bing]

Bing, here's some other things you can do with all that time off.

More fun stuff

Fantastic link

That's some serious cleaning... Not sure I could get away with spending that much time in my house, but some great tips - thanks !

As for sponges, well ditched except for wheels cleaning, and even then I think the one I have cost me about £9, which is certainly not cheap...

[AJF]

Clay all the way!!!

Doesn't feel natural at first, but well worth it for the results.

Took me the best part of a day to clay, but this was only two weeks ago and the clay kept going very hard so needed lots of needing, so i'm going to wait until summer to go again

Is it wrong to smile whilst you stroke your car!?