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Car Detaling

Alcatraz

Alcatraz

New member
I've never detailed a car in my life, and next week would be a great time for me to do it because I have all next week off. Just wondering how I should do it or where to even begin.
 


Do a lot of searching,reading and you tubing so you don't do more harm than good. Pretty simple really if you are prepared with the right materials.
 
I work for a dealership as a detailer. All you pretty much need to do, buy car soap, wash MIT, wax,squeegee, micro fiber rags, tire shine if you want a good wash. Easy to do. I detail Lexus'. High end $50,000-$100,000 cars.
 
Some things I recommend:

If you have a car wash near you with the high pressure wand, that usually has a " Spot Free " option. I like to wash mine there first and then get home before doing anything else. Spots are a pain. Soaps that claim spot free are BS. Spotting come from additives in the water ( chlorine, salts, tarter fighting ).

If you dont, pre-soak, wash roof and hood/trunk first. Then move to side, but, wash from bottom up. Never let the soap dry on the paint.

Interior: Your favorite cleaner, lint free rags/cloths for wiping the cleaner with. Using a toothbrush, an old credit/debit/hotel room key or a wooden skewer helps getting into all the tough places.

I also recommend a squeegee for your windows. No matter how much I clean my windows, I always see some streaking. I now use a squeegee on them. No more streaks.

Tires: The spray on stuff is nice, but, if you have a nice set of wheels, overspray is going to happen. This will cause odd streaking on the wheels. I usually use the tire shine that uses an applicator. Never use tire shine on a motorcycle!

Polishing/waxing: If you do this by hand it is a workout. I always use an orbital polisher. In this order with the chemicals: Rubbing compound ( if the paint is severely hurt ), polishing compound, swirl remover, wax. The polish and wax work very well on your plastic head lights. You do need to be careful of burning the paint with a power tool. Also, you do not want to do any polishing or waxing in direct sunlight. It can bake the liquid right into the paint.
 


^ awesome. Love how detailed you got. Listen to him.

I recommend everything he says. I would have gotten more in depth with mine but I'm on my phone and it sucks to type that much on here.
 
I do a LOT of car detailing.

1) First thing you want to do is wash the car.
I recommend using Meguiar's Wash and Wax [LINK]

2) Second is inspect the surface. Feel the car and if seems gritty you'll need to clay bar it.
I recommend using Meguiar's Smooth Surface Clay Kit [LINK]

3) Third is inspect the surface for oxidation/fine scratches/swirls/scuffs. If so, use a rubbing compound.
I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Compound [LINK]
TIP: This works best with a DA Buffer/Polisher. Works well with hands application but for best results using a buffer is ideal.

4) Forth, if everything looks good it's time to polish.
I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Polish [LINK]

5) Fifth is waxing the vehicle. You have 3 options when it comes to wax. Paste, Liquid, and Spray. Personally I recommend Paste Wax as I feel it covers the vehicle better but Liquid wax is still great. Spray wax is used for "Quick" applications in-between normal wax/washing.
For Paste Wax I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Paste Wax [LINK]
For Liquid Wax I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Liquid Wax [LINK]
For Spray Wax I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Quik Wax [LINK]
 
GRAFIX said:
I do a LOT of car detailing.

1) First thing you want to do is wash the car.
I recommend using Meguiar's Wash and Wax [LINK]

2) Second is inspect the surface. Feel the car and if seems gritty you'll need to clay bar it.
I recommend using Meguiar's Smooth Surface Clay Kit [LINK]

3) Third is inspect the surface for oxidation/fine scratches/swirls/scuffs. If so, use a rubbing compound.
I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Compound [LINK]
TIP: This works best with a DA Buffer/Polisher. Works well with hands application but for best results using a buffer is ideal.

4) Forth, if everything looks good it's time to polish.
I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Polish [LINK]

5) Fifth is waxing the vehicle. You have 3 options when it comes to wax. Paste, Liquid, and Spray. Personally I recommend Paste Wax as I feel it covers the vehicle better but Liquid wax is still great. Spray wax is used for "Quick" applications in-between normal wax/washing.
For Paste Wax I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Paste Wax [LINK]
For Liquid Wax I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Liquid Wax [LINK]
For Spray Wax I recommend using Meguiar's Ultimate Quik Wax [LINK]
Click to expand...

I also have a black car and I follow almost the same, I did it by hand for a long time but I got a cheap turtle wax buffer for christmas.. it's only really good for spreading wax but often that's the most time consuming part aside from the clay. You need higher rpms and a stronger motor that can handle pressure to do anything else well.

I strongly recommend the ultimate liquid wax, it's so easy on/easy off. I never used paste but I hear it can be a pain, and Quik wax doesnt seem to give the results/longevity.

There are some basic concepts you need to grasp such as how compounds and polishes work. Meguiars has some neat articles, and read their forum, they have a lot lot lot of good info. Something you'll need to learn by experience is pressure.. where/when/how much.

Get a good set of cloths, not a cheap microfiber set from walmart for 5 bucks... I made that mistake once and every time I washed I had lint all over the car looking like a million tiny scratches, it was awful.

When you dry, go slowly.. run the microfiber cloth over the paint slowly and you wont leave streaks or spots behind. And learn what "sheeting" is for rinsing the car. There's a video on youtube.

Feel free to pm me if you have specific questions, I've been becoming knowledgeable owning a black car (it's a necessity with a pain in the ass color like black) and earning a few bucks on the side doing it.. my car is like a black mirror on wheels in the summer :D
 


As long as you need to wax, may as well claybar. Never didn't need to, and it helps you to learn all the nooks and crannies.
 
A bunch of good info here.
One other thing I forgot to mention, stay away from carnuba waxes. Its old school stuff. The newer synthetic waxes are so much better, plus, carnuba actually leaves a grayish sheen behind.
 
Thanks for all the tips! I'm really going to consider all my options! This week is going to be the week! After I get my touch-up paint in on Wednesday and do all that stuff I'll detail it and post before and after pics!
 
get a porter cable orbital buffer. the rest is easy.


this is my roof, after hand compounding and waxing. 6 months Pryor. the day of this pic the car was just washed.

IMG_8073.jpg


another before.
IMG_8068.jpg


this is after a PC buffer, liquid compound, and mequires swirl remover.

IMG_8081.jpg


IMG_8087.jpg
 
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