First and always start on the wheels and tires. I use Meguiares Hot Wheels on cars that have a great deal of brake dust build up, however for cars with fairly clean wheels, just use a clean rag and some soap and water. I also use Westleys tire bleach, I use the tire bleach because it gets rid of the brown buildup of dirt on the tires, you can do this every time you wash the car, or every other time. It's entirely up to you. (Note: Keep any of these chemicals off your wheels if they are polished aluminum, or serious damage to the wheels finish will occur!)

Next wash the car with Dawn liquid detergent (nothing fancy just plain old fashion blue Dawn.) Use micro fiber wash mitt. Start from the top of the car and work your way down to the bottom using light to moderate pressure.
(Note: We are only using the Dawn this once to strip off all of the wax, and to condition the paint to one system of care.)

Next step, drying: You can use the bath towel or you can cheat like me and use an Absorber. An absorber is synthetic efficient and cheap. Dry the car the way you washed it, from top to bottom. Do not dry the wheels and tires with what you use to dry the car as this can cause serious problems if rocks and the like from the tires get raked across the finish.

Next step, evaluation for clay bar: Take a piece of saran wrap and wrap it tightly over your four finger tips and feel the paint surface (mainly on the hood, and deck lid and or roof if it applies) If the surface feels gritty and bumpy, you are due for a clay wash. If the surface is smooth then skip this step and move on to waxing. Follow the directions carefully, and believe them when they say that if you drop the clay bay on the ground, THROW IT AWAY!! You don't want to run the risk of dragging dirt, asphalt or whatever over the paint. Work one foot squared sections at a time. You want to keep rubbing the surface until it is smooth and the clay is gliding freely over the panel.

After the clay wash is done, it's time to wash the car again. Make sure that you either thoroughly rinse the mitt you used before, or use a different one altogether. "I prefer to use two, they're cheap" Now is where you will be using Pantene Pro-V or Zaino wash or traditional car soap with a table spoon of Olive oil. "By the way, the hair shampoo was my thing; I didn't get that one from anywhere. All Rick, yay me!"

Time to wax: Use a soft fine terry applicator or a foam applicator. "Here is a good tip. Spray a mist of water on the applicator, just a fine mist nothing more nothing less. This helps in getting the wax moving when applying it" Do the side panels up and down and remove side to side, and the opposite for the hood trunk and or roof (wax on side to side, wax off front to back. (Note: With Zaino they recommend three or more coats, conventional waxes do not work this way, so only use one coat.) Use a Cannon or Fieldcrest bath towel (White only, no colored towels) to remove the wax, and go over the car with a spray detailer using a Micro-Fiber towel, this helps reduce rainbows and smudges that appear in darker colored vehicles due to the fact that dark colors absorb EVERYTHING!

Next clean your windows using Windex or 20/20 diluted 70% cleaner and 30% water. Do not use household Windex with ammonia. It is will stain your windows and destroy your tint. Diluting the cleaner helps with streaking, and you can use paper towels or wadded news papers, whatever you desire here.

Lastly Dress the tires, I use Zaino tire shine, and Meguiars rubber protectant. KEEP ARMOR-ALL AND 2001 AND ANYTHING LIKE THIS AWAY FROM YOUR CAR!!!! This stuff contains alcohol and will crack your tires and your dash etc.

 

That was what I was waiting for!

I was wondering when the master was gonna put it all down!!

and lastly you might want to describe the wax on wax off thing for some of the newbies to car care! and the whole front to back part. that will make this complete!

 

the motherload........thanks ryatt, i am gonna print this one out....

 

No problem it's just a cut and paste from a thread I responded to a couple of years ago just cleaned up LOL!!

 

If i may make a suggestion.

When drying ur car, take the nozzle off of your hose and turn the pressure just so u get a slow stream of water and start rinsing off the car from the top to the bottom. This will cause water to sheet off of ur car and thus making drying it that much easier to dry.

 

Most importantly with a Camaro and TA 3rd and 4th gen, before you dry the car, start it up and back it down the drive way tapping the brakes periodically to shake out all the water in the trunk gate area. Convertibles are not so bad, but the coupes reain about a half a gallon of water in this area which can really frustrate you when drying the car. Lastly, dry the car is a shaded area, preferrably the garage. I try to avoid working under a tree because you run the risk of dust, bark, sap and bird mess getting on the finish thus causing you more work.

 

Excellent! Thanks Rick. I'm printing it out too. Question: Chamois cloths?
Question two: My brother uses that spray on'/wipe off stuff without washing hus vette. I dam near soil my trousers every time! You got any use for this stuff?
Thanks again!

Everyone probably knows this but I actually pop the hatch and raise it a few inches to let the water drain. I keep raising in in increments until most of its gone. I must look ridiculous but I actually blow around the head/tail lights too. Lot of water gets stuck in there. (No, I don't have sex with the car ) Thought about it though!!!

 

Chamois are very bad for the paint because they pull the moisture and oil out of the paint, so I say leave them where you found them. I typically use my Absorber or my large Fieldcrest towel to blot the car and wipe the streaks don with a micro-fiber towel. Question-2: DO NOT USE THE DRY BATH!!! All one is doing is grinding dirt into the finish of the vehicle. The only way I ever "dry bath" the car is by going over the car with the California Duster to pick up the dirt, then carefully wipe the area with a dry micro fiber towel, then spray on a mist of spray detailer buff to a nice gloss. I have found Zaino Gloss enhancer to be the absolute best spray detailer I have ever used, with Mothers Brand coming close in second. Meguiars is alright, it just doesn't offer much of a shine, mainly just works as a cleaner for if there is stain on the finish like bug guts etc. I do the same the with my gate, I almost have to because the SS spoiler is very difficult to dry under especially with the two fangs in the center of it.

 

So if I use the zanio polishes then I don't need wax do I?

 

Ok, so I followed the instructions on Sunday and spent 4 hours doing it. A lot of sweat and 6 beers later, my baby looks beautiful!!!! Another satisfied customer Rick!!! I can't believe the shine!! I used Palmolive instead of Dawn and Meguiars Gold Class liquid wax. As soon as I have the Emblems that were stolen put on and the grille relaced I'll post about 50 pictures in the gallery.

 

is there any websites for some of these products?

--Jack

 

what product do you need man just tell us and we will be sure too hook you up on where to get it

 

www.zainostore.com

BTW Phantom, Zaino advises against any other brand dish detergent because Dawn has a very high concentration of Alkaline, the key ingredient for stripping off old wax.

 

Ok, good to know, thanks.

 

Vinyl Stripe Care

I have the vinyl stripes on the hood and rear deck of my car and have been hesitant to do anything other than wash with water. There are some stone nicks and a scratch on the nose that I've been wondering about detailing up. Is there anything that can be done for this type damage? Are there any products to avoid w/ these stripes such as Ammonia or regular wax products. I had the car detailed at puchase and haven't had to do anything special but the water isn't beading the way it used to and I know its time for a application of a good protectant layer. Also have you used any good convertible top cleaners and/or protectants. The original white top is still in good shape but I saw on the car detailing site mentioned in the other thred that protectants are important to repell water. The products sold on that site are probably fine but it sounded like care had to be taken to keep their product off paint. Thanks in advance. IAN

 

I have always used Zaino on my stripes and have never had a problem with them discoloring, the only thing to watch is when polish on or off, you want to make certain not to lift any edges, because this will cause the stripes to start lifting.

 

waxing

i thought for the sides of the car you were supposed to put wax on with a side to side motion and buff it off with an up and down motion. are you sure rick?

 

Since I can remember, I've always used amorall..... I guess from what you say.. it actually hurts your car... I didn't know that...

 

I can vouch for that. The first and last time I ever used it on a car was on my beretta, and the next day the dash had cracked.

 

Holy shamolie!!! No that is reason enough right there to never use it!!!