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-   -   A superb Car cleaning, polishing & detailing guide (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/technical-stuff/102011-superb-car-cleaning-polishing-detailing-guide-320.html)

Ajay,
I am no expert. In fact,I am just starting off with car detailing.
Thanks to this thread and some of the experts like mkh, thinkbig and othres, I am feeling confident of making a start.
I too have a white car and this is what I am planning.

Car detailing -
Step 1> Washing - Wash with a good shampoo like Amway, use a wash mitt if I can get it. Dry the car with MF cloth.
Step 2> Claying - My car has lot of surface contaminants which does not go away with washing. So, claying is necessary. I am planning to use Mother's/Meguiar's clay bar for the same. For the clay lube, I am not going to buy anything extra. Either I will dilute the car shampoo or ONR for this purpose and save some $
Step 3> Compunding - this is required if there are lot of minor scratches and/or swirl marks. Also, this gives much better results with machine and can screw up the paint work if not done properly. Since my paint is in reasonable condition, I am planning to skip this.
Step 4> Waxing - The consensus is Colinite 845 is the best for a white car. I am planning to apply 2 layers of it. It should last for 3 months easily. Sealant is kind of similar. So, there is no need to apply any sealant on top of this.
Step 5> Maintaining - I plan to purchase ONR for this which will be used for regular cleaning on a not-so-dirty car. Also, I have o Jopasu duster which will be used before applying ONR. ONR can also be diluted to use as a detailing spray. For a very dirty car, I plan to wash it with shampoo and then do some spray and wipe with ONR. When the wax effect is no longer there, I plan to do a full detailing again.

Apart from the above, we need to have some interior cleaner for plastics etc and a tire gloss.

Most of the products are available with Ultimate detailerz or Sanjay from Bringingbest.com or www.auto-mall.in. If you have someone coming from the US, you can get those at a lower cost.
Hope this is useful. Experts please correct me if I am wrong.

Hi Adimicra,

I've been washing and polishing my car since I've bought it but frequent travelling in the last 6 months hasn't allowed me to spend much time doing what I love [I won't let anyone else touch or wash my car].

I've been following your Jazz ownership thread for a last few days; cool to bump into you again..

The only process I haven't been doing is using clay and a sealant, before the final wax coat. I'm planning to get clay from Auto-Mall [Mother's brand]. I'll also be getting Collinite 845 from Auto Mall or BringingBest.

Where did/are you getting Meguiars clay kit from? I'd like to buy if it's available. Also, are you sure ONR is sufficient to use, as clay lube? I'm also planning to get ONR and keep, so if it will suffice as clay lube, then great.

This is cool. I'm doing up my car this Saturday and I'll post results on Sunday. Do remember to take 'before & after' photos.

Keeping a white car white, is the world's most toughest thing :)..

Cheers
aK

Hi Dr.Gagan,

I got an email back from Zaino with prices of almost all the products they sell in India. The price of the Zaino Bucket (Complete with lid & Grit Guard) is Rs.3600. :eek:

They may be a premium car care brand and their quality might be amongst the best, sure, but their price for the bucket sent my head spiraling. Pricey for me.. I might have to look for a DIY grit guard now..

@ All,

I have the prices for most Zaino products sold in India. I haven't got approval to post prices in the forum, so if anyone is very keen to buy Zaino stuff, please send me a PM and I'll be glad to share the prices.

Disclaimer: I do not represent Zaino and their prices are not cheap.

Cheers,
aK

Even I have the price list for Zaino.

NOT CHEAP is a huge understatement.
I, for one, could not have ever thought that car care products can be so expensive.
I wonder who buys Zaino products.

I can suggest you something regarding the DIY grit guard. You can use a pizza warmer attachment which is included in the Microwave starter kit. Its the plastic tray with legs and has enough space and grooves over it to serve your purpose.
I hope my post was useful to you. :D

EDIT: Pics added. Sorry for the bad quality pics but couldn't resist posting a few for reference.

Even the 3m guy did this to my jetta at Global Gallerie :deadhorse

Hi Samsag12,

This is wonderful and surely will suit the purpose. What kind of store can I get this from? Any pointers will be a great help. The microware we bought came with a little higer metal stand, similar to this one one. My mum wouldn't allow me to dare put it in a bucket for car wash. :D

The pics quality was sufficient enough for me to see that it's a great idea. Your post was very useful, thanks. If I could get that warmer from you, it would be far more useful.. lol. jk.

@ K ajay : Glad that you liked my suggestion. I think it can be bought from any store selling crockery and kitchenware. You can ask for the said attachment, if lucky you would get it alone otherwise purchase a cheap Micro starter kit containing this attachment.
I will try to find one for you here and will PM you, if successful.

Aghosht,
This is not only the only dealership which uses this method to clean the car. They basically do not care. When the car dulls they will ask you to get it polished and waxed. This is how they continue ripping us off. Just tell them in your next service not to do this, and if they insist ask them to give it in writing. Which I doubt they will do.

I gave them the whole "gyan" so to speak - about using clay for removal etc etc. - the 3M person at the dealers just didnt know about it. And the dealer guy just didnt know about it :eek:

Hi Samsag12,

Thanks for the tip. I am heading out tomorrow morning [to meet our Ultimate Detailzers friends from TBHP], and will try to source this product. If I find it, i'll let you know by tomorrow evening. If I don't seem to find one, then I appreciate your help to see if you can source one.


Also thank you for your offer; very kind of you. If you find it, please PM me and i'll discuss logistics. However, I am still going to try to source 1 or 2 grit guards from the US. I watches 2 videos about it's usage and understood it's truly a good product. The stands beneath the grit, run completely to the bucket base, so when you rub your wash mit or sponge against it, it ensures the dirt doesn't swirl up and come out of the base again. It's not a product that is must have [as it can be debatable], but surely a good to have in every car detailer's kit.

I don't know why this cannot be made in India? Its a pretty simple plastic aparatus that won't cost much either [in US, it sells for $9.90, which is close to 450 bucks]. If produced in India on large scale, it could be cheaper.

Thanks for your help mate. :)

aK

A bit OT.

I also faced such a scene yesterday.

I went to teh Auto market in Sector-16, Noida, for installation of basic stereo in my new car. While the installers were at it, another person came to me, rubbed his hand over the car's surface, and asked me to get TEFLON coating done, saying it would protect the car's surface.

I declined softly, but he didn't budge, and completely went after me. Then I took him to task and bluntly told him, there is no such thing as teflon coating. At this, he gave me such a stare that I was moved. I asked him to show his armour, at which he brought his bottles of rubbing compound and some finisher liquid. He kept arguing with me, and I kept declining for a good fifteen minutes.:Frustrati

I had a hard time getting rid of him

Yaay!! I just found out that Meguiar's Tech Wax paste is available with 3M car care center in HSR layout, Bangalore. They also have the detailer spray [which you apply for final gloss, after a coat of wax].

The tech wax paste is Rs. 1400. The detailer is Rs. 3xx. 3M only sells D-I-Y car care products of Meguiar's and not the professional stuff [so no clay kit, etc]. They will be getting wash mit, etc, in a week's time.

Thought i'd share for B'lore tbhpians' benefit.

Cheers,
aK

A Meguiars Car Detailing clinic is happening at the 3M Car Care centers this September. The show is being hosted by Meguiar's Veteran Matt Davies.
Bangalore - 3M Car Care Dollars Colony - 4th September 11AM (For directions, pls Contact Mr Amit Shah:( 9845273525)
Pune - 3M Car Care Viman Nagar - 3rd September 11AM (For Directions, pls contact Mr Seshu Rao 9225805476)

Aghosht,
Just to inform you and other bhpians, the system 3M uses to brand themselves is to supply their products to dealerships. They have obtained approval for their products. This is then contracted to other vendors who give the dealership the lowest rate, entitling them (dealership) to maximum profits. Hence on one of my visits to an Audi dealership, I found them using a rotary polisher, and after he completed a panel he placed the machine on the ground with the pad facing the ground. Another visit to a Honda dealership, showed me how much they knew about the polishing. There were swirls on the car even after polishing, ready for delivery. Everyone is not aware of the standards they should get, hence this forum of education will slowly ensure we are not getting lesser than what we deserve.

In America, the dealers contract this job. The difference is they send the cars to professional detailers/detailing houses. I saw one there. Huge place, about 10,000 sq.ft just doing this for the dealership. They do not do it in-house. I think eventually this will happen in our dealerships when we stop accepting poor work done on our cars.