[el lobo 6061]

Men in Black : Thanks again.

Originally Posted by basky

Just the right combination. That will be at the price of the 'cheap' Chinese thing. So what is the real cost of the cheap Chinese thing?

No idea about the cost of Chinese thing. Karcher K2.180 + 0.6 lt Foam nozzle fixed for the shopping list.

Originally Posted by basky

The problem of buying abroad is the choice available - you will want everything you see. Warning: If you see the demo of the Puzzi 8/1 C spray extractor which I use, you may be tempted

Have to check the price difference too. It will be another shockker.

Puzzi 8/1C costs roughly 250 pounds + VAT in UK which translates to Rs. 20750. Will keep it for next time.
There is the Bunnings Store in Melbourne which is a huge warehouse. There will be a lot of choice and I would be drooling around everywhere read window shopping.

[k_ajay]

Originally Posted by ~~VinZ~~

I stay in HSR layout and i have 3M and Reliance automart close to me and not sure where i can find waxoyl.

Any suggestions?

Hi Vinz,

You can get Waxoyl products at M.K. Retail at CMH road, IndiraNagar. The store that is close to ICICI bank. You can find Waxoyl, Vista and Sonax products on the 1st floor.

Originally Posted by el lobo 6061

3M any day. They are professional and use Meguiars products.

The 3M car care centers [in B'lore] only use 3M products. They sell few Meguiar's products but they strictly use only 3M products and avoid using Meg's products on the jobs they do there.. But yes, professional work done there and they do good.

aK

[Mortis]

How do you guys clean and wax areas such as between the spoiler and hood on a hatchback ? Also, how do I clean up birdshit from such areas ?

[basky]

Originally Posted by Mortis

How do you guys clean and wax areas such as between the spoiler and hood on a hatchback ?

Depends on how far you want to go. Simple way is to use the toothbrush and microfiber to access what you can reach. If you have the time and patience, the spoiler can be removed for full access.

Be warned that the appearance of underside of the spoiler fittings may move you to tears and regrets for having it installed in the first place. The bright side is that if you clean up the mess and treat the rust - which is common, you'll protect your car.

Originally Posted by Mortis

Also, how do I clean up birdshit from such areas ?

Carry a bottle of water in your car and wash it off as soon as it is possible. At the least, soak it and dilute the droppings to reduce the bond till you reach home and finish the cleaning.

Bird crap is very potent and becomes less manageable the more you allow it to dry. If it has set in, the best is to soak and leave it for some time. Follow through in about 15 mins or so with plain water and wash it off.

If it has dried and set in and refuses to respond to 'hydrotherapy' you may have to remove it with the mildest polishes. As I have seen extreme cases where the clear coat had been affected and I believe that washing off as soon as possible is the best action.

[Garipagol]

Originally Posted by swarnava.m

I have this query regarding car polish. Most places I've visited or most people I've spoken to, talk about wax polish. The common opinion that goes around (or so it seems, to me) is that wax polish is the best, and can do wonders in keeping your car looking like new.

However, this one guy I spoke to at Dupont (they mainly specialize in body work) said that wax polish is the worst for your car, since the wax particles stay on the body, and while they do work well w.r.t. giving a great shine to the car, while parked in the sun, they melt in the heat and react with the paint. This has a detrimental effect on the paint in the long run.

Instead, he suggested to use Silicon polish, and said that though it is expensive compared to wax polish, it does a much better job overall. Primarily because it does not harm the paint of the car, and also because it has a reflecting characteristic which gives a much better shine to the car. In fact he said that he himself uses only silicon polish, and showed me some of the finished jobs he had that day. I must admit, they really looked admirable (and some of the cars were pretty old).

I would just like to hear some of the experts shed their views on this, whether this opinion really holds good or not...

It is good to see this thread going well with more members jumping in.

The purpose of a good polish should be to make your car look good and also protect the paintwork. You can use either wax polish or silicone sealant. Typically sealants lasts longer than wax. I personally use wax in winter and sealant in summer & monsoon. Since sealant is essentially a chemical there is a application process you need to follow to make it bond with the paint. The argument that wax will melt and damage the paint in the sun is tenuous. In fact a good polish should protect your paint against the sun and other elements. What polish you want to use depends on you. But a good pure wax will give you depth (wet look) if you have a solid color vehicle. Sealants on the other hand will give you a very good shine and because of their bonding properties with the exposed paint will stay on longer.

Rgds

[raj_5004]

This is what I bought to clean the tyres, wheel wells & unreachable areas of my Punto -

[Mortis]

Has anyone noticed an orange peel type texture on car bodies just below the doors on the outside (what is this are called) ? I have noticed it on new cars as well

[SAS]

Originally Posted by Mortis

Has anyone noticed an orange peel type texture on car bodies just below the doors on the outside (what is this are called) ? I have noticed it on new cars as well

It's called exactly that viz. "orange peel". It happens due to the way paint cures. It happens more with modern water based paints rather than solvent based paints.

[sohail99]

Originally Posted by Mortis

Has anyone noticed an orange peel type texture on car bodies just below the doors on the outside (what is this are called) ? I have noticed it on new cars as well

Its present on the rocker panels! I think its a heavy duty anti rust coat beneath the paint!

Its more of a wavy pattern than orange peel!

I just clean the paint there thoroughly and coat it with collinite 845 weekly!

[KkVaidya]

Originally Posted by sohail99

I just clean the paint there thoroughly and coat it with collinite 845 weekly!

Weekly !!
Does that serve any purpose or its just plain Obsession.

Way to go Man We LOVE cars.

[sohail99]

Originally Posted by KkVaidya

Weekly !!
Does that serve any purpose or its just plain Obsession.

Way to go Man We LOVE cars.

Reduces tar and bonded contaminant adhesion and easier to cleanup every week!

[basky]

Originally Posted by Rahulkool

Cleaned and polished the car yesterday. Here are some snaps

Rahul! It's a kool job. Thanks for sharing with us.

Originally Posted by Rahulkool

Somehow images are not showing :-/

Dont worry! You will get the hang of it. I had an attachment failure after spacing the photographs. Learnt fast too.

[Mortis]

Aaahh so they are called rocker panels !! Glad you guys have noticed it too. The first time I saw it I thought it was rust underneath the paint. Then I bought my new Beat and it had it too. After that I had a look at various cars and saw that quite a few had this sort of thing going on so I concluded that it must be some anti rust coating or something.
I kept forgetting to ask about it but was doing some QD the other day and thought I should ask just for piece of mind

Oh and my poor Beat got its 2nd scrape a few days ago, also on the front bumper and once again due to a valet parking guy. Just wondering if I should cover them up with a similar shade of nailpolish or should I leave it as it is ? Im thinking if I can find the right shade it will definitely look better than the black bumper showing through. Am I right ?

[blackfire_9]

Sohail, any suggestions on the closest substitute to Collinite that's also available off the shelf?

Originally Posted by sohail99

Reduces tar and bonded contaminant adhesion and easier to cleanup every week!

[VW2010]

@basky

Any ideas for cleaning the hard water stains in the windshied.

Have already tried vinegar which is of no use.

Only idea i have is to source the oooo steel wool and give it a shot.

Is there any other way to completely get rid of them?