Need help cleaning car
04-17-2009, 11:35 AM
#1
2nd Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 341
Need help cleaning car
So here is the deal. I only really wash my car once a week, and hand dry it other then that i don't know how to properly do anything else.
I want to buy some cleaning products to be able to make my car look good. Like whenever i goto have body work done on the car, the guy that does it makes my car look brand new off the showroom floor when he's done with it. I don't know what he does. But the car looks brand new.
Now firstly, i need a product to clean my engine bay. I hear everyone on the rage about zaino products. Which of there products are people using to clean the engine bay? Now i have heard certain things need to be covered. I'm assuming, my CAI, battery, and alternator. Is there anything else that has to be covered to not get messed up from water?
Second, i went onto zaino's website looking at there products. Of course they recommend purchasing all of there products. Which ones do i really need. The main things i need done, are i seem to have bunches of swirls, and some hard water spots in various places, such as on the spoiler.
How do i go about properly removing the hard water spots, and i want to re-wax the car too. Now i know to strip the wax you just wash the car with normal dawn dish soap. I have no idea anything about waxes, except that there are like 3,000 different types, and 3 million companies that make them. Anyone care to explain like waxing-for-dummies.
Now i was also looking at getting some sprayway products. I use the sprayway window cleaner that doesn't have ammonia to clean my tinted windows and it works great. Now i was on there website and saw that they make a tire shine as well. Says it's a foam, and i heard the foams do dry and won't sling crap all down the car. Thats the problem my current wet tire stuff does. Throws crap all down my car after i wash it. So anyone have any experience with sprayway tire protectant? Also i was looking at there interior leather PROTECTANT. Now this says it like cleans, protects from UV rays, etc. It's a foam so it's easier to apply then a nasty liquid like most others. Any experiences with this product as well?
Towels, i assume the reason i have so many swirl marks on my car to begin with is due to the crap towels i use. I read someplace and somewhere on some forums that someone did a test on towels and that if you light a corner on fire and it burns anything sides white smoke there are other things in the towel besides just cotton, and these other additives are like hyperdermic needles rubbing against the car.
So to prevent future swirling, scratching, etc. after i have the car cleaned and detailed once i buy some products, does anyone have any towels in particular they use to dry the car with? Which is better a 100% pure cotton towel, or a microfiber towel?
My wheels are chrome. I know there are things your suppose to do to chrome to properly care for it. What needs to be done to the wheels, and how often? Saw sprayway also makes a chrome cleaner product as well. Any experiences or recommendations for chrome cleaners?
I want to buy some cleaning products to be able to make my car look good. Like whenever i goto have body work done on the car, the guy that does it makes my car look brand new off the showroom floor when he's done with it. I don't know what he does. But the car looks brand new.
Now firstly, i need a product to clean my engine bay. I hear everyone on the rage about zaino products. Which of there products are people using to clean the engine bay? Now i have heard certain things need to be covered. I'm assuming, my CAI, battery, and alternator. Is there anything else that has to be covered to not get messed up from water?
Second, i went onto zaino's website looking at there products. Of course they recommend purchasing all of there products. Which ones do i really need. The main things i need done, are i seem to have bunches of swirls, and some hard water spots in various places, such as on the spoiler.
How do i go about properly removing the hard water spots, and i want to re-wax the car too. Now i know to strip the wax you just wash the car with normal dawn dish soap. I have no idea anything about waxes, except that there are like 3,000 different types, and 3 million companies that make them. Anyone care to explain like waxing-for-dummies.
Now i was also looking at getting some sprayway products. I use the sprayway window cleaner that doesn't have ammonia to clean my tinted windows and it works great. Now i was on there website and saw that they make a tire shine as well. Says it's a foam, and i heard the foams do dry and won't sling crap all down the car. Thats the problem my current wet tire stuff does. Throws crap all down my car after i wash it. So anyone have any experience with sprayway tire protectant? Also i was looking at there interior leather PROTECTANT. Now this says it like cleans, protects from UV rays, etc. It's a foam so it's easier to apply then a nasty liquid like most others. Any experiences with this product as well?
Towels, i assume the reason i have so many swirl marks on my car to begin with is due to the crap towels i use. I read someplace and somewhere on some forums that someone did a test on towels and that if you light a corner on fire and it burns anything sides white smoke there are other things in the towel besides just cotton, and these other additives are like hyperdermic needles rubbing against the car.
So to prevent future swirling, scratching, etc. after i have the car cleaned and detailed once i buy some products, does anyone have any towels in particular they use to dry the car with? Which is better a 100% pure cotton towel, or a microfiber towel?
My wheels are chrome. I know there are things your suppose to do to chrome to properly care for it. What needs to be done to the wheels, and how often? Saw sprayway also makes a chrome cleaner product as well. Any experiences or recommendations for chrome cleaners?
04-17-2009, 01:03 PM
#2
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 1,679
I do Zaino and I love it. Here's what you need to do.
1) Wash the car thoroughly with Dawn dishwashing detergent. This will strip any wax that is already on the car. Dry the car.
2) Get Zaino's clay bar and clay the car. The clay will remove a ton of grime and crap that's in the paint - and most likely will remove the hard water spots too. It won't hurt your paint as long as you don't use the clay when its soiled (dropped on the ground or after its picked up some clearly visible crap from somewhere).
You'll need just a little car wash soap (not Dawn, preferably Zaino) and some water in a spray bottle to provide lubrication for the clay. Rub back and forth over every inch of the car with the clay, lube'ing the car with the diluted wash as you go. Don't worry about soap residue drying on the car - assuming you aren't in bright sunlight. Keep rubbing until the car feels slick.
3) Wash the car with Zaino car wash (Z7 - I hate that they name everything Z-something) & dry.
4) Now you're ready to start polishing. This is where it gets a bit technical.
There are 2 things to chose from here. You can use either or use both. The Z5 polish is for really fine scratches. It is not abrasive and will not hurt your paint - all it does is fill in scratches, not abraise them down. I find it also makes dark colors look more vibrant.
The other polish product you might want in addition to or instead of Z5 is their Z2. The Z2 is just a polish. It does nothing for scratches. It only makes your car shine.
Personally, I find the Z5 also makes the car shine and also makes my black car look more vibrant. I usually put on 2 coats of Z5 and then one coat of Z2. Zaino says you can put them on in any order or alternate them. If you only want one instead of both, I'd pick Z5 for dark cars or Z2 for light colored cars.
OK, one more important detail here. Z2 and Z5 require a REALLY LONG time to wait between coats. Like 12 hrs. Fortunately, they make something called ZFX which cuts this time down to about 30 minutes (longer - maybe an 1-2 hrs if you're in a hot & humid place). ZFX is an additive that is explained on their website. Basically squirt some Z2 or Z5 in a little mixing bottle and put some drops of ZFX in it and then use that on the car.
5) Detailer spray. If you don't buy anything else, buy Z6 detailer spray. Its just a spray you lightly mist on and wipe off until dry. Makes your car look like it was just polished. I use this after every wash. I also use it for bird droppings, smudges, water spots, or anything else I want to handle without washing the whole car. Z6 is their magic cure-all for making a car look good easily & quickly.
Another big use for Z6 is during the polishing phase. After each coat of Z5 or Z2, I go over the car with Z6. This removes whatever little Z5 or Z2 residue was left behind. It also makes the car's surface even more slick - allowing the next coat of Z5 or Z2 to go on even easier.
6) This next part is totally optional. Once I've done all of the above, I put on a coat of Z-CS, which is their long-term protectant. It will make your car hold the shine for several months. So typically, I only go through this day-long Zaino process twice a year.
OK, so to review....
At bare minimum you need:
Z2 (polish) and Z6 (detailer spray)
But I'd recommend:
Z-18 (clay bar), Z-2 (polish), Z-5 (fine scratch filler & polish, especially if you have a dark car), Z-6 (detailer spray)
Get the Z-CS if you only want to polish a couple times per year. Otherwise, you can get buy with one coat of Z2 every month (in addition to the 2x yearly dawn, clay bar, etc process).
Read all the directions carefully. One thing that is VERY different about Zaino is that all Zaino products are supposed to be applied in incredibly thin layers - like barely enough to be able to see it on the car. If you put on too much, you'll just make a mess that will take forever to buff off (although I've learned that some Z6 is good at removing polish residue).
After going though all this, washing the car becomes interesting. Your car is so slick, water doesn't want to adhere to it. Now you may have seen water beading before, but not like this. Your problem will become keeping the car wet long enough to some soap on the car. LOL. Drying becomes super easy too. Using no pressure, I just pull a towel across the surface (NEVER use a chamois cloth) and the water jumps from the car & into the towel in one pass - no water spots.
I have learned another trick to speed up drying the car. When you rinse, do not spray. Just use the open end of a water hose with water flowing at a slow speed and let the water run off the car. You'll find 80-90% of the water will run off by itself.
BTW, I have tried their Z-PC, which is their abrasive scratch remover for heavier scratches. This is not something to put on the whole car. Just on a spot with a bad scratch. I only have one kinda-bad scratch, and this stuff didn't do much for it.
I have also tried Z-12 which is a hard water spot remover for glass. It worked real well on my glass water spots that had been hounding me for a long time.
....don't think they have anything for engines. My car is ugly under the hood and I don't have the gumption to try keeping it clean.
1) Wash the car thoroughly with Dawn dishwashing detergent. This will strip any wax that is already on the car. Dry the car.
2) Get Zaino's clay bar and clay the car. The clay will remove a ton of grime and crap that's in the paint - and most likely will remove the hard water spots too. It won't hurt your paint as long as you don't use the clay when its soiled (dropped on the ground or after its picked up some clearly visible crap from somewhere).
You'll need just a little car wash soap (not Dawn, preferably Zaino) and some water in a spray bottle to provide lubrication for the clay. Rub back and forth over every inch of the car with the clay, lube'ing the car with the diluted wash as you go. Don't worry about soap residue drying on the car - assuming you aren't in bright sunlight. Keep rubbing until the car feels slick.
3) Wash the car with Zaino car wash (Z7 - I hate that they name everything Z-something) & dry.
4) Now you're ready to start polishing. This is where it gets a bit technical.
There are 2 things to chose from here. You can use either or use both. The Z5 polish is for really fine scratches. It is not abrasive and will not hurt your paint - all it does is fill in scratches, not abraise them down. I find it also makes dark colors look more vibrant.
The other polish product you might want in addition to or instead of Z5 is their Z2. The Z2 is just a polish. It does nothing for scratches. It only makes your car shine.
Personally, I find the Z5 also makes the car shine and also makes my black car look more vibrant. I usually put on 2 coats of Z5 and then one coat of Z2. Zaino says you can put them on in any order or alternate them. If you only want one instead of both, I'd pick Z5 for dark cars or Z2 for light colored cars.
OK, one more important detail here. Z2 and Z5 require a REALLY LONG time to wait between coats. Like 12 hrs. Fortunately, they make something called ZFX which cuts this time down to about 30 minutes (longer - maybe an 1-2 hrs if you're in a hot & humid place). ZFX is an additive that is explained on their website. Basically squirt some Z2 or Z5 in a little mixing bottle and put some drops of ZFX in it and then use that on the car.
5) Detailer spray. If you don't buy anything else, buy Z6 detailer spray. Its just a spray you lightly mist on and wipe off until dry. Makes your car look like it was just polished. I use this after every wash. I also use it for bird droppings, smudges, water spots, or anything else I want to handle without washing the whole car. Z6 is their magic cure-all for making a car look good easily & quickly.
Another big use for Z6 is during the polishing phase. After each coat of Z5 or Z2, I go over the car with Z6. This removes whatever little Z5 or Z2 residue was left behind. It also makes the car's surface even more slick - allowing the next coat of Z5 or Z2 to go on even easier.
6) This next part is totally optional. Once I've done all of the above, I put on a coat of Z-CS, which is their long-term protectant. It will make your car hold the shine for several months. So typically, I only go through this day-long Zaino process twice a year.
OK, so to review....
At bare minimum you need:
Z2 (polish) and Z6 (detailer spray)
But I'd recommend:
Z-18 (clay bar), Z-2 (polish), Z-5 (fine scratch filler & polish, especially if you have a dark car), Z-6 (detailer spray)
Get the Z-CS if you only want to polish a couple times per year. Otherwise, you can get buy with one coat of Z2 every month (in addition to the 2x yearly dawn, clay bar, etc process).
Read all the directions carefully. One thing that is VERY different about Zaino is that all Zaino products are supposed to be applied in incredibly thin layers - like barely enough to be able to see it on the car. If you put on too much, you'll just make a mess that will take forever to buff off (although I've learned that some Z6 is good at removing polish residue).
After going though all this, washing the car becomes interesting. Your car is so slick, water doesn't want to adhere to it. Now you may have seen water beading before, but not like this. Your problem will become keeping the car wet long enough to some soap on the car. LOL. Drying becomes super easy too. Using no pressure, I just pull a towel across the surface (NEVER use a chamois cloth) and the water jumps from the car & into the towel in one pass - no water spots.
I have learned another trick to speed up drying the car. When you rinse, do not spray. Just use the open end of a water hose with water flowing at a slow speed and let the water run off the car. You'll find 80-90% of the water will run off by itself.
BTW, I have tried their Z-PC, which is their abrasive scratch remover for heavier scratches. This is not something to put on the whole car. Just on a spot with a bad scratch. I only have one kinda-bad scratch, and this stuff didn't do much for it.
I have also tried Z-12 which is a hard water spot remover for glass. It worked real well on my glass water spots that had been hounding me for a long time.
....don't think they have anything for engines. My car is ugly under the hood and I don't have the gumption to try keeping it clean.
Last edited by shanec; 04-17-2009 at 01:07 PM.
04-17-2009, 01:58 PM
#3
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: California
Posts: 1,495
I've never used Zaino products. I generally use Meguiar's or Griot's Garage. I think the advice you have already been given is pretty darn good.
I use Griot's Garage clay bar, and consider claying pretty much mandatory, not just recommended. I am working my way up to waxing the car over the weekend. Yesterday I started with what I thought was a clean car. What a difference using the clay bar made! I use a spray detailer, not a car wash, as the lubricant.
Over the weekend, if I don't lose my ambition, I plan to use Meguiar's Professional Show Car Glaze #7. Then on to Meguiar's Hi-Tech Yellow Wax #26, (available in paste or liquid--I use the paste) applied with a Meguiar's microfiber applicator pad (Product X3080), and removed with Meguiar's Ultimate Wipe (edgeless microfiber cloth, Product M9910). I have found this microfiber cloth to be superior to any other cloth I have used, but I haven't tried them all. So many products, so little time! BTW, I do all the work by hand, not with a power tool.
For detailing, I like Meguiar's Professional Synthetic Detailer #135. One word of caution on this--do not use this as a lubricant for the clay because this detailer has too much lubricity to be effective with clay.
The only thing I do with my engine bay is wipe it down occasionally with a cloth. From what I have read, don't go spraying everything in sight with a silicone spray to get the engine bay shiny. The silicone can work its way into the intake, and cause all kinds of problems.
I use Griot's Garage clay bar, and consider claying pretty much mandatory, not just recommended. I am working my way up to waxing the car over the weekend. Yesterday I started with what I thought was a clean car. What a difference using the clay bar made! I use a spray detailer, not a car wash, as the lubricant.
Over the weekend, if I don't lose my ambition, I plan to use Meguiar's Professional Show Car Glaze #7. Then on to Meguiar's Hi-Tech Yellow Wax #26, (available in paste or liquid--I use the paste) applied with a Meguiar's microfiber applicator pad (Product X3080), and removed with Meguiar's Ultimate Wipe (edgeless microfiber cloth, Product M9910). I have found this microfiber cloth to be superior to any other cloth I have used, but I haven't tried them all. So many products, so little time! BTW, I do all the work by hand, not with a power tool.
For detailing, I like Meguiar's Professional Synthetic Detailer #135. One word of caution on this--do not use this as a lubricant for the clay because this detailer has too much lubricity to be effective with clay.
The only thing I do with my engine bay is wipe it down occasionally with a cloth. From what I have read, don't go spraying everything in sight with a silicone spray to get the engine bay shiny. The silicone can work its way into the intake, and cause all kinds of problems.
04-17-2009, 03:20 PM
#5
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: May 2008
Location:
Posts: 227
Check out http://obsessivedetail.com/ I use the three products below on my stang to keep that showroom shine.
04-17-2009, 03:39 PM
#6
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 1,679
That brings up another good decision point - carnauba vs synthetic. Zaino is synthetic. I believe Wet Obsession is carnauba. There are pluses to each, and they both work well.
IMO, carbauba looks a little better, but it doesn't last as long as a synthetic. I'm a real busy guy, a father of 2 young children. I'm all about whatever lasts the longest so that's why I went with a synthetic.
I think you can't go wrong with Wet Obsession or Zaino.
IMO, carbauba looks a little better, but it doesn't last as long as a synthetic. I'm a real busy guy, a father of 2 young children. I'm all about whatever lasts the longest so that's why I went with a synthetic.
I think you can't go wrong with Wet Obsession or Zaino.
04-17-2009, 04:11 PM
#7
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: TEXAS
Posts: 1,491
I'm a Meguiar's guy... I use their clay bar, car wash and NXT wax and am very happy with the results.
I just can't justify dropping the big bucks on Zaino or Obsessive Detail stuff, though I'm sure they both work great!
I just can't justify dropping the big bucks on Zaino or Obsessive Detail stuff, though I'm sure they both work great!
04-17-2009, 04:38 PM
#8
1st Gear Member
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Louisiana
Posts: 74
My favorite is eagle one nano wax. I use it just about every time I wash the car. it keeps away the marks made by the towel when drying. Really I think any name product you get at lets say autozone or other local place works great. It is just a matter of finding one you like. As for washing i have a magazine from either 5.0 mustang or muscle mustangs and fast fords. Not sure which one but they have a really nice detailed article on how to wash. Of coarse they are endorsing certain products but i just use what i want with their ideas. Ill look for it and send you the link.
04-17-2009, 04:47 PM
#9
1st Gear Member
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Louisiana
Posts: 74
well i found it pretty fast so here it is
http://www.mustang50magazine.com/tec...ide/index.html
I find the pre dry very useful if you have time to do it.
http://www.mustang50magazine.com/tec...ide/index.html
I find the pre dry very useful if you have time to do it.
04-17-2009, 04:48 PM
#10
3rd Gear Member
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Sacramento, CA
Posts: 734
I LOVE NXT WAX!
I used it on my G35 (red) and it looked great and now I use it on my mineral gray mustang. It brings out a lot of shine and makes the car looks brand new!
I also use ice for quick polishes on my fusion. Good thing about ice is you can do it in the sun and you can put it on plastic and everything.
I use the meguiars clay bar and detailing spray also sometimes use their 3 step paint cleaner process. Nothing like a freshly waxed car. Synthetic wax also doesnt have that gloss that carnauba does.
I used it on my G35 (red) and it looked great and now I use it on my mineral gray mustang. It brings out a lot of shine and makes the car looks brand new!
I also use ice for quick polishes on my fusion. Good thing about ice is you can do it in the sun and you can put it on plastic and everything.
I use the meguiars clay bar and detailing spray also sometimes use their 3 step paint cleaner process. Nothing like a freshly waxed car. Synthetic wax also doesnt have that gloss that carnauba does.