An A-Z Of Detailing?

[jpjsavage]

Hi Everyone,

I've just got a lovely LS400 and I'm full of enthusiasm about the car and keeping it in good condition! I've only had it a few days and I can't believe it has taken me so long to 'discover' the Lexus experience.

Anyway, I'd like to keep the car looking at its best. So, before I go and spend some money buying some decent cleaning products, could any give me, or point me towards, a decent and easily understood, guide to detailing the car (that an enthusiastic amateur) can manage!

As I've got a black car, the one thing I did look at was the Turtle Wax Black Box. Is that any good as a basic product?

Cheers, Jonathan

[wendle]

Hi Jonathon,

Lets see how enthusiastic you really are....

http://www.clublexus.com/forums/automotive-care-and-detailing/131273-show-prep-detailing-guide-and-definitions.html

have fun

[willskoda]

Never ever ever ever use a sponge! Get yourself a good quality lambs wool mitt. Two buckets with grit guards are best - a wash and a rinse bucket. I have yet to find products that are pound for pound better and more convenient to find than Autoglym. AG super resin polish, ultra deep shine and HD wax are all really good products in my eyes but detaling is very much a thing of opinions. Nilfisk make some very good powerwashers too. Screwfix direct do some good offers on those too. I could go on. detailing world (forum) is very useful but is over full of information really!

[hellom8]

As said before www.detailingworld.co.uk is a good place to visit.

As well as using a lambs wool mitt or microfiber mitt and the two bucket washing method there are some other basic rules.

Like hose/jet washing the car down to loosen dirt before washing. Choice of car shampoo, WARNING ensure you use a good shampoo, as some shampoos will strip off the wax leaving your car unprotected.

If you think the choice at your local Halfords is vast then it gets even bigger on the net. There are tons of products you can buy and it depends on your paint type/colour and budget amongst other things.

As said before Autoglym products are easy to get hold of, some people slag AG but if used correctly they can achieve a good finish.

Assuming the car has swirls and scratches then AG’s super resin polish, when used with a foam applicator and just two to three bean sized drops of the product, worked into the panel in straight lines(front to rear) works well. It has slight correction and fillers that mask swirls so it is pretty safe to use.

The protection it leaves behind is not great so you need to put a wax on top. AG’s HD wax is very good, as is Victoria Wax - Concours Wax.

Halfords also do a good range of Meguiars products(including kits with shampoo, wax and applicators etc) which are also pretty good. I use their gold class shampoo on my black GS430, my brother uses the gold class wax on his black fiesta and it looks good.

Meg’s also do NXT Generation Tech Wax 2.0 Car Wax, which is meant to make black paint more black, heres a vid

.

Hope that helps.

[jpjsavage]

Thanks. That is very helpful.

Wendle - wow! Where to start? Clearly there is a massive area of knowledge there that has completely passed me by. It will be a case of one step at a time I think. But I would like to find a good valeter to address some of the swirls in the paintwork. I'm wondering if my bonnet could do with a respray too.