finest1

hi there, i've just bought my gs300. go for the sport option, its fully loaded etc. the value for money is excellent! i got the mk 1 and you can get some real good gems out there. go for the last batch made 1998. i picked up mine for £3500, with 65000 miles on the clock, full lexus service history! i bought mine before the new budget came out, so i will get stung when car tax day is due!! fantastic car for the price i paid. my cousin bought a merc with sports pack 55 plate. mine easily is better, and he paid 3 times as much!! btw, my insurance was not too bad either, way cheaper than a merc or bmw!

hey tigerfish! have you used the bilt hamber stuff yet? :)

hi kanjar please see my post i put on a few weeks back. its got most of the info you need. i was like you, lost in a mound of info, as you will see from the thread. i still haven't bought anything yet. the bilt hamber is really impressive, but thanks to your thread, someone actually tested hand polishing and the auto glym came out great. because of that thread im torn between bilt hamber and auto glym anyway hope this helps, bear in mind that the person that did the polish by hand only done a test patch. i've got a gs300 sport, theres no way i can do all of that car by hand, well not in one go anyway! also, get your terminology right. know what polish actually means and does. i would visit the meguiars website and check their 5 stage car detailing. that would give you a great introduction into the field good luck http://www.lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/ind...showtopic=49984 finest1

hi what is the product called from lexus? and is it specific for differnt cars? or one product for all? thanks

great job! was your car heavily swirled? did you find the product good. i noticed that the products you used filled in the swirls rather than remove them, was this what you wanted, rather than remove the swirls B)

thanks again, seeing that jap paintwork is soft, there must be a product that can be used to at least take some percentage of swirls and marks off, by hand. i saw a post on detailing world by the BH people, so i learnt a bit more about it. check out the post by pcironmike and dj wozza, i might be sold on this BH lark after all !! :D

no , havent seen that. ive seen something called quixx, check it out on youtube, its from the states

well done guys! i take it both cars had auto balm applied to it. did you have any light scratches or swirl marks to get rid of before you started. if so, how and what did you use to dress this i'd love my gs300 sport to look like that :D

thanks again guys i think i mentioned this earlier in the thread. i get the stages and the terminology. in terms of the auto balm, this would help mask or hide swirling and scratches, but not remove or reduce them. am i right? if i wanted to have a stab at reducing the swirl marks and scratches, i'll have to add polish to the plan with some sort of product. in answer to PJs post, in a nutshell if was to use solely BH products as an example i would do this: wash with auto wash dry auto clay maybe wash and dry again apply auto balm if i wanted to try to REMOVE swirls and scratches, same process as above but: wash with auto wash dry clay maybe wash and dry again use polish product apply auto balm obviously im using BH products as an example. if this is right, what polish is the best for applying by hand? again, just to reiterate, i know i may not be able to remove all the swirling, but my aim was to try to reduce some of it as it would look at least better than it does now, and also remove the light scratches. maybe once i get this under my hand, i maybe confident to try a polisher, maybe the £25 if everyone thinks its good enough, if not i'll go to a pro, if it still doesn't look good thanks again great pics PJs i can see the metallic shine through !! :)

thanks max, yes i've seen that tutorial. mine is located on the left side near the petrol cap. just as long as i have some good instructions i can do it, i just don't want to bodge it up!!

im still lost with the auto balm is it a wax or polish? the website is not very informative. i think its more catered to folks who have an idea about this stuff. you're right with the meguiars. the website have a wealth of info, the products are there, and people are happy with the results. thats what im after, good results after time spent let me know about that aerial when you get a chance. you ordering the auto balm this week?

sorry ! except you tigerfish!! i totally overlooked your GS !! did you start off using maguiars, or were u using other products and then eventually settled for maguiars? have you used any of their polish at any stage? if so what were the results like? or was using the clay good enough to forgo polishing? thanks rishi B)

funny enough, i was looking at the autoglym stuff, but read on another website that their swirl remover (whatever its called) contains chalk in it and not that very good. maybe its good for more prestige cars where more complex paint system is used. i am using their shampoo though. anyway thats the problem with a thread like this, for someone like me, im still in the same position as i started! everyone has their own opinion. i still havent read comments from someone with a gs300 pre2000, and what they are using. im still leaning on the BH clay and the meguiars system, although i found they have a swirl remover and scratch- x. not sure which is better or more suited to me. autoglym product line is very confusing. mind you a user called robblexx had some great results with the aqua wax. in terms of microfibre, im using one ive been using in my house for the past year. it costs 99p for 3 and its buffs up brilliantly. not very good for mopping up water, from a rinse say, but it will work well once a good wax is used and the water is less. use the cloths that have 80/20 ratio. the ones that have 70/30 ratio is good for windows, and buffing. for swirls remover i saw a product by mothers and another from pinnacle. too many products !!!

thanks tigerfish, mine is located on the left rear panel just under the petrol cap. i will check back later finest1

thanks guys, i think its going a bit too crazy now!, i washed the car yesterday, and i think there is some wax on it as the water was beading, and it did dry off quicker. i only washed it with car shampoo and dried with microfibre. it looked very good (like the pic i posted). this has revealed that, the paint work and condition is still good. i inspected the light scratches and they are very light ( when i lightly rub my finger over it, it feels no different) this leads me to believe that i need products that are not too specialised and not too abrasive. im going to go for something retail ,whether its maguiars or something else. reason being, is that i have no car detailing experience like most of you, so i cannot judge whether this product is better than the next one. but i feel this will be a good starting ground. i need mild products, and products that were made for the average joe like myself. hopefully i will be more clued up in a years time to decide where i want to take the detailing, if i feel i can get better results. the good thing is that i will be getting the auto clay (BH), and especially if i can get results similar to PJs! i have also come to terms that i won't be able to eliminate all the swirl marks, but hopefully reduce it, maybe with regular use, reduce it further all i have to do is figure out how to remove the "wax" that may already be on the car. will claying do it? thanks very much for all your advice and tips rishi

PJ thanks for a detailed response. i think the clay bar is value for money compared to the others i have looked at. i want to polish out some of the swirling and light scratches. how about this: adding some sort of polish especially made for swirls and light scratches and then finish off with the balm which will form part of the wax or seal stage. does that sound sensible? what lexus or car do you have and how old is it? thanks again rishi :)

hi all, a message to PJ, reading the forums, after claying, a polish should be used. once happy then a wax. looking at the BH website im confused over the Auto balm. is it a wax or polish or both? in practical terms, if i was the car, dry it, clay it, then auto balm, where does the wax come in. again unless its a product that does both. so once i perform the polish stage, all i do is buff it. am i right? thanks

dear all, thanks again, and to PJ. yes i had a look at the BH website. i've bookmarked it for now and will make a purchase decision in a few days. def agree about polishers, im not very technical and when all the costs mount i'd rather get a pro to do it. many thanks :D

thanks for the reply, i have tried the basic way which is getting someone to hold the buttons down on the radio, but this is what im saying, the plastic toothed cord does not come up. yes i have checked lexls, but mine is placed differently and its a bit awkward. i don't want to pull something i shouldn't any other ideas many thanks

great! thanks for the replies. im actually trying to get away with rotary polishers etc. i think im happy just to get rid of the light surface scratches and the minimise the swirl marks. reason being is the car needs washing and im after the best finish possible. i was thinking about getting a pro. or even lexus do get rid of the chips etc around the whole car, depending on the price. i saved money as the car was below my budget and i got a great deal. im enjoying driving the thing! i get alot of looks in my area because its not a car you see everyday like BMW's or mercs etc. having said that i saw an RAC polisher for £20, not sure if that is good as an amatuer. anyway keep em coming in, planning to make a purchase of products soon. feel free to tell me what you used on your cars, and the ones you didn't like. many thanks

hi all, i've really enjoyed and gasped at the great results everyone has been getting using a well structured car cleaning routine. im not real technically minded and still lost in all the waxes and polishes and the best products. i read somewhere, not sure if it was on this forum, that there are different types of paint, ie the paints or painting procedure done pre yr2000 is different than post yr 2000 cars? is this true? most of the cars i have seen here are post 2000. ok, i picked up a great gs300 sport mk1, and i want to make it gleam like it once did. although the second owner did garage it and looked after it, it does need some attention. there are lots of swirl marks and chips here and there. paint is metallic paint .the car is 10 yrs old. my question is regarding products, which ones should i use? so far ive got a good shampoo, and looking to get a clay product. after that im lost. so many products, so many opinions and reviews!! questions are: is it true about paint used before yr 2000 and after? after i clay my car, what next? and what products to use for max results on metallic paint, very interested in wet look, but i've only seen this on non-metallic paint. thanks in advance! keep posting the pics, they really motivate me to do mine!! this is what it looks like washed, and taken in lower light. when the sun gets to it, swirl city !! help me make this car look great thanks

thanks how do i dismantle it, this is the sort of instructions im looking for thanks

hi all, when i bought my mk 1 gs 300 sport, the guy did tell me there was an aerial problem. he even bought one of ebay masts and gave it to me. i've followed the instruction on previous threads and on lexusls.com. but this is the problem. when i pulled out the metal part, i was expecting the cord, but nothing came out ! i got my sister to hold the buttons etc, you can hear the motor but again nothing came out. obviously the aerial is place differently than the LS. can someone give me a detailed account on how to repair this, many thanks in advance finest1 :winky:

hi i tried it today and it worked !! i have a mk1 gs300 sport

hi all, i finally got my gs300 sport! its a mk 1. my question is this: it already has a harmon kardon 12 cd system in there (factory spec) which im happy with. i don't have any form of sat nav. is it possible to get the console upgraded by lexus, to the consoles the mk 2's have that have inbuilt sat nav? the tape deck looks so dated!!