THE detailing thread

[USMCStang]

Figured I'd post a thread with my entire regimen for detailing. With 110,000 hard driven miles, on a black car, with original paint, keeping it looking as good as possible is a job in and of itself. I'll try to keep somewhat of a format to it, if if available, products I list will have a link to a web page. Hopefully this helps out, and we can make it a sticky, so people can add thier tips/ tricks to keep thier car looking as sweet as Gilbert's neon. I'm going to try to do this in "chapters", so to speak. You'll see I may go overboard sometimes, so some of this is open to substitution. I don't have/ use a buffer right now, but I'm looking into one, so this list is all done by hand right now.

Disclaimer: You'd think I was a Meguiar's salesman by the way I use their products, and some of you have seen my "store" as I like to put it. I've used just about every one of their products, and for off-the-shelf bang for the buck, they are absolutely the best IMO. Feel free to substitute other brands if you feel they work better, (I know Mother's makes some awesome products too) but if you haven't tried the NXT line, you should.

Microfiber Tips & Tricks
NEVER use a microfiber towel for more than one type of chemical until it has been washed Wash your microfibers/ applicators/ wash mitts with car wash soap and a cup of white distilled vinegar. Don't use laundry soap, dish soap, bleach, fabric softener, or the dryer for that matter...just use car wash soap (or the sonus stuff...forget what it's called, but it's made for washing towels) and vinegar. 6 words - Warm water wash, cold water rinse Air dry your towels on a clothes line Drop your wash mitt or applicator on the ground? It's toast, toss it. Towels you can usually get away with if you only use them to apply protectant or polish stainless exhaust tips, don't ever use them near your paint if they were on the ground. Buy microfibers in cycles. I buy packs of 3 or 6 about every two washes, move 3 or 6 used ones to "rag" status for applying protectant and the like, keep 3 or 6 of the best for secondary polishing towels, and scrap 3 or 6 for cleaning my lawnmower :P This way, I always have brand new, clean towels (wash them as soon as you get home with them) to use for polishing the paint, some decent ones to use in a pinch or for doing wheel wells and rocker panels, and some rags for the dirty work like the exhaust tips and engine bay. The older towels that I scrap I can use elsewhere around the garage. Try to only buy made in america Microfibers, or at least ones that have smooth edges on them. Remove the tags, for pete's sake.

"Spring Cleaning" - This is the big one. The one I do every year in the spring, when we get our first string of warmer days, 3-4 days above 60 degrees, with no rain. (I have a garage now with drains in the floor, so I'm fortunate enough to be able to wash the car when it's raining. :) ) I start from scratch, for lack of a better term, and set myself up for the rest of the year.

Interior Preparation - this part can and should be done in the garage, if available, and should be done first.

[list:b94fd89246] Remove all seats Empty console, door pockets, trunk, and glove compartment completely Remove floor mats Remove spare/ jack Remove cupholder liner/ cupholder (if yours is like mine, it pops right out, on the newer 'stangs, they're part of the whole console) Clean out any remaining trash...dont forget the sun visors if you're like my wife and think they are there as a filing cabinet ](*,) Remove anything left that's not bolted down, including Olivia Newton-John CD's and rainbow air fresheners, Gilbert

Interior Tools - Links provided, if available
1 1/2" Paint Brush or Meguiar's Slide Lock brush (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=Slide-Lock-Detail-Brush&sku=X1120&sectionID=24101) Shop-Vac, with brush/ crevice/ upholstery attachments (http://www.shopvac.com/) or some sort of steam cleaner (http://www.epinions.com/content_105166048900) At least 6 or 7 Microfiber towels A polish applicator, needs to be new or like new CD Lens cleaner disc (http://www.officemax.com/max/solutions/product/prodBlock.jsp?prodBlockOID=48518&cm_ven=Froogle&cm_cat=Tech&cm_pla=Computer_Accessory&cm_ite=Computer_Accessory&BV_SessionID=@@@@0124228173.1126615426@@@@&BV_EngineID=ccdcaddfiijemgfcefeceeldfgndfjf.0) Canned Air or Air compressor (http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/601-8040098-9611357?asin=B00009QOZU&AFID=Froogle&ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001) Carpet brush (http://www.topoftheline.com/boarhairbodw.html) Q-tips[/*]

Interior cleaning chemicals - Some of these are optional to your tastes
Meguiar's NXT Glass Cleaner (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=NXT-Generation%E2%84%A2-Glass-Cleaner&sku=G13324&sectionID=14101) Meguiar's Plastx polish (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=PlastX-Clear-Plastic-Cleaner-&-Polish&sku=G12310&sectionID=15101) Meguiar's Gold Class Leather Cleaner (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=Gold-Class-Rich-Leather-Aloe-Cleaner&sku=G11016&sectionID=12201) Meguiar's Gold Class Leather Conditioner (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=Gold-Class-Rich-Leather-Aloe-Conditioner&sku=G11116&sectionID=12201) Meguiar's Quik Interior Detailer (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=Quik-Interior-Detailer&sku=G13616&sectionID=12101) Meguiar's Heavy Duty Carpet/ Interior Cleaner (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=Heavy-Duty-Carpet-&-Interior-Cleaner&sku=G9416&sectionID=12301) Febreeze or some sort of odor eliminator Air freshener OPTIONAL PER TASTE - HIGH SHINE NXT Tech Protect (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=NXT-Generation%E2%84%A2-Tech-Protect&sku=G12924&sectionID=12101) OPTIONAL PER TASTE - MEDIUM SHINE Meguiar's Natural Shine (http://www.meguiars.com/estore/product_detailpage.cfm?product=Natural-Shine-Vinyl-&-Rubber-Protectant&sku=G4116&sectionID=12101) OPTINAL PER TASTE - MATTE FINISH - Quik Interior detailer only Cleaning solution for steam cleaner, if applicable (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000U11NA/ref=k_deav_acc_1_1/104-4398717-5807953?v=glance&s=kitchen)

My Interior Cleaning process - You may want to disconnect the battery, since this will take awhile.
I always start with vacuuming the carpeting. Vacuuming kicks up alot of dust that you'll need to clean off of the dash anyways. I get the big stuff with just the upholstery attachment/ crevice tool, and then put the brush attachment on. Brushing the carpet brings some of the smaller stuff embedded in the carpet to the top. Dont forget to do the rear windowsill! Shampoo the carpeting. If you use the car a daily driver, and you like cofee, like me, you'll see why I said to remove the seats. Spray the carpet shampoo thick on spots, and a general even coat everywhere else, including the trunk carpeting/ side panels. Use the carpet brush to work the shampoo in well, and let it sit for awhile, like 10 minutes. If you have a steam cleaner, even better. I use Natural Orange-Extract Formula with Scotchgard (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000U11NA/ref=k_deav_acc_1_1/104-4398717-5807953?v=glance&s=kitchen). Follow your steam cleaner's instructions for use. Clean the leather surfaces in the car (steering wheel, shift boot, etc.) using the Meguiars CLEANER, and another microfiber Clean the headliner and sunvisors using the upholstery cleaner sprayed onto a towel. Don't spray the cleaner directly on the headliner, as getting the headliner too wet can cause the backing to degrade, and the headliner may begin to "droop". Just wipe any dirt spots with the towel. It shouldn't be too dirty anyways unless you like to go mudbogging with the windows down. If you have alot of dust on the dashboard, use your brush attachment and your shop-vac first. Clean out your vents with the slide-lok brush, or a paintbrush with some tape around the bristles to make them a little firmer. Then use the Meguiar's quik interior detailer and another microfiber. I spray directly on the dash, rather than wetting the towel. Quik detailer does an awesome job of cleaning plastic/ vinyl/ rubber surfaces, but if you need a little more strength because you are a dirty bastard, use a rag with soapy water. Blow out all of the little nooks and crannies in the dash with canned air, and don't forget to wipe down the inside of your glovebox, console, and map pockets. Use Q-tips to clean out that brain-fart of a coin-holder that ford designed Vacuum the seats with the brush attachment, so you don't scratch the leather if you have it. Make sure to do the undersides too, sometimes you'll get "ghost turds" underneath. Clean the leather or upholstery using the equivalent cleaner, and the microfiber you used on the steering wheel and shift boot, or headliner, depending on if you have leather or cloth. You didn't throw it on the ground, did you? Put you preferred protectant on the dash, doors, c-pillars, weather strips, etc. You can use a regular old towel for this, as long as it is lint free. Spray the protectant ON THE TOWEL, not the surface, and don't forget to do all the weatherstripping, that is the most important. Get the plastic parts of the seats too, like the seat-belt holder and where it pivots. The place I always seem to forget is the door sills, so yeah, get those too while you're at it. Don't forget you have a trunk back there with weather strip in it. OK, at this point, your carpet is probably still a little damp, and your dashboard is full of oils...clean the windows, right? Wrong. Hook your battery back up, set the driver's seat in place, and pull the car into the sun with the windows up, turn the heat on full blast, and let the car run for 15-20 minutes. Turn the car off and let it sit in the sun with the windows up for another hour or so, then pull it back into the garage and put the windows down. Let it cool awhile. What you just did is 1) dry the carpet, and 2)let any protectant that hadn't soaked in evaporate. Prolly left a film on your windows, which is why you do this BEFORE cleaning your windows. While the car's baking, condition your leather using the Meguiar's conditioner Spray your odor eliminator (febreeze) Clean the inside windows after it's cooled down a little using NXT Glass cleaner and yet another Microfiber. Dont forget the rear view and vanity mirrors...dont touch the instrument panel lens, you'll probably scratch it. To clean the clear plastic lens on the instrument panel, as well as the plastic lenses on the stereo, use Meguiar's Plastx. It's a polish, not a wax, so treat it like one. Use a clean wax applicator and polish the surfaces, then buff them with another microfiber. Don't let the Plastx dry on the lenses. TIP: Plastx works well if you have window tint that has minor hairline scratches that need polished out. If you removed your cupholder, just take it inside and wash it with dish soap and water in the sink. It's probably one of the dirtier and stickier pieces in your dash. Put the same protectant on it you used elsewhere, and reinstall it. For the floor mats, I buy new ones every spring, but you can clean them the same as the rest of the carpeting, or even put them in the washing machine on the delicate cycle if you don't mind some banging around You're in the home stretch now. Take some WD-40 and spray it on the mouting points for the front seats. They get pretty corroded, and it makes it easier for next year. Re-mount the back seat/ RSD if applicable, or leave it out for the weight savings :) , bolt in the front seats, but don't forget to hook up the wiring harnesses before bolting them down if you have power seats. Bolt the spare/ jack back in Put your owner's manual, registration, and insurance back in the car, and organize everything you want to keep in the vehicle Clean your CD Player with the lens cleaner...cheap insurance and keeps the stereo sounding good (I bet none of you turds have ever done it unless you were already having problems with the CD player) Put a few drops of 3-in-1 oil on the door hinges Finally, top it off with your choice of air-freshener.[/list:o:b94fd89246]

Whew, that was alot of typing, and even more formatting, and thats JUST the interior. About one day's work. Remember, this is just for a spring cleaning, but if you are nuts enough to do it every time you wash the car, be my guest. I have also been known to remove the door panels and clean everything back there too, but that's a little much.

Next Chapter - Engine Detailing, it'll be awhile before I get each section typed up and formatted (I'm using notepad). If you see I missed something, lemme know, and I'll add it into my post.

[USMCStang]

Engine Detailing - This should be the second step in your "spring cleaning". Look at it this way, are you going to get the paint all nice and shiny, and then spray degreaser and kick up dust from the interior? BTW, are you taking before and after pics of all this?

I'll only post links to items that I havent posted already.

Engine Preparation- There's really not much to do as far as prep if you, like me, have a 4.6 2V...or any engine for that matter. Just be careful. There are only a few things:

[list:a57b1738c6] Top off ALL fluids first, change the oil too if it's time. Start the car, and let it run until it's warm to the touch, not hot. If the T'stat opens, it's too hot. Usually about 5-10 minutes Once you shut down, remove the accessory drive belt Remove Air Filter if you have the reusable type (AKA K&N) and clean it, and set it aside to begin drying Cover inlet tube with aluminum foil/ saran wrap, and a rubber band If you have any nifty decorative covers, Bob, you should remove those as well Remove the hood-liner

Engine detailing tools- I'm not going to list "tune-up" stuff just yet, since we're just covering detailing, but you should probably do any maintenance first, and then clean.

Hose nozzle with "soaker" and "mist" setting (like a low pressure "gush"). This is what I use, it's awesome. (http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=LAWN&pid=07169285000) Air compressor or canned air If you've never detailed your engine before, you'll probably want an Engine detailing brush of some sorts (http://www.properautocare.com/ezdetailbrush.html) Rags...they can be old microfibers, dish towels, socks, whatever. No use using brand new mf towels. Scunci Steamer (http://www.asseenontv.com/prod-pages/scunci_steamer.html?gid=) or something equivalent is always nice to have Shop-vac set-up for picking up water (take the paper filter out...just want the foam filter in there) and crevice tool

Engine detailing chemicals- Not much needed here
Greased Lightning BLAST High Performance Cleaner and Degreaser (http://www.glblast.com/products.html#Cleaner) CD2 Engine Detailer, (http://www.midwayautosupply.com/detailedproductdescription.asp?4618) Armor All tire foam (my preferred), (http://www.armorall.com/prodcat/pages/tires_2.18.html) Meguiar's Natural Shine, or Meguiar's Tech protect Meguiar's Heavy Duty Upholstery Cleaner Nevr-dull wadding polish (http://www.nevrdull.com/)

Engine detailing process- remember, the engine needs to be warm, not hot. You'll be washing grease off the engine, and it has to go somewhere, so note that your driveway may get some stains if you don't rinse it well. I wet down my driveway before starting to help keep the grease from soaking in.

Use your air compressor or canned air to blow off standing dust, leaves, anything thats just sitting there Spray down the ENTIRE engine with the GL or your preferred degreaser. I mean soak it. Simple Green works OK, but GL is the best IMO. Anything but Gunk engine bright, it leaves a milky residue. Make sure the spray bottle is on the "foam" setting. Get every nook and cranny in there, intake manifold, engine valley, front of the block, everything. I use almost the whole bottle of degreaser for one cleaning, no matter how clean it was in the first place. A good degreaser "dwells", meaning it sits in one place and doesn't run off. This let's it work longer on cutting grime. Let it sit for a few minutes. While it's working, use a brush/ rag to scrub extra dirty places if you need to. The engine valley is one of those places. Don't let the degreaser sit so long that it dries. If you see spots starting to dry, re-spray them with degreaser to buy yourself some more time if you need to. You should see the grease and grime dissolving off. When you think you're ready, set your hose to "mist", or whatever the softest setting you have is, and rinse off the coil packs, alternator, and MAF. Anything that is electronic and exposed should only be rinsed with light spray. Use your best judgement. Everything under the hood is "water-resistant", but not "water-proof". Once you have the delicate areas rinsed, turn your hose to the "soaker" setting. This should be the setting with the max amount of water, with the least amount of pressure. If your hose doesn't have this type of setting, take the nozzle off and turn the pressure to a lower setting. Rinse the rest of the engine. Just let the water float off all of the degreaser. Rinse again, you probably missed a few crevices. Use the air compressor again to blow out as much standing water as possible, pay special attention to the spark-plug holes, coil packs, fuse box, and alternator. Watch your eyes, ther's probably some diluted degreaser in there, and if you're like me you don't want your eyes degreased Suck up any remaining puddles with your shop vac Hopefully, your Air filter is dry by now, and you can oil and reinstall it if you took it out to clean it. If not, use your own judgement to decide if you want to run the engine without the filter...just remember to take the foil off, stupid. In a pinch, you could improvise with some cheese cloth as a filter I guess Using a wet rag and car wash soap, if needed, wipe down the underside of the hood. It's not clearcoated and probably has a dull finish, but it needs to be cleaned. Do the whole underside, and finish it up with a wet rag and clean water, no soap. You just need to get the heavy dirt off. For stickers under the hood, use a rag with degreaser on it and wipe them clean, flip to a rag with just water for rinse Start 'er up. Everything should still be running just as it was before. Once you're sure, shut the hood, and let it run for awhile. It'll dry quicker with the hood shut. I let mine run for 2 fan cycles, about half an hour. When you shut the hood, rinse the fenders off too if theres any degreaser on them While the engine is drying, hose off your hood liner. For some, this is all that needs to be done to clean it, for most, you'll have to use upholstery cleaner and your shop vac. I haven't tried my steam cleaner yet, but I'm sure it works pretty well. Lie the hood liner in the sun to start drying. When it's dry, set it out of the way somewhere where it wont get dirty. Once the engine has ran awhile to dry, go ahead a pop the hood. Check for any remaining water and blow it out, use a towel, or shop vac it up. At this point, everything under the hood should be clean, dust free, and dry. Now is the time to pick your detailer. Personally, I use Armor All tire foam, of all things. Seems to work the best at dissolving any residue left from the degreaser, and gives the right amount of shine. Lasts a long time too. CD2 is shiny, but I don't like it...seems to get too sticky, and attracts dust. You also have to "bake" it on, which just makes it harder to clean the next time. If you want REALLY shiny, use Meguiar's NXT Tech-protect and a towel, for subdued shine, use Meguiar's natural shine. Both of those will take some elbow grease to get complete coverage, since they're thicker and don't have a foaming action. Spray the tire foam all over the engine, don't miss anything visible, especially black plastic pieces. Let it sit and dissolve If you have a chrome CAI, or anything Chrome or polished for that matter, use some never-dull and a clean towel. Chrome is hard, you don't need a mf towel, it shouldn't scratch. Rip off a chunk of never dull and buff the part with it as if you were polishing. Let the residue dry to a haze, and buff it off with your towel. Polish any metal parts you removed as well, and reinstall them. Reinstall the belt At this point, your engine should be clean and detailed well, with a nice shine to it. All plastic parts should be nice and black, no brown tint to them. Metal pieces should be shining, or at least very clean with no water or detailer spots on them. The underside of your hood should be grime free, and for god's sake, your pullies had better be clean. At the Summit show, that was the first thing I looked at in the engine bay. Think about it, on the 4.6, the alternator pully is at the front, center, and top of your engine. You may be able to eat dinner off of the valve covers, but the pulley is the first thing you see, if it's dirty, then you didn't take enough time and show attention to detail.[/list:o:a57b1738c6]

That pretty much sums up the Engine detailing portion. Notice I didn't tell you to reinstall your hoodliner. You should wax the underside of the hood as well in the next steps of your spring cleaning.

If you haven't picked up on it so far, I'm big on little details. Thats what makes one car look better than new, and the next look like a butt-pickle with wheels. Ask someone who has a trailered show car how much time they spend on detail, and you'll see what I do is the equivalent of a 15 minute spray-off at Russell's Coin-op Car wash for them. Mine is geared more towards the d/d that sees occasional cruise-ins and shows.

Formatting all this crap sucks. :roll:

Next Chapter - Exterior Detailing

[USMCStang]

Unlocked...if anyone who is "in the know" wants to begin a writeup for the exterior, feel free. I'm going to start my own, but it may take awhile.

[XCOBRAX]

Mike.. Good info thanks! Seems to be a good way to keep from putting miles on the car.. spend all spring and summer detailing it.... Dude! How long does that take you?? :shock:

I'm going to print this out and see how many steps I can get through before I kill myself.

I'm taking next week off to detail mine.. looks like it will take at least that long...

Thanks for taking the time to type all of that!

[wikd331]

It doesnt really take that long...

[USMCStang]

Mike.. Good info thanks! Seems to be a good way to keep from putting miles on the car.. spend all spring and summer detailing it.... Dude! How long does that take you?? :shock:

I'm going to print this out and see how many steps I can get through before I kill myself.

I'm taking next week off to detail mine.. looks like it will take at least that long...

Thanks for taking the time to type all of that!

Takes me roughly 4 hours for interior, 2 hours for engine, and 3 DAYS for exterior :shock: wait'll you see that writeup.

The whole point is to do the above ONCE A YEAR. Make it your first detail of the spring. A "spring cleaning", for lack of a better term. Throughout the year, I maintain it with a good 4 hour detail job once every week or so, and a weekly wipe down with the car duster, unless I happen to get the car exceptionally dirty.

[XCOBRAX]

OK, Mike.. got the engine and interior done..where's that exterior detail post?

Seriously, thanks for the tips!

The only thing I'm disapointed in is the hood insulation pad.. wanted to take it of and keep it off but the paint under it is NOT good. The local Ford dealer is going to order me a new pad that I will paint and highlight the lettering. That should get me into the fall. Then I'll get the underside of the hood painted.

Starting the exterior tomorrow...three days??

[USMCStang]

OK, Mike.. got the engine and interior done..where's that exterior detail post?



Here's a very quick, down and dirty process...this is all asumed you are doing it by hand with off the shelf products:

Remove License plates and wing clean tires Wash with Dawn dish soap clay polish headlights/ tailights with Plastx wash with NXT car soap DC #1 Paint Cleaner DC #2 Polish dress tires and plastic 2-3 thin coats of either NXT or #26 yellow carnuba (I suggest NXT for dark cars, #26 for light cars) 1-2 coats of #7 Clean glass

That is the most basic process...detailing each of the above steps is a lot more in depth. Make sure you detail all of the nooks and crannies, like under the trunk lid, hood, behind the doors, etc.

[Enfynet]

What's "claybar"...

[USMCStang]

What's "claybar"...

http://www.guidetodetailing.com/articles.php?articleId=14

Read on, young Jedi.

Claying cleans your paint of all the small little particles such as brake dust, pollen, etc. that you can't see in your paint. It's VERY easy to do, and will make or brake your detailing day.

[Megatron]

I tried out that new Turtle Wax "ICE" polish. It's great!!! Not only does it make my paint look like glass, but it DOES NOT leave any white crap on your trim. Infact, it actually SHINES your black trim :) I recommend it to everyone on the boards. Its at your local wally world for like 16 bux. Comes with it's own applicator and a nice microfiber detailing cloth. The spray detailer is 9.99 or something

[USMCStang]

The new VBulletin forums have messed up some of my formatting. The info is still there however.

Eventually, I'll get to the exterior, lol.

[BetterDays]

The new VBulletin forums have messed up some of my formatting. The info is still there however.

Eventually, I'll get to the exterior, lol.

Anything yet?

[USMCStang]

Anything yet?

LOL

I plan on starting my spring cleaning here in the next few weeks. For the exterior, I'm going to take pictures for the writeup.

[BetterDays]

LOL

I plan on starting my spring cleaning here in the next few weeks. For the exterior, I'm going to take pictures for the writeup.

:cough:
Anything?
:cough:

[smoked88lx]

Wow your dedicated not only for cleaning your car so well, but for typing all that stuff up.....

[tedBalog]

LOL

I plan on starting my spring cleaning here in the next few weeks. For the exterior, I'm going to take pictures for the writeup.

So with Spring RIGHT around the corner, how is that writeup coming?

:spank2:

[USMCStang]

So with Spring RIGHT around the corner, how is that writeup coming?

:spank2:

LOL...happens every year with this thread. With having a newborn last year, I didn't put too much effort into the car, and definitely no effort into the exterior writeup. Someday I'll get off my keester.;)

I'm thinking of hosting a "Detailing Party" soon at my place. Should be a good time to start writing.

[Mustang02]

speaking of detailing. I need my DA back. You've had it for almost a year.

[Junior2561]

If you get his pressure washer back, i am sure he can hook you up with your DA. Oh, and get Gilbert's unpaid for TB back too :disturbed:

[USMCStang]

speaking of detailing. I need my DA back. You've had it for almost a year.

Still sitting in the box in my garage...I think Jason used it more than I did:bs:

[SableGTO]

hey, when does project Blue Devil clean up start? I want to get on this soon.

[Sable]

hey, when does project Blue Devil clean up start? I want to get on this soon.

Instead of the track Sunday I think I should work on cleaning it up instead. I need to get my tires mounted first anyway.

[Mustang02]

hey, when does project Blue Devil clean up start? I want to get on this soon.
Probably around the same time as Project "why waste your money on a v6?" does.

[USMCStang]

hey, when does project Blue Devil clean up start? I want to get on this soon.

Grab a bottle of Greased Lightning and a camera for that nasty engine of yours and we can commence.

[SableGTO]

It's on like donkey kong! Where do I get it?

[USMCStang]

It's on like donkey kong! Where do I get it?

Wally World, Autozone, etc. It's common. This weekend isn't looking too bad...do you wany to at least get the engine bay cleaned up?

[Sable]

I was just going to work on it in my driveway but we can head up to your place too.

[SableGTO]

Sunday maybe? I think we are booked for the better part of Saturday....but we can play it by ear.

And yeah, the engine bay is my priority.
Got a new strut bar coming to put in.

[91fox]

thnx for the link on clay allways wondered how that worked lol

[jojo22]

LOL...happens every year with this thread. With having a newborn last year, I didn't put too much effort into the car, and definitely no effort into the exterior writeup. Someday I'll get off my keester.;)

I'm thinking of hosting a "Detailing Party" soon at my place. Should be a good time to start writing.


More info on this party?? I know I'm new to the board, but I'm ALWAYS down for making the car look better! And it would be nice to meet some local stangers!!

[stanger8995]

More info on this party?? I know I'm new to the board, but I'm ALWAYS down for making the car look better! And it would be nice to meet some local stangers!!

Unless you have a time machine you arent going to that party lol

[jojo22]

Dang looked at the month and day but not the year...LOL

[carpediem50]

This thread is pretty much dead, but I'll throw a couple things at you all that have worked for me lately...

When I first started using clay, I was following the directions... spraying the car a small section at a time with the instant detailer, claying, then wiping off. This is really really time consuming, so I've just started using the clay while washing. Get a panel really good and sudsy, and use the clay then. I don't know if there's a disadvantage do doing it this way, but its tons quicker, and still seems to pull crap out of the paint like doing it the other way.

Also, anyone tried "ultimate compound"? (I think its Maguires) I used it once or twice, then saw some horror stories about it on the web, but I think those are from people who haven't a clue what they're doing. I've really come to like it as a polish, for someone that does everything by hand and isn't looking to remove enough paint to make it look like glass every time.

[foxbodybowtie]

I've wanted to try that since I've heard about it on here. Summit does not carry it so I tried mag. No. 83 and what a nightmare. I was in the sun somewhat but it was only 10am so not that warm out. I've NEVER had anything harder to remove in my life. Gonna try the ultimate compound this weekend if I can find it.

[Mustang02]

83 has to be used in shade. It dries too fast.


BTW this thread is dead. OP doesn't visit here anymore. :rofl:

[Boombastic86]

FWIW I used to use all kinds of fancy waxes and such, and I've just come to use Mothers or Maguiers cleaner wax. Keeping up on the car and using that with a clay and polish once or twice a year seems to get just about the same results.

[mhissticobra]

i don't know if there's a disadvantage do doing it this way, but its tons quicker, and still seems to pull crap out of the paint like doing it the other way.


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wtf?

[stang99]

Dude I thought Iwas crazy about detaling....I respect somebody who spends that much time on there car nothing tics me off more if you see a car that has trash in it or mud under the wheel wells if it's a sweet ride. However a 4x4 lifted with mud on it is sweet!!! Anyway thanks for the info dude.