The 300zx Detailing Thread

[Gaz 300]

Not sure if we have a detailing thread but I will start this one so if you have any thoughts on different waxes or any cleaning products then post it here and dont forget the pics.

 

Naviwax is the wax I used today and it gets a 9 out of 10 from me. Very easy to put on and easy to take it off. You put it on in long strips instead of small circles and the results are very shiny.

 

https://nubawax.com/products/naviwax-ultimate-carnauba-wax

 

Edited June 10, 2018 by Gaz 300

[Gaz 300]

[bird]

Looking great Gary. Queue Joel lol. I'm useless with this kind of thing

[TheRealNips]

I did mine with a good wash with Autoglym shampoo, dried with a towel, polished with Autoglym polish, then ceramic polish (£11 - tiny little bottle, spreads on with a tiny sponge then buffed off) and then a very very light layer (Im talking a few sprays on a cloth for the whole car, molecules thick) of WD40. Every level of product used I went around the car several times and at the end buffed and re-buffed to make sure it was all out. That was done the night before the 1st may bank holiday. It took me over 4 hours total I think. I washed the car the other day and didn't need to polish it, the water was beading and running off, it was amazing!

 

[Chris300]

What do you use on you rubbers Gary, they look great. :cool3:

[Gaz 300]

What do you use on you rubbers Gary, they look great. :cool3:

 

Autoglym Bumper and Trim Gel mate.

 

https://www.autoglym.com/bumper-and-trim-gel

[Iangreenfield]

I can also recommend Ultimus Snow Foam and React 2 wheel decontam fluid from Carbon Collective very clingy and does a great job of the pre wash soak.

[Gaz 300]

I can also recommend Ultimus Snow Foam and React 2 wheel decontam fluid from Carbon Collective very clingy and does a great job of the pre wash soak.

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Like the look of that soapy snow foam Ian. Does it work with the plastic bottle attachment that comes with the Karcher presser washer?

[Iangreenfield]

It will but I bought the propper attachment from Carbon collective

[phutumsch]

Like the look of that soapy snow foam Ian. Does it work with the plastic bottle attachment that comes with the Karcher presser washer?

 

I expect so, i use some bubblegum stuff and the adjustable Karcher attachment works a treat, i rub it with a noodle cloth then rinse.

 

Looking great Gary. Queue Joel lol.

 

Please God no..........DO NOT encourage him !!

[Gaz 300]

It will but I bought the propper attachment from Carbon collective

 

Cheers Ian.

 

I expect so, i use some bubblegum stuff and the adjustable Karcher attachment works a treat, i rub it with a noodle cloth then rinse.

 

 

 

Please God no..........DO NOT encourage him !!

 

So you still need to rub it in. Can you not just leave it for a while then rinse it off?

[Iangreenfield]

Yes leave to dwell, rinse off then shampoo as usual, the snow foam is a pre wash treatment to loosen dirt before washing

[Gaz 300]

Yes leave to dwell, rinse off then shampoo as usual, the snow foam is a pre wash treatment to loosen dirt before washing

 

Got it Ian :thumbup1:

[RichardS]

I can recommend Chemical Guys Jet Seal as a paint sealant - following advice from Peach....:thumbup:

 

For a sealant, it is as easy to apply to polished paint as Autoglym SRP - but much longer lasting. Give it two coats, then a week later, wash again and pop a nice wax over the top. I quite like Valet Pro Beading Marvellous. Again, easy to apply and buff off, beads water relentlessly and only costs about £35 for a 250g pot.

 

When I get my Zed back, that's what I shall be doing...:wink:

[Gaz 300]

Chemical Guys are good Richard and hope its not to long now till you get your Z back mate.

[Joely P]

My input to this thread would be to suggest that your detailing techniques will have far more effect on the results and longevity than the products used. Products do vary, some are more effective, some are easier to work with, some require more product, some last longer, some attract more dirt than others etc, there can be many variables to consider. However if your wash technique isn’t up to scratch, any hard work at the finishing stage can be quickly undone! I’m no pro and am virtually self taught so by no means am I giving an “expert” opinion but I have learnt a fair bit over the past few years.

 

Ian has highlighted the essential first stage which is an effective prewash of the car before touching it. If the Final coating of sealant or wax (or both) isn’t up to scratch, this stage won’t be as effective and there is more chance that the wash stage will cause defects so both stages are equally important. Here are the wash technique stages that I follow on my Z. Note that none of this should be carried out in direct sunlight. It also assumes your paint is already well protected, if you’re doing this to a car that hasn’t been pampered for some time, a quick wash, full decontamination and polish should be done before a sealant or wax is applied. Further cleaning will then be much easier.

 

Before touching the paintwork, a thorough rinse is essential, followed by either a snowfoam or traffic film remover left to dwell for a few minutes (I normally fill up my wash bucket during this time).

 

If there are lots of bugs on the front, a specific chemical can help remove these as you don’t want to be applying any scrubbing pressure with the wash mitt when you get to that stage.

 

Rinse or power wash off the prewash. If the car is particularly dirty, I go over the car with snowfoam again to assist the lubrication of the shampoo as I go over with the mitt.

 

Start washing with your chosen poison using virtually no pressure, just the weight of your hand. Start at the top of the car all round and work your way down. Continuously inspect the mitt for any signs of dirt and then rinse it off. It’s important not to put your dirty mitt (or whatever you’re using) into the wash bucket so either have a separate rinse bucket to clean it or rinse the mitt off with a hose to clear any debris before going back in. Remember, don’t apply pressure!

 

As you get lower down the car and especially at the back end, one sweep of the mitt could leave it very dirty so a rinse after each very light pass may be required until it’s cleaner, then you can give it a more detailed second pass. At the front, if your mitt picks up bugs, rinse them off as bits of bugs cause swirls!

There may be some stubborn bug splats or fallout to remove and when the car is well protected, these will generally come off with a slightly increased pressure of the clean and lathered up mitt, but no harsh scrubbing! If it doesn’t come off, you’ll have to break out some fallout remover and reprotect that panel afterwards.

 

Gently dry the car, with no pressure. I generally just hang a large soft drying towel from 2 corners and pull it around the car with the weight of the towel itself, this gets the bulk of the water off then fold into 4 and do a light pass around to scoop the rest. I personally then go around with a blower to get the water out of the panel gaps, mirror cases, rear lights, wheels and brakes. Don’t be tempted to drive the car at this stage to remove this water as it will just attract dirt, do this after the final drying step if you have to.

 

At this stage, you will still have some fine water streaking from the wet drying towel and if you’re not going to polish the car, get a fresh, dry microfibre and go over the whole car with a spray wax product; 1 or 2 squirts per panel and it will leave a lovely finish whilst keeping your LSP nicely topped up. You can extend this step into the dry wheels and then treat your tyres as required. If you haven’t blow dried the panel gaps, take the car for a spin round the block to get the water out, then very gently dab wipe the drops with plenty of QD continuously folding the cloth to clean sections. Don’t do this if the roads are damp or wet!

 

If you intend to polish the car, you needn’t bother doing the above final drying step with the spray wax as you’ll be removing it again anyway! It’s important before you polish, that you do a full decontamination of the paint so that all the minor fallout is completely removed as this could get picked up and dragged around the paint causing more defects. Sometimes this fallout can be difficult to spot, so don’t skip this step. You can use fallout removers to get the easily visible debris off but after that, give the car a thorough claying until the claybar is passing clean. You can also check the surface by placing your hand in a cheap sandwich bag and rubbing it along the paint, it should feel smooth and make no noise as you run it around. Use plenty of lube with the claybar, this stage is laborious and hard work!

 

At this stage the car is now fully decontaminated and your probably shattered but this is the first point that you can safely cover up the car as it’s perfectly clean! You could then come back to it later.

 

A hand polish will more likely be filling swirls as apposed to removing them and I’d highly recommend investing in a machine polisher for an efficient and long lasting defect removal.

 

Once the paint is all swirl free, I would then seal the car (twice!) and then apply a layer or multiple layers of wax (you can go straight in with the wax but don’t bother sealing over that as it will not take to the wax).

 

The shine of the paint comes from how swirl free it is, not the LSP that is applied. Some polished and glazes etc have heavy fillers in which can improve the appearance of a car with defects but ideally you want them all removed in the first place (then use the proper procedure to maintain the finish). Products can vary in the way they reflect light so can very slightly change the appearance or shade of the colour, this is also the case with LSPs containing tinters.

[Gaz 300]

Great write up JP and look forward to more from you.

[RichardS]

Great write up JP and look forward to more from you.

 

Seconded - thanks JP....:thumbup:

[Richie K]

Hey Joel, can you do up a list of products used and label them for others to follow?? It will hopefully help out us lesser perfectionists to achieve similar results to your car:thumbup:

 

iE. 1. Rinse

2. Snowfoam (Brand / Product Title)

3. Shampoo (Brand / Product Title) etc

 

I need to have some sort of cleaning system sorted for the Z when I get it back:thumbup1:

I've gotten my hands on a free Nilfisk Alto Neptune 3 Diesel / Electric hot wash :whistling: Needs some attention, but hoping it just needs a new hose and a good servicing:innocent::whistling:

 

Fingers crossed !!

 

Thanks.

[Gaz 300]

I bought some new car polish and wheel polish from a trade stand at the car show I was at. The car polish Soft 99 went on very easy and came of easy also with no white scum so very pleased with it as it was only around £20. The wheel polish I was very pleased with Max Guard from Chemical Guys give an Awsome shine. It was like a green past that you put on and left for 15 min. Then wipe of. The car polish was on my son's silver Seat Ibiza. The wheel polish was also put on my 6 year old alloys.

[Gaz 300]

[Funkysi]

I bought some new car polish and wheel polish from a trade stand at the car show I was at. The car polish Soft 99 went on very easy and came of easy also with no white scum so very pleased with it as it was only around £20. The wheel polish I was very pleased with Max Guard from Chemical Guys give an Awsome shine. It was like a green past that you put on and left for 15 min. Then wipe of. The car polish was on my son's silver Seat Ibiza. The wheel polish was also put on my 6 year old alloys.[ATTACH=CONFIG]113566[/ATTACH]

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The wheel polish is actually wax not polish. ;)

[Gaz 300]

Sorry wheel wax.:)

[Markyb300]

Can anyone recommend products for new paint or are all of the above still appropriate ?

 

Thanks

[Gaz 300]

Can anyone recommend products for new paint or are all of the above still appropriate ?

 

Thanks

 

Not sure if there is polish for new paint maybe others can comment but I would use my normal polish and be very careful and easy on rubbing the polish off.

Edited August 10, 2018 by Gaz 300