New car = New washing/detailing kit :)

[SteveAndBelle]

With two months to go until we recieve our new Graphite Levin ZR I thought I'd review my current car detailing kit while I wait. I used to religiously clean our current Corolla with Meguires and then changed to Bowdens Own using the two bucket method plus many trips to CarLovers Laserwash to blast the initial grit off before I wash (& sometimes even after I wash) but in the last year or two I've let her go a bit and haven't given her much attention :( I cleaned & waxed her once or twice each year with good quality cleaners & carnuba wax (used to take about 8 hours) and it shows because even though she's now really dirty it only takes a simple quick clean and she looks amazing again.

Onward & upward though and I'm looking forward to blowing many weekends on getting the new Levins paintwork as sweet & rich as possible... but which products to use ?

I've never used a clay bar before or anything more hardcore than a paint cleaner & carnuba wax but I'm open to any suggestions. I suppose what I need to know is:

1. What should I buy/do to give the car a really good start in life as soon as I get her home from the dealership ?

2. What should I buy/do for the normal weekly/fortnigtly/monthly wash ?

3. What should I buy/do for the 6-12 monthly upkeep ?

Your suggestion can be as hardcore or as basic as you think appropriate. The floodgates are open...

Steve.

[-DAvo]

With two months to go until we recieve our new Graphite Levin ZR I thought I'd review my current car detailing kit while I wait. I used to religiously clean our current Corolla with Meguires and then changed to Bowdens Own using the two bucket method plus many trips to CarLovers Laserwash to blast the initial grit off before I wash (& sometimes even after I wash) but in the last year or two I've let her go a bit and haven't given her much attention :( I cleaned & waxed her once or twice each year with good quality cleaners & carnuba wax (used to take about 8 hours) and it shows because even though she's now really dirty it only takes a simple quick clean and she looks amazing again.

Onward & upward though and I'm looking forward to blowing many weekends on getting the new Levins paintwork as sweet & rich as possible... but which products to use ?

I've never used a clay bar before or anything more hardcore than a paint cleaner & carnuba wax but I'm open to any suggestions. I suppose what I need to know is:

1. What should I buy/do to give the car a really good start in life as soon as I get her home from the dealership ?

clay bar, very very mild paint cleaner (swirlx), and 2 coats of paint sealant (nxt 2.0)

2. What should I buy/do for the normal weekly/fortnigtly/monthly wash ?

wash: Meguiars ultimate wash and wax, upkeep: meguiars ultimate quik wax, monthly/bimonthly top up with layer of nxt 2.0

tyres: meguiars hot rims tyre gel.

3. What should I buy/do for the 6-12 monthly upkeep ?

see step 1.

Your suggestion can be as hardcore or as basic as you think appropriate. The floodgates are open...

Steve.

;) obviously you can get much more hardcore than that, but if you do it right the first time up, you should minimize your work down the track...

other tips:

invest in good quality microfibre towels, chamois, and lambswool wash mit.

allow proper cure time for your wax layers

Edited August 3, 2010 by -DAvo

[SteveAndBelle]

I really haven't done any research yet but eek... quick clay on a brand new, paint protected car ? I assume it's perfectly OK but couldn't I just add layers or protection when it's brand new instead of cutting it back first ? Using clay on a spotlessly new paintjob kinda freaks me out but again I don't really know anything about it... yet.

[DJKOR]

I really haven't done any research yet but eek... quick clay on a brand new, paint protected car ? I assume it's perfectly OK but couldn't I just add layers or protection when it's brand new instead of cutting it back first ? Using clay on a spotlessly new paintjob kinda freaks me out but again I don't really know anything about it... yet.

A new car doesn't necessarily mean that it will be perfect. Not saying yours won't be, but I guess visual inspection on receiving it will tell you.

Even this Ferrari... http://www.detailedimage.com/Ask-a-Pro/full-detail-and-paint-correction-ferrari-458-italia-by-todd-cooperider-of-esoteric-auto-detail/

And if your car has the paint protection option, I wouldn't be expecting that to last long.

[-DAvo]

I really haven't done any research yet but eek... quick clay on a brand new, paint protected car ? I assume it's perfectly OK but couldn't I just add layers or protection when it's brand new instead of cutting it back first ? Using clay on a spotlessly new paintjob kinda freaks me out but again I don't really know anything about it... yet.

yeah i can understand your concern but let me part with some of my personal experiences...

i admit i got sucked into the whole "toyota genuine paint protection/never wax your car ever again hype" when we bought the aurion... however upon taking delivery of the car this is what i have found

1. the car was COVERED in swirls and light scratches...

2. the car surface did not feel anything like a waxed car should feel like

3. the car did not bead water as effectively as a waxed car should.

now seeing as the paint protection apparently costs $900.00 from toyota we were to say the least disappointed..

it was at this point that i decided to take paint protection and maintaince into my own hands.. and have gone as far as prohibiting toyota from washing the car during services..

now perhaps this was my own experience and my experiance only. but none the less it has 100% jaded my view on factory paint protection. any car i purchase in the future i will insist it does not come with paint protection.. just the factory paint job and clear coat and ill take it from there!

so IMHO if i was you, the first thing id be doing is stripping off the poor excuse that toyota use for a "paint sealant" and take the condition of your car's surface into your own hands.

anyway. besides that rant, to answer your question:

a clay kit such as meaguiars or even mothers clay bar will be non abrasive.. all you are doing is essentially "plucking" the contaminants which regular washing mits and shampoo cannot lift off the surface.. unless your toyota dealership is part owned by hardcore car detailers, then i can almost guarentee that there will be surface contaminates on your paint...

Originally posted by Mike Phillips

For the most part, you can clay as often as you like as claying is non-abrasiveto the finish.

in terms of using the mild paint cleaner on your clearcoat before you lay down your own layers of paint protection, think of it this way, to get the best protection/longevity/shine/reflection/bond between your surface and the sealant all comes down to the initial prep you do prior to applying that sealant... a bit of the ol "Prior Preperation Prevents Piss Poor Protection" :P

and if you are worried about "wearing down" your clear coat layer, have a read of this thread http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4013

hope this helps, as has been said here, you will eventually work out your own car care methods which work for you..

good luck :)

[SteveAndBelle]

This site never fails to amaze me. Thanks for the wealth of info guys. You've already put my mind at ease about the clay and that Meguires video was just brilliant.

DAvo, I'm totally with you regarding the paint protection so much so that I refused it when we bought our current Corolla 9 years ago but this time around I got sucked in by the $1500 special offer covering the paint, fabric, electronic rust protection and window tint. The Window Tint alone would've cost us $600 from Tint-a-Car and after discovering the tint was the same stuff anyway (from Auto-One or whoever they are) I thought $1500 for the lot was reasonable. Seemed like the thing to do at the time but after reading your stories of swirls etc. on your beautiful Arion I may now regret it. The thing is that I've already made it very clear to the salesperson that I'm a perfectionist and I expressed my concern about the parking sensor, tinting & electronic rust protector needing to be installed with the utmost care & attention because apart from the tinting I could easily do it all myself and probably do a much better job (going by the way a rust protection box was installed into my cousins brand new $50,000 Hilux recently). I have visions of some 16 year old apprentice doing a 2nd rate job and me having to put up with it for the life of the car. Believe me, we've had a bad experience with a local dealer before when they totally screwed up the rear internal panels of our existing Corolla after installing the tow bar. After several visits and complaints to the service manager it eventually got fixed but the ultimate fix involved epoxy glue & large clamps because they had broken all the clips off the felt panel stuff. It was fixed sure but was never the same again. Tow bar itself was great tho.

Maybe I also need to ask them to make sure the paint protection is applied perfectly too ?

Back onto the original subject though, I'm still a big fan of 'Bowdens Own' products (& supporting local industry) and found this earlier: http://www.bowdensown.com.au/the-mother-bucket Looks like it contains everything I need (plus one or two things I dont) and at $275rrp it seems well priced too. Some of those cloths are friggin' expensive by themselves as I'm sure you all know but I don't really need the Jelly Beans and I think I'll eBay the exclusive Open Day invite or donate it to this forum to be given away as a prize for something. They have no Toyotas in their collection so there's no pont me going :P

Anyone got any thoughts on the Bowdens Own pack above ? Are there similar Meguire packs available ?? Any reason to go with either ?

[SteveAndBelle]

Bit the bullet and bought a Bowdens Own 'Mother Bucket' plus all of their new spray products and a few extra cloths too. Ordered online on their website, paid via PayPal and the package arrived a couple of days later. Nice :)

Now all I need is a car to use it on. It's still a few weeks away :(

[SirNed]

Good on ya mate. I was just about to post that you stick with the Bowdens. Good stuff and makes the beastie shine just nice.

Edited October 7, 2010 by SirNed