Washing/Detailing routine for newbie...

[junior 7178]

Just picked up my first Volvo this evening, a low mileage V70 D5 Sport Special Edition.

I'd like to give it some love at the weekend, but my car cleaning skills have never progressed beyond the odd trip to the jet wash.

I'd like to give it a wash, and then some shine. I'll also be doing the alloys and giving the leather interior some care. Can anyone recommend me a routine and or product range? I'll have to stick to what is available from Halfords, but i do have AutoBrite down the road from me in Stoke so that's an option. Is AutoGlym well though off?

I'd like to get some bang for my buck to see a bit of a shine on it, so am wondering if there are any quick fix shine products out there? But going forward i do plan to give it regular shines, so i need to ensure that whatever i put on it this weekend is compatible with a long term routine/product.

Also, what do people use on their leather? Mine black, in good condition and not dirty as far as i can tell, so I'd just like to give it a bit of a soften.

Cheers.

[HDAV]

Billt Hamber foam, Bilt hamber shampoo.
Jet wash with foam lance
2 buckets one for shampoo one for rinsing a lambs wool mitt dry with micro fibre towel..

When it gets to claybars and stuff I’m out and still don’t understand waxes....

Bilt hamber wheels cleaner too.......

[I-S]

How long is a piece of string...

The most important thing is time and effort. There's no magic product that will make your car look like it has been machine polished.

However, you can get a really good result by hand if you're prepared to put the hours in. From Halfords, buy the following:

Farecla g3 body prep shampoo
Meguiars clay kit
Farecla g3 paintwork renovater
Autoglym super resin polish
Autoglym extra gloss protection
Autoglym hd wax
Autoglym bumper and trim gel
Autoglym aqua wax.

2 buckets
Microfiber noodle wash mitt
Detailing brush
Microfibre drying cloth
General purpose micro fibre cloths
Farecla g3 polishing pads

Clean wheels first. Use something non-acidic.

For bodywork Use the 2 bucket method, and brush down all difficult fiddly bits when the detailing brush. Rinse. Clay. Wash over again and dry. Your paint is now clean and bare.

Apply the paintwork renovater on the white polishing pad, and work it. Buff off. Your paint is now a bit smoother and oxidation removed. It won't match a machine polish of course, but you can get a very nice result by hand.

Apply autoglym super resin polish with the black pad. This is a high-filler polish. Very little abrasive, but we did that with the renovater. The fillers will hide the swirl marks. Buff off.

Apply extra gloss protection. This is a sealant that will add some longevity to the SRP fillers. Buff off.

Apply wax and buff off. This will give the glossy "watery" look, as well as promote beading of water droplets.

Apply bumper and trim gel to black plastics and buff off.

Next time, use the 2 buckets method, but DO NOT USE THE G3 SHAMPOO. This shampoo is designed to remove waxes, fillers, etc. It's great for use before a proper session like this, but use something else (eg autoglym bodywork conditioning shampoo) for maintenance washes. Then dry with autoglym aqua wax. This will "top up" your wax and beading.

There are better products not available at halfrauds.

See page three of "our car"link below to see results that cab can be achieved by hand.

[junior 7178]

Originally Posted by I-S

How long is a piece of string...

The most important thing is time and effort. There's no magic product that will make your car look like it has been machine polished.

However, you can get a really good result by hand if you're prepared to put the hours in. From Halfords, buy the following:

Farecla g3 body prep shampoo
Meguiars clay kit
Farecla g3 paintwork renovater
Autoglym super resin polish
Autoglym extra gloss protection
Autoglym hd wax
Autoglym bumper and trim gel
Autoglym aqua wax.

2 buckets
Microfiber noodle wash mitt
Detailing brush
Microfibre drying cloth
General purpose micro fibre cloths
Farecla g3 polishing pads

Clean wheels first. Use something non-acidic.

For bodywork Use the 2 bucket method, and brush down all difficult fiddly bits when the detailing brush. Rinse. Clay. Wash over again and dry. Your paint is now clean and bare.

Apply the paintwork renovater on the white polishing pad, and work it. Buff off. Your paint is now a bit smoother and oxidation removed. It won't match a machine polish of course, but you can get a very nice result by hand.

Apply autoglym super resin polish with the black pad. This is a high-filler polish. Very little abrasive, but we did that with the renovater. The fillers will hide the swirl marks. Buff off.

Apply extra gloss protection. This is a sealant that will add some longevity to the SRP fillers. Buff off.

Apply wax and buff off. This will give the glossy "watery" look, as well as promote beading of water droplets.

Apply bumper and trim gel to black plastics and buff off.

Next time, use the 2 buckets method, but DO NOT USE THE G3 SHAMPOO. This shampoo is designed to remove waxes, fillers, etc. It's great for use before a proper session like this, but use something else (eg autoglym bodywork conditioning shampoo) for maintenance washes. Then dry with autoglym aqua wax. This will "top up" your wax and beading.

There are better products not available at halfrauds.

See page three of "our car"link below to see results that cab can be achieved by hand.

Thanks for taking the time to write that, I'll be going to Halfords tonight with the shopping list!

[I-S]

No problem. Just bear in mind that that is about 2 days work by hand on a V70.

Use masking tape on black trim to prevent polish getting into it. If you do get polish on black plastic, use a soft pencil rubber to remove it.

I tend to do a big deep-clean detail like this once a year, and maintenance washes in between with wax top ups.

Others will be along to disagree shortly

[Delta66]

My main tips for long lasting clean and shine;

1- wet the car before washing it. You want to try and soften and float the dirt before washing it off. That helps to preserve the paint and not put tiny micro scratches and swirls in it.

2 -if you drop your sponge or shammy or whatever you are rubbing the car with at the time, give it a good wash and rinse. You want rid of any tiny bits of grit it is likely to have picked up.

3 - don't rub hard at any bird crap, tar spots or the black marks which appear on on the alloys. Use specialist products to remove bird droppings, tar spots and fallout (the iron deposits that form on alloy wheels).

[Peter86]

I used AutoGlym leather cleaner and leather conditioner for the first time on my Redesign the other week. It worked wonders on the white leather section and the black came up great.
Have previously used cleaner and conditioner all in one in another brand a few years back on just black leather and that was pretty good.
Suppose you get what you pay for, just avoid really cheap stuff and you should get good results. I prefer separate cleaner and conditioner for leather now.

[Petey80]

I-S is pretty spot on with the method.

Other products you can get from Halfrauds that are good are the Auto Finesse Range.

I would recommend AF Tripple3 polish over the Autoglym Super Resin Polish. Goes on and off the car a lot easier.

The Megiuars Clay Kit is excellent at cleaning the paintwork and leaving a glass like feel/finish.

The Bilt Hamber products that HDAV recommends are also good.

Halfrauds is alright for cleaning products.

Here are some I would recommend;

Wheels & Tyres
AF Imperial Wheel Cleaner - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...-cleaner-500ml

AF Iron Out - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...iron-out-500ml

Tyre Gel - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...otection-473ml

Pre-wash [before touching the car with soap and mitt if you don't have a pressure washer and foam lance]
AF Citrus Power - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...itrus-power-1l

Shampoo
AF Lather Shampoo - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...-shampoo-500ml

Meguiars GC Shampoo - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...ner-1-89-litre

But I currently use Muc-Off Car Shampoo available from BOYES for £1.50.

Wash Mitt
Meguiars Wash Mitt - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...-car-wash-mitt

Paint Preparation
Meguiars Ultimate Compound - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...compound-450ml

Finishing
Applicator Pads for applying polishes and waxes - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...pads-twin-pack

AF Tripple3 - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...e-polish-500ml

AF - Glisten Spray Wax - http://www.halfords.com/motoring/car...sten-wax-500ml

Drying towel should be a micro fibre towel, not a squidgy or a chamois.

I must warn you though, once you get into detailing a car, if you don't keep it in check you can spend an absolute fortune and lose days at a time on cleaning hahaha!!

[ThomasG]

So for few years I was doing it back to front, have I?

I used to wash, brush, wash, then apply wax, and THEN resin polish that I treated as hardener/protection for wax...

Maybe I'd notice sooner that there's something wrong there, but this system used to give me 6-10 months of decent shine. Didn't even have to wash the car as such- just rinse the dust off..

[Bruce80]

It's all about a good washing technique and then protection that keeps your car in tip top condition, a lot of good tips above, 2 buckets etc, i've added grit guards though and also a separate bucket for wheels only. If you really want to get it right though take a look at the detailing world website, all the information, guides, products are explained there, BE WARNED THOUGH it can get very expensive

Also take a look at the online sellers for products they have a vast range compared to Halfords, free delivery with a lot and discounts.

Post some pics of your 1st detail, best of luck