# Newbie Detailing routine planned for daily driver - advice welcome!



## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Hi All :wave:

I have recently changed car. I have a 2016 Avensis Estate, so a definitely a "daily driver". This is my 6th car, and one I want to keep for a long time. 

I stumbled across detailing by accident. Was simply googling "ways to clean your car" and, lo and behold, this entire world then presented itself to me! I find all the choices and techniques fascinating to read up on, and have been having YouTube marathons digesting product reviews, hints & tips vids etc. I like how there is not one 'set way', and everyone can do their thing as they see fit and it seems a very supportive community.

I'm happy with an interior cleaning routine I've planned out, but would like advice on the exterior. I don't do huge amounts of miles now (I imagine not many people do nowadays in these times!) so my car doesn't get ridiculously dirty - certainly not caked in mud. I just want to look after the bodywork and keep the car looking good. I don't want to go overboard and buy 100 products - like the guy who joins the golf club and then buys literally every available product for his first visit - but I appreciate there are specific items for specific cleaning stages.

I've got a rough "plan" for different times of the year. 

'Normal' wash
1 - Wheels - Surfex HD (dil. 10%), clean w/brushes, then clean arches etc.
2 - Surfex HD on sills/lower parts of car, if dirty
3 - Pre-spray car with ONR (blue), wait
4 - ONR Wash w/bucket: wash/dry one panel at a time
5 - Koch Chemie FSE to remove water spots, if needed (I'm in a hard area)
6 - Wax/Sealant: I have Turtle Wax Hydrophobic Wax Sealant as it has good reviews and not extortionately priced. 
7 - Exterior Trim (vinyl/plastic) dressing
8 - Tyre shine/Wheel dressing etc.
9 - Glass
10 - QD (Bear Car Care Brilliance)

For a deeper clean, maybe twice a year:
1 - Wheels as above plus use BH Korrosol as fallout remover on alloys after washing
2, 3 & 4 - as above - OR poss use a shampoo here
5 - Korrosol on bodywork & Rinse 
6 - Clay (BH Soft clay bar, use ONR pre-spray mix as lubricant)
7 - Dry with MFs/drying towel 
8 - Polish - thinking AG SRP 
9 - Wax/Sealant
10 - Trim, incl rubber seals etc. (maybe AG Vinyl/Rubber Care?)
11 - Tyre/Wheel dressing
12 - Glass, then Headlights if needed
13 - QD

Just would like to know if they seem like good processes, if I've misunderstood anything, left anything out, have unnecessary steps etc. 

My main queries are:
- Is it necessary to always add a wheel protectant at the tyre dressing stage?
- When using Korrosol/fallout remover on bodywork, does the car need to be completely dry following the wash stage before applying - I assume yes?
- If I know the car isn't going to get extremely dirty, is snow foam not required for me?
- Is polishing twice a year sufficient for a daily driver?

I'm currently acquiring MFs, drying towel, mitt, sprayers etc. 

As I say, I'm looking to keep the car looking great and to look after it. 
Any advice or guidance (or criticism!) would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

:newbie:


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## Dave50 (Mar 14, 2013)

Two things, on your deeper clean a tar and glue remover before the fallout remover, and remove the clay completely, unless you are going to use a DA or rotary to polish the car. Claying will induce a certain amount of damage.

Dave


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Dave50 said:


> Two things, on your deeper clean a tar and glue remover before the fallout remover, and remove the clay completely, unless you are going to use a DA or rotary to polish the car. Claying will induce a certain amount of damage.
> 
> Dave


Thanks - helpful to know. So the bug/tar remover goes on after drying the car from the main wash.

No rotary polisher, so will remember to ensure all the clay is wiped/rinsed off.

I imagine the car has never had these treatments before, and only been through cheap hand car washes or a quick rinse/wipe off at the dealership when getting a service.


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## Dave50 (Mar 14, 2013)

Unless your machine polishing, don’t use clay.

I’ve always used tar remover and fallout on a wet car, as you don’t want either to dry on the car.

Dave


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Dave50 said:


> Unless your machine polishing, don't use clay.
> 
> I've always used tar remover and fallout on a wet car, as you don't want either to dry on the car.
> 
> Dave


Ah ok - claying is only required if using a machine polisher afterwards. That'll save me a bit of money; always a good thing.

So after main wash/rinse, whilst car is still wet: bug/tar remover, rinse, fallout remover, dry, then straight onto hand polish/wax etc.


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## Dave50 (Mar 14, 2013)

Yes that’s right. After the fallout you could try a small inconspicuous section on the car and try the clay and see how much crap comes off and if it’s marking the clearcoat and make a decision then whether to do the whole car.

Dave


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> Ah ok - claying is only required if using a machine polisher afterwards. That'll save me a bit of money; always a good thing.
> 
> So after main wash/rinse, whilst car is still wet: bug/tar remover, rinse, fallout remover, dry, then straight onto hand polish/wax etc.


Dave's not saying "claying is only required if using a machine polisher afterwards". He's saying don't clay unless you intend to machine polish afterwards and therefore remove any marring that might take place.

My opinion, if you lube well and don't push the pace, marring should be minimal and the benefits outway the pitfalls. BH say you can use water with their clay but I understand the extra cost of diluted ONR would be minimal, and I know Jon at Forensic Detailing uses it.

Most will disagree with applying Fallout and Tar Remover to a wet car as it dilutes the product's effectiveness and they're relatively expensive. I was suprised how much Korrosol I got through on two cars when I started using it. I wouldn't blame you for applying wet though as it's such a pain drying the car 3 times, even if it is only twice a year. You can get Fallout removers that can be diluted so could use one of these to save drying the car before application (I think Autoglanz do one (more expensive than their non-dilutable 5L trade product)). Carpro even do a combined Tar and Fallout remover (Trix).

In the twice a year section, or maybe only before winter, I'd add a wheels off detail to clean the back of the wheels (will also make cleaning the wheel arches easier while the wheels are off) if your OK using a trolley jack and wheel wrench (strictly speaking you should have a torque wrench for tightening after replacing the wheels but not essential; tight as you can with a non-extended wrench is a good alternative) ;


Pure or wheel shampoo (or wheel cleaner if you believe in them), rinse and dry
Tar remover then rinse and dry
Fallout remover (unless you've used a wheel cleaner which includes one e.g. Bilt Hamber Auto-Wheel) then rinse
Clay (or leave out if following Dave) and rinse
Polish
Wheel Sealant (you shouldn't need a wheel dressing in your Normal Wash after this)
​
Care needs to be taken not to catch the wheels on the brake backplate when removing/replacing the wheels. Also take care when removing/replacing the wheel bolts. Allow at least a full day (two the first time) for a wheels off detail.

In your Normal Wash, if you've decided to use Surfex on your wheels, 5% should be plenty on a regularly washed car (maybe less), or just shampoo if you've done a wheel detail. 10% might degrade any protection you've applied. The rule with Surfex is start low and build up until you find a dilution that does the job you want it to. Some swear by Koch Kemie Green Star btw.

No, only need to use a wheel sealant say every 3 months (or less often if the product says so).

I'd agree Snow Foam not completely necessary if you don't think your car will get extremely dirty. The other side of the coin is that something like BH Auto-foam is so cheap (relative to something like Fallout Remover) and effective and if your car isn't very dirty you can easily use a weaker solution and you could just spray the lower sections. You'd probably only need 10ml to 490ml of 60 degree C water to clean the lower sections of a not very dirty car for 3.4p I think. Deciding factor is whether you want to pay for a Foam Sprayer and whether you have easy draining facilities; it takes quite a lot of rinsing with just a hose.

Polishing twice a year after decon would be fine.


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## atbalfour (Aug 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> I've got a rough "plan" for different times of the year.
> 
> 'Normal' wash
> 1 - Wheels - Surfex HD (dil. 10%), clean w/brushes, then clean arches etc. Stick to Auto Wheel or Korrosol for this - explore spray on wheel coatings (before going full blown ceramic) to make maintenance easier
> ...


I think you're 90% of the way there!


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## Fatboy40 (Apr 15, 2013)

DBAvensis,

Can I ask where you'll be doing this, e.g....

# Roadside.
# Shared car park.
# On your own driveway.

... as where you're doing it can either limit, or expand, your options. Also where you'll be doing this do you have access to an external tap / hose and power?


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Fatboy40 said:


> DBAvensis,
> 
> Can I ask where you'll be doing this, e.g....
> 
> ...


Hi

It'll be on the road, close to driveway.
Yes I have access to outside tap/hose.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Rakti said:


> Most will disagree with applying Fallout and Tar Remover to a wet car as it dilutes the product's effectiveness and they're relatively expensive. I was suprised how much Korrosol I got through on two cars when I started using it. I wouldn't blame you for applying wet though as it's such a pain drying the car 3 times, even if it is only twice a year.


Thanks, that's helpful. Perhaps I'll try drying inbetween stages and see if I can be bothered!

I'll reduce the Surfex dilution to 5% or maybe even less to beign with and see how that goes.

Wheel sealant - haven't really looked into these but I'll do a bit of research and see if it's something I think is essential.



Rakti said:


> I'd agree Snow Foam not completely necessary if you don't think your car will get extremely dirty. The other side of the coin is that something like BH Auto-foam is so cheap (relative to something like Fallout Remover) and effective and if your car isn't very dirty you can easily use a weaker solution and you could just spray the lower sections. You'd probably only need 10ml to 490ml of 60 degree C water to clean the lower sections of a not very dirty car for 3.4p I think. Deciding factor is whether you want to pay for a Foam Sprayer and whether you have easy draining facilities; it takes quite a lot of rinsing with just a hose.


OK that's useful. I am rather on the fence with snow foam. As you say, a weaker solution just on the lower parts of the car only (maybe wheels/arches too) could work out cheaper in the long run. I'll look into it some more.

Draining is fine near where I am so shouldn't be a problem.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

atbalfour said:


> I think you're 90% of the way there!


Thanks, that's encouraging!

Appreciate your analysing my process step by step.

So should I reserve Surfex HD for only cleaning tyres and perhaps engine bay if needed? 
And then use Auto-Wheel (instead of Korrosol) for the wheel-cleaning stage on the alloy faces, and just reserve Korrosol for the bodywork/glass?

I'll have a rethink about snow fowm - I know the BH foam gets good reviews and is a well-respected brand generally. Would foaming be required at every wash (normal or 'deeper')?


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> Thanks, that's encouraging!
> So should I reserve Surfex HD for only cleaning tyres and perhaps engine bay if needed?
> 
> And then use Auto-Wheel (instead of Korrosol) for the wheel-cleaning stage on the alloy faces, and just reserve Korrosol for the bodywork/glass?
> ...


I think it depends on whether you already have any of the products. It also depends on how dirty the wheels are. You seem to have indicated not very dirty when you do a maintenance wash. In that case, if you already have Surfex and Korrosol for example, I'd be trying Surfex on the wheels first followed by Korrosol the first time then only using Korrosol on the wheels every 4-6 weeks (which is why to me using Auto-Wheels every wash is OTT as it contains an iron-remover which isn't necessary every maintenance wash).

The idea of using Foam is to leave as little dirt on the car for the contact wash (to reduce the possibility of swirls), so yes, if your going to use it then use it every wash (but only the concentration you need for that particular wash).


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## Fatboy40 (Apr 15, 2013)

DBAvensis said:


> Hi
> 
> It'll be on the road, close to driveway.
> Yes I have access to outside tap/hose.


Thanks for that.

I'm intrigued as to why you're using ONR exclusively for washing when you have access to a driveway and hose? As the user atbalfour said this in and of itself will leave behind something on the paintwork.

Also if you have a drive / hose then after cleaning your wheels use some Turtlewax Dry & Shine on them as it's such a cheap and easy way to add protection.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Fatboy40 said:


> I'm intrigued as to why you're using ONR exclusively for washing when you have access to a driveway and hose? As the user atbalfour said this in and of itself will leave behind something on the paintwork.


Just thought I'd try and save on water to a degree, that's all!

I'll look at the Turtle Wax Dry and Shine too.

More homework to do...


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## Guest (Mar 31, 2020)

Fatboy40 said:


> Thanks for that.
> 
> I'm intrigued as to why you're using ONR exclusively for washing when you have access to a driveway and hose? As the user atbalfour said this in and of itself will leave behind something on the paintwork.
> 
> Also if you have a drive / hose then after cleaning your wheels use some Turtlewax Dry & Shine on them as it's such a cheap and easy way to add protection.


This. I can understand ONR if you have no other choice due to nowhere to get a water source from, but purposefully washing a car you care enough to detail properly and using ONR seems very odd to me.

I don't care how nice Yvan's fancy bow tie is or how much ONR is supposed to lubricate and encapsulate, rubbing dirt across your paint is asking for marring, a and just poor practice when water and proper wash technique is available.

In my humble opinion.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Thanks. Mainly was just intrigued by ONR. I do see its uses beyond just washing though so maybe reserve it for certain things.
I guess if I can, I should go down the shampoo/wash mitt route, and perhaps add just a bit of ONR to the wash mixture like I've heard some do?

One thing - if I am to use snow foam, would I do the whole wheel clean routine (Surfex, clean tyres/wheel face, rinse, add a Korrosol clean every 3 months or so, rinse) and then snow foam the lower bits of the car, including the wheels/arches? Or foam first then wheels?

All really useful info here so far guys - really appreciate it!


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> One thing - if I am to use snow foam, would I do the whole wheel clean routine (Surfex, clean tyres/wheel face, rinse, add a Korrosol clean every 3 months or so, rinse) and then snow foam the lower bits of the car, including the wheels/arches? Or foam first then wheels?
> 
> All really useful info here so far guys - really appreciate it!


People will answer this differently.

My point of view;

You're probably going to spend 10-15mins on each wheel (most on here will be doing the inside of the wheel not just the face) so probably no point Snow Foaming first as it needs to be rinsed off before 10mins has elapsed and you would only have done one wheel in that time so,

Wheel clean first then Snow Foam lower sections except the wheels. I'd add the wheel arches to your 3 monthly routine (your first proper wash should be this).

On the other hand, the OCD people on here would say;

1. Snow Foam the whole car first inc wheels
2. Rinse
3. Clean wheels inc dedicated wheel cleaner (and tyres) rinsing individually
4. Shampoo (high level OCD say spray on as well as dipping mitt) using 2 bucket method
5. Rinse
6. Blow dry
7. Apply Detailer such as Sonax BSD

The above all comes back to minimum contact when most dirt is still on the car.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Great, thanks for that.

I'm looking into snow foams etc. at present. I'll need to do a big-ish 'shop' of stuff so I can do a deep wash in the next few weeks, so potentially will add my chosen foam then.

Discovered a nail in a tyre last night though, so need to get that replaced first!


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> Great, thanks for that.
> Discovered a nail in a tyre last night though, so need to get that replaced first!


It may be repairable dependent on how much tread it has left.

This might help;

https://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=418635


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## Fatboy40 (Apr 15, 2013)

DannyRS3 said:


> I don't care how nice Yvan's fancy bow tie is...


Post of the day there :thumb:

Will I get shot down in flames for saying he looks a bit "special"?


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## atbalfour (Aug 11, 2019)

Regardless of whether it is 'safe' with perfect technique, in my opinion ONR comes attached with such a fine margin for getting things wrong.

I don't personally see it being much quicker or as therapeutic either. By the time you've mixed, misted panels, washed panel by panel, pat dried panel by panel, washed microfibre cloths etc.


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## garage_dweller (Apr 10, 2018)

ONR is great on a car with little dirt on it but I would never use it on a car caked in winter filth. Both my cars have had proper washes over the last few days and ONR I’ll be great for keeping them clean over the next few months of limited use. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Guest (Apr 1, 2020)

Fatboy40 said:


> Post of the day there :thumb:
> 
> Will I get shot down in flames for saying he looks a bit "special"?


No more than any other snake oil salesman


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Looks like I should reserve ONR for perhaps a quick intermittent wash, maybe where the car isn't that dirty, and otherwise stick to pre-wash/shampoo all other times.

Regarding cleaning wheels, I already have a wheel brush and a heavy duty microfibre. Would I need to do something like this for each wheel then after applying product:
- Tyre brush (e.g. Tuf Shine or similar) to clean tyre walls only
- Alloy brush to clean spokes 
- Short Vikan brush (or similar) on wheel face
- Long handle Vikan (or similar) in arches (or use this for both faces & arches)
- Small brush for lugnuts
- Heavy duty microfibre to clean difficult bits

Or is this brush overkill, and can be simplified?


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## RS3 (Mar 5, 2018)

DBAvensis said:


> Looks like I should reserve ONR for perhaps a quick intermittent wash, maybe where the car isn't that dirty, and otherwise stick to pre-wash/shampoo all other times.
> 
> Regarding cleaning wheels, I already have a wheel brush and a heavy duty microfibre. Would I need to do something like this for each wheel then after applying product:
> - Tyre brush (e.g. Tuf Shine or similar) to clean tyre walls only
> ...


Yeah, go easy on the brushes, Ez wheel brush or similar best for barrels and most of the rest of it I use cheap microfibre noodle mitts like simoniz at £2.50 ea and a lug nut brush - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5Pcs-Nat...718605?hash=item2add23838d:g:je4AAOSwGJVeAxxC


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Placed an order with in2detailing this week. Arrived less than 48hrs later!
Got some Korrosol, Koch Chemie FSE, new microfibres, wheel arches brush and new bottle of Surfex HD.

The tyre sadly did need replacing and couldn't be repaired. Getting a new one fitted on Sunday. 

Just thinking - I'm stuck for space and can't fit a 5L bottle of Bilt Hamber auto-foam anywhere really (no garage).
Can I use ONR as a pre-wash spray instead? I know that's not really the idea of it - from looking at earlier responses to my thread it's better thought of as something that can be used to wash a car with very light dirt on it.
Should I therefore buy a dedicated pre-wash to use on the whole car, prior to the main wash, like Valet Pro Citrus or similar?


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

Just thinking - I'm stuck for space and can't fit a 5L bottle of Bilt Hamber auto-foam anywhere really (no garage).

*No loft?*

Can I use ONR as a pre-wash spray instead? I know that's not really the idea of it - from looking at earlier responses to my thread it's better thought of as something that can be used to wash a car with very light dirt on it.

*No*.

Should I therefore buy a dedicated pre-wash to use on the whole car, prior to the main wash, like Valet Pro Citrus or similar?

*Some use Surfex as a pre-wash on more heavily soiled areas such as front grilles and spoilers, sills etc. 4% dilution has been quoted on here. Can be agitated gently with a soft brush *


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

No loft, no. I'm living with parents currently (unwanted divorce/house sale), and they're hoarders, so no room in loft. I'm struggling to find space for the products and 2 buckets I have already, so a big 5L snow foam won't really help!

So is Surfex (diluted @ 4-5%) ok to spray over the whole car as a pre-wash then, or just the very dirty bits?


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> So is Surfex (diluted @ 4-5%) ok to spray over the whole car as a pre-wash then, or just the very dirty bits?


https://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=419134&highlight=Surfex

https://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=399481&highlight=Surfex


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## atbalfour (Aug 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> Looks like I should reserve ONR for perhaps a quick intermittent wash, maybe where the car isn't that dirty, and otherwise stick to pre-wash/shampoo all other times.
> 
> Regarding cleaning wheels, I already have a wheel brush and a heavy duty microfibre. Would I need to do something like this for each wheel then after applying product:
> - Tyre brush (e.g. Tuf Shine or similar) to clean tyre walls only
> ...


For what it's worth I can't believe after years of detailing I only discovered the Tuf Shine brush last year. Amazing, as is the Tuf Shine Tyre cleaner.. clearly they've spent a lot of time on those products and an absolute winning combination.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Well I had a go at the engine bay today.

It was actually not that dirty for a 4 year old car. Not caked in what you might call "heavy soiling". I don't have a pressure washer, so didn't wet the whole thing. 

I used Bilt Hamber Surfex HD at 5% dilution. Sprayed on, left for a short while and then agitated with a cheap hard brush from Halfords. Wiped with a microfibre. Did the underside of the bonnet as well. 

For the bonnet liner/insulation panel, I hoovered it, then just sprayed on a small amount of interior APC (I figured: use something mild) and then wiped with a fresh microfibre. 

I used some Supaguard Trim Dressing to go over the plastics (using up current supplies first before getting CarPro Perl).

I will wash the exterior next weekend - my wash mitts and pump sprayer haven't arrived yet!


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> Well I had a go at the engine bay today.
> 
> It was actually not that dirty for a 4 year old car. Not caked in what you might call "heavy soiling". I don't have a pressure washer, so didn't wet the whole thing.
> 
> ...


Very good! A job I could do with doing on my Clio but always a bit nervous with water in the engine bay. I guess that's old school thinking now though.

How did you find the results with 5% Surfex. You could probably go higher for engine bays but best to start at 5% and see.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

For the level of dirt I had, which was quite mild (on a scale of 1 to 10 I'd say about a 5), Surfex was great. I was worried it was not enough, but 5% worked for me. All the dust and dirt wiped away very easily.
I left it sprayed on for about a minute before wiping away. Perhaps if it was dirtier, then yes 10% would be more appropriate.

When I do the full wash I will keep the 5% for the tyres and wheel arches and see how it copes. The car does have carpeted arches. 

For the bonnet liner I just used Turtle Wax Power Out Fresh & Clean Interior APC. Was absolutely fine for this job. The liner was more dusty than dirty - the hoover picked up A LOT of stuff.

I got a load of free microfibres from my order with in2detailing unexpectedly (thanks in2detailing!) so used those. 

I liked the little brush from Halfords too. Nice size and was easy to agitate sprayed on product.

The Supaguard trim dressing did a good job as well; and it has quite a nice smell.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Quick question. I have some Turtle Wax Hydrophobic Sealant Wax Spray (black bottle). I was planning on using this after polishing with AG SRP this weekend.

Just checking - I assume this covers both sealant and wax stages, so I won't need to apply a dedicated wax/other form of LSP on top of this?


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## Lexus-is250 (Feb 4, 2017)

DBAvensis said:


> Quick question. I have some Turtle Wax Hydrophobic Sealant Wax Spray (black bottle). I was planning on using this after polishing with AG SRP this weekend.
> 
> Just checking - I assume this covers both sealant and wax stages, so I won't need to apply a dedicated wax/other form of LSP on top of this?


Nope that will do everything you need, it's a very good product. Dont over apply it or it can streak a bit.

Sent from my SM-A505FN using Tapatalk


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

OK, saving a bit more money then!

I understand it's just one or two sprays on a panel, wipe, then buff, then move on to the next panel.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

*Newbie doing their first detail*

Got up at 9 this morning, put some overalls and goggles on and got to work!

Here are some "before" shots. As you can see, not immensely dirty, but lots of dust and fine dirt on the car, and grime on the sills/arches. Having said this, there was more dirt on the car than the photos suggest.

Wheel


Body






My process was as follows:

WHEELS
1. Rinse one wheel and arch with PW
2. Surfex HD (4%) on tyre and arch. Leave for a minute.
3. In2detailing tyre brush on tyres, Vikan long hand brush in arches.
4. Rinse. 
5. Spray Wheel cleaner - I have some Supaguard Alloy cleaner to use up before picking a new one. Agitate with small alloy brush, and use a detialign brush for lugnuts.
6. Rinse. 
7. Spray with BH Korrosol, leave, rinse.
8. Kiln Green Monster MF towel to dry (roughly)
9. Repeat on other three wheels

The Korrosol was doing its stuff:




Regarding these products, I really rate the Vikan long handle brush. Nice size, and was able to get into the arches to scrub. I got the brush on Amazon for about £7. 
Not a ridicuous amount of dirt was dislogded, but a few clumps of mud and soil fell from the arches onto the tyre/ground, so the Surfex clearly worked at 4%. The fronts were not as bad as the backs.

I like the In2detailing tyre brush, good design and could get round the tyres easily. Was only £3-4 I think so a bargain. For the alloy cleaning the Supaguard 'kit' I was given previously had a wheel brush so I used that. Was absolutely fine.

I used Korrosol neat, as I'm only planning on using it 2-3 times a year. It is a great product, with quite a bearable smell. Someone on here mentioned battenburg in another thread I think. That's pretty accurate; think of a sponge/jam cake covered with marzipan! Not unpleasant certainly.

Then I rinsed the bodywork.

BODYWORK
1. Apply BH Auto-Foam through a 2L pump sprayer. Leave, then rinse.
2. Shampoo (Supaguard ph neutral shampoo + 1oz ONR in mixture), using 2x In2detailing (Klin) MF wash mitts (white/blue). Used 1 bucket method, 1 mitt for the bonnet, roof and boot, the other for the doors (one side left, one side right). Rinse.
3. Korrosol over whole car. Leave, Rinse. Forgot to take a pic of this! There was some fallout running off the car, so glad I added this step in. 
4. Rinse. Dry with Auto-Finesse drying towel 
5. Koch Chemie FSE to remove water spots.
6. Polish (by hand) using AG SRP, one panel at a time using a basic blue MF pad. My arm hurt after this!
7. Buff using In2detailng purple edgeless MF towel - nice towel (tip: wash it before use; I ended up with lint all over my overalls, but weirdly none went onto the car thankfully!)
8. Turtle Wax Hydrophobic Sealant Wax Spray, one panel at a time.
9. Tyre/Trim Dressing (Supaguard, from the kit; using this up before getting CarPro Perl).
10. Glass cleaner (Supaguard, with glass MF). I used quite a lot of glass cleaner as the car has a panoramic roof.
11. QD on door sills/jambs - Bear Car Care Brilliance. Final touch up on the bodywork in places.

I had 2 Halfords green buckets. One for the wash mix, and the other was empty, to put the used mitts & brushes in when finished so they don't fall onto the ground.

'Afters'







The BH Auto-foam was brilliant. I was worrying for ages about using a pump sprayer instead of a snow foam lance, particularly as I found a PW in my parents' shed. But The £6 hand pump sprayer I got from Amazon (Spear & Jackson) was great. I used 60ml of BH and topped up with water to 1.5L, so 4%.

I didn't mind the Supaguard shampoo. I think whatever shampoo you use, it'll be fine as long as you wash the car correctly. It comes in little sachets rather than a bottle (presumably because of the kit I was given - I have 10 20ml sachets). I had to use 2 of them to get a sudsy mix. I think adding a capful of neat ONR helped. The In2D wash mitts glided over the car. Was easy to wash despite the car's size.

I like the AF drying towel; think it did a good job. £12 from Halfords.

Koch Chemie FSE is fantastic. I was doubtful if I would need it, but so glad I bought it as it was definitely required before the polish.

I liked polishing, although it was hard work. SRP was fine; just what I needed so I knew I was right to buy it. I managed to get rid of a few light scratches. There are still some on the car though so maybe I'll need to rethink how to sort those out.

Turtle Wax's Spray Sealant/Wax was very good, and really easy to apply. This is a good product. I bought it on the back of Forensic Detailing Channel's recommendation. Very cheap and effective.

I'd really recommend Bear Care Care's Brilliance QD. Leaves a very noticeable shine, useful for "fine tuning" the odd corner here and there to remove fingerprints, spray residue etc.

And there we go:


Final thoughts:

Should I handwash the AF drying towel? When I tried to machine wash it before use, the machine kept stopping as the load in the drum was unbalanced. Is that just a peculiarity of the machine we think?

Had a fun first ever detail. I don't intend to put my car in a show at all. Just wanted to take the plunge and try putting lots of effort into something I;ve never thought much about with my previous cars.

Glad I did the BIG detail first. The next few months will be nice and easy with maintenance washes and touching up with no polishing etc.

I haven't named my car yet, so need to work on that!

Total time taken was 3.5 hours.


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## atbalfour (Aug 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> Got up at 9 this morning, put some overalls and goggles on and got to work!
> 
> Here are some "before" shots. As you can see, not immensely dirty, but lots of dust and fine dirt on the car, and grime on the sills/arches. Having said this, there was more dirt on the car than the photos suggest.
> 
> ...


Great stuff - car looks well.

Should be no issues washing your drying towel. I do this every week personally.


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

Very good DB. It's looking good.

You could easily leave the Surfex longer than a minute. BH recommend 5mins on tyres. I usually then spritz a bit of 1% on just before giving them a good brush down as the first spray may have dried up a bit after 5mins. 

I assume you didn't dress the tyres (no mention) and are waiting till you get the Carpro Perl to do so.

Pretty good going to get all that done in the time stated. I guess applying the spray wax helped keep the time down

Got the same Bridgestones on the front of my partners A3. Just had to replace the rear (not with Bridgestones) as they had cracks in the remaining tread (only 3-4mm anyway) and one was out of shape and worn lower than 3mm where that defect was.


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

Cars looking good, great job done and very satisfying :thumb: 

Mate had similar car previously and I did it a few times for him, came up very nice, but was big  

I’ve used Bear car care stuff and it’s very nice indeed, just finishing off what I have before I restock... 

With regards to AG SRP - if you dampen your applicator pad first, it makes it a little easier to spread and you tend to get less dust afterwards. 

I’d definitely recommend putting a sealant on the panoramic roof - the turtle wax stiff you have would be great, makes optional so much easier to clean and keep clean. 

Enjoy :thumb:


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Did a maintenance ONR wash on Thursday this week (just before the rain!). Didn't bother with wheels as they weren't very dirty. 

I only bought the tiny 8oz bottle of ONR as I was tentative about using it. I used 4 caps of this (it's a small cap), which I believe is 30ml, in 7.5L of water. I ended up with quite a bit of water left when I finished, so I might try it in 5L next time. 

I thought it did a really good job; it was easy to wash and took just over an hour. I did it a panel at a time, slowly, using multiple MFs. I used about 8 on the car in total, then used the AF drying towel. Didn't need to use Koch Chemie FSE but used a QD spray to do the door jambs and sills at the end. 

Then just sprayed some dressing on the tyres and cleaned the glass last. 

The car was just dusty with a very low levels of dirt. Pulled everything off. No swirls at the end. 

I like ONR as a maintenance wash - definitely less time spent setting up/packing away

I'd recommend it.


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

Thanks and well done DB.

Don't be shy with pics. We do love them (all).


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Rakti said:


> Thanks and well done DB.
> 
> Don't be shy with pics. We do love them (all).


Thanks Rakti. Sorry I was so engrossed in the job when I did it I completely forgot to take photos!! Classic case of realisation after the fact!


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

DBAvensis said:


> Thanks Rakti. Sorry I was so engrossed in the job when I did it I completely forgot to take photos!! Classic case of realisation after the fact!


Tomorrow morning will do .


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Maintenance wash - this was done after the intense heatwave but before the recent deluge of rain. Well-timed.

After BH Autofoam, used shampoo with a bit of ONR in 5L of water. That did the whole car, using 2 mitts and 1 bucket. Liking the Auto-Finesse drying towel; works really well. Then just glass cleaner afterwards.


































Since I got the car in March, I've only done 130 miles, so it's not very dirty at all. Another full de-con is probably not necessary. I may wash/clean the wheels this weekend, check the engine if that needs a wipe, and go over the body with QD.

This is my 6th car, and it's the most comfortable one I've owned. My first was a P-reg Astra estate. It's wasn't awful, but only had it 10 months as the head gasket went and couldn't be repaired, so hoping the Toyota will last much longer!


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## Rakti (Nov 11, 2019)

Looking good DB


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

Looking good :thumb:


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Did the wheels at the weekend.

Before shots x2


















Process:
1. BH Automfoam, using little pump sprayer, leave, rinse
2. Supaguard wheel cleaner, using wheel brush
3. Surfex on tyres, brush, rinse
4. Small bucket of shampoo using Halfords green mitt
5. Korrosol
6. Dry using Klin 'Green monster' cloth
7. Supaguard tyre dressing (one of the after photos was taken before I applied this).
8. Quick going over the body with QD after quick rinse.

Korrosol produced way more bleeding than I thought, considering I've done very little miles. Glad I added that step in.

The Klin green cloth is great for wheels; pleased with that.

Afters:

















It has shown up lots of chips on the alloys  
May look for solutions to sorting those out further down the line.

This weekend - interior leather! Bought some ColourLock products recently so looking forward to giving that a go.


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## atbalfour (Aug 11, 2019)

That tyre dressing has not applied very evenly. I would look to replace with a non-spray product to ensure you get a better finish as they spoil the look of your alloys, which have come up well!

Whoever thought of spray on tyre products needs shot lol.


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## DBAvensis (Mar 27, 2020)

Yes I know what you mean. I always try to do it evenly but it never quite works with the spray!

I absolutely hate wasting product or chucking stuff away when I have 3/4 bottle left though, so I will just use it up before getting a better product.

I'll have some fun looking at the reviews and discussions in the wheels/tyres section!!

Yes, was pleased with the wheels though.!


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## NorthantsPete (May 18, 2016)

Seems a bit OT for my liking

A wash should generally mean,
Spray water on car
spray something mild (ive got 5l carplan wheel stuff i need to use up)on wheels then go inside fill a bucket
come out wash wheels, 
apply tfr/prewash if really bad (i dont as it removes wax)
then go in and grab a bucket, wash.
As you dry, spray a drying aid or spray wax (Carplan hi-rinse is cheap, or Detailer xpress wax if you want best result)
Done.

Then throughout the year, clay if needed, polish then apply a decent wax - dailys have scratches, so I prefer Megs NXT 2 for its filling ability as you wax, ultimate polish under it if you want more filling as its a glaze, compound only really needed if the paints really bad or direct on scratched areas. Wheels I use KKK devils juice as it just works.

You want to be spray waxing every wash, makes it all easier when drying and top up that base coat.

I make allowances but the missus thinks NXT wash is the best shes ever used, shes a tough customer, so I will buy that in big bottles going forward.

I keep trying loads of other combos and brands but this just works so I keep coming back. Winter i may swap up the Sonax BSD each dry down as its a killer sealant, but with all the fancy spray ceramics i may well give them a go as I had good experience with Armorall Shield as my wax product, it was SO hydrophobic, not ceramic but a mental sealant that also back'd to black my plastics - win win.

this is a good video and why its not a tough routine


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