Washing Your Car!

I used this Clay Mitt for the first time yesterday.

Fantastic idea and fantastic product!

Didn't have to worry about turning/molding the clay, or more importantly dropping it on the floor :lol:

So much quicker too and the finish was just as good, if not better than clays I've used in the past.
 
I've used the same clay mitt. I used to chuck each bar once I'd used it. Wasn't sure what to do with the mitt. Definitely makes life easier without having to warm up the clay or dropping it. Folding it was never an issue for me.
 
Just get a spray bottle, fill it with tap water with a drop of fairy liquid. It'll do the same job for a lubricant.
 
andyred said:
Picked a couple up of the Kent drying towels today - very large and thick :)
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I got a few from B&Q this morning. £4 each.

I'm currently waiiting for some Autobrite Abyss to arrive. A wet look high gloss sealant. See if it turns out as good as it does in their photos.
 
nilagin said:
If by that you mean slower, you'd be right, they invariably do.
You don't necessarily have to be driving like a twunt, just because you drive fast.
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Driving like a twunt is rarely fast! A god only knows how low the twuntish son of our opposite neighbour gets his fuel consumption in his 500GT Mustang. Seems to go everywhere in 1st gear so everyone can hear him...
 
nilagin said:
I got a few from B&Q this morning. £4 each..
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Snap, thats where I picked mine up from - seriously thinking of going picking a few more up, really impressed with them yesterday
 
DorsetDude said:
Link not working for me, is it the farecla G3 one? If so I have one. What did you use for the lube as it were? (no sniggering at the back!)
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I snowfoam each panel and have a bucket of strong shampoo to keep dunking the mitt, it's done several cars and still going strong.
Good Friday clean 05 by Scott, on Flickr
 
@ Raymond ....> replaced that Ugly Suction Mount for the small one I got from Gitup .....Looks much much better.

BEFORE



AFTER



Oh I had the car washed again today and looks new once again :)
 
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I have emailed Bill but he has them on back order at the moment, they are out of stock.

So right now i am using the suction mount, it's okay, I take it off when the car is parked for prolong periods and probably best as in my car the rear window is also the boot so the cable needs to have a bit of slack and perhaps need to remove the camera at times.
 
DorsetDude said:
Link not working for me, is it the farecla G3 one? If so I have one. What did you use for the lube as it were? (no sniggering at the back!)
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That's the one!

<Snigger>For lube I just left the car wet after rinsing and used a bit of Meguires last touch detailing spray</Snigger>

I was a bit of a skeptic tbh but it was sooooo much easier than using a clay bar (although that's still pretty easy) and the results were just as good. Didn't feel like I was inflicting any small scratched either (which usually happens with claying) although I will be machine polishing all over in the next month or so :)
 
You guys probably wonder what all the fuss is about, but I clay bar'd the everyday car this evening. Now, I've had it as my daily since 2009 - before that it was my [now ex-] wife's car for 5 years. I don't think it's ever had more than a wash/black trim/tyres before - Well I certainly can't ever remember putting any more effort into it with polishing/waxing/etc

I want to thank you lot for giving some pointers [& motivation/interest] as I quite enjoyed it :) The finish is far from perfect with it's age but it feels nice & smooth now instead of like 120 grit sandpaper :D

More importantly it gets me set up to properly look after the new paint job on the restored Escort :)
 
LeeRatters said:
as I quite enjoyed it
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Got to say, it is rather therapeutic & I enjoy it too ........when I can be bothered. :cool:

If you haven't already, the clay-bar works wonders on the windscreen too when it gets streaky. (y) (keep it well lubricated with water though)
 
BBR said:
CBA, Eastern Europeans around the corner have all the gear and do a really great job for less than a tenner.
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I think this thread has been started about people who care about their car Brian.
 
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I like the look of the Clay Mitt and after my car was cleaned today I could feel some contaminants in the paintwork, so I will give it a go with plenty of lube.
Halfords have a 3 for 2 offer on at the moment so could work out well as I need some more polish and glass cleaner.
 
Hi - I could do with some new spray bottles - 1 for wheel cleaner, so needs to be chemical resistant head ?

Have you any suggestions of ones you've bought that work well ?

Cheers
 
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OldCarlos said:
Got to say, it is rather therapeutic & I enjoy it too ........when I can be bothered. :cool:

If you haven't already, the clay-bar works wonders on the windscreen too when it gets streaky. (y) (keep it well lubricated with water though)
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I did that too :)

I also gave it another quick going over this evening [went out for a few hours in the Escort today as it was nice] & then seeing as it wasn't dark used some Meguiars Carnauba Plus Wax and what a transformation!! Really pleased with it :)
 
I was in town today putting my things into my car, leaning over from the driver's side reaching over the passenger seat when I heard a comment "your car is a bit dirty".

I got out and some older gentlemen was basically impressed with how clean my car was and we started talking and commented on how well I've kept it.

Clean car can make friends with strangers !
 
Just bought these from CleanYour Car.

Apparently the Gtechniq stuff can last a year on the windscreen....always wanted to try it.

Th Sonar wheel cleaner stuff is amazing, these 2 bottles should last 6 months hopefully ! The Detailer is supposed to be great too as a water repellent/quick clean.

tbNHNi4.png
 
andyred said:
Hi - I could do with some new spray bottles - 1 for wheel cleaner, so needs to be chemical resistant head ?
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Probably not as good as ones you can purchase specifically for the job, but they're free, I re use empty spray bottles when SWMBO has emptied them cleaning the bathroom/tiles etc. (y)
 
OldCarlos said:
Probably not as good as ones you can purchase specifically for the job, but they're free, I re use empty spray bottles when SWMBO has emptied them cleaning the bathroom/tiles etc. (y)
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Do you know, my wife has just said the same thing - "would this work for you when it's empty" (y)

Feel like the kid from the TV advert waiting for the fairy liquid bottle to be empty so he can use it :D
 
Raymond Lin said:
Apparently the Gtechniq stuff can last a year on the windscreen....always wanted to try it.
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G1 is very fussy. You need G4 glass polish first to clean the windscreen, the IPA the glass and then finally apply G1 using make-up pads, letting each coat cure. It's never lasted more than about six months for me and the swept area of the windscreen is where it dimishes the quickest. My two bugbears with it were windscreen judder and needing to go significantly faster than 70mph for it to really be effective. The windscreen judder occurs because the coating repels water quite effectively leaving the surface too dry so it's like using wipers when it's not raining.

I've found G3 (they've renamed this to something else now to avoid being sued by another company) to be better at lower speeds but durability is measured in weeks and hence needs reapplying regularly.
 
omens said:
G1 is very fussy. You need G4 glass polish first to clean the windscreen, the IPA the glass and then finally apply G1 using make-up pads, letting each coat cure. It's never lasted more than about six months for me and the swept area of the windscreen is where it dimishes the quickest. My two bugbears with it were windscreen judder and needing to go significantly faster than 70mph for it to really be effective. The windscreen judder occurs because the coating repels water quite effectively leaving the surface too dry so it's like using wipers when it's not raining.

I've found G3 (they've renamed this to something else now to avoid being sued by another company) to be better at lower speeds but durability is measured in weeks and hence needs reapplying regularly.
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I will clay it, glass polish it, isopropyl alcohol it before applying it. You'll be able to eat off it by the time I'm done lol

Then use Rain-X between washes as a top up.
 
I tried out the Autobrite Direct Hellshine Abyss sealant, yesterday. I have to say it's very easy to apply even in strong sun light. It's like a grease, apply and leave for 10 minutes then buff off with a microfirbre cloth, brings up all the black plastics to a nice finish but not shiny. The sample pot is supposed to be enough for two cars but I managed to use around 3/4 of it in one hit.
Bought a clay mitt off ebay going to try that next weekend, as well as some Duxback rain repellent to try on the windows.
 
andyred said:
How did you get a sample as fancy trying this...
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I got it from ebay, £12.80 inc. delivery and an applicator sponge. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/222099082794?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT It was slightly cheaper than getting it from Autobrite Direct, which wouldn't have included an applicator pad. Cheapest price I can find on ebay for a full sized spray bottle is £30 delivered. Autobrite sell a large pot of Abyss but it's £60.
My car is bright red and when buffing off the Abyss in the sun yesterday I nearly blinded myself with the glare coming off the paintwork. Sunglasses maybe advisable.
 
nilagin said:
I got it from ebay, £12.80 inc. delivery and an applicator sponge. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/222099082794?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT It was slightly cheaper than getting it from Autobrite Direct, which wouldn't have included an applicator pad. Cheapest price I can find on ebay for a full sized spray bottle is £30 delivered. Autobrite sell a large pot of Abyss but it's £60.
My car is bright red and when buffing off the Abyss in the sun yesterday I nearly blinded myself with the glare coming off the paintwork. Sunglasses maybe advisable.
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Cheers (y)
 
With hard waxes, it is better to just apply by hand. the heat in your hand will soften the wax, then kinda dab it on and you will also use less of it too vs an applicator.
 
Has any of you got a dual action polisher? If so, can you use it outside ok? Are they safe/easy? Did you practice on an old panel first or go straight in? Ta.
 
DorsetDude said:
Has any of you got a dual action polisher? If so, can you use it outside ok? Are they safe/easy? Did you practice on an old panel first or go straight in? Ta.
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I haven't got one but yes they are safe to use outside. I would get an old panel to practice on particularly one with some styling lines through it as it is the styling lines or wing corners where you are likely to burn through the paint if you are not careful.
 
DorsetDude said:
Has any of you got a dual action polisher? If so, can you use it outside ok? Are they safe/easy? Did you practice on an old panel first or go straight in? Ta.
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Never used one but believe best to try on an old panel first.

Anyone use carchem products, got a few of them, find the hydrocoat sealant is very good
 
BBR said:
Having paid nearly £40k cash I can assure you I do care about my car. The guys I use know what they are doing. My car looks like new when it comes out of there despite being 5 years old and having done 160k.
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It was the "CBA" ( Can't Be Arsed ) comment that threw me Brian. My car was 70k hence why I "really" care about it :)

@ Raymond ....> Euro Car parts have the Sonax Quick Detailer 750mm for £5:50 delivered I ordered 2 :)
Use Promo Code : club2008oc to get a 20% Discount.

 
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DorsetDude said:
Has any of you got a dual action polisher? If so, can you use it outside ok? Are they safe/easy? Did you practice on an old panel first or go straight in? Ta.
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I've a machine polisher - did father in laws faded black Saab on Sunday with it - was like a mirror finish afterwards, even surpassed my expectations of how good I could get it. Needless to say, father in law was very happy :)

Easy to use, the trick is not to put too much pressure on, let the machine do the work, keep it well lubricated - :naughty: - don't stay in one spot - move it around and take that bit more care on any creases / sharp edges...
 
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