Auto Detailing
Special thanks to Scott
Wakeman
Auto detailing has been
around for a long time now. It's rapidly becoming a
multi-billion dollar industry. But you don't want to
spend lots-o-cash now do you? I know lots of auto fan-natics
out there are into do-it-yourself mods and would really
prefer to wax their own
cars.
That's where I come in. I
give out a lot of advice almost every day to readers of
the mustang list as well as other USENET groups so I
decided to put it on the web where everyone can access
it. The purpose of this information is intended to
educate people who have the motivation but lack the
know-how to detail their own vehicles. It will show a
general "how-to" from start to finish, in the order I
recommend proceeding. Detailing is hard work, an average
car
will take me roughly 3 hours (not including the engine).
That's just a run-of-the-mill car. Some cars, the
interior is so bad it'll take an hour and a half just to
do that! Oxidation removal is also time consuming, even
with experience and power tools. With oxidation removal
you absolutely must seal/glaze the paint. I could go on
and on.
First, my name is Scott
Wakeman and I own a detailing business here in southern
New York State. I've been detailing cars for a little
over nine years now, and I've been on the Internet for
the past six years. By day I'm an Electro-Mechanical
Designer and after 5pm, and on weekends, I'm out
detailing cars. I also try to go out to the auto supply
stores to try out the latest products so I can make
sound advice to others. New products are coming out
extremely quickly these days so my ability to look into
every product out there is almost impossible. Generally
I can tell an average product just by looking at the
label. You get what you pay for, but cost does NOT
necessarily mean it's good. Some of these gimmick waxes
like Durashine or Touchless cost $30-plus dollars on TV,
but in my professional opinion they offer no benefit
over the products I will later recommend. Professional
rumor has it that "Touchless" is indeed too good to be
true and can damage paint jobs. Best advice I can give
is to stay away from low quality products like this and
stick with the known products such as Mothers, Meguiars,
Zymo, etc.
In my business I use only
professional grade products on my customers cars which
generally aren't available to most people. Typically the
quality of these pro-grade products is higher than
retail, but a combination of the right retail products
can still yield excellent results. I'll make some
recommendations as I go on. If you have products you
feel work best for you, go ahead and use them. Some
prefer Meguiars products, others Mothers or Zymol.
Whatever it is you use, don't let my advice stop you.
Again, these are just my recommendations.
BTW, I include some
tricks to help you out but not nearly all of them. My
fellow auto detailers on the net would have my head on a
platter of I gave out trade secrets!
A few words about clear
coat paint.
I get loads of email from
people with clear coat questions so I feel I should
include some very basic info at this point that may
answer some questions. First off clear coat is just
that, a clear coating applied over some color (base
coat). Clear coat adds the illusion of a shiny finish
even when mildly dirty. Very important to remember is
that it is still paint! It is not something that the
dealer applied when you bought the
vehicle.
Clear coat is applied at the factory. Just like enamels
and lacquers, clear coat is still vulnerable to
oxidation and scratching. Scratches are clear coats
first enemy. Even the smallest scratch will stand out.
Many people think "Well my car has clear coat so it
doesn't need wax". Wrong! It's still paint and will
always need proper maintenance from the elements. Clear
coat is very tricky to maintain. You cannot you harsh
compounds on it to remove scratches or oxidation, you
must use a clear coat-safe compound. All the name brands
I recommend make clear coat-safe compound/cleaners.
Okay on with the How-to!
Here are some supplies
you will need:
1. Rags/towels. You'll
need upwards of 8-12 good-sized clean towels to do the
the job. One or two will be used to dry the vehicle off,
others to remove wax, and still more for the interior
windows etc ... Some small towels are handy also. If you
can find the old diaper type cloth use them because they
make excellent rags for polishing the finish to a
bright-shiny glow! They also are great for windows.
2. Brush's. You'll need a
few different varieties and sizes. First a 1" soft
bristled brush with bristles cut down to 1/2" length.
Next a stiff bristled
tire
brush. A 1" round semi-firm bristled brush. A long
handled wheel well brush is a good idea. If you have an
old toothbrush you may want that too. For "tough to
remove" brake dust, you may want one of those green
scrub pads, but be gentle!
3. Big wash bucket - five
gallon type.
4. Spray bottles. The
32oz types are most beneficial here. Fill them with
glass cleaners, etc.
5. Large, soft cotton
wash mitts. (never use a dirty wash mitt!)
6. Synthetic chamois.
(Such as the "Absorber")
7. Bug sponge and regular
sponges. Available in your local super market.
8. Power Washer. Karcher
makes a nice 1100psi unit. (not mandatory but nice if
you have one) These are getting very affordable now.
Check
www.northern-online.com
for pricing.
9. Wet/Dry Shop Vac or
equivalent.
10. Rug steam cleaner.
(not mandatory but you can rent this if you want)
11. Orbital Buffer. (not
mandatory - not always recommended)
Engines can be tough to
clean, especially today's cars with all their computer
systems and hoses all over. It make's it real tough to
get in there with your hands. My hands are constantly
cut up from trying to get in closer!
Before your get started,
cover any sensitive equipment with heavy-duty aluminum
foil. If you're using a pressure washer don't spray them
directly, you'll might blow them right off or blow a
hole in the foil!
For at-home cleaning a
pressure washer may help but isn't necessarily needed, a
hose will do just fine. If you can't find a heavy-duty
de greaser, use kerosene mixed 50/50 with water as a de
greaser. With the engine warm(not hot!) apply the
kerosene mix to stubborn grease deposits before you wet
it down - water will dilute the mix and reduce the
cleaning strength. Use a pointy brush to get any
stubborn deposits off the valve covers, etc. You may
want to repeat this step a couple times. Let me add that
this kerosene mix can also be used to degrease door
jambs, as well as a pre-soak for tar & bug removal.
Nothing like high speed bug splatter on the front end of
that bird!
Once you're satisfied
with the degreasing and have rinsed well, start up the
motor and let it run for a while with the hood down. The
heat will evaporate a lot of the water. Use your shop
vac to blow off any remaining water, have a rag handy to
degrease the parts you had covered earlier. Lowering the
hood will help speed the evaporation process.
Now it's degreased and
ready for rubber dressing. Silicone will work best here.
Spray everything really well (except the belt). You may
want to apply some wax to the painted areas. If you
don't want a shiny look, you can wipe the silicone down,
just let it soak in for a while first. STP protect ant
liberally applied works well here. Some detailers
actually repaint certain parts of the motor, and then
Clear coat everything, but I'm not in favor of this.
This paint starts to flake off after a short while and
anything you do to remove it later won't be enough,
short of pulling everything out! The silicone leaves a
new-car look. This is just my style though!
If you're weary of using
the kerosene, see if you can find a heavy-duty de
greaser, except gunk - it stains things white. Sometimes
auto body supply shops have some really good de
greasers, you just have to hunt them down. A company
called "Malco" makes some really good degreasing
chemicals. Any place that sells heavy-duty pressure
washers is bound to sell de greaser too. Places like
Sears or a hardware store like True Value have plenty.
Also, some guys like to
get out steel wool and brass brushes. This is usually
done on motors that are for show, and these guys
sometimes pull the motors before every show! It depends
how far you want to go.
Before you can wax it,
you have to wash it! Use a soft, CLEAN wash mitt and a
pH balanced car wash such as Mothers or Meguiars, or
your preference. But don't use anything harsh!
FLASH! Mothers now has a
Web page at
www.mothers.com Check
it out! I highly recommend any of their products!
Another site to check out is
Car Wash Online
Never use dish washing
detergent or a wash brush on your car! The dishwashing
detergent damages the finish, stripping it of vital oils
causing it to dry out. The wash brush scratches the
paint leaving millions of hairline scratches.
Hand washing is MUCH
preferred over a car wash (unless it's the touch less
type - no brushes).
Wet the car down first to
knock any of the big mud off. Also remove any bug grime
at this time using tar & bug remover with a sponge. You
can also presoak the door jambs and hatch/trunk areas
now using an all-purpose cleaner such as Simple Green or
mix kerosene 50/50 with water in a spray bottle. Scrub
if you have to with a bug sponge, but not too hard,
rinse areas before you wash the vehicle.
The rims should be done
first, before the body. The rims collect brake dust very
easily so you'll need a small brush and a cleaner
appropriate for your rims, by this I mean you'll need to
know if your rims are clear coated or not. Remember the
brake dust that's deposited is extremely hot and bonds
very strongly with the irregular surface of the rims.
Don't wet down the rims/tires first, you want to make
sure the chemical is strong and not diluted with water.
Eagle One has several good products for rim cleaning,
just read the labels closely when you make your
selection. Don't overlook the under side of the vehicle,
and the gas cap lid as well! Simple Green works well for
cleaning rubber surfaces.
When washing, start from
the top and work your way down. Rinse the vehicle a
couple times as you work your way down. Don't forget to
wash those door jambs too! Don't forget - always
wash/detail your car in the shade and to a cool surface!
When drying the vehicle
off, you can use a synthetic chamois to get the bulk of
the water, but finish it off with soft cotton towels.
You don't have to do a perfect drying job if you're
planning to do the interior as well, it'll be dry by the
time you're done. You just want to avoid any water beads
from damaging the paint surface - especially of you have
hard water.
When you're done washing
and the car is mostly dry, apply your rubber dressings
to the
tires
and bumpers. Tire Wet is a good product for this - also
No Touch. I recommend doing this now because if you wax
the car first, then spray the dressing on the tires, all
the little air born droplets will get on the fresh wax,
though you can also apply it to a sponge but many
dressings are meant to sprayed on directly. You can also
spray the plastic parts with silicone now too, like the
grill by the wipers for example.
A note about Armor All
I'll leave it up to you to decide, but I recommend you
not use Armor All as a protect ant. It's not very good,
and has been known to actually do damage from time to
time. Use other products such as STP, No Touch, or Tire
Wet - they're much better and cost the same. Any product
with formaldehyde or harsh preservatives is no good for
that matter.
The interior is really
where you make or break a detailing job. This is what my
customers look at all the time. It has to be great
looking. Most people don't realize the level of detail I
go into when I clean a car. All the nooks & crannies
where dirt can build up!
If you're doing a full
detail (3-5hrs), wash and dry the car (mostly) first
then move to the interior. This way the exterior is
fully dried when you finish up the interior and are
ready to wax.
To start, you'll need to
vacuum the car out. Get anything that's not nailed down
out of the car, floor mats etc.
A good wet/dry vac is
necessary for this. While you're vacuuming have a pointy
semi-firm brush at hand to get the junk out of the
cracks of the console and dash or whatever. A firm
bristled brush is good for stirring up the carpet matt
so you can get most of the junk out of the carpet. Don't
worry about getting absolutely everything at first,
you'll be vacuuming again after the shampoo.
Once you've vacuumed out
the vehicle, use an all-purpose cleaner to get the
stubborn stains off the vinyl etc. Don't forget the
stirring wheel, this is where lot's of gunk builds up!
Use a window cleaner sprayed on a rag to get the
headliner clean. There are several good all-purpose
cleaners on the market, such as Simple Green in it's
strongest form. For caked on grease stains get a fabric
stain remover from a grocery store. Kerosene mixed 50/50
with water is good too, but is can bleed the color from
fabrics. Use it carefully. Don't forget the
trunk/hatchback areas as well!
Once the car has been
vacuumed, you're ready to shampoo. Carpet stores sell
carpet shampoo (go figure) that work well in cars. Also,
a stiff tire brush is needed here as well. Mix in the
shampoo with water, you'll want a lot of nice foam. The
foam is what you'll use. Using the foam, start with the
carpets on the drivers side, then the seats. This keeps
the water to a minimum. Move around the whole car until
you're done. If the carpet isn't too dirty you don't
have to scrub every square inch, just get the dirty
areas. As for the floor mats, wet them down real good
(this an excellent opportunity for the power washer) and
spray the all purpose cleaner on them. Scrub them real
good, then rinse very well. Hang them vertically and
they'll dry off pretty quick. Also, grocery stores sell
fabric dyes that can be mixed with water in a spray
bottle. For carpets that are sun faded, dyes can bring
back some life.
With the shampooing
complete, you have two options. One, you can vacuum up
the shampoo residue which will pull up the dirt, or you
can use a carpet steam cleaner (you can rent these or
even buy one for a fair price at sears or where ever).
Steam cleaners really pull up the gunk that's been
imbedded in the fabric matt, but they'll leave the
carpet slightly damp for a short while. Most of the time
I only use them on carpets that are so dirty. I could do
it three or four times and still be sucking up dirt (the
water turns really black!).
With the carpeting
cleaned, it's time for the leather and vinyl. I
recommend Liquid Glass' Leather treatment/conditioner -
even for vinyl. It has mink oil and lasts quite a while.
Just don't get it on you're speedometer cover, it'll
stain it. What I do is spray the areas directly and let
it soak for a minute or two, and then I wipe it. I spray
it on a rag for tight or sensitive areas. Again,
AVOID ARMOR ALL! Sometimes I
spray all the vinyl and leather before wiping it down,
it depends on the vehicle though. On some cars it's
better to just apply it to a cloth first so you don't
stain any clear plastic. If you can't locate the Liquid
Glass, try to find Lexol and/or Vinylex. I was just at
one of those bed and bath stores, the type of store your
Significant Other drags you out to so you can buy towels
only the guests are allowed to use. Anyway, in the
cleaning supply section they had Lexol, Vinylex, and
leather/vinyl cleaner.
Next, the windows. This
is straight forward. Don't spray directly on the window,
but onto a rag. All the little droplets will mess up the
nice and shiny dash! Have a dry cloth ready to wipe it
dry. Coat the windows thoroughly
with cleaner. You can even use newspaper to wipe it dry,
the abrasiveness acts like a polish and it won't leave
any streaks.
With all this said and
done it's time to add the fragrance. I use commercial
products that leave a fresh, clean smell. I spray the
carpets, seats, and directly into the vents. This way
when you turn on the air - mmm a nice and clean smell
comes out again. The air conditioner is a trap for
bacteria. Many people get sick and they can't figure out
why, it may be these vents. A citrus type fragrance will
disinfect the air vents (so will Lysol but I don't think
you want that smell coming out of your vents!).
Intro
To My Three Step Method
I prefer a 3-step
approach to detailing. This is almost mandatory for cars
that haven't been waxed recently. Cars that have been
waxed, or are somewhat new, can use a good one-step
product, such as Meguiars cleaner/sealant/wax. If you
wax the car often (every 2-3 months) you can just use a
good carnauba wax, such as Mothers Pure Carnauba Wax or
Zymol, or a quality cleaner wax such as those made by
Meguiars.
On the retail market
today most waxes aren't very durable or long lasting. If
you just use a run-of-mill wax you're not really
protecting your vehicles paint finish very well. This is
because most of the waxes actually have small amounts of
wax and a lot of petroleum- distillates. The petroleum
is a by-product from the processing of the
carnauba/palm/montan (sp?) waxes. There's no real gain
from it except that it will aid in stripping some grime
off the finish but that's about it. With very little wax
in the product your hard work won't last much more than
a month realistically. 3M and DuPont did a study on
waxes and found that many waxes on the shelves today
won't last more than 22 days on the paint finish. 3M by
the way makes some excellent wax/compound products. If
you can find them, substitute them where appropriate.
Watch out for those
infomercial's! Let's remember it's TV and they are just
hardcore salesmen trying to make a buck! Every wax I've
seen on TV so far is junk, just a waste of your good
money. The latest one shows a wash/wax product that goes
on with water. Well guys, if it go's on with water, what
do you think it comes off with? Sure it might give some
protection for a day or two but nothing like the
protection of a good carnauba wax.
Prepping is necessary to
get a clean, smooth surface ready to receive
sealer/glaze. This also removes mild oxidation, some
that you can't even see with the naked eye, as well as
some swirls and very minor scratches. There is a rule of
thumb with scratches "if you can feel it with your
fingernail, it's permanent short of re-painting". I
recommend Dark Magic by The Wax Shop. It's mildly
abrasive and clear coat safe. Apply this just as you
would wax. Meguiars also makes a good prep product.
A note about oxidation.
Essentially you can think of oxidation as dead paint.
The sun and other natural elements have reacted with the
surface of the paint causing a chemical chain-reaction
called oxidation. This is THE most common flaw on paint,
but happily it's almost always curable, some
restrictions apply. Basically my 3 step approach will
remove mild oxidation, but many people are faced with a
more serious problem. Not to worry. Clear coat oxidation
can be removed with a clear coat-safe compound, such as
those made by Meguiars or 3M. For standard finishes you
can step up to some more serious compounds such as
polishing compound, which is mild but still too harsh
for clear coat, or just regular red compound which can
do damage in the wrong hands. If you feel this oxidation
is too much for you to tackle, I strongly advise you to
take it to a professional to be safe. 3M and Number 7
make some good compounds. Whenever you compound you MUST
seal the paint after. Wax alone is not good enough. You
commonly see most oxidation on the tops of vehicles
since that's where the sun hits direct. Other flaws in
the paint can cause similar problems such as oxidation
which may not be curable. Also, sometimes oxidation can
be so severe, so deep, you cannot remove it without
going down to bare metal. If the paint is crazed, many
hairline cracks going in all directions, don't bother
compounding or waxing because the paint is shot. Places
like Maaco can be a cheap fix but you have to use your
best judgment. Many people have had mixed results with
them, but it depends on how much prep you do cause they
don't do much at all - that's a whole other story. A
good paint job relies on excellent prep work, and skill
with a paint gun of course. You can be good with a paint
gun, but bad with prep. Bad prep=bad paint.
Sealer/glaze is just what
sounds - almost. Since the surface is ready and the
paint is basically exposed you'll need to seal the pores
of the paint. I recommend Meguiars glaze/sealer for
this. Apply this just the same as the prep. Use soft
towels to remove it after it has hazed over, 5-10
minutes. 3M makes a good glaze also. It's just hard to
find! Many times a glaze will contain some silicone/wax
as well as clay powders and can be used as a cleaner
wax. A sealer will usually contain no wax/silicone, or
at least very small amounts.
The paint is sealed and
prepped, you're ready for wax. The wax will add depth
and shine to the paint, and even more durability. I
recommend Mother's Pure Carnauba Wax for this. This has
some of the most carnauba wax in it than anything else
on the retail market. After applying this, don't let it
sit more than 5-8 minutes before removing, it's tough
after more than that! Two thin coats of this is much
better than one thick coat, and apply it with a side to
side motion instead of circular to prevent swirls. I
haven't tried the newest Zymol product yet but Todd from
DETAILS (another shop owner on the net) tells me it's
pretty good too. Todd also recommends a new product
called Finish First, a synthetic product. I haven't
tried it yet (I've been too busy) but from the
literature I've read, it's worth a shot. Again, only
apply to a cool surface. A hot surface causes rapid
evaporation of the wax and cause it to bond to paint
leaving nasty streak marks. Also, pre-dampen your
applicator pad before waxing. If you do get some streak
marks, go over the surface with a damp cloth and then
buff it up.
After removing it all, go around and remove any excess
from the cracks and emblems using the 1" brush and a
towel, buff it up with a real soft towel and you're
almost done! Cloth diapers are excellent for buffing up
a shine!
Avoid
detailing in the sun, especially on a hot surface.
You can also wax the side
and rear windows if you want, and don't forget those
door jamb/hatch lid areas!
Here's another thing you
can do. Apply RainX to the windshield. I always finish
every vehicle with this. When applying this, pour it
onto a paper towel and then buff it in, up and down,
side to side. Repeat until thoroughly coated. Let it dry
to a haze then remove it with a very soft towel. If the
window happened to be extra dry you may have to apply it
twice because it soaked in. This step may leave the
windows slightly hazy, but very
minor. Feedback I've gotten from my customers has been
very positive.
Here's another tip: break
the car down into 6-8 equal sections. Apply the
prep/sealer/wax to one section at a time before moving
on to the next. This let's you concentrate your efforts
on small areas at a time. Also, make certain you're
doing all this in the shade to a cool surface, the same
goes for washing.
Pick up some chrome
polish if you need it. Most chrome polish is essentially
the same.
A "california duster" is
good for getting the dust that some products leave
behind. Rotaries should be used only by experienced
users and not by your average at-home detailer. Severe
paint damage can occur!!!!
Rag tops need extra
special care. If you have stains on it and it's white,
soft scrub w/ bleach should get them out. For darker
colored tops, a good degreaser such as Simple Green is
good. Follow up with your vinyl protectant. Use a firm
bristled brush to agitate the stain.
A word about electric
buffers, rotary and orbital: An orbital buffer is safest
for the inexperienced user and can achieve the same
results as a rotary. An orbital is heavier than a rotary
though. The rotary buffer is much faster than orbital's
but in the wrong hands can easily damage paint. I
mostly do all my waxing my hand,
and heavy oxidation removal with a buffer.
Rotaries should be used
only by experienced users and not by your average
at-home detailer. Severe paint damage can occur!!!!
One last note. There is
another detailing book available from your local
bookstore. It's called "Auto Detailing: The Professional
Way". I recommend it, it's published by Chilton.