Hmm. I go for the "wash with persil capsule in hosepipe washer brush thing" - followed by bucket of water and hosepipe and get my hand in the alloys to get the black **** that quickly builds up. Then I actually may be able to finally use the autoglym without it being rained on - ala Midlands attempt

I echo rob's thoughts - having a metallic finish is ace, especially when the dealer throws it in for free It's a shame I didn't bother with the

Jason,

I have it on good authority (from someone who worked in a bodyshop) that the 'body glaze' type treatments are great as long as you never have any bodywork damage that needs repairing. However, if you were to ever to call on the services of a bodyshop or Dentmaster, they would have some bother, as any resprayed paint won't stick to the glaze.

Mucho rubbing down required apparently.

BTW I have some (as Fabpreza puts it) mild "gravel rash" that needs attention - anyone got experience with Skoda touch up paints?

On my Mondeo I could never get a good finish with the Ford ones, as the paint was too thick.

Any opinions appreciated.

Howard

For my last car I got a touch up paint from Halfords, much better than the paint touch up from the Rover dealer which like the Ford touch up paint is to thick :eek:

Darren

The Halfords kits are good, I had one for my Micra - very tidy finish, and it was only about a tenner...

Rob.

Originally posted by TaviaRS in this post

I'm with Darren on this, as many of you know. The Swissol stuff is the canines dangly bits IMHO. I always used to use Autoglym, but for me there is no going back, I love this stuff!

I'm contemplating a Swissol kit, probablyy a Briskoda mini special to get the wife on side before spending big bucks.

Being new to this car care business I have a question:

My black beastie has a fair few fine scratches, and plenty of swirlmarks. :( Will a Swissol kit sort this out or should I give it a going over with an abrasive polish first?

Ta,

Zooty

The genuine koda touch-up paint is too thick, as well.

The Rally Red one is not a perfect colour match, either. Looks OK in normal daylight, but is noticeably different from certain angles in bright sunlight. :(

The Swissol cleaning kit I brought comes with a clenser fluid and paint rubber that removes light scratches and swirls . I used these on the wifes golf as it's a bit older than my vRS and they worked a treat, now she has a very shiney Jazz Blue GTI which has made her very happy and a little less peeved at me for spending

Yep - It's looking down the car in bright sunlight that the vegetation scratches show up. They're not deep, but still a bit of a pain. When I was back in Leic after the meet, I caught my wris****ch (metal, or course ) on the edge of the door as I was shutting it, and there's a nice big mark on the lip. I also came close to scuffing the alloys for the first time yesterday as I rubbed a kerb. You should have seen me jump out the car and race to the front right wheel... No damage though, phew*

I think a proper "autoglym'ing" is needed at the weekend, as its supposed to be sunny.

This is a close up of the bonnet after polihing with Swissol .

:shocked: Must go on a diet after the last picture. Here is another of the rear wing .

Darren

That rear wing shot looks a bit arty farty with the sun in the reflection, doesn't it?

I'll see if I can get a similar shot after autoglym, but I somehow doubt it'll ever be as good as the swissol... :(

Do you have those moments too - thinking why it's worth all that trouble?

Having done a serious washing job just yesterday I had one such moment today - the car was a total mess, covered in white and brown spots all over, head to toe, back to front! It looked like an albatross had its rear end explode right over my car... :eek:

Right now, I'm not amongst our feathered friends' best pals. :mad:

Oh, I almost forgot - is there any way I can change this thread's title into "Mud, dust and bird sh!t - your best cleaning tips"?

[insert huge big-sigh smiley here]

It was warm but overcast today in Holland, so I decided that it was time for a cleaning session - long overdue, as they invariably are with me.

I was busy for about an hour, just using bug remover-water-shampoo-water-more water, but in the end I couldn't get the water stains to disappear, although I used a chamois and a cloth to wipe the surface dry. Whitish lines (probably calcium from the water) kept re-appearing and while the car looks radiant from a distance, it doesn't look clean at all from up close.

Is it time for a first waxing? Am I doing something else wrong here? Or is this the torture of having a black car?

Yep wax will usually banish those marks. They're from the water as you say. The wax products are usually oil based so don't smear like that.

Mattijs - I recommend going back to the "mud look" - I tried cleaning mine the other day and got bored, did a crap job and it looks worse than when i started - "Know your Limits"

Stu, no! Not after all the expensive stuff I bought!

Mattijs, if you can't get it to 'shine' it is definately time for some rubbing action with the old fashioned wax

Mattijs....looks like you need to book me to come over and prepare your car!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Or you could do the car when parked in the fields around Goodwood while I am visiting the Revival Meeting...

Anyone acquainted with those sand storms that swoosh over dried out Europe at night?

You left the car looking reasonably OK. You wake up in the morning and see your pride covered in thick and sticky layer of sand.

Keeps you wondering why you'd even bother...

Anyone acquainted with those sand storms that swoosh over dried out Europe at night?

You left the car looking reasonably OK. You wake up in the morning and see your pride covered in thick and sticky layer of sand.

Keeps you wondering why you'd even bother...

Edit: this is what you get when the 'new reply' script is hanging...

Mattijs,

I see you're determined to keep this thread alive, if only by posting the same post twice!!!

Yes. I know what you mean about the sandy rain. It seems to happen more and more these days. I guess the sand must get picked up over Africa and then get transported by the clouds which then deposit their contents when they hit the cooler air over Northern Yurp.

Annoying all the same.

Cheers,

Yup it's from the Sahara and it's been happening for centuries ...

Originally posted by fen_l&k in this post

I see you're determined to keep this thread alive ...

That's becos he's a secret car tart :p