Today was dry so that's it 3 hours of washing and claybaring and polishing and sealing....and with a hosepipe ban as well.

Result is below looks very clean and shiney now

Looks very nice, done a good job there

Tried this clay baring on the wife's Fabia, just in a small area following the kits instructions; didn't like what it appeared to be doing to the paint finish, therefore not used it since. Might be my technique, the kit, I'm not sure but it put me off the stuff.

TP

Looks very nice, done a good job there

Tried this clay baring on the wife's Fabia, just in a small area following the kits instructions; didn't like what it appeared to be doing to the paint finish, therefore not used it since. Might be my technique, the kit, I'm not sure but it put me off the stuff.

TP

Just use a detail spray and rub the bar gently over the paintwork in one pass (don't keep rubbing in one spot) wash off the residue afterwards and then dry and polish the car, the claybar is only for taking of surface contamination such as tree sap and maybe small amounts of tar.

I use Meguires as it seems to work for me

Another pic

Just use a detail spray and rub the bar gently over the paintwork in one pass (don't keep rubbing in one spot) wash off the residue afterwards and then dry and polish the car, the claybar is only for taking of surface contamination such as tree sap and maybe small amounts of tar.

I use Meguires as it seems to work for me

Many thanks for the tip; that might be the issue as I went over it two or three times albeit in the same direction applying the spray each time. didn’t appear to achieve much on that one go hence trying additional times :wonder:

TP

Many thanks for the tip; that might be the issue as I went over it two or three times albeit in the same direction applying the spray each time. didn’t appear to achieve much on that one go hence trying additional times :wonder:

TP

It's more of a "feel" than anything....should be silky smooth after the claybar, and you may not notice too much dirt actually on the clay....mine was bad so I wont be using that claybar again

What the hell is a detail spray?

http://www.autogeek.net/quickdetail.html

Think I'll stick with my bottle of car shampoo and a bucket, thanks!

What the hell is a detail spray?

It makes cleaning your car a lot easier for 6 months as as the dirt just falls off when you spray with water from one of those hosepipe things that we cant use any more

It's more of a "feel" than anything....should be silky smooth after the claybar, and you may not notice too much dirt actually on the clay....mine was bad so I wont be using that claybar again

Thanks again

Think thats what convinced me it hadn't worked too well first time; still felt rough when running your finger across the paint

Think I'll stick with my bottle of car shampoo and a bucket, thanks!

think you might be right; leave it to those who know how or have the knack

TP

Nice glossy shots Octygone.

Before picking up my shiny red & black Yeti, I spent a bit of time roaming through forums far & wide looking into car polish/paint protection products. It was an interesting exercise. I've bought 4 new cars in my life, and the first 2 included the uncomfortable experience of being sat in front of "the aftersales person" who would tell me stories of fading paint, bird crap, paint pores, waxes to fix it all, window tinting etc etc etc... I basically wanted a disinfectant shower after sitting through so many minutes of pure unadulterated sales pitch. I really detest salespeople. I prefer to do my own research and make up my own mind based on the experiences of others. This is one of the best things about the Internet (once you filter the wheat from the chaff that is).

Anyway, the results of my research was that most people think expensive paint protection products were a crock of fecal matter (since I can't be typically Australian and write absolute bull-****), and all one needs is some good wax, applied every few months. Those that sing the praises of paint protection products would be divided into those that were obviously pushing one product, or trashing another, or doing both at the same time; and those that firmly believed that when done right, paint protection is invaluable and had the evidence to back it up with photos etc. Those falling into the 'wax it often' group funnily recommend expensive waxes which when added up only cost a little less than some reasonably priced paint protection kits used less often.

Long story less-long - I found some cheaply priced ToughSeal stuff (apparently from over your way). I put it on a day after picking the car up. I figured it was doing it's job when I could no longer sit the microfibe towel on the bonnet without it sliding off onto the ground. It still does this after I wash & dry it 1 month later. It supposedly has Teflon in it ... maybe that explains it. Dirt, grime, bird crap ... all come off really easily with very mild detergent & water.

The other stuff I was looking into which rated pretty well was Zaino. They make a detail spray like that which Octygone mentioned above. I might give this a try in about 6 months if the ToughSeal stuff looks like it's wearing off. Then in 12 months I'll re-apply the ToughSeal as they recommend.

When I get some of that spare-time stuff I was going to put some photos in the appropriate section. I'll make sure to include some shots showing the gloss level.

Edited 16 April, 201214 yr by beej

Today was dry so that's it 3 hours of washing and claybaring and polishing and sealing....and with a hosepipe ban as well.

Result is below looks very clean and shiney now

Hey - that's a real cool aerial you've got on your Yeti - and in white, too... ... ... ...!!!!

Ok ok - I'm going.....

Yesterday I took the kids swimming (snacks spilt over the leather afterwards), later threw a mountain bike in the boot for a quick ride and then finally took a load of grass to the tip! My Yeti looks nothing like yours - after trading in various cars over the years I reckon that immaculate condition only adds a bit to the value, so I'll just get mine valeted the day I trade it in (in years to come)!

It makes cleaning your car a lot easier for 6 months as as the dirt just falls off when you spray with water from one of those hosepipe things that we cant use any more

Mines just needing doing again after 6 month as I'm noticing bird dropping & general muck not washing off so easily as before. Clay & polish then back to bucket but even quicker & easier than before.

I agree with Deputy to a large extent but even though I'm opted out of the company car scheme & it's my motor I have to keep car as presentable as if it was the companies & set an example to the company car drivers on my team - can't pull them for state of car if mine is minging!