*Official* Ask A Detailer Thread

good question, not many

 

Are you using a PH balanced soap?

 

Are there more after washing? Are you using a drying aid like a detail spray or a waterless wash?

 

Any recommendations on how to clean and treat vinyl?

Just bought a bench seat for an off topic car and it's dirty. Actual dirt. Figured I would give it a quick vacuum and hit it with a little soap and water for cleaning, but I'm open to the idea that there is a better way.

 

Not sure if this is the direction you want to go...
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...ore-protect-vinyl-top-using-303-products.html

 

If you want wash a car/truck without hard water stains you either wash in the shade on a day that isn't hot. You need to dry the vehicle before the hard minerals attaches to the paint and etch into the paint. If you leave the water stain for too long, it'll etch into the paint. I use waterless wash (water solution, but I use distilled water) that when dries doesn't leave water stain...so no etching. If you use water from faucet, then you need to wash and dry before the minerals dry on your paint.

To remove.. it's polish to "cut" the stain away. If it's really bad...you need to do color correction polish.

 

I would suggest a dedicated interior cleaner for that. I use an Adams product along with an interior protectant. My opinion it works better than 303 cause it will stay in place. I can use it on my steering wheel and not have it all over my hands.

 

plus blowing off water.

 

I have no idea what soap that is lol

 

Never used a detail spray, what is the reason for it and how is it used? Thanks

 

After you wash and rinse your truck. Spray it each panel with detail spray then dry with a quality microfiber towel. It will reduce/eliminate the number of spots substantially.

 

And add shine as well.

 

After a wash, the spots are there...what you are doing with a detail spray or waterless wash is lifting the water stains when you wet and wipe again. The detail spray and waterless wash tend to have some kind of wax component, so it's adds a layer of protectant for a short period.

Just go with a waterless wash like meguiar's D115 with distilled water and you won't ever have spots...unless you park next to a sprinkler and really jack your paint on a hot day.

 

No kidding detail spray won't do anything if the spots are already there. Poster was not real clear if they were there before or after. Based on fact he didn't know what detail spray was used for suggests the spots came from improper drying.

 

Any clue what would help with some scratches and paint overspray I have? I touched my bumper up with bedliner and some over sprayed to the headlight and the side of my fender. I tried clay bar and no luck so I stupidly used some magic eraser thing and now I have a ton of small little scratches. I don't think I went past clear coat but I also have some overspray left. Any help?

 

How did you use magic eraser... is it some sort of hard abrasive? If it is... you need to have a DA polisher instead of doing it by hand...then you see swirl marks. I had overspray on my Z4M once, but clay bar removed most of it, unless you left it baked on... I would leave it to a professional detailer then unless you are willing to risk more damage learning how to color correct and get rid of the scratches. When I had micro fine scratches from the dealer new car... I had my detailer buff it out, but he had to use some abrasive...he goes light and if the polishing compound doesn't work, then he goes with abrasive to blend in the scratch (remove depending on how you look at it).

 

oh

wow okay! did that cost a lot?

 

Find reputable detailer you can trust and see how much they charge to buff that out... if it's a small area...should be around $100...if it takes a couple of hours...will be more obviously...without picture...can only guess to the condition of your problems.

For my BRZ when I had it... it was a new car color correction so it was all the prep work and then opti coat the whole car and interior...so any number I give you won't help and all the detailers vary in price and then recently opti coat raised their prices... If I had to do it again which I might with the truck, I might just buy big foot polisher and learn how to do it myself and just buy good paint sealants from the online auto detailers shops. Give you an idea...it took my detailer 13 hours to prep the inside and outside the car and apply the sealant (they call it sacrificial paint layer)

 

@LTDSC: thanks for the help. I thought claying it might help, ended up soaking it with some polish and slowly working it out. Love this community! TW win!

 

Anyone know the difference in
303 (30308) Aerospace Protectant and
303® Automotive Protectant