*Official* Ask A Detailer Thread

I read many pages of this but couldn't find how to clean the engine compartment, any threads on this. I have always been reluctant to clean this area in fear of causing an issue. Thanks in advance.

 

I have no idea, so I just get a paper towel and get it damp and do multiple passes to remove the grime. You can't get a good clean that way, but do you really want to spray where the electronics can get wet? I just use a moist paper towel and the bar code on the engine got smeared and lost of of the ink. The engine cleaning is not an area I researched, but I think it's a can of worms you looking into. Moist paper towel and did the whole engine compartment not not the crevice areas.

DrFunker's two bucket suggestion...that didn't work well for me. Garry Dean and my detailer uses one pass and waterless wash. Garry Dean had presoak towels. I use Megiuar's D115. It's wash and wax and rinseless. I've used D115 for couple of years now and have less scratches than 2 bucket method.

 

I use old microfiber wipes and simple green or water (like imom vvvv) for the grimy stuff and cheap spray detailer for anything painted.

For the two bucket method I am using plain water with a drying cloth soaked up really good. Then Opti-No-Rinse for the was pass. Great stuff. If the truck has caked on mud, I do a power rinse first and then the two bucket. Sounds like a dance.

 

first new vehicle and want to keep it looking that way for a long as possible. i skimmed through the pages of this thread. what I'm looking for is probably within the first post in this thread, but i figured id ask again since new products might have replaced some from 2008. I'm just looking for a once a month (roughly) cleaning schedule for my truck. soaps, wax, polish, cleaning mit recommendations? i don't mind spending money if it is worth it, especially if it speeds the process up. thanks!

 

Get a good paint sealant... it'll allow you not to wax the truck at all. Opti coat is really expensive there's off the shelf stuff that should be just as good and cost much less. Then every 6 months to a year you add a booster coat with another product. Then just waterless (rinseless) wash when the truck is dirty...if super dirty...you can try to use it...but I just hose off the truck first like old fashion wash then use the D115 again as regular waterless wash.

DrFunker... you already use waterless wash, so why 2 buckets and same MF towel? Eventually it collects dirt and scratches the paint. I just make sections and takes about 2 towels to wipe down the whole truck...3 towel if you want to be careful so it's 1 pass on a section of towel.

 

I just purchased a 2015 Tacoma and I am wondering what can be done to protect the headlight housings from sun damage? Is there a specific product that can be applied the housings? I would like to keep them nice and clear for years to come. Thank in advance.

 

A lot of members on here will tell you 303...which is a waste and will wash off after 1st rain. Pick up Optimum Opti-lens coating. Yes, it is expensive but it will do several headlights. Much better than 303 or any other product that's just going to sit on top of the headlight versus bond to it.

 

Opti-lens is not something I would buy...for the amount of money, I would get paint protection film. Then add any coating you want. Rock and alot of different things hit the headlights. I guarantee that opti-lens won't help again chips and even bird poop. I had opti-coat on my BRZ and it's only meant as sacrificial layer, so it can still etch or get eaten away...great about these types of sealant is you don't have to wax and it stays shiny if taken care of. If you really wanto to protect your lens then PPF and then add any UV protection you would add. Great thing about PPF is you can peel away once it's too damaged.

 

Running Optimum Gloss Coat on the Tacoma and wife's car. Not having any issues with bird poop etching paint and we get hammered in spring since we have to partially park under a tree. No coating will help with chips but that is not what the poster was asking. Again coatings and sealants are 2 different things.

 

You are absolutely correct..they asked about sun damage....I was thinking even more protection. OC is good stuff...expensive just like C Quartz... and do like it...just saying having PPF and then OC on top is best combination of protection for the headlights

 

Totally agree about the PPF.

 

I have swirl marks, am on my third go with detailing. I have tried over the counter items because my products ordered a week ago still have arrived so I am left with using stuff purchased locally. I have tried Meg. Scratch 2.0 with no luck, also used Megs. Liquid compound, of course no luck, new it wouldn't but just wanted to use it. I started with a clay treatment. I am using a random orbital buffer. Should I try to use compound next? If so is there anything locally that could be used. Looks like Oriley's has the best local source of products for this.

 

What brand is your buffer? What pads are you using? Post some pics of the areas, so we can see what you see.

 

Sounds like you are doing it wrong or your scratches are through clear. I bought a HF dual action (DA) polisher... I'm going to get a new backing plate and try it myself...my detailer said it's a good polisher, but you also need to get the right kind of product for the right kind of polisher. The chemical requires a certain amount of heat to perform and then break down into dust and cut. If you use rubbing compound, it takes you to a certain level of abrasion then the polisher will make it glossy...so if you compound too much you will get swirl marks if you use rotary, but then polisher should buff it out if it's only light. With DA you would get what's call halogram and then polish should make that go away. If you are getting swirl marks after third time...sounds like you doing something wrong. You might want to hire a pro detailer before you mess up your paint to the point that requires repair.

 

This is my first real attempt at doing all this on my own. For now I bought a cheap random orbit buffer with the foam pad that came with it. I decided to not do any further attempts, glad I did after just now reading the responses, by the way, thank for the information. I just decided to put a coat of Meg. Ultimate Past Wax on for now. Figured I would try to stop the "bleeding" for now and do a lot more research before attempting a fix. I will wait until fall before attempting a fix. I may also just take is somewhere local like suggested, to have it looked at. I have learned a lot from these threads and other suggested threads, know a lot more than I did a week ago, that's for sure, thanks to all...

If I attempt it myself later this year I will post pictures.

 

There's a lot of how to videos on autogeek and their products they push. Megiuars have a series of how tos from waterless wash to cut and polish. If you go over those videos..I'm sure you can tackle the paint yourself, but not all vehicles are the same. Tacoma as some complain as soft paint is actually harder than paint on Subaru... it's very soft paint and you have to adjust. If you want to go the safe route...get a DA polisher...run you about $50 from Harbor Freight with coupon and then start with polish...it it doesn't get out the swirl marks...then you cut with rubbing compound and it removes layers of clear coat away to remove the defect.

 

Ordered a bunch of products for Autogeek on a Sunday, unfortunately didn't ship until Tuesday even though it says "usually ships same day". Obviously it wasn't going to ship on Sunday but thought Monday for sure... It will take over a week to get the product, missing (this) weekend to do the detailing. Had to go out and buy OTC with some result. I recommend anyone buying from them to plan ahead more than a week or pay the extra $20 for shipping... Contacted them via message through there website and received one standard statement not even answering my question. I responded with a second message looking for clarity, absolutely no further response!?!? Hope this is an isolated situation. Trying to bit my lip but was very surprised. I see a lot of good stuff/recommendations for them on TW so thought this was odd.

Moving on... Looking to buy a DA polisher for the fall time cleaning. I highly recommend the claybar treatment, could believe how much it helped. You don't realize how many surface contaminants there are on the surface when just looking at the paint. I believe this is the most important step for the once or twice a year detail.

 

I buy from Autogeek too. Never had issues with getting my products in a timely manner. Did you buy during a big sale? Keep in mind they are located in Florida.

 

Not sure if its a big sale, first purchase from them. I purchased a week ago about this time (Sunday) and still don't have the items. I knew they were in Florida and thought 5 days for the shipping process would be sufficient. The problem is with the statements about usually ships same day (again knew it would be shipped on a Sunday). When I was figuring my time frame for shipping I figured it would be shipped on Monday allowing 4 day shipping to arrive on Friday. If I knew it was going to take a couple days to ship then I would have considered doing 3 day.l They use UPS the only major service that doesn't deliver on Saturdays. Not trying to drag this out just wanted to convey I was consciously thinking about the time frames of shipping before competing the order. I ship a lot of items through eBay and am familiar with the shipping distances and times.

I must update and say I did get a response eventually and was taken care of. I would still through causion to the wind if you have specific plans for detailing may want to plan an extra couple days just in case.

 

I bought some motul gear oil from an online dealer that said in stock tomorrow...I had to chase them for over a week to ship because Motul didn't ship it to them yet... free shipping has a price, if you got a good deal...some times you have to wait.

Far as prep... it's a deep clean with dawn soap to the whole car. Then clay, then degrease with IPA or your brand of choice carpro Eraser etc... then you would compound if it's really bad or light marks...try polish first so you don't cut too much clear coat away. OTC stuff should work as well.. Megiuars is sold in stores as well as 3M and they are good products. I really think you have a combo of wrong chemicals to the match the polisher you have. I bought a DA and I was going to use 3M because I see a lot of pros use it, but it's meant only for rotary because of the heat it requires to break down. I don't want to use rotary as I didn't want pig tails, swirls, or burnt marks since I haven't done it myself...so I went with DA polisher. I got recommended Megiuars, Clarity essences, and a few other brands.