*Official* Ask A Detailer Thread

Its really expensive... but I won’t lie I’ve prolly got over $1,500 in detailing crap lol.

 

That was just a portion of the hood! I was able to finish the hood with that piece of clay, and can clearly feel the difference.

I bought the truck from Scranton, PA so maybe coal or train dust? Fortunately, it blends in well with my color. +1 Pyrite Mica

 

I am not a fan of the blade I use my leaf blower then a waffle towel.....

 

Remember that clay removes surface contaminates and that's why your paint feels so much smoother. But in using the clay to remove those contaminates, you have likely induced some marring of the paint surface. (Depending on what you used for a clay lubricant, you may have temporarily hidden those induced defects.) Yes, your paint feels great, but it probably doesn't look great. That's why you need to follow the clay with a polishing / correction step, then apply a wax / sealant / coating to protect your paint and all of your hard work.

 

+1 on the leaf blower. My neighbors all think I'm crazy, but my theory is that every time you drag something across your paint - no matter how soft it is - you're inducing some kind of marring. It may not show up right away, but over time, that marring will show up and require correction.

 

Great advice. That thought of marring the surface with all the contaminates had crossed my mind and I believe I could notice a slight scratching effect. That day, I was not prepared to spend the time for a full paint correction. I did use a spray wax as a quick fix for sealing it, but I intend to do the full work up as soon as weather allows.

Edit: I was using the Meguiar's Quik Detailer that comes with the clay kit as my lube.

 

Yup. My cheapo electric blower does the trick just fine.

 

I remember hearing 20 years ago from a guy that ran a small car lot that paid $250 for interior/exterior details on vehicles he intended to sell on his lot and was worth every penny because they did such a good job. If it's a proper place it's probably worth the money. That rate is probably for cars that rarely/never get cleaned inside or out. Or they just work on all luxury vehicles. Once the work is done keeping it clean would be a lot easier.

I would bet most people with a $50-100 worth of detail products from Autozone and residential vacuum and steamer couldn't get the same results if they spent an 8 hour day on it.

 

I've got about that from Black Friday purchases on a new pressure washer system.

The SunJoe was great for a while, but dragging that bitch around the truck was getting old.

 

I've been told (by online research) that

$29 Simple Green 19128 Crystal Industrial Cleaner/Degreaser, 1 Gallon Bottle

Simple Green 19128 crystal industrial cleaner/degreaser is one of if not the best for detailing engine bays. What are the thoughts on that?
If good, can I use it in wheel wells and spray on the underbody?
What kind of drying agent do people use?

Unfortunately it's cold here and starting to snow so that means additives on the roads. But I still like to wash all that crap off as I'm afraid it's gonna eat stuff away if I leave it sitting most of the winter. Even though someone told me it's got some kind of undercoat from factory for that purpose.

After some offroading it can get pretty dirty even after a good pressure wash.

 

One can actually use just about any All Purpose Cleaner on the areas you mentioned. Some will say that diluting APC up to 50% (with water) is required, but as you might guess, doing so will cut down on it's ability to dissolve and thus remove dirt, oil and gunk. The supposed advantage to Simple Green products is that they're more environmentally friendly. While that may be true, at least some of the stuff you'd be removing (like oil) isn't very friendly to the environment, but will end up coming out on the ground. And yes, you can use APC on the wheel wells and underbody.

I'll offer one big caution on cleaning engine bays since I no longer do it except on Toyota products. With certain other manufacturers - Ford and their modular motors in particular - one can get into a whole lot of trouble cleaning the under hood area. (Ask me how I know this.) With the Ford modular motors, using just about any kind of cleaner and then rinsing it with water - even if you're extremely careful - will lead to misfires and Coil Pack replacements. So my Ford trucks always looked like new - except under the hoods.

 

Straight simple green once a month.....40K miles

 

Looks great! I generally use Mequire's Hyper Dressing. What dressing did you use?

 

I have been using Chemical Guy Black on Black

 

Luckily out of all my vehicles I haven't had a problem. My oldest a 78 Trans Am I made damn sure things were covered though. Now I just do a quick spray and call it good but I'd like to do more.

I mentioned the Simple Green because it was ranked #1 on best degreaser for 2018. I had a guy at autozone say he swears by using an interior cleaner for the engine bay..never heard that before and highly doubt it'll work haha. I don't think I'd do a 50/50, I'd like it to be a little stronger like you say.

What is your opinion on products to spray on afterward? Should I apply the aftercare product in the wheel wells and underbody without wiping it down? Any harm? Or wait and then wash it off?

Living in an apartment makes things a little hard so I use a self car wash. Usually use the pressure washer to get the heavy stuff off then go through a touchless wash with all that fancy foam and protectant crap. In the summers my apartment has its own wash area which is nice.

Sorry for so many questions. Take care of the truck and she'll take care of you!

 

Wow! I think that looks better than when I bought mine new! Wanna detail mine? Haha jk.

 

There are many, many products you can use to "dress" your engine bay. As I stated earlier, I use Meguiar's Hyper Dressing mostly because I buy it by the gallon and thin it (with water) depending on how glossy of a look I'm going for. I'm not very picky when it comes to dressings for use under the hood (and under the car) because they're only going to look good for a very short period of time and hardly anybody's going to see them.

I also use the HD on wheel wells. All I do is spray it on and let it dry. Again, I don't get real picky because the first time I drive the vehicle, it's going to mess the wheel wells up. It does look great for pictures and adds a bit of a "wow" factor when a customer picks up their car. Remember to dress the wheel wells (and tires) before you polish your wheels though because the stuff gets everywhere.

 

Respectfully, I have used 303 for years, with very good results. I have seen numerous testimonials and documented results about the long term benefits of 303 on tires. Admittedly, the evidence about 303 isn't as concrete as I would like. To date, I haven't seen results for anything more effective. Although, I'm always open to being schooled about new products, and/or new test results.

I can't find any testimonials or documented results on the long term effectiveness of the Chemical Guys Trim Gel. If you have any information I would like to see it.

I'm not concerned with the look of the tires, I'm only looking for something that will make them not check and hopefully last longer.

303 is water based by the way.
Thanks,
John

 

303 is overrated. People like it’s cause it is cheap. I prefer something I don’t have to reapply after a rain. There are several water based products out there that are a better like Carpro Perl.

 

Do you have any test results to back up your claim?
Thanks,
John