Well, I finally got around to cleaning my car again. It was overdue for one (dang school in the way), so I did the works. I cleaned it with Meguiar's Crystal Clean wash (panel by panel like I always do), dried, let sit overnight (did this wash to get that thick layer of dirt off), then washed it again using Dawn (panel by panel ), dried, removed a few scratches, clay barred, waxed, rinsed (to negate the static caused by waxing), and dried. I also cleaned and waxed the rims. I cleaned up the engine bay a bit, and even cleaned and waxed under the hood (wax was hard to get off, as you can see in the pics). Anywho, here are the pics (bad time and bad sun positioning for photography composition).

Engine bay pics:






Pics:














Everything took me around 7 hours to do (excluding the 1.5 hours for the Crystal Clean wash, after studying for and taking a final).

Items used:
Meguiar's Crystal Clean Wash
Meguiar's Detail Spray and clay bar
Meguiar's Cleaner Wax
Meguiar's thermos (gotta have the coffee, lol)
Dawn Soap
long hair wash mitt
The Absorber
100% cotton terry cloth
FW1 Cleaning Wax for the rims and the engine bay

 

that's badass. Car looks sexy. Makes me want one.

 

Thank you, thank you.

 

nice yaris!

 

Your car looks great but you washed it in Dawn Dishwashing Liquid? Most professional detailers advise against using these products because over time they are going to dull out your paint. If you are using a good car soap like Megs that is all you should really have to use to ready the surface for claying, polishing or waxing.

Cat :x

 

Thanks for the compliment.

lol...I should have explained myself. I always wash with Meguiar's Crystal Clean wash. However, prior to clay barring a car, one should wash with a more potent wash to get rid of everything so that it doesn't get on the clay bar and start scraping across your paint (other than the micro particals that can't be taken off without the use of the clay bar). So I only use Dawn once a year. I washed with the Meguiar's the day before I washed with the Dawn (following morning), and I was still able to get a bunch of crap off my car =(. And waxing it restores the protection (previous wax layers) that the Dawn takes off of. Now, I don't advise using Dawn every time one washes one's car tho. lol. That's just ridiculous.

Oddly enough, I started using Dawn prior to clay barring my car because I've read on a lot of professional sites that they use Dawn too. At first, I though, "wtf?", but it really does help.

Yeah, I'm pretty anal when it comes to my car. I wash panel by panel, and start from top down. In between each panel, I rinse the car to prevent any water from drying up. I also rinse after I wax. I don't know if you guys experienced it, but if I don't rinse, I get a bunch of static all over the car, and it gets dusty really fast. Rinsing it neutralizes the polarity created from the friction/rubbing during waxing. Now I don't get that static nor does my car get dusty quickly. Crazy how an extra step or two will make your car more shiny and clean longer.

 

Thanks. =D

 

Dawn strips off the wax from previous uses. Your cars is hawwwtt too btw! i was just thinking the other day that the 4dr yaris' were nice the other day.

 

Thanks.

What kit is that on your Fit? Do you mind posting some pics of it? It really caught my eye.

 

I gave ya some Dawn Rep! I thought maybe you were using it each time and I was thinking yikes! Good idea about the rinse after waxing. I got tired of picking bug wings off the car at the show yesterday because they torn them off trying to get off the car after landing on it. Poor little bugs!

Cat :x

 

LOL. Thanks for the rep. Gave some back to you. hehehe.

Oh man, you should see the bugs that get caught on my lower grill. I get wasps, bees, and large moths and butterflies. I feel ya on that department. hahahahaha. Oh, what show did you go to? Got pics?

Which wax do you use? For me, if I use synthetic wax (like the NXT wax that I have), it gives it a not so nice finish. It makes it have a too mirror-like, unnatural finish. I would have to follow the NXT up with my Mother's or Meguiar's carnauba wax to bring the richness of my flint mica back. I ask this because you have a red car, and I think that mirror effect only happens to dark colored cars.

 

I posted a thread Look what my 2007 Honda Fit Did and I have pictures on there. . The show was sponsored by a local Scion dealership and then WV Motorsports had their Car Culture Throw Down. I used NXT 2.0 and it was disappointing because it has never balled up into fine particles like that before. Purchased at Wal-Mart instead of going to Auto Zone which means it was most likely old. I am definitely going to try something different even though I have to admit with all the extra work it caused (including blow drying the car by hand - yikes) It did look great at the show and it took out many of the fine swirls. I purchased Swirl X which I still want to try but just alittle concerned about less than perfect results so went with my female intuition not to use it the night before the show. Glad I did not or would have been up until 1:00 AM!

Cat :x

 

Cool, I'll try looking for that thread. haha, yeah, I didn't really like NXT since it didn't dry up for me either, but then again, I was doing this like at 10 at night. hehehe.

 

Dish soap should never be used, even when removing old wax pre-detail. And to make things worse you didnt polish the car. Dish soap doesnt provide the lubricity that car soaps do. Also they will dry out your paint and rubber seals. Purchase proper soap's such as chemical guys citrus wash and gloss to remove previous layers of protection pre-detail. Some pro detailers still swear by it, but most have stopped. Theres no positive thing about it especially when you can get a gallon of CG CWC for about 15 bucks.

Also absorbers are bad, they are not pitted like microfiber waffle weave towels that your supposed to use. God forbid a single piece of dirt falls on the paint as your drying it and you drag it accross the paint with the absorber. I use a leaf blower to get the water out of the crevices so I dont get any drips. That way I can dry the wheels and tires more easily too.

Also why did it take you 7 hours to do that? It takes me around 8 to do a full detail including paint correction. Trying to do paint correction by hand by using products like swirlx isnt that great of an idea either. You wont get the results you want as you cant generate the heat and friction needed to break down the polish and remove the damaged layer of clear coat.

Also NXT is one of the worst synthetics I have ever used... Check out some of my details in my sig :D

 

This was the only time I actually used Dawn. hahahaha, but yeah, I couldn't find the Polish step at the K-Mart near my place, so I had to forgo that. Sucks, but I'm at my mom's for the summer, so I'll check out the Super Wal-Mart to see if they have the Polish step there. I like my Absorber, I've been using it for a while, and I don't have a single swirl or anything on my paint (some people are amazed by its condition, just don't look at the front because it's like the surface of the moon from all the damn rock chips from the freeway), but if you would like, can you provide me links to better products to dry my car with? It's about time I replace my Absorber with another, but if there's something better, I'd rather have that instead.

LOL, it took me 7 hours because I only had 3 hours of sleep before I did all of this, and I did everything by hand, so waxing took a while. I also wash panel by panel and always keep the car wet, so that adds a crap load more time. lol. But yes, the next time I wash my car, I'll be doing polish and sealer. =D

If you have any more advice, let me know.

 

You won't find any decent polish in stores. Check out www.detailersdomain.com and try menzerna polishes. Although if your polishing by hand go to Auto Detailing Solutions -- Meguiar's Car Wax, Auto Polish & Detailing Supplies Store and try the meguiar polishes.

 

Thanks for the links. How about this (polish): Car Care Products: Car Waxes to Leather Cleaners, Meguiar's the Leader in Car and Surface Care since 1901

How is that by hand? I think I can find that at the local Wal-Mart.

 

Thanks. =D

 

Try to stay away from anything meguiars in pink bottles, its their consumer line and is usually their lower class stuff. If you MUST buy something locally and use it by hand use swirlx and a foam pad. Although be careful, if your not then this can happen.

Ultimate Compound messed up my paint - Car Care Forums: Meguiar's Online

Swirlx Meguiar's SwirlX Swirl Remover

 

Eek, that's bad. Well, I don't have any (or barely if any) swirl marks on my car, but I'm just looking for something that'll make my flint mica pop. How about these from Mother's?
Mothers® California Gold® Pre-Wax Cleaner - Step 1

Mothers® California Gold® Sealer & Glaze - Step 2

What are your thoughts?