Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Detaling and car washing techniques

Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby Scyance » Sat Dec 24, 2011 4:23 pm

Toby is going to be very busy this christmas, what with family spread from Bunyip to Geelong, so i thought i'd apply my expert hand at giving him a nice bath.
So it was off to the BP carwash on preincess hwy near warragul rd for a wash.

Now, this is to be an explanation of how to make the most of your time at your average carwash.
I was going to photograph everything as i went, but deemed it too hard.
This is bought to you by Myself, A Detailer with 10 years experiance who currently works for City Nissan/Yarra Honda/Yarra Suzuki/Yarra Hyundai.

The first thing to remember is dont pussy foot around worrying you're going to get things wet.
They will live.
This is important to remember for later on.

Now. Pop the bonnet, Fuel cap and Boot.
Insert Coins, select engine and tire cleaner.Begin in the engine bay. Give everything a good thoughour coating in green, including the underside of your bonnet and bonnet matt. Be sure to coat the scuttle tray and wipers. you would not beleive how much crud accumulates there.
Once thats done, move to the front bumper. coat it well in the tire and engine cleaner. it will strip the bugs and crud like you wont believe.
At this point i like to move to the left side of the car.
The front left wheel and tire. Dont forget the brakes and under the guards.
Then move along the left side. Keep applying the green to your sills. get on your knees, get low, get everything. Tar and grime is thrown down here, and there is nothing like a degreaser to strip it off. Keep going round. Left rear wheel, tire and under gaurds.
Rear bumper. Just like the front, you wanna coat the whole thing. Dont forget the defuser. Get on your knees again. get those mufflers and tips soaked.
Now repeat the right side as you did the left.

I like to circle the car, not going backwards. I find it just makes things easier.

return to the left side and open the front door, spray all the jams and hinges, do the same to the rear door, and boot jams. Move to the right and repeat.

Next. PreSoak.
At this point you can knock the boot shut. it will get in the way other wise.
Still circling the car, start at the top, working your way down, I wanna see the whole thing pink. Everything, even if you've already sprayed green on it. you dont need to re do your door jams this round, they are fine till rinse time.

High pressure soap.
I like to use this to rinse the green and pink away, and blast off any grime the soaking has softened up. You'll note how many bits that used to be a pain to remove are coming off easy.
The bonnet should still be open, get in there and blast everything. Dont be a pussy. If you're scared, have the motor running.

Now lets give this thing a scrub.
Start by rinsing the broom out with the high pressure soap.
Take note. it is not the brush itself that can scratch your car, it's trying to continue using it when the time and soap have run out and you're too cheap to put more coins in.
take your time here. start at the roof, and work yourself down and around, panel by panel. over lap your strokes. Get in and around everything.
As i get to the rear of my car, i like to get on my knees and brush over the chrome muffler cans. this kind of stuff will make the world of difference.

the bonnet is still up yeah? give the engine cover a scrub.

Rinse time.
I start at the engine bay where i started long ago (10 minutes maybe).
work your way round just as you did with step one, but instead of just concentrating on the low stuff, start high, and use the water you're spraying on top to wash the soap off below.
Once you've taken the soap off the body, open the doors and blast out the green. Wholah clean hinges. Close up again and just rinse any dirt or soap you've dislodged while doing your hinges.

Thats It.
Take it out now and Chamois it down.
Start on the body, start at the top.
Always it's start at the top.

dont forget your door jams. While the doors are open, i like to chamois the dash and door trims ect.

And thats it. Polish if you like (i wont get into that here) Add some tire shine (Silicon only! avoid citrus based tire shine, it just flings off) I like to stray tire shine on the black plasctic sections on the rear bumper, under the gaurds and in the front bumper and lip.

Your results should look like this.

Image

Image

Image

Image

Now stand back and enjoy.
This result took me 35 minutes in total.
Insert Sig Here
User avatar
Scyance
 
Posts: 55
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 9:24 pm
Location: Truganina, Vic
Car: MY05 Liberty 3.0R
Real name: Brenton
Profile URL: www.showspec.com.au

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby Kekotic » Sat Dec 24, 2011 4:44 pm

Interesting guide.

A few things I don't agree with though.

For starters I don't think spraying the engine bay is a good idea at all. You didn't even mention wrapping things up like this fuse box / alternator / battery and air box. There is too much electrical shit in the engine bay to screw over.
I spoke to Damien at Final Inspection and asked him if he does engine bay degreasing and he says he doesn't do it for anyone because he knows of far too many people who bring in their cars to him with replaced ECU's (A particular Range Rover he mentioned that had to get a $5000 ECU replacement) and other stuff because they took it to a "detailer" and they fucked some electrical stuff up. If it absolutely has to be done he will do it but not use a lot of water, especially not from a high pressure hose.

And secondly my gripe is with using car washes when you want to properly clean the car. I understand that some people may not have the ability to wash their car at home, but if you do there is no substitute. The detergents in car washes are highly acidic and will strip off your wax and sealants in no time. It's okay to use a car wash every now and then if you are away from home (on holidays etc) and need to wash off a lot of dirt, but I just don't understand why so many people on this forum insist on washing their cars at a car wash if they have the ability to do it at home.

Finally. Chamois.
Do not use a Chamois, they are outdated and crappy.
Waffleweave microfibre drying towel (combined with a high quality microfibre cloth for a 2nd dry over to ensure you have zero water left over from streaking), go for a high quality one. In fact you should only be using a microfibre wash mitt also.
Hamish_023 has been trialling a lot of different microfibre products lately to try and find the best available, so hopefully he will shed some light on what to use.

I personally use the Final Inspection MF wash mitt, and waffleweave drying towel. Other cloths I have mentioned in the detailing thread that I use for spritzers (FI gloss spritzer is what I use) for the after drying process to give it that freshly waxed look and to keep up the beading levels.
User avatar
Kekotic
-stickered-
 
Posts: 6452
Joined: Tue Jun 08, 2010 6:46 pm
Car: MY07 Liberty GT Spec.B
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=13066

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby Scyance » Sat Dec 24, 2011 5:05 pm

Like i said, I have been a detailer for 10 years, never in my experiance has an electrical system been damaged by washing an engine bay. I did not include protecting electrical devices because it's not required.
I have a qualification in Auto Electrics to back this up.
Insert Sig Here
User avatar
Scyance
 
Posts: 55
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 9:24 pm
Location: Truganina, Vic
Car: MY05 Liberty 3.0R
Real name: Brenton
Profile URL: www.showspec.com.au

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby Kekotic » Sat Dec 24, 2011 5:09 pm

Fair enough.

But speaking with Damien who has over 20 years experience and is arguably the best detailer in Melbourne. Engine bay degreasing is a no-no especially if you don't know what you are doing.
At least put some plastic bags over the alternator and fuse box. A simple google search will yield you thousands of examples of people that have ruined electrical parts in their car by trying to degrease their engine bay.

I myself have degreased the engine bay once, and by recommendation of people of this very forum was instructed to place plastic bags over the battery, fuse box, alternator and air box. The air box because when degreasing the engine bay you generally take out the air intake guide for more room to degrease, and you don't want to be spraying degreaser / water directly onto the air filter.
User avatar
Kekotic
-stickered-
 
Posts: 6452
Joined: Tue Jun 08, 2010 6:46 pm
Car: MY07 Liberty GT Spec.B
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=13066

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby hamish_023 » Sat Dec 24, 2011 5:23 pm

This thread is LOL worthy.

- Washing your car with the brush that is used for clean dirty four wheel drives/ brake dust build and and has never been replaced for a few years. (A quick spray of the gun won't get rid of that).
- Silicone tyre shine = no.
- The water and detergent at these places will deteriorate all of your wax/sealant significantly as the cleaners are strong and not PH neutral.
User avatar
hamish_023
 
Posts: 3608
Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2009 8:21 pm
Location: Adelaide
Car: Black Liberty GT
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=10013

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby Scyance » Sat Dec 24, 2011 5:42 pm

I'm just passing on my experience.

Image
Insert Sig Here
User avatar
Scyance
 
Posts: 55
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 9:24 pm
Location: Truganina, Vic
Car: MY05 Liberty 3.0R
Real name: Brenton
Profile URL: www.showspec.com.au

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby Kekotic » Sat Dec 24, 2011 6:15 pm

Thanks for pointing that out Hamish, I was far too eager to point out the dangers of engine bay washing that I didn't bother to properly read Scyances entire post.

I assumed that Scyance, considering you refer to yourself as a detailer (with 10 years experience I might add) you would have the common sense to Never ever EVER wash a car using the brushes provided at a Carwash.

The brushes at a car wash are designed as a "1 size fits all" sort of deal. There is no special section for 4WD's caked in mud, or any car caked in mud for that matter. So every car wash brush is designed to be able to clean the dirtiest of cars, without being made of steel wool, so that it can also be used on average joes car who wants to do a quick clean without the hassle of needing to know anything about detailing other than water + soap + pressure = clean.

It's a shame that the detailaddiction forums are invite only now, because I would love to show you a test that Damien from Final Inspection did on his older model Lexus. He took it to an auto car wash just as an experiment to see what would happen. The pictures spoke for themselves, he had scratches all over the car, and it actually ripped off some of the parts from his car. Now the only real difference between an auto wash and a car wash is that the auto wash does the work for you, but they still use the same style of brushes. Brushes designed to clean any vehicle no matter how dirty it is.
Anyone who has ever washed their car at home knows how easily any little bit of gritt can stick to your wash mitt. So needless to say the brushes at a car wash are absolutely full of little bits of sand / grit and other contaminants. If you are happy to scrape a "brush" across your car that is not only harsh with it's coarseness by design to be able to clean the dirtiest of cars imaginable, but also completely contaminated with basically sand and other particles, then you should not be able to call yourself a detailer.

I'm sure you enjoy your car looking "clean" for a few days from a distance in easy lighting, but if you owned a black car you wouldn't be so quick to post this guide. which I will refer to as the "Everything to avoid when washing your car guide". A properly washed car with intact wax/sealant will remain clean for weeks, AND be far easier to clean when it does get dirty compared to a car that is stripped of it's sealant/wax because you thought using a car wash was a good idea.

I don't intend to be mean, but when I see a post filled with this much bad advice, I need to jump in and stop people from damaging their vehicles. There are a couple of detailers on this forum who would be more than happy to speak with you in PM's about detailing tips etc. But you really need to re-evaluate your title if you honestly consider yourself a detailer, because no real detailer (or just general knowledge car enthusiast like myself) would ever use a carwash brush on their car.

I'll end my post with this.
There are a lot of "Detailers" around. If you notice in my first post on this thread I mentioned "detailers" who have fucked customers cars because they don't know what they are doing, yet they call themselves a detailer. I don't consider myself a detailer, but I at least speak with someone who I know is an amazing detailer (hamish_023) for advice and tips on how to maintain a car, and I'm constantly changing the way I wash my car based on Hamishes advice as new products and techniques emerge.

This thread is a prime example of a "Detailer" who has no idea what they are doing because they are stuck in the past of 20 years ago and refuses to actually learn anything or take advice, case in point "haters gunna hate"

Also don't EVER wash your engine bay at a car wash, and if you do it at home please use proper precautions as I have listed above to reduce your risk of electrical damage.
User avatar
Kekotic
-stickered-
 
Posts: 6452
Joined: Tue Jun 08, 2010 6:46 pm
Car: MY07 Liberty GT Spec.B
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=13066

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby Scyance » Sat Dec 24, 2011 7:20 pm

1. I take great pride in my skills as a detailer, i have been doing it for a long time, for a lot of different people.
2. I will not pussyfoot around getting something clean.
3. I did at the end make mention of polishing the car, i felt no need to add that to what in simple terms was just the guide that i think lets you get the most done, in a short time, as thoughourly as possible.
4. The things i've had to repair from people doing this stuff wrong would astound you, as would the condition new cars arrive into the country in.
5. Modern electrical systems will work under water.
6. the rangerover ECU example was poor. They die on their own.
Insert Sig Here
User avatar
Scyance
 
Posts: 55
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 9:24 pm
Location: Truganina, Vic
Car: MY05 Liberty 3.0R
Real name: Brenton
Profile URL: www.showspec.com.au

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby Rome_BRZ » Tue Jan 31, 2012 8:31 am

Each to their own, I wouldn't wash my car at a car wash heard too many horror stories! But I guess for time poor people it would be ok, it does save a shit load of time and how much is your time worth? Just get your car resprayed in 5 years time and it evens itself out :lol:

PS Keiran I've heard a few things about Final Inpsections products from a few trusted and well known detailing product stores and I have now formed my own opinion of why the detailing addicition forum is now invite only...methinks it has more to do with preserving the good feedback on his products more than anything else! But I've got loads of conspiracy theories :wink:
Rome_BRZ
formerly Rome_STI
 
Posts: 4305
Joined: Wed Apr 13, 2011 8:06 pm
Location: Sydney, NSW
Car: 2015 Audi S3 Sedan
Real name: Jerome
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=12392

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby tangcla » Tue Jan 31, 2012 8:46 am

Scyance wrote:6. the rangerover ECU example was poor. They die on their own.

lol. This could very well be true. :)
www.tangcla.com - photography

Canon 5D Mark III x2 | 16-35mm f/2.8L | 24-70mm f/2.8L IS | 70-200mm f/2.8L IS
100mm f/2.8L IS macro | 200mm f/2.0L IS | 580EX-II x2 | 430EX-II | PocketWizard TT1/TT5
User avatar
tangcla
 
Posts: 7409
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2007 1:47 pm
Location: Melbourne, VIC
Car: B6 Audi S4 (4.2L V8)
Real name: Clarence
Profile URL: http://www.tangcla.com

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby <GB> » Tue Jan 31, 2012 11:02 am

i was a detailer for a company a few years back, i did prestige detailing, many times we had electrical issues either water in the dizzy cap, water in the plug holes, plugs and conectors the come apart... blowing holes through old deteriated hoses, or even blowing off vacuum hose under inlet manifolds causing massive vacuum leaks

in my experience as a motor mechanic and having our own in house detailing system which can pump out around 20-100 cars a day, ive had lots of issues with water from high pressure hoses, the cars go in there running come out not running lol issues like abs module pugs can get water in them and they corrode, water in the spark plug holes which is most common, if you were to get water in the back bank of the magna you have to pull the inlet manifold off nothing like a 1.5 hr job... possible ecu damage on barina's as they are under the bonnet, what we are taking about is high pressure water forcing its way in not a car in the rain or in some flood water there is a big difference

i never used high pressure under late model prestige cars, i rather use a rag and wipe the areas, use brake cleaner and wipe the grease and oil off, if you do use one you just have to be really mindful of where you point the high pressure hose, i still do use the pressure hose under bonnets though i can fix them

some cars run fine untill they warm up a little then missfire due to water in the plug holes on in the dizzy caps

we have had many cars come through and you can tell which ones use the brushes lol this is more an issue when people use them to clean there wheels he brake dust is abrasive, also the edges of the brush where the handle joins it can damage or dint your car or even scratch it

water cars can cause corrosion and this may not happen straight away... may have issues down the track, rather reduce the risk
<GB>
 
Posts: 2290
Joined: Tue Nov 22, 2011 9:05 am
Location: MELBOURNE
Car: 08 Liberty STI
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=18&t=14660

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby hamish_023 » Tue Jan 31, 2012 4:11 pm

<GB> wrote:in my experience as a motor mechanic and having our own in house detailing system which can pump out around 20-100 cars a day,

:shock: What detailing was involved in pumping out 100 cars a day!
User avatar
hamish_023
 
Posts: 3608
Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2009 8:21 pm
Location: Adelaide
Car: Black Liberty GT
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=10013

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby <GB> » Tue Jan 31, 2012 4:51 pm

Auction, wholesale cars
<GB>
 
Posts: 2290
Joined: Tue Nov 22, 2011 9:05 am
Location: MELBOURNE
Car: 08 Liberty STI
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=18&t=14660

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby hamish_023 » Tue Jan 31, 2012 4:52 pm

What was involved in the detailing process?
User avatar
hamish_023
 
Posts: 3608
Joined: Mon Aug 10, 2009 8:21 pm
Location: Adelaide
Car: Black Liberty GT
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=10013

Re: Merry Christmas Tobes! (Also a how to perfect carwash)

Postby <GB> » Tue Jan 31, 2012 9:43 pm

hamish_023 wrote:What was involved in the detailing process?

The guys that do it are hack slap up jobs they pump them out and charge like $40, I have other external places that I use

The thing with our detailed they only do what needs don't the most and slap up the rest it's high volume, my other dudes charge from 100-165, when I did prestige detailing we charged 300-400
<GB>
 
Posts: 2290
Joined: Tue Nov 22, 2011 9:05 am
Location: MELBOURNE
Car: 08 Liberty STI
Profile URL: viewtopic.php?f=18&t=14660

Next

Return to Detailing

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests