Basic question on washing
 

Just bought a new 370z and have some newbie questions on keeping it clean.

In the FAQ sticky it recommends a full exterior detail 2x/yr. What do you do and how often in between those full details?

Do I have it right that a full exterior detail is 1) shampooing 2) claying 3)waxing 4) polishing?

So what do I do to maintain the wax and polish? Do you simply hose it down and microfiber dry once or twice a wk to maintain the wax? Or do you wash soap as well?

Thanks

When I first got it I washed it once a week with a virgin lambs wool cloth moistened with the tears of newborn baby cheetah and applied a cream churned up by Tibetan monks. After the 14th rock chip it gets washed every time it rains.

Your steps are backwards. Polish comes before wax. Polish is used to remove swirl marks on the clear coat. Wax is to protect the paint from water.

I polish my car 2-3 times a year. Very lightly with a flex polisher and Mezerna fg400 polish. For wax is use Sonax Polymer net shield. It's a great water repellant. I hand wash about once every 2-3 weeks (2 bucket method) and reapply the polymer net shield every other time. Car stays pretty clean since the net shield repels enough water that if sitting still in the rain for 30 mins the car is washed down and removed of loose dirt.

I'm gonna switch to 22ple (a hard sealant) next as I'm looking for longer protection.

For spot touch ups I use Adams detail spray or Waterless Wash with a few microfiber towels

Never run a dry cloth over the paint or over a wet car that hasn't been shampooed or properly lubricated.

Go to YouTube and watch all of Junkman's videos.

I have a bit of common sense logic for you OP. The only reason that you would need to completely fix your paint every two years is if you jack it up for two years. Why not fix it once, and not jack it up again? That's an earth shattering idea, huh! Here's where you need to start your conquest.

The man has spoken.

Thank you sir. :tiphat:

The biggest thing is what products you use on your car..
I'm specifically talking about wash mitt, soap, bucket and drying towels
I use Adams micro towels, merino wool wash mitt, bucket with GRIT guard ( a must) and a PH balanced wash which I like mothers PH wash.

Also when I dry I don't drag the micro towel over the car, rather I dab the water off.
Also be sure to wipe off bird crap, acid rain or anything else that can contaminate the clear coat as soon as you possibly can.

I personally have clear bra over 90 percent of my 370z and treat it the same as I recommend above.

Sealants are great to use as they typically last a little longer then waxes and are very easy to apply. Rejex is a great sealer for paint and Xpel make a great sealant for clear bra (avoid petroleum products on clear bras, ok for regular paint), for wax Zymol (No petroleum) or Zaino are great products.

-Chad

A great questions to ask. A full detail depends on a few things in the year of driving. Have you worn off your wax? How well do you maintain a clean car properly meaning not introducing new swirls. and so on. I myself because I pickup very few new swirls in a year will only do a light polishing and a full 2 day detail once a year. With a nice in depth washing/cleaning a few times a year without any polishing or claying. The rule of thumb is you should keep your hands off your paint as much as possible and keep it as nice as possible to the point your happy with it. Polishing twice a year can really cut down on how much clear coat you have. Even when I do a full detail I only go after the spots that need swirl correction or get marring from claying. I wish my car at least every other week, once a week if it gets bad as it does sit outside, with 2 bucket method and foam gun to insure I keep scratching and swirls to a min.

As for what products you use can also effect what your results are. I prefer uber from detailers domain over adams as I have used them both.

It all depends on how often you drive it, where you live, environmental conditions, etc, etc.

My car hasn't been washed since August. But then again, it's been sitting in a garage since then.

Understand?

That's like saying that you can die from driving fast, without defining what "fast" is. What an elderly person may consider fast could be slower than the posted speed limit. Driving slower than the posted speed limit could get you killed in a large city. :D

It depends on the polisher and polish that you are using, as well as your technique. I may touch up my paint 10 times a year, but I am only using a very light polish and finishing pad, along with the PC because that's all the power I need. So you really can't make a blanket statement like that without defining exactly what is being used.

Very true, let me go into detail a bit, if your using a compound once a year your cutting a lot of clear coat off. Where as I use a finishing polish like FF 3000 and a orange or white pad for my yearly work unless a spot needs more extensive correction.

I'll go along with that. Although once you have fully corrected your paint, you should never have a need to use anything more aggressive than a white pad. That's is, if you are properly touching your paint. Of course this only applies as long as something never happens to your paint that was beyond your control (like a fat woman with a garbage bag for a purse grinding up against your paint as she goes by).

Would you recommend a car cover? If so what kind? I have no garage, only a carport but my driveway is too steep -- I don't want to ty for fear of scraping the bottom. So the Z sits at the end of my driveway.

Car covers are as different as women. There are a million flavors and what might be good for Donald Trump might not be good for Billy Bob down on the ranch. That's why I created a thread about car covers, and included a chart (broken down by indoor and outdoor categories), so that you can make an informed decision about the car cover that meets your needs.