Help with my Show Car

[Old Bear]

Re: Help with my Show Car

I can definitely relate to your situation.

The El Camino was painted in 2013, and I purchased it in early 2014.
I have never taken a water hose to anything but the aluminum wheels.
I found I had to abandon the car duster. In fairness, it was not a California Car Duster brand.

Primarily, I use Meguiar's Ultimate Waterless Wash and Wax (G3626) or Meguiar's Rinse Free Express Wash and Wax (D115 diluted 4:1).

D115 comes in a gallon and is a concentrate. It is designed to reduce costs by diluting with distilled water. Then using a quality mist sprayer on the smaller bottle.
Be cognizant of storing detailing supplies in those cold windy OK winters. Been there, and did not have a garage. I know those ice storms can be cold and summers hot.

One thing that might help is being OCD on towel management.
I don't want to rub dirt or dust into the paint.
I start by folding the quality microfiber towel in half and then half again.
That makes 8 sections of the towel.
I then spray a panel or maybe only 1/2 of the rear fenders, top or hood.
Now, I visually break that down even further.
I take a small clean sub section of the 1/8 towel section, like the very end and roll the edge as I make one swipe.
My goal is to pick up the dirt, yet rather than a hard 3/8" dark line, I want to see the dirt picked over a wider 3/4" to full one inch section.
This technique tries to not push the dirt into the paint, by providing clean towel as you roll it with you fingers.
The towel section is then curled and a new section is provided as we do the next wipe.
Don't allow the dirt from the towel to touch the clean parts of the towel or the paint (reduce as much as possible).
Remain aware of where the dirt is on your towel.
Check frequently for wide rather than narrow lines.
I might only get 4 or 5 wipes from a towel section.
Use a separate microfiber towel to lightly buff after each 1/2 section or full panel.
Rotate the buffing towel folded into 1/8th through to clean sections as needed.

Does it matter if you use 6 microfiber towels or 16 microfiber towels to clean your car?
You are going to wash them anyway in a separate wash load.

Hopefully this image will illustrate what to expect to see on your cleaning towel.

[BillyJack]

Re: Help with my Show Car

If it's a show car that's not driven regularly, use either a rinseless or waterless wash to avoid leaving water in places where it could lay, causing rust problems later. Both UP and M205 are fine, M205 being the more aggressive of the two, but if the scratches are that minor, you may want to try the new 3 in 1 Wax first.
It will accomplish minor scratch removal, polishing and wax protection, which you can top later with your wax of choice. Ultimate Wax is the longest lasting product, but for a beautiful glow on a classic car where durability is not the primary concern, you may want to try Gold Class or M26.

Bill

[Marietta]

Hi All! I have a 1969 Barracuda that went thru a total frame off restoration before I bought it in 2013. The seller told me not to wash it, but to just keep it clean with the California Car Duster and Wizards Mist & Shine/microfiber cloths. I’m pretty particular, and the car still looks and shows good, but it’s starting to get some tiny scratches in the paint that are driving me crazy even though no one else seams to notice them. I feel I need to do something more, but I’m not quite sure what. Right now I am thinking of trying:
Meguiars Ultimate Wash & Wax or Gold Class Shampoo & Conditioner
Ultimate Polish or M205
P21S Wax or Meguiars Ultimate Liquid Wax
I will be doing everything by hand for now and want as fool proof, show quality results as possible. Any quality suggestions between the products I’ve found or any others would be MUCH appreciated. I do NOT want to mess it up! It looks really good now, I just want to up it to excellent.


Thanks!