After 12 long months...

[amf]

This is my daily driver: A 2 year old black Honda Civic. I am able to regularly maintain the exterior/interior but have no time really to regularly detail the engine compartment.

A few weeks back, I clayed it after the usual shampoo then DC 1 and 2 then NXT wax. I am in the Philippines and Meg products are not readily available here and if it is, the price is astronomical!

I have the DCs 1 and 2, NXT paste and liquid waxes, NXT Generation car wash and Scratch X. I can't find Meg's QD here so I'm using another brand. The same goes for the interior protectants.

Today is a holiday here in the Philippines (Lent) and I finally had the time to put some effort in detailing/cleaning the engine. After 3 hours, the before and after pics....

BEFORE:






AFTER (everything pictured are already dry. No oily residues):




I used a non-Meg product to detail the engine (hey they're not available here!). I sprayed it with an all-in-one degreaser, cleaner and sealant that dries to the touch but leaves everything shiny. It also claims to seal everything from water especially the electronics. It really works.

I then applied Scratch X and NXT wax on the painted surfaces.

[amf]

Re: After 12 long months...

What would you suggest I use to get rid of the stubborn stains in the exhaust manifold cover? Thanks!

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: After 12 long months...

Your engine looks way better. I would be just guessing on what to use on that stain,due to the difficulty you have in obtaining products. Hope someone in your area has a better idea. Good luck.

[amf]

Re: After 12 long months...

Thanks!

[roushstage2]

Re: After 12 long months...

I would imagine some sort of metal polish could be used.

The engine looks great though! That AIO product looks a lot better than one I have tried.

[amf]

Re: After 12 long months...

I would imagine some sort of metal polish could be used.

The engine looks great though! That AIO product looks a lot better than one I have tried.

Thanks!

I've been using it for years. Easy to use and leaves a dry film on the surface that helps to ease succeeding details/cleaning and it doesn't attract dirt or dust.

I'll post some pics tomorrow showing the car exterior finish. I am just finding it quite hard to use the NXT Spray Wax. It seems to leave quite a bit of an oily residue when removed. I use a microfiber cloth and the swipe test before wiping it off and sometimes creates streaks. Re-application removes it though.

If I lightly dampen the microfiber cloth with some QD and then use it to wipe off the liquid wax, will it affect or diminish the effect of NXT Spray Wax?

Thanks again!

[roushstage2]

Re: After 12 long months...

What product is it?

As for the spray wax, I'm not too sure. The only time I use a spray wax is when I am drying the car.

[Mr Miyagi]

Re: After 12 long months...

What would you suggest I use to get rid of the stubborn stains in the exhaust manifold cover? Thanks!

High temp paint

[Mr Miyagi]

Re: After 12 long months...

You might want to check your brake fluid level too. From the pics it looks a bit low

[amf]

Re: After 12 long months...

roushstage2: Is it okay to post non-Meg brands here? I'll try that spray wax thing... Thanks.

Mr Miyagi: I'll try the metal polish thing first. About the brake fluid (sharp eyes! ), yeah, I checked it but it's just a hair below the MAX level. The MIN level is almost at the bottom of the cup. Thanks!

I just finished detailing the car, I'll post some pics in a moment...

Thanks to all those who peeked!

[amf]

Re: After 12 long months...

After more than 6 hours of detailing, here are the results:


















I was not able to take "Before" pictures but the car has light swirl and hard water marks all over.

The method I used was:

1. Wash with NXT Generation Car Wash. Wiped and dried with microfiber cloth.

2. Applied DC 1 and 2 using a Black & Decker Orbital Polisher (I'd love to have the G110 but it's not available here). This was the hardest part. I found it very hard to remove/wipe DC 2. It dries very quickly! And the orbital polisher doesn't have enough oomph to remove the defects in 1 or 2 applications. It needs at least 4!

3. Applied NXT Paste Wax and wiped it off with microfiber cloth.

Not bad for a 6 hour work, eh?

Edit: My NXT Paste Wax have cracked and look dry. I have it for about more than a year now and is quite hard to apply. Is there any way I can "revive" it? It costs about $40 a piece here so no "Go out and buy a new one!" replies please...

[christian6984]

Re: After 12 long months...

Very Nice, i have never used DC2 only DC1 maybe work smaller areas if the temprature your working in is rather hot.

Christian

[amf]

Re: After 12 long months...

Very Nice, i have never used DC2 only DC1 maybe work smaller areas if the temprature your working in is rather hot.

Christian

That's what I did and it really dries fast! At some points, I have to use a QD to remove DC 2. It was very tiring. Thanks.

I am planning to put a 2nd layer of NXT but due to the problem I stated about my NXT paste wax drying and cracking, can I use NXT Spray wax instead? Will it give me the same result? TIA.

[Sydster]

Re: After 12 long months...

Nice Work on the engine!

[amf]

Re: After 12 long months...

Nice Work on the engine!

Thanks!

and uhhhh how 'bout the external finish...?