I am tired, need advice to finish car please

[Silvia]

I washed my car, dried it with the waffle towel, clay bar it with the quick detailer and have just finished the top of my mini cooper S with Swirl X....I am very physically tired. The rubbing the swirl X with the even coat applicator in circular motion and wiping it down is very tiresome.

Do I need to finish the rest of my mini cooper with the Swirl X or could I just do the ultimate liquid wax instead?

Is the ultimate liquid wax physically easier than the swirl X?

I put some pressure into wiping the swirlx off , do I need the same amount of pressure for the liquid wax? Can I apply more area at a time than with swirl x?

Thanks

[CHzo6]

Re: I am tired, need advice to finish car please

SwirlX and Ultimate wax are 2 different things; one does not replace the other. SwirlX is a mild cleaner/polish designed to remove minor swirls/cobwebbing effect in paint, while adding some polishing oils. It does require working into the finish and then removing. Ultimate wax is a last step product, designed for paint protection and appearance enhancing. It can be applied very easily with little pressure, left to cure for a short time, and removed very easily.

[Tafner]

Re: I am tired, need advice to finish car please

You only need to use Swirlx on the rest of your car if you need to correct the paint. But you can always get to it some other time if you are too tired.

Applying a wax is always easier than correcting paint, you don't need to use a lot of pressure, just spread a really thin layer and wipe it off after.

It seems that Ultimate Wax only needs a couple of minutes of drying time, so you can apply and remove it one panel at a time. You can work on a larger area when waxing, just don't go too far.

Hope it helps.

[Murr1525]

Re: I am tired, need advice to finish car please

Yeah... detailing will be a good workout.

As far as doing the whole car... Ult Wax has not cleaners, so going to get the best results from using a cleaner first.

Do you have the cleaner/wax in the kit? A coat of that first followed with a coat of Ult wax would be fast and easy.

Waxing doesnt require as much pressure. Just wipe firmly like a skin lotion.

Shouldnt need too much pressure removing proucts. Esp the wax. Be sure to apply rhe wax thin.

[Silvia]

Re: I am tired, need advice to finish car please

Decided to take short breaks and tackle my one and only detailing job . It is alot of work and physical labor. I just have the back of the mini to swirl X. Good to know that the ultimate liquid wax is easy and not as much physical work.

The car does look great but it takes a long time.

How much of the bottle of swirl X do i need to do a mini cooper? I think I squirt too much on the applicator as it is easier for me to apply.

[Murr1525]

Re: I am tired, need advice to finish car please

Hard to say really.. The more defects or dirt to remove, the more you'll use comapred to mild cleaning, wiping around.

[CWM3]

Re: I am tired, need advice to finish car please

Did you catch this video on the home page?

http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?p=462954#post462954

[Deaner5]

Re: I am tired, need advice to finish car please

This might be long-winded, but here goes. I think prevention is key. Think to yourself how the swirls got there in the first place (just lack of care, using a coin-op brush to wash, going to a drive-in car wash place where they take your car and you don't know what they do with it, ect.)

I have found that if I sit down and do a full detail with a DA polisher (wash, clay, clean, polish, wax) that takes a whole day, this usually last me for about a year and I wax (just wax only, maybe touch a spot or two with clay if needed) about every 6-8 weeks.

I keep a fairly fresh coat of wax on the car so it never looks bad per say. I also do every wash myself and make sure only clean microfibers and such touch the car. Parking in a garage every night and never parking under trees helps reduce the need for more frequent claying I use UQD, but rarely do I use a QD when the surface has dust on it to further reduce the chances of putting swirls into the car.

Another question you have to ask yourself is what type of finish are you after. While I would love to have a showroom finish with 100% perfect paint, I really just don't want to put the effort toward that, so I am content in the 85-95% range of perfection.

[Deaner5]

Re: I am tired, need advice to finish car please

As for your original question, sure take it section by section, but I would make sure you get a coat of wax on everything if you want to take some time off from correcting swirls. If you only have the energy/strength to clean and correct the hood and front fenders, just focus on that section. Once you are done, give the whole car a coat of wax and stand back and admire your work. In a few weeks, focus on the doors, ect. There is not a certain regiment you HAVE to follow, find something that works and use that. While it would be nice to clay everything and correct everything everytime you wash, I'm not sure that's realistic (at least for me it's not).