NW Minnesota here

[musthavemuzk]

Finally got back here to see what i can learn to keep Ruby lookin good. Ruby is my baby. 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP 40th Anniversary Edition
i picked her up last june. all i did last year was keep the dirt off. now with a new year i want to go further than just washing her.

last fall i picked up a Mothers clay kit, but have not used it yet.

items i have used
Meguiars gold class wash
Meguiars quick detailer
i forget the tire dressing brand
Mothers chrome polish
simple green on engine bay
micro fiber towels and MF drying towel from walmart
Meguiars leather cleaner/conditioner
i started with a chamois, but kept reading bad things about them as well as it did not last but about 2.5 months so it went in the trash.
i started with a lambs wool mitt, but it lasted about 3 months and was unable to find one to replace it. then i ended up with a MF mitt from walmart and that is what i have used so far this year.

wants
i added pics to my gallery here.
in the one pic is the reflection from the car show i went to less than a week after i got Ruby. it is ok, but i want better.

i am not sure which is more important. deep reflection or wet look. or if they are one in the same.

there is also a pic of the engine bay. it is clean, but not shiny clean like i want.

now mind you this is a daily driver. since i took delivery last june i have put 17,000 miles on her.
i do plan on drag racing her some more.
i also plan on showing in more shows.

i am not looking for a perfect car. i am looking for a car that says HEY my owner LOVES me and takes care of me.
i, like many others are limited on time, so it is important to be easy to maintain. and then for shows or just cuz it can get some extra TLC to make it stand out.


for now i am reading and taking lots in.

will likely see me asking as i have questions.

Monty

[angie1313]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Welcome to the forums...seems like you're already an expert on Meguiars! Maybe you should be a Mod.

[BlueZero]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Welcome Monty and Ruby!

[Mike Phillips]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Welcome to Meguiar's Online!

[yalerd]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Hi and welcome to Meguiar's Online!

[RaskyR1]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Welcome to MOL Monty!

It's nice to see more MN peeps joining the forum.

Maybe if we keep getting more MN members joining Meguiars will hold a detailing class here! Squeak Squeak!



Rasky

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: NW Minnesota here

to mol.

[Kooz]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Sweet ride. Of course I'm partial to Grand Prix's because I used to own one and it was the best car I ever had. You've come to the right place to learn the best ways to take care of Ruby.

[Thriller]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Welcome aboard. I've managed to get through TRF a few times...when I take the back roads to get off the Interstates, especially with the old cars. It's nice to get a little bit off the beaten path.

[musthavemuzk]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Thanx for the welcome.
as for being an expert on Meguiars....lets just say the first time i used it was many many moons ago thanx to my dad. my first car was a 73 Camaro in black. dad's ride was a 75 K5 Blazer in black. so they both got the cleaner wax treatment. this was in 86. dad had used the wax for a couple years already. until now though i had never really taken the time to care about any of my cars the way i do. don't get me wrong i have always loved cars, but til now i never put the efforts into my own car. the last car i had got washed and waxed and that was it. at 310,000 miles on the ticker it was time to move on to what i really wanted. i really wanted a GP or other supercharged 3800 cars. the GP and Monte stuck out as the leaders.

i have been looking at the car forums, but just not getting the info that i was happy with. so google here i am. help me out.

many brands out there to choose from. this place helped sell the brand for sure. i already liked the brand. this forum is full of info and knowledge and just struck me as something i wanted to be a part of.

now if i can make some decisions and get some knowledge i can get Ruby to look great all the time.

i am 300 miles from the twin cities so it is difficult to say yes i will be there if Meguiars has something there for their product. would love to though as hands on goes along ways to getting the most from any product as well as the learning experience is always good.

last summer i went on some cruises with the local car club. had a great time. also it surprised me how many roads i did not know. so this spring i joined the club and have learned some more roads as well as hoping to learn more over time.
hoping to get to more shows this year as well.

Monty

[Deaner5]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Maybe if we keep getting more MN members joining Meguiars will hold a detailing class here! Squeak Squeak!

Ain't that the truth.

Nice to not only see another MN member but another with a Grand Prix. When I got mine in the summer of 2004 I did look at a 40th Ann. GP and I would have loved to have it but it was probably a little too much car for me back then (only a 20 year old). Instead I have an '01 RedFire GT and I hope people think that its own takes care of it.

As far as plans for maintaining, it depends. Granted your car is a DD, but is it DG (daily garaged)? For the past few years I have only clayed, used DC#1, #2 and waxed only once a year and kept a fairly fresh coat of wax (NXT or Gold Class) on the thing the rest of the year (usually every 4-6 weeks). I think the most important items in swirl prevention mainly by using the two bucket method and finish maintenaince along with other things.

I have a few pictures in my gallery of my GP as well. Happy detailing!!!!

[musthavemuzk]

Re: NW Minnesota here

you are aware they make the 40th in both a GT and GTP as well as Coupe and Sedan version?
i was originally shopping for a black GTP. but once i saw the 40th and the price was within my budget i knew that is what i going to get. to me black is THE color to have in a car. the dark cherry metallic of the 40th is close, verry close.

it is a daily driver that is not garaged. it sees the elements.

must be blind as i am unable to find your gallery.


Monty

[Deaner5]

Re: NW Minnesota here

Yeah, I knew that it came in both GT and GTP. I was looking at the GTP, would have been nice, but insurance probably wouldn't have been. Also, at one time I had a few pictures in my gallery and I can't find them either, I'll put them up one day.

As far as your car and it's finish, you probably are exposed to more contaiminants than I am and you might want to including claying in your regiment more often. I actually clayed a few portions of my car and while I had some stuff on there, it was enough where I could live with the rest and I only did the flat surfaces.

It's all about how much effort you want to put into it and how much can you live with. Once you find that comfort zone you'll know what to do. My car sees the garage all the time except for when I'm at work and I can live with a DD finish and know that I will not obtain that showroom quality finish unless I put a lot more effort into it.

It's like that old saying, it's easy to get 90% of the way, but that last 10% is hard. And when it comes to my daily driver, I'm content with that 90% or so.