When to detail next?

[Jim Massman]

After attending the detailing class I detailed 2 of my great drives:
1. 1966 Sunbeam Tiger with new BRG paint (for street driving, not "Show-Queen" shine) with very good improvement -- very happy.

2. 1993 MR2 with sun faded original red using Color-X -- much improved.

Both vehicles went thru the entire detailing process beginning with clay, etc., & Meguiar's orbital polisher. Very much worth the investment & effort.

My questions: What routine maintenance of the polished finish is recommended other than Quik Detailer as needed & when should I anticipate repeating the entire detailing procedure?

Also, your new metal polish is absolutely fasntastic!! I have abpot 3 brands of metal polish, but yours was the only one that removed a persistent haze on the Tiger's hub caps. I'd assumed that the trim around the windshield was either aluminum or severly damaged chrome -- your polish brought out beautiful chrome!!

Thnx-- Jim Massman (Bandit'n'Blu'sTurtle)

[Mike Phillips]

Hi Jim,

thanks for updating us and sharing your success stories with two of your cars. It's great to hear our detailing classes have a positive impact on people in our hobby.

As far as which product to use and how often to use them goes, this all depends upon the way the cars are used and stored. If you think back to the class you'll remember we went over

Meguiar's 5-Step Paint Care Cycle

Step 1 Wash
--> Evaluate the finish <---
Step 2 Clean

Step 3 Polish

Step 4 Protect

Step 5 Maintain


and one of the tasks we focus on is teaching people to Evaluate the finish to determine which products to use and how often to use them.

Basically, the more you drive a car, the more it is exposed to the elements as well as wear & tear and the more often you'll want to clay, clean, polish and wax the finish.

If the cars spend most of their time in a garage then they'll need less attention, less often.

[miked2]

If the paint still looks good after washing, and if it still feels basically slick, then I'll just use some spray wax, or, if I'm really in the mood, some #26 high tech yellow wax in paste form (which is a lot of fun to do!). Normal maintenance is just car duster and/or QD.

IMHO, I've found that the "complete cycle" of clay, clean, etc., is needed only around two times a year. But that's completely dictated by where you drive, climate, and how your car's garaged.