Everyone says it was a mistake.....

[genebrownlow]

Ok, so I missed out on the original muscle car area becuase I was married, kids and in the Air Force. So, I saw the new Camaro and thought it would be my chance. The Black with Orange stripes just caught my eye so I made the lunge.

I actaully made a couple of post on here and seems the more I did the worse it looked but the dealership still owed me a full detail and I pick it up today.

So my questions are, a lot of you guys are professional detailers and have tools, experience and the knowledge of tons of products. Because of the black paint, should I just plan on taking it to a professional everytime it needs detailing?

Can a rookie really keep a quality black car looking like a professional?

And lastly, can I drive the car "somewhat" regularly and keep it looking good or do I need to just drive it on special occasions?

I have seen lots of tips and hints on this website but I would really like for hte car to have the deep wet look it has now every time I drive it and that seems a daughting task at best.

[Murr1525]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

Since many professionals will make black look worse, I am sure you can at least do that well.

What were you trying to do before that made it look worse?

[Deaner5]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

I think you have to set goals for yourself, mainly being what do you want from this car, a semi-daily driver that you will have to work hard to take care of (or find a good detailer to take care of it), or a show car that you won't drive a ton.

One thing you will learn is key is prevention. If you use the right tools and know how to prevent swirls from getting onto the surface that will be a ton of the work you need to keep it looking its best. This is of course assuming if will be perfect back from the dealer, which I and may others might say that is a losing assumption.

As for some of those preventative measures look into using grit guards for the two buckets you should use (one for your soap solution and another for just water to keep your mit clean). Do some searches for those as well as invest in good quality microfiber towels and good applicators. But first do some research and figure out how you treat your new pride and joy and figure it out from there. If you do decide you want to take care of it yourself MOL is a great place to research and ask questions.

[Keebler]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

I write this as a rookie that bought a black car about 9 months ago. It is a daily driver that stays outside. I have adopted a few practices as a result of reading this forum that have resulted in a black car that looks great and gets compliments regularly.

Specifically, the practices I've adopted include:
1) Wash weeekly with two bucket wash and grit guards
2) Dry with Leaf Blower to get big stuff and microfiber towel to get the rest
3) Every two months: Wash, Clay, ColorX, #26 Wax
4) Pay attention to where I park to avoid dings

I should say, first time I waxed, I also used SwirlX (with a DA).

These simple measures have allowed a rookie to keep a black daily driver very clean.

[Shack]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

Congrats on the new camaro! Always been a fan of the camaros - always wanted a 1969 Camaro. Still waiting. I did buy a brand new BLACK mustang 2 years ago, so I had some of the same questions you are having now.

First - as far as when you drive the car - that should be up to you, your future plans for it, etc. Keeping it clean and looking good only takes more time/money the more often you drive it (in general). Obviously, sitting in the garage, it won't get dirty.

As far as whether you can do the detailing yourself, or you want someone else to do it - that also depends on you. If you like washing/waxing your car and your budget doesn't allow professional detailing, that's a step in the "do it yourself" direction. If you don't like washing/waxing and your funds are "unlimited", well than a professional is your answer. If you're in the middle somewhere, I'll say that you can as a beginner make your car look pretty good. It take time to learn from this forum, and then patience on your side. I can tell you that you can NOT keep that black thing looking its best simply buy washing and waxing. You'll get swirl marks and microscratches just by looking at the car - and you probably have a bunch already gratiously installed by the dealer.

I tried a lot of different waxes my first year, and found that although they all do pretty good, none will remove or hide those micro scratches/swirls. This year I finally bought a meguiars DA polisher. It has worked great for polishing and removing those micro scratches/swirls. It does take time, but yes, you as a beginer can do it. If that's the path you chose, keep reading on here and asking questions. It will eventually soak in. And remember, if you try and you are unsuccessful, you can always take it to a professional once and a while and let them get it looking perfect.

One other quick point - Prevention, as Deaner5 mention, is a good plan. I actually hold the hose while I'm washing and rinse away the dirt I am loosening up - I also vigorously rinse my wash mit numerous times throughout the wash process to make sure I do not have any pebbles, rocks, hardened bug ****, or anything else stuck in my wash mit that will scratch the finish.

[genebrownlow]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

I really appreciate all the tips. Not based on money but based on the fact I enjoy taking care of my ride, I would prefer to do it myself. Also, The dealer does have some talented detailers because they do make it look pretty awesome. However I don't know if they are fixing or hiding flaws and I would enjoy getting to the point where I can do it myself the right way.

I have really enjoyed reading this forum and have learned a ton and am now considering investing in some detailing tools, minimal at first, and plan on learning as much as I can.

Hopefully I can keep it pretty nice and occasionally take to a professional once in a while to bring it back to where I want it.

Is there some place on line that I can find a quality local detailer? They all talk a good game but unlike prosports there are no published records in the newspaper.

[Murr1525]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

Well, there is at least one insanely good detailer down there in Texas in Nick, and I am sure we have other good members down there.

You can always place a post in the Detailer Wanted forum, and see what turns up. A good detailer could probably have you do it with them.

[akimel]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

I'm a strong believer in taking ownership of the detailing of one's cars, when it is practical. In the long run it will save you oodles of money; on the other hand, it will require you to invest many hours over the course of year. Only you can determine which is more important to you, the time or the money.

I am an owner of a black car. Black can break your heart. You can spend hours polishing the paint and removing all the swirls, and within a month discover that new swirls have been instilled, usually by yourself. No matter how much I refine my wash and quick detailing techniques, I still inflict swirls on the paint. And then, of course, there is the never-ending battle with water spots. Black paint reveals everything. It is utterly unforgiving.

But black is beautiful. There's no other color like it. When you get it looking just right, well, the feeling is sweet.

To maintain your sanity, though, I recommend that you adopt the three-foot rule: if your car looks great from three feet away, rejoice!

[Kornercarver]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

Here are a few pictures of my daughter's VW Jetta. I just detailed this car after it hasn't been waxed for two years. I think it was only run through a car wash occasionally and it was getting in pretty bad shape. After about 10 hours of work, it turned out pretty good..........











Black cars look awesome when clean and properly waxed.

[dvtldav]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

You can do it yourself if you are willing to put in the time and effort. I have a 2007 Buick Lucerne that is dark blue that looks better than when I picked it up from the dealer. I started using Meguiar's about 3 months after getting my car and have never looked back. After reading a lot on this forum and asking a lot of questions, some I am sure others thought were dumb, I feel I can do a pretty good job. In fact I have detailed for or five cars for monetary gain and the owners couldn't believe that it wasn't done in at a professional detailer's. So make up your mind, read a lot on this forum, and ask a lot of questions and you will be fine.

Dave

[SVT Lightning]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

My truck is a '99...looks better than most new ones. Read all the info here and invest in a PC/Megs dual-action polisher to keep that black lookin new!

[SVT Lightning]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

Ooops...forgot the pic!

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

I agree with Al. Take ownership of the detailing of your vehicle. With time and practice you will have it looking as good, if not better then most detailers will.

As for how much you drive her. Only you can answer that. As your skills get appreciably better, you will probably drive her more often.

Enjoy the Camaro. They are great looking.

[ripple_effect]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

my 2 cents...

If you are in doubt of 'doing it right' the first time, then bring your Camaro to a reputable detailer first. Then befriend the detailer and try to get the 'trade' secrets. Invest on the tools and equipments too. When you muster enough courage, then try little by little detailing your Camaro (btw, Camaro looked awesome)- experimenting but do remember, no room for mistakes. all and still, it is a learning process.

It was a great feeling when others do say "Is that your car? It looked great!"


Thanks.

[BobbyG]

Re: Everyone says it was a mistake.....

I'm one of those individuals that do just about everything myself. I've done this through the years primarily for two reasons; cost and quality. Through the years the term "professional" has become diluted, overused, abused, and downright distorted to the point where it means an absolute zero unless it can be quantified. It seems that every time I have someone else do the work 9 times out of 10 I end up redoing in order to correct it. If it was done right the first time I would not be as critical.

Detailing is an art, not a science. While reading and understanding what to use and when to achieve a specific goal is worthwhile doing it gains you the hands on experience you'll need to achieve the desired end result.

I detail my own vehicles as well as a few others but I do it for pleasure and not so much for the money. I take pride and pleasure in what I do and that's another reason everything comes out great. Can you become anal about things? The answer is overwhelmingly yes but you also have to recognize what constitutes "good enough".

Show Car or Daily Driver

Show cars are those trophy's that are kept indoors and are relatively ever driven on the road. They see little sun and never driven in the rain or snow. They are prized investments and are pampered to the extreme and in most cases worth a great deal of money, so their care is justified.

Daily drivers are just that; we drive them as part of our routine. Whether it be to work, store, trips, or a thousand different reasons they see it all. This said, it does not mean we don't or shouldn't try to take care of this vehicle but we need so set the goal or expectation bar a notch or two lower.

As hard as we may try this cars finish will never be perfect in every way. It will always have some minor defects whether it be swirls, holograms, scratches, or slight blemishes, it will not be perfect.

My Z06 Corvette is a garage queen. It comes out occasionally and is driven on the same roads as my truck. Does it finish look a bit better than my truck? Absolutely because for the most part it sees maybe 1/1000th of what my truck sees.

Don't be afraid to do your own detailing as you'll find it interesting and very rewarding knowing you did it and it was done right.