Where to start?!

[kd_london]

Hello all,

I've just discovered this site, wow what a fantastic place.! I’m very new to car detailing, to the extent that my Audi A5 is not in the best of conditions. I was looking at professional detailing (which can be very expensive, although I appreciate you are paying for experience and expertise) when I stumbled across clay bars, and found the Meguiar’s kit to be one of the best recommendations…and that led me here.

I want to get my car looking like it once did and then better – it is a 57 Audi A5, dark blue and when newly washed it can look quite nice…I’d like to get it looking REALLY nice!

So I have been reading guides, how to’s, threads and looking at the catalogues trying to work out how best to get going. I fully understand I am not an expert and likely won’t be one for a good while yet. However I’m happy to invest in the right products that are going to get my car back into the sort of condition it deserves.

There are a lot of contaminants that mainly stem from parking under trees at the train station (no more, I now park in the tree free area which is a longer walk but definitely worth it!). I also have a number of scratches down one side that come from brushing against trees/bushes in a tight local lane (again I now go a different route…shutting the stable door after…). There are also some small white dots that almost look like paint but are raised so you can feel them with a pass of your hand.

I know that I need to clay bar the car before doing anything more fancy, but currently my thought process is along making an investment in the following:

Ultimate wash & wax
Lambswool wash mitt
Water magnet drying towel

Once washed & dried I will clay the car and for that I will buy the:

Smooth surface clay kit
Once clayed I will wipe with the included supreme shine microfiber.

Next step will be to polish:

Ultimate polish
Applied with soft foam applicators (or should I just use the even coat applicators as I plan to use for the wax?)
Shined with supreme shine microfiber

Finally I will wax:

Ultimate wax
Applied with an even coat applicator pad
Wiped off with supreme shine microfiber
Shined with a different supreme shine microfiber

I am hoping that this process will bring the car back to life, and particularly remove the scratches from the side of the car. Do I need to consider the ScratchX 2.0 for this purpose, or even the Ultimate Compound? Are they necessary?

As an interim activity, is it worth investing in the Ultimate quick detailer and/or Ultimate quick wax, applied with the supreme shine microfiber? Is this a necessary or worthwhile thing to do? I would like to do a proper wash once per week but that isn’t always possible with my weekends, so if I used these products (or even the Ultimate wash and wax everywhere?) between washes would that help?

I am planning to go ‘all in’ with Meguiar’s materials – is this wise? My research has led me to believe it is right up there with the best of what is available, and while there might be some slightly better specific products, my thinking is that the Meguiar’s products will work well together in unison.

I know this is a decent sized investment, and it relies on me actually using them (!) but this way is a lot cheaper than taking it to a car detailier, allows me to do it myself, on an ongoing basis, improve my skill at doing it and is probably more satisfying, albeit quite hard work!

Thanks in advance for any comments or suggestions – appreciate your time. I will be sure to post before/after photo’s once I get settled on what to buy and get the first attempt done.

Cheers
Kerry

[The Guz]

Re: Where to start?!

First of all welcome ot MOL.

My next questions is are you planning to do this by hand or DA polisher? A DA polisher will always net you better results than doing it by hand. You have the right idea by washing and claying first. One other suggestion is to add a couple of the yellow foam applicators. They work great for applying waxes.

I am hoping that this process will bring the car back to life, and particularly remove the scratches from the side of the car. Do I need to consider the ScratchX 2.0 for this purpose, or even the Ultimate Compound? Are they necessary?

Out of these two I would get ultimate compound. It does sound like you have some stains and deep scratches. Ultimate compound will be my recommendation. But be warned up front that those stains could be etched deeper into the paint where a DA will be the better option. By hand you can make them less of an eye sore. Same thing with the scratches. If they are deep and you can feel them with your finger nail, then a compound will not remove them. Only fix is a repaint. Pictures are always helpful as well.

As an interim activity, is it worth investing in the Ultimate quick detailer and/or Ultimate quick wax, applied with the supreme shine microfiber? Is this a necessary or worthwhile thing to do? I would like to do a proper wash once per week but that isn’t always possible with my weekends, so if I used these products (or even the Ultimate wash and wax everywhere?) between washes would that help?

Both products are definitely worth it. They each have their place. Both can be used in between washes to give you that just waxed look. Ultimate quik wax will be the durable of the two. It's not a bad idea to carry a bottle of ultimate quik detailer in the trunk for those times where something gets on the car such as a bird bomb. Ultimate wash & wax anywhere is also great. It's a waterless wash that you can use when you don't have time to do a tradition 2 bucket wash. As long as it's not too dirty. I definitely recommend picking up many supreme shine microfibers as well as a couple water magnets.

Good reference video among others.

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?36525-Meguiar-s-Video-Training-Series-Maintain-Your-Finish

I am planning to go ‘all in’ with Meguiar’s materials – is this wise? My research has led me to believe it is right up there with the best of what is available, and while there might be some slightly better specific products, my thinking is that the Meguiar’s products will work well together in unison.

It's not a problem to go all Meguiar's. A majority of my products are Meguiar's. They are all made to work together. For the most part Meguiar's carries most products that you need. If they don't have it then there is another manufacturer that makes them.

The most important thing is to have fun and enjoy the results.

[kd_london]

Re: Where to start?!

First of all welcome ot MOL.

My next questions is are you planning to do this by hand or DA polisher? A DA polisher will always net you better results than doing it by hand. You have the right idea by washing and claying first. One other suggestion is to add a couple of the yellow foam applicators. They work great for applying waxes.



Out of these two I would get ultimate compound. It does sound like you have some stains and deep scratches. Ultimate compound will be my recommendation. But be warned up front that those stains could be etched deeper into the paint where a DA will be the better option. By hand you can make them less of an eye sore. Same thing with the scratches. If they are deep and you can feel them with your finger nail, then a compound will not remove them. Only fix is a repaint. Pictures are always helpful as well.



Both products are definitely worth it. They each have their place. Both can be used in between washes to give you that just waxed look. Ultimate quik wax will be the durable of the two. It's not a bad idea to carry a bottle of ultimate quik detailer in the trunk for those times where something gets on the car such as a bird bomb. Ultimate wash & wax anywhere is also great. It's a waterless wash that you can use when you don't have time to do a tradition 2 bucket wash. As long as it's not too dirty. I definitely recommend picking up many supreme shine microfibers as well as a couple water magnets.

Good reference video among others.

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?36525-Meguiar-s-Video-Training-Series-Maintain-Your-Finish

It's not a problem to go all Meguiar's. A majority of my products are Meguiar's. They are all made to work together. For the most part Meguiar's carries most products that you need. If they don't have it then there is another manufacturer that makes them.

The most important thing is to have fun and enjoy the results.

Thanks for your reply - very helpful.

I was intending to do by hand to start with...perhaps further down the line a polisher will be a good addition for me but before I go that far I'd like to make sure I'm getting on with everything else and starting to get the sort of look I'm hoping I get.

The scratches are not deep key-type scratches, they are more deeper scuffs from catching some branches/hedge. One is quite long but I think it will be removable - I will give the Ultimate Compound a go.

What is my best approach to this - Ultimate Compound the scratch first, and then go ahead with the wash/clay/polish/wax cycles or should I add in the Ultimate Compound element somewhere in between, perhaps after claying?

[kd_london]

Re: Where to start?!

First of all welcome ot MOL.

My next questions is are you planning to do this by hand or DA polisher? A DA polisher will always net you better results than doing it by hand. You have the right idea by washing and claying first. One other suggestion is to add a couple of the yellow foam applicators. They work great for applying waxes.



Out of these two I would get ultimate compound. It does sound like you have some stains and deep scratches. Ultimate compound will be my recommendation. But be warned up front that those stains could be etched deeper into the paint where a DA will be the better option. By hand you can make them less of an eye sore. Same thing with the scratches. If they are deep and you can feel them with your finger nail, then a compound will not remove them. Only fix is a repaint. Pictures are always helpful as well.



Both products are definitely worth it. They each have their place. Both can be used in between washes to give you that just waxed look. Ultimate quik wax will be the durable of the two. It's not a bad idea to carry a bottle of ultimate quik detailer in the trunk for those times where something gets on the car such as a bird bomb. Ultimate wash & wax anywhere is also great. It's a waterless wash that you can use when you don't have time to do a tradition 2 bucket wash. As long as it's not too dirty. I definitely recommend picking up many supreme shine microfibers as well as a couple water magnets.

Good reference video among others.

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?36525-Meguiar-s-Video-Training-Series-Maintain-Your-Finish

It's not a problem to go all Meguiar's. A majority of my products are Meguiar's. They are all made to work together. For the most part Meguiar's carries most products that you need. If they don't have it then there is another manufacturer that makes them.

The most important thing is to have fun and enjoy the results.

Hi Guz - thank you for your reply, really helpful (I did reply to this earlier but it appeared not to post for some reason!).

I will probably be starting with hand waxing and seeing how I get on, before making the investment in a polisher. So that will be how I approach it for the moment.

The scratches are not deep key type marks, they are more deepish scuffs from branches/hedges so I am hoping that it will polish out pretty well. I think I will go with the Ultimate Compound, sounds like the best product for me.

When am I best to do the UC layer - should I do this after the washing/claying but before the polish/wax, or should I just do this standalone after a clean? I am thinking I should wash/clay and then UC the area in question, and then following that continue with the polish/wax? How long should I wait before getting on with the next element?

Sorry for all these questions and thanks for all the help so far!!