OCD - How I clean my Aston

[Neil1300R]

Being an OCD sufferer, one of the most useful threads I found on here was the guide on how to clean your Aston. Was posted a couple of years back by Paddy328. I've been following his advice ever since - even Yeti now uses the two bucket method on the rare occasion he cleans his . Along with some friends of mine, especially one called Francis, we've been trying different products recently, so thought it would be useful to post up the method and products we have found to be the best for each stage of the cleaning process.

I have no affiliation to any of these products / manufacturers being a sad IT geek, its just stuff I and others on here have found to really work. There are obviously lots of products out on the market, if you know of something better post it up.


Right, always start with some quality buckets. These ones are swissvax branded grit guard buckets and I love them. They are designed so you dont put your mitt into a load of dirt and grit at the bottom of the bucket:
　
http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/wash_prod...

Wheels:
For this, you need a few brushes and maybe an old sponge. One brush for the inside of the wheel and a brush or old sponge for the outside, depending on what you prefer.

Inside (hub) brush: large


http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/EZ_Detail_Br...

outside brush:


http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Soft_Round_W...

Then you need a quality wheel cleaner like this one:


http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/autosmart-smart-whee...

Using either a spray bottle or one that fits into the big bottle itself, spray the cleaner inside the wheel and also the face. Using the small brush or sponge, clean the face of the wheel and then using the larger hub brush, clean the inside. You can use a sponge for the back of the spokes. Something you can also do is spray the cleaner on both wheels on one side and then start on the back wheel first. This give the front time to dwell. Dont do it if its a hot day in direct sunlight though.

For those deposits that dont seem to want to go anywhere, we have this. Its called iron x and its designed to dissolve break dust and iron fillings. Spray it on, watch it turn purple, leave it a few mins (not in the sun) adgitate and rinse.



http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Aquartz_Iron...





Body:

For those with dirty door hinges and boot shuts, use a degreaser and a long handled radiator brush or the brush used for the wheel faces:


http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=BIL-SUR...
　
Spray on, agitate and rinse off. (Before you start washing the body)

Here are the type of bottles and spray heads you should use too:

http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Handi_hold_d...

http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Chemical_Res...

For this you will be using the 2 buckets and two lambs wool mitts. One for the above the sills etc and one for around the bumpers/sills and for under the bumpers/sills, use an old sponge.

A good quality shampoo and and fluffy drying towels too.



http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/bilt-hamber-auto-mit...



http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/wash_prod...



http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/wash_prod...

To keep your car protected for longer, i would suggest using the car bath, as it also rejuvenates
the wax a little when washing.

or you could use this mild shampoo from dodo juice.

http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Dodo_Juice_S...
　


http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/I4D_Uber_Pre... x2

I would also suggest a pressure washer and foam lance too. The idea behind this is to remove as much
dirt from the car before putting a hand to it, reducing the chance of swirl marks being inflicted.

For this, you will need a foam lance and snow foam:



http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/HD_Snow_Foam...

http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Snow_Foam_5L...

If you dont have a pressure washer, just use a hose or even watering can.

Fill the buckets with warm water and one with shampoo. One clean bucket, one rinse.
Use about an inch of foam an fill the rest of the bottle with warm water if you can and then cover the car in foam:



Leave it to dwell for a few mins and then spray off from bottom to top and then top to bottom.

If you have a soft top, spray some cleaner onto the roof and agitate gentley with a brush:





http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=303-305...
The brush shown is from halfords.

With the roof, i use the lance at its widest setting and not going too close, i go from side to side rinsing off the cleaner/foam.



Once this is done, using the lambs wool mitt, do a panel/half a panel at a time using straight back and forth motions, then rinse the mitt out in the rinse bucket (no shampoo) and then back into the other and so on. Leave the sills and lower parts of the bumpers until last and then use the other mitt on these areas.



Once thats done, rinse off. To be extra safe, you can foam the car again and then wash it:



For the summer months, when the nice little flys weld themselves to your car, try some of this:



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=AUT-CPB...

or this

http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=AUT-CPB...

Spray on, leave to dwell and then wipe off with a cloth thats had a few sprays on it too. Then wash and rinse the area you have just sprayed.

Now some of you might want to clay the car, so using a mild clay and lube (shown below) clay the car and then rinse.



http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Zaino_Z18_Cl...

http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Dodo_Juice_B...

Now i must warn you. I would only do this is you plan to machine polish the car after or go over
it using a mild abrasive pre wax cleaner like this: (cleaner fluid medium) using a cotton pad.



http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/cleaning_...

This is because on many astons, claying the car will inflict marring if you are not careful and
it would end up looking worse than when you started.

Then i would suggest using some iron x on the body. Spray it on and then watch your car bleed purple as it finds the metal fillings etc bonded in the paint. (used on an orange lambo)
Will find a better pic soon.


　
Wash this off with the mitt and rinse. Then if your car has much in the way of tar stuck to it, dry the lower half of the car and spray with tar remover:



http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/autosmart-tardis-tar...
or for something a little smaller:

http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=CPX-TAR...
　
Then spray some onto a soft cloth and wipe the covered areas until the tar has gone. Be careful not to press too hard though.
Then rinse and dry.

You can use a drying blade if you have one. Only for the windows and soft top though:



If you have a soft top, it would be good to allow the roof to dry out a bit first, be it in a garage or outside where its not windy. Then when the roof is pretty much dry and you are in an area with no breeze, spray a layer of soft top protectant onto the roof. Make sure you quickly wipe up any of it that has been sprayed onto the glass or panels though. To help drying times,
you can use a drying towel to pat dry it:



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=303-306...

Then leave it to dry. The roof will then look like this when it rains:



Waxing:

With this done, you will need a pre wax cleanser and good quality wax:



http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/cleaning_...



http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/wax_produ...

or for a long lasting wax:

http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/wax_produ...
　
Apply the cleanser a panel at a time with a cotten pad and then buff off after each one:



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=SHI-MFB...

Once this is done, apply the wax in a thin layer to the whole car using a foam pad and then buff off:



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=ZAI-TRI
　
For the cleaner fluid, its best to use some towels with a bit of bite:

http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=PBY-TDM...

For the wax and using the bug and tar removers, a deeper pile cloth:

http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=ZAI-YEL...

GLASS

for the glass, use a good quality spray on cleaner and cloth:



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=DOD-DJM...



http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/wash_prod...

Spray on the glass, wipe with one side and then turn over and use the other side to ensure its dry.
　
For waxing the wheels, i would use swissvax autobahn or shield:



http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/wheel_and...
　
Apply using your fingers or a foam pad and do all four wheels and buff off.

For a longer lasting solution, you can use Gtechniq c5 wheel armour. For best results, i would

suggest removing the wheel and coating it off the car to ensure the whole wheel is protected.

http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=GTE-C5-...

Tyres:

I would use either swissvax pneu or autoglym tyre dressing:





http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/wheel_and...

http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=AGL-ITD...
Spray onto a foam pad and wipe around the tyre. You can just spray onto the tyre itself, but there is a risk of it blowing on the car.

Exhaust:

I would suggest either the swissvax metal polish or meguiars metal polish:



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=SWI-MET...



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=MEG-G13...



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=SHI-WIR...

Using an old cloth or 00 gauge wire wool if its quite bad, wipe around the exhaust until its free
of build up and then remove the excess polish with a clean cloth.

The same products can be used for the grill too. (not the wire wool)

For the leather, i would suggest either the swissvax leather cleaner:

http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/leather_c...
this is my favorite leather cleaner, but its pricey, so if you wanted to pay a bit less and still
get a great leather cleaner, then try this one from zaino:



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=ZAI-Z9

Using a brush like this one:



http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=SWI-CLE...

Spray the cleaner on one section of the seat at a time, agitate with the brush (not too hard) and
then wipe off with a clean towel. If you have old or delicate looking leather, dont use the brush, instead use a towel or cotton pad.



Ignore the tape down the middle.

The towel after two vangush seats:



Notice how much dirt it has pulled off compared to the clean side.

Then if you want the leather to smell a bit more leathery or you have leather thats looking a little dry, then try some of this:



Applied using a cotton pad. With this, you can either buff it off or leave it on.

If your door seals look like they need some attention, then swissvax seal feed it a great product:



http://www.swissvax.co.uk/product_detail/rubber_an...

It will also prevent your door freezing to the rubber in the winter.

Here we have some shots of it being applied to a vanquish:







Apply it with a piece of sponge and wipe off any excess with a cloth. This bottle will last even a pro detailer years.

Now stand back and look at what a great job you did.

[t1blk]

What a fantastic post, just what we've all been needing, thank you... T

[macpaul]

Very good. Thanks for taking the trouble to write all this up.

[George H]

Thanks Neil

It's great someone finally went out of their way, for no benefit to themselves, and was allowed to post this up

[Highrisedrifter]

Great write-up, Neil. I do love the thorough research you have done (clearly completely on your own and without any help whatsoever). Diligence like this should not go unrewarded.

Actually, thinking about it, I would rather hope one of the mods would make this a sticky.

Edited by Highrisedrifter on Saturday 3rd March 19:09

[Neil1300R]

Its OK i'm going to update the FAQ's with this new link. Paddy328's previous thread is currently in it.

[Tony V12V]

I have been looking out for something like this for a while now. Great job - Well done to all your contributors.

[mikey k]

Paddy returns

I've been using this for quick washes when the S is not too dirty

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/washing-and-drying/o...

I'd also highly recommend this on the inside and outside of the alloys once a year to protect them

http://www.autopia.org/forum/product-reviews/61261...

[paddy328]

Nice one mate. I'm sure this is something everyone can use. Careful you don't get told off for advertising though lol.....

[yeti]

George H said:

Thanks Neil

It's great someone finally went out of their way, for no benefit to themselves, and was allowed to post this up

Wot e said ^^

I'd also like to clarify that it's the Polish people at the end of the road who use the two bucket method. I use the 'take it to them' method

[Cipo]

Well Francis, I don't give a dam about giving a hard working guy a shout, Paddy328 is the bs, always done my cars and always will........

[BingoBob]

Thanks for this. Very useful info!

[George H]

yeti said:

I'd also like to clarify that it's the Polish people at the end of the road who use the two bucket method. I use the 'take it to them' method

Just get out!

[CPBRI]

Nice work, but I'd rather just drive.

[apotek]

I was worried I might be OCD but I was converted

[MattV12V]

Thanks from me Neil for taking the time to post this guide.

I've just spent a day interrupting my car's hibernation and giving it the clean it really should have had ages ago.

2 things I'd recommend to anyone who is going to follow this guide for the first time :

1) Mark the wash buckets in some way so you don't forget which is which if your memory is as ridiculously bad as mine.

2) Don't let your wife see the bills for all this gear - she won't understand!

Shame it was dark when i finished but still looks excellent under the florescent lights:

[crazy about cars]

Very nice OP. I've picked up one or two products I might be interested in so thank you

One small recommendation since you are already putting in the effort and materials is to take each wheel off. This would give you better access and you can also tidy up the callipers

[v8woollie]

I'm so glad I have a life and can't be ad with all this faffing. Wash, rinse with pure water and wipe with microfibre towel and I'm done. 45 minutes max

[dmhort23]

v8woollie said:

I'm so glad I have a life and can't be ad with all this faffing. Wash, rinse with pure water and wipe with microfibre towel and I'm done. 45 minutes max

+1 hear hear!

[Grant3]

Great post Neil.... .. although I do think you need to demonstrate the effectiveness of the full technique on different colours, and also what you suggest for Carbon-fibre.... funnily enough I just happen to have a very dirty Quantum V12V that may help you out....