How do I clean my black car?
Discussion
Ok sorry for this, but I admit I haven't really had a decent car before....
Anyway, I could do with some advice about how to clean / wax / protect a black car. It seems to pick up little scratches quite easily, so I was wondering whether I can polish some of them out? There seems to be a million products out there to choose from... Any advice?
Cheers
Anyway, I could do with some advice about how to clean / wax / protect a black car. It seems to pick up little scratches quite easily, so I was wondering whether I can polish some of them out? There seems to be a million products out there to choose from... Any advice?
Cheers
From experience i can recommend you Autoglym HD Wax for protection.
If your concerned about surface scratches and swirl marks Autoglym ultra deep shine works fairly well as it "fills" the scratches.
Anything deeper, use your fingernail; if you can feel the scratch then use t-cut to reduce its appearance.
If your concerned about surface scratches and swirl marks Autoglym ultra deep shine works fairly well as it "fills" the scratches.
Anything deeper, use your fingernail; if you can feel the scratch then use t-cut to reduce its appearance.
bimmer_87 said:
From experience i can recommend you Autoglym HD Wax for protection.
If your concerned about surface scratches and swirl marks Autoglym ultra deep shine works fairly well as it "fills" the scratches.
Anything deeper, use your fingernail; if you can feel the scratch then use t-cut to reduce its appearance.
Yep. This all day long on any car especially a black one.If your concerned about surface scratches and swirl marks Autoglym ultra deep shine works fairly well as it "fills" the scratches.
Anything deeper, use your fingernail; if you can feel the scratch then use t-cut to reduce its appearance.
Welcome to the top of a very slippery slope.
Personally my standard wash routine is; rinse with the jet wash, snow foam, rinse again, wash with decent shampoo two buckets with grit guards and lambswool wash mit. Rinse then dry with a micro fibre drying towel. Finally going over with speed detailer.
You can polish using a dual action or rotary polisher. Or going over by hand with auto glym super resin polish.
Make sure you put a decent wax or polymer coating on to protect all that hard work. I like auto glym HD wax.
For all things car cleaning though www.detailingworld.com
Personally my standard wash routine is; rinse with the jet wash, snow foam, rinse again, wash with decent shampoo two buckets with grit guards and lambswool wash mit. Rinse then dry with a micro fibre drying towel. Finally going over with speed detailer.
You can polish using a dual action or rotary polisher. Or going over by hand with auto glym super resin polish.
Make sure you put a decent wax or polymer coating on to protect all that hard work. I like auto glym HD wax.
For all things car cleaning though www.detailingworld.com
Your best bet is to get the paint corrected (DIY or Pro) and then keep a "clean" wash routine that reduces the chance of scratches. Also ensure you keep on top of your wax applications and make sure you take the paint back to bare with clay twice a year.
Paint that's well corrected and kept up with a good routine can stay looking fresh for quite a few years even with regular washing.
Paint that's well corrected and kept up with a good routine can stay looking fresh for quite a few years even with regular washing.
Don't buy a black car. I bought one as it was the only colour they had for immediate delivery and did not want to wait months.
Looked great for the minutes after it was clean, then a bit of rain, pollen, dust got it dirty just standing ouside the house.
After a few years it looked dull with swirls and scratches.
Went to replace it a few years later. The dealer had the car I want in, exact model, spec. But only in black.
I bought it. However the car was covered in Superguard or something for free by the dealer. It seems to keep it remarkably clean. Even after 18 months, a quick wash and the occasional dab of whatever polish I cadge off my father in law. (He's always buying car cleaning products from cheap stuff from pound shops to Autoglym products) gets it looking great.
I gave it a wash three weeks ago and used some cheap spray on "Lazy Bones Car Polish" I think it was called. The cars done several hundred town and country miles since and still looks OK.
I always thought these dealer extras like Superguard were snake oil. I have had several (non black) cars with it and never noticed anything special about the finish, but the stuff put onto my Landy appears great. I forget what the stuff is, it may not be Superguard, PureGuard maybe?
Looked great for the minutes after it was clean, then a bit of rain, pollen, dust got it dirty just standing ouside the house.
After a few years it looked dull with swirls and scratches.
Went to replace it a few years later. The dealer had the car I want in, exact model, spec. But only in black.
I bought it. However the car was covered in Superguard or something for free by the dealer. It seems to keep it remarkably clean. Even after 18 months, a quick wash and the occasional dab of whatever polish I cadge off my father in law. (He's always buying car cleaning products from cheap stuff from pound shops to Autoglym products) gets it looking great.
I gave it a wash three weeks ago and used some cheap spray on "Lazy Bones Car Polish" I think it was called. The cars done several hundred town and country miles since and still looks OK.
I always thought these dealer extras like Superguard were snake oil. I have had several (non black) cars with it and never noticed anything special about the finish, but the stuff put onto my Landy appears great. I forget what the stuff is, it may not be Superguard, PureGuard maybe?
Edited by wildcat45 on Saturday 30th August 22:18
Plumdog said:
Blimey.... thanks! Has anyone heard about something like poor boys black hole?
Yes. I use it on one of ours, topped off with a couple of layers of Victoria Concours (remember BH is a glaze so you need something on top).Bearing in mind that the car is cleaned/waxed regularly I was surprised the next day to get a comment about how black it looked.
If you enjoy it then have fun 
Clay it, get some polish on it - I like 3M ultrafina but Autogylm Super resin is good too.
Then a couple of coats of wax. From this point on you can just add more wax, so wash & wax again next week.
Don't pay a fortune for wax, you won't see any difference. Make sure you go for a soft wax - hard waxes last longer but are an utter pain in the ass to use.
You could look at the collinite waxes, they are cheap and lots of guys on DW use them over winter as they last well - Collinite 476 IIRC.
Then next spring wash with something strong (detailing world refer to it as "all purpose cleaner" - doesn't need to be anything fancy, some people use "daisy" from tesco!), clay the car and do it all over again. This time you could go for a different wax over the summer thats a bit more "showy".
Then a couple of coats of wax. From this point on you can just add more wax, so wash & wax again next week.
Don't pay a fortune for wax, you won't see any difference. Make sure you go for a soft wax - hard waxes last longer but are an utter pain in the ass to use.
You could look at the collinite waxes, they are cheap and lots of guys on DW use them over winter as they last well - Collinite 476 IIRC.
Then next spring wash with something strong (detailing world refer to it as "all purpose cleaner" - doesn't need to be anything fancy, some people use "daisy" from tesco!), clay the car and do it all over again. This time you could go for a different wax over the summer thats a bit more "showy".
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