Not sure if this is one for detailing or not? Even after a good clean the plastic panels on my white megane 250 are stained with dirt marks and other road crap. whats the best way to restore a nice white shine on them. Particularly bad under side skirts
What did you use to clean them? Get some tar remover then clay them. Probably need a light polish as well with something like AF rejuvenate or tripple then your choice or wax or sealant on top.
i just used basic car shampoo (cheap stuff). i have mostly autoglym stuff will use that polish, and have some tar and insect remover, is there anyway i can avoid claying?
You can skip the claying but you would be surprised at how much it can pull off the paint work and leave it feeling like glass.
As Jamies says, tar remover and clay, you should also use a fallout remover like Iron X or Auto Finesse Iron Out, you will be amazed what that gets off, especially on white paintwork. http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/blog/2013/06/auto-finesse-iron-out-demo-video/
I've been meaning to try one of the clay mitts, I love detailing and cleaning my car, but I do find claying to be a pain in the backside..... So they are decent then the mitts? Assuming nicer than using a regular clay bar, what's the chance of marring with one?
just looked at some youtube videos of the mitt, £15 from halfords will give it ago. will have before and afters up on Sunday. Promise! out of interest whats your procedure? mine will be wash car, tar and insect remover, clay with shampoo as lubricant, rinse, dry, polish, wax.
Clay mitts are brilliant, So much quicker to use than a clay bar, Be warned though the chances of marring are greatly increased, Even more so if you have never clayed with a normal bar before
Your IronX is not going to be as effective and your basically wasting it if your using it before you actually clean or touch the paintwork Rory. Always use Decon chemicals after you have cleaned the car, It means they have more chance to actually react with contaminants rather than the surface dirt and grime.
bought the car about a month ago and its in average condition odd stonechip on the bonnet, but would say its never been clayed, will be going slow the panel at a time, any other advise?
? So your saying I should wash my alloys with shampoo then iron x (currently using autosmart smart wheels)
Yes, that is if you are decontaminating them, ironX doesn't really need to be used every time tbh as it is a fallout remover not a wheel cleaner. Use it once, get the wheels properly cleaned up then sealed up with your choice of wax etc. I like to use proper coatings as they are the only thing that IMO stand up to the harsh abuse that wheels go through, Something like C5 from Gtechniq. You should only need to use a normal shampoo after to keep them clean or if they are not sealed up then just keep using AS smart wheels if they are really manky and normal shampoo won't shift it. AS smart wheels is good, I use it in various forms of dilution depending on how bad wheels are. My wheels are pretty ruined from the Carbotech pads and various other aggressive pads i have ran this year so haven't bothered sealing them as they need refurbed so just hit them with a 1:10 mix of Smartwheels when cleaning to try and make them look presentable.
Yh I only do it once a month really, my current snow foam bilt hamber auto foam seems to do the job, then always use a third mitt when washing to make sure there clean. as with claying I only do once every 4 months.
Fair enough Rory but aye, If you use it after you have cleaned you will see the full effects of using it as a fallout remover, Should use less as well. If you want to try a cheaper alternative i got some BH Korrosol to try out, Twice the amount for less than what ironX costs. Its also thicker so sticks to the surfaces a lot more than the ironX. I would say its almost as effective as well so would recommend it
OK I'll try that today when I clean it thanks for your advice. Tbh I've never used iron x so don't now why I mentioned it but do like bilt hamber stuff so will give that a go when my 5l worth of smart wheels has run out
Again the Korrosol isn't a wheel cleaner, Its a fall out remover like IronX so stick with your smart wheels
forgot to update this sorry, but tar remover did minor improvements but was extremely impressed by the clay mitt bought it up to a brand new standard! Just a quick question about the clay mitt, how do you store it once you've used it? i rinsed mine with warm water left to dry but, doesn't feel nearly as clay-ey as it did when new?
I keep mine stored with the plastic sheet on the clay side that it came with. Used it several times over several months now and it still like new.
Just watched a youtube video never seen them before and i absolutely hate claying so time consuming are these alot quicker then
Ah good thats what I've done Yeah claying took me ages, this takes just a bit longer than washing the car with shampoo and yields the same if not better results IMO.
