Ok, she got her first wash yesterday.


http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m312/denrid0cks/DSC02817.jpg
see all the leftover wax residue or whatever that is! ;/

The wash part was simple enough (i think.)

Just hosed her down, made a dawn solution and washed her.
I used 100% cotton diaper cloth.
I've been told to stay away from poly blend cloths, so I did- for now.

My drying process was a little iffy- I didn't have any windshield blades or anything to take care of the windows so that wasn't so great.
And the body itself was only a little better but not perfectly getting all the water off. I used the same diaper cloth(well not the same as in the same one i used to wash it with, but the same as in the same type just a DRY one.) So I was wondering if you guys have any reccomended drying procedures or what kinda towels u guys use. Also any suggestion for the window like what blade works best for u guys or whatever.

I also wanted to apply the Imperial Hand Glaze? Gloss? after the wash & dry but I didn't know where I could purchase this. Any tips?

Finally came the wax, and I was totally clueless at this point :-?
I bought the turtle Ice wax that came with the applicator and microfiber cloth.
It said to moisten the applicator and then to wipe the applicator across the surface of the wax to activate it? So I did that and I didn't really see it do anything. So I basically just winged/wung? it. Anyway I applied the wax all over the car minus the glass. And waited a while and then proceeded to wipe it off with a fresh diaper cloth. Word on the street is u wipe off the wax with a fresh side. turn the cloth over to a fresh side and then buff it to a shine? So i did that. Anyway it wasn't perfect- i took a couple of pics of it with flash(it was getting dark) and saw some swirl marks from the wax still. So I ended up using the microfiber cloth (it contained polyester! :-x ) so I was kinda scared it might scratch up the paint.

I have pics that I'll post up later.
But my main point of this post is to get advice and tips on what to do/what not to do. things i should invest in for the cleaning process etc.

i figure though, next time I wax I'll just work on panel by panel.

Any help and advice is appreciated! Thanks! :cool:

Dont want to tell you how to wash your sc guy, but Dawn will eat your clear coat off after a couple years of washing. I know for a fact. Just warning you.

Meguiar's NXT generation tech wax paste...pricey but awesome!!8-)

Hey D.4 here is a great site to learn about car detailing,:lol:
http://www.autopia.org/

he was probably washing with Dawn to strip whatever wax was already on the car before applying his own wax.

Bah, Take that Ice crap back. Get a can of Mother's Carnauba wax. I used it on my E and lets just say if I was in a rollover crash I'd probably slide 5 or 6 miles before I stopped. Ok maybe a little too graphic but the wax is amazing. Its about 10 clams for a can of it but well worth it since you only use a little bit on the whole car.

Caranuba based waxes are great if you are looking for a specific look to the waxed car (more of a wet, deep looking shine) but really have nothing on a synthetic based wax in terms of longevity or application. Most tests have shown that you will be lucky to get 1-2 months of protection with a caranuba based wax and 6 months or more with a synthetic. If you are going to wax your car once a month then Caranuba is fine. Most people aren't going to do this or live in a climate where they can't - synthetics are the best option for them.

Really Caranuba waxes are just old school and really have no benefit over a synthetic except for the shine you get. I know many people who like the caranuba look so they put a base coat(s) of synthetic wax and then a final coat of caranuba to get a deeper, wetter looking shine instead of the hard, shell like refective finish of a synthetic. If it was me I would be taking back the Caranuba and getting a synthetic based wax.

There are several good waxes out there, and people on this forum have pretty good advice on them all. Turtle Wax Ice is definately NOT crap. There are lots of enthusiastic posts about this product already on the forum.

IMHO, if you do a good job cleaning and waxing the vehicle you will get good lustre and protection from any of the products recommended on this forum. Basically you just may have to work a little harder with some of them.

Sounds like you had fun. Don't forget the Pics....