any pro tips for washing a black car?

[tinitran]

hey everyone.
just want some tips on how to wash a black car properly. I have seen a couple or black cars with paint swirls / chamois scratches and have previously done it to a car I have owned.

I know black paint work tends to show it a lot more than other colour cars.

all tips welcomed

[D]

Good olde two bucket method, with a nice lambs wool or mircofiber mit, always use meguires I usually wash starting from the roof then go clockwise around the car, rims and exhaust gets cleaned last for obvious reasons (to make sure no carbon build up is ect left in the sponge to affect paint work)
Then I dry with some awesome meguires mircofiber drying cloth that I got in a pack which I cannot find the cloth by itself any where.
Then I usualy finish it off with a quick spray of quick detailer (one of my favourite products ) I have two cloths one to wipe it off/in then another for a final wipe ( agin have specific towels have been bought for this )
Then most importantly admire, then take car out and realise that it is dirty again after 5minutes, then cry and repeat the above process as often as you like
Side note quick detailer is awesome, no matter the colour, make sure you get the maroon bottle (not the black ultimate quick detailer) as I find it works better from my experience

[bunnishiwa]

What Dion said. And always ensure the mitt and drying towels are clean. I also clay every this or fourth wash, with s light polish (currently Meguires Ultimate) and two or three coats of wax. Then you can use the detailer spray over the next couple of weeks assuming the weather isn't too bad to keep it looking relatively clan

[Zaphod]

Wash twice. Use warm water, clean water for each wash.

Hose down and get as much off as possible - a light wash to get the dirt off, a second, more thorough wash to properly clean the car.

I use wax-as-u-dry from Mother's, once a month I polish with Meguire's Gold Class (really easy to apply).

Chamois dry with a top quality chamois.

Do all this indoors, at least in full shade.

If it's a black car, once it's properly dry, immediately wrap the entire car in Glad Wrap and DO NOT take the car outside.

It will continue to look like new if you follow these easy steps...!

[Lancer1993]

Thanks for the tips guys but I'm wondering if my paint needs some sort of paint restore to bring it back to life?

But right now off to Woolies to buy some glad wrap

[r00tc4u53]

Just do what I did, get it professionally paint corrected to remove all defects in paint, then get opti coat pro+ put on it. Every wash comes up like new with no swirls or marks. Best thing I ever did to one of my cars.

Until now, every single car I've had I've had resprayed as wasn't happy with the paint, was about to get the lancer done as the dealers detailer stuffed it so bad, luckily found a good detailer who got it 99.5% perfect.

[Lancer1993]

I've got a minor dent I want to take care of, should this be done before or after any pro checks out the car?

Also I have the time, is it worth spending money on Meguiar's stuff to DIY the car or does the paint corrected go further... and if so how much should I spend without being ripped off?

[darren1011]

often

[r00tc4u53]

Ive got a minor dent I want to take care of, should this be done before or after any pro checks out the car? Also I have the time, is it worth spending money on Meguiars stuff to DIY the car or does the paint corrected go further... and if so how much should I spend without being ripped off?

Get the dent sorted first... Don't get meguiars stuff. It's crap, get Bowden's Own gear, not only better than the rest, it's Australian owned (Sunshine Coast based) and made. Paint correction goes ALOT further than the DIY stuff you can buy off the shelf from autobarn\supercheap etc. That gear just "masks" the defects and once it wears off, you see the defects again. Get a pro to do the paint correction, I paid $800 all up for mine and took 2 days for 2 stage correction. I've already shown you pics of the before and after of mine, so refer to those.

[Lancer1993]

I'm betting the dealer hit the car with some off the shelf stuff to make the car look good when I first saw it but that's another story.

Don't have $800 to spend on it right now, if I did it would got towards new wheels so I might get some good but cheaper stuff to start with and get the job done right, after I get that dent sorted.

Thanks for the advice.

[r00tc4u53]

Im betting the dealer hit the car with some off the shelf stuff to make the car look good when I first saw it but thats another story. Dont have $800 to spend on it right now, if I did it would got towards new wheels so I might get some good but cheaper stuff to start with and get the job done right, after I get that dent sorted. Thanks for the advice.

Don't bother getting "cheaper stuff to start with" if you're talking about the DIY paint correction stuff, you'll probably end up doing more damage to it. Just wait until you can get it done properly, once. Just get some Bowden's wash gel and their wax pack and use that for now, it's not abrasive so won't damage, but will fill majority of scratches and swirls etc. The dealers do use stuff to coat the car to make them look all shiny and new. Mentioned that last time in another post as well...

[alex8337]

My routine...

Yearly:
1/ Wash + Dry
2/ Clay bar + Dry
3/ Meguiars rubbing compound + Dry
4/ Meguiars polish compound + Dry
5/ Black wax + Dry
6/ Black wax + Dry

Quarterly:
1/ Wash + Dry
2/ Mothers pre-wax cleaner + Dry
3/ Mothers sealer and glaze + Dry
4/ Black wax + Dry

Fortnightly
1/ Wash + Dry

Always use the two bucket washing method.
Try to use the same micro fibre cloths for the same purposes each time.
Buy a lambskin shammy and use it to apply your black wax to the car every time but never wash it, do not let it touch dirt or the ground and keep it in a shammy cylinder.
Also, you'll save allot of time if you use a random orbital polisher (Ozito) to apply either the rubbing compound, polish or sealer and glaze. Be careful applying rubbing compound with a random orbital polisher though.

[kburnie]

I have Paint Protection on my car This seals off the paintwork ( I actually sell it in my job so I only Paid cost).
My routine is hose it twice get as much crap off as you can any dirt left is going to be rubbed around.
Use a big sponge or the likes and shampoo it thoroughly rinse off again. Twice.
Chamois.
Then I follow up with either Meguiars Dry and shine Spray or I have a weakened version of the chemical paint protection I already have applied and spray that on and buff off.
Shiny car