Detailing newbie... product recomendations

[davewilliams000]

Picking up my Mk7 GTD next week, and decided I really need to look after this car so want to keep it nice and clean. Am new to detailing as previous cars have just been rinsed using pressure washer, washed using shampoo and then rinsed down again before drying.

I've read the detailing guides and got the gist of 2 bucket method etc

I want to try and keep it as simple as possible to begin with so am looking for good recommendations on some products as I am new to all this. I've been looking at wo-wo washmits and towels and like the look of those, and also the wheel woollies set (so I can clean the grill as well as the wheels, as recommended on another post about GTD), but I have no idea about shampoos, pre-cleaning stuff, wheel cleaning sprays and wax etc. Don't think I am quite ready to invest in a snow foam gadget for the pressure washer straight away, but I imagine I will get bitten by the detailing bug so probably won't be long!

Ideally I would like to try and give the car a quick wash every 1-2 weeks and then spend more time on it once a month.

Thanks,

Dave

[Booth11]

Hi Dave, welcome to the forum, and detailing section. 

Sounds like you've got the basics covered but here's a bit of info and some product recommendations alongside the various stages

Not sure what guides you've looked at, but check out the links below for good advice on various techniques - washing and drying, etc. 
 
Links to Methods and techniques
http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/car-care-advice.html
http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/index.php?_a=viewDoc&docId=5
http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?s=a6d90f10702b7755e288a2962b96975d&t=61625
http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk
http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/generalImg/guide.gif
http://www.autogeek.net/exterior.html
http://www.autogeek.net/detailingtips.html
 
As you are new to it and wanting to get into washing and looking after the car yourself, keep it simple to start and build up from there. Firstly you might want to consider getting some basic detailing equipment/products.  For a decent kit (approx £70-£80) to cover the necessary pre-wash/wash/dry/protect stages.  You might just want to start off with a decent shampoo, some buckets and a wash mitt but a more comprehensive kit might include some or all of the following (have included some examples of products):
 
Lambswool wash mitt - e.g WoWo Lambswool mitts or DoDo Juice Tribble mitt
PH Neutral Shampoo - e.g DoDo Juice Born to be mild or DJ Supernatural shampoo
2/3 x Wash buckets with grit guards (a 3rd for wheels recommended)
Snow foam and lance - e.g Valet Pro Advanced snow foam
Wheel mitt and/or wheel brush - e.g WoWo wheel mitt, Wheel Woolies
Wheel Cleaner - e.g. Valet Pro Bilberry used in spray bottle
Microfibre drying towels - e.g WoWo or DoDo Juice MF towels
Interior Cleaner/dressing - e.g Poorboys Natural Look Dressing; Auto Finesse Total Interior Cleaner; Gliptone Leather cleaner and conditioner (if leather)
Microfibre buffing cloths - e.g WoWo MF and glass cloth set; DJ Fantastic Fur buffing MF cloths
Glass cleaner - e.g Gtechniq G6 Perfect Glass
Metal polish for tailpipes - e.g Mother Mag and Aluminium Polish
Tyre dressing - e.g Meguiars Endurance Tyre Gel; Hi Shine true dressing; Gtechniq T1; Gyeon Q2 Tire
Exterior Trim dressing - Auto Finesse Dressle
Wheel sealant - e.g Poorboys Wheel Sealant; Gtechniq G5 or C2v3; Gyeon Q2 RIM
Last stage protection of your choice - sealant, or wax or both (some sealants can do double/triple duty used on paintwork, wheels and glass)
Engine Bay - e.g Aerospace 303
Spray bottles - optional - generic types
Sealant/wax foam applicators - e.g WoWo foam pads

Here are some good detailing product websites:
 
http://www.wo-wo.co.uk
http://cleanyourcar.co.uk
http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk
http://www.theultimatefinish.co.uk
http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk
http://www.juicydetailing.co.uk
http://www.i4detaling.co.uk
 
The most important thing is to start off simple and get into a good washing and drying regime first, the rest can follow.  Don't be daunted by the stages, you can do as little or as much as you like and remember to take a look at the guides in the links at the top of this post.
 
As it's a new car you might also want to do some decontamination to rid it of any fallout and tar/glue residue it may well have picked up at the port and on it’s travels - the iron remover being the more important on a new car.  Use something like IronX (iron/fallout remover) and Tardis (tar/glue remover).  You might think about claying too but this is usually best done only if you are going to polish afterwards and a brand new car really shouldn't need polishing unless the dealer has inflicted swirls during prep (if done by dealer). 
 
So maybe start with the decontamination, wash and protect stages, or even just wash, dry and get some protection on it.  If you include simple decontamination then the first detail process would look something like this:

Wheels pre wash with wheel cleaner - diluted 1:10 or less as required (in a spray bottle).
Pre wash or Snow foam whole car using lance or cannon (with pressure washer). Leave to dwell for 5 mins whilst filling up buckets
Pressure wash rinse off snow foam
Wash wheels (wheel brush/wheel mitt) use separate bucket to rest of car
2 Bucket wash PH neutral shampoo (with grit guards and lambswool mitt) - wash rest of car - bodywork and glass - starting from top down - roof - upper sections of car, lower (dirtiest) sections of car last
Pressure wash rinse
De-iron car - rinse and dry, e.g Iron X
De-tar car - rinse, e.g Tardis
2 bucket wash entire car again as before 
Final rinse with open ended hose to reduce standing water to a minimum
Dry - Pat with MF towels
Protection stage - apply last stage protection - Sealant/glaze/wax - depends on what you decide to use. 
Seal wheels - apply wheel sealant
Dress tyres
Metal polish tailpipes
Dress exterior trim / engine bay if required
External/internal glass clean
Interior clean

The above sounds like a lot of work but this is breaking it down into it's component parts if you like. If you get into a good regime/routine it soon becomes second nature and in reality should only take couple hours.

Here's a link to my own detail thread for the detail I did when I first got my R - http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=275907.0 There's also lots of other very useful threads in this section so read through them if you have time.
 
In time as you go along you may want to add to your routine.  If you want an overview of a complete full-on detailing process, that would include full decontamination and polishing then it would look something like the list below.  As said earlier, you shouldn’t need to polish a brand new car, so start with just what is necessary and take it from there.  But if your interested in the whole caboodle here it is FYI:
 
Complete detailing process:
Initial light pressure wash (always at a distance and 45° angle to the car)
Wheels pre wash with wheel cleaner
Pre wash or Snow foam (optional) using lance or cannon
Pressure wash rinse
2 Bucket wash (with grit guards and wash mitt - no sponges!)
Rinse
Dry - MF towels
Decontamination phase - Iron e.g. IronX and Tar remover e.g. Tardis
Wash/rinse
Clay bar/clay cloth or clay pad
Wash again, rinse (final open ended hose rinse)n and dry
Polish (DA or hand) with polishing and refining compounds
Panel wipe to remove all polish residue
Apply protection - Sealant/glaze/wax - can be all or just some of these, OR nano/polymer sealant
Apply wheel sealant
Dress tyres
Metal polish tailpipes
Dress exterior trim if required
External and internal glass clean
Dress engine
Interior clean

Products:
Everyone will have their own favourites but here is a (long, lol) list of stuff I have used.  My go-to favourites, products I most use regularly and would happily recommend. 
 
Snow Foam
Valet Pro advanced PH neutral
Bilt Hamber Auto foam
​Meguiars Hyper Wash
Autobrite snow foam lance or similar

Shampoo:
DJ Supernatural shampoo
DoDo Juice Born to be Mild shampoo
Chemical Guys Citrus wash & gloss
CG Glossworkz

Wash mitts and MF cloths:
WoWo lambswool mitts
DJ Wookie's Fist mitt
WoWo micro fibre and glass cloth set
DJ Fantastic Fur buffing cloths
Auto Finesse wax applicators
WoWo foam applicator pads
WoWo micro fibre drying towels
DJ drying towels
 
Wheels:
Valet Pro Bilberry Wheel cleaner
Hi Shine Tyre Dressing
Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armour
Meguiars Endurance tyre gel
Wheel Woolies
WoWo Wheel Mitt
 
Interior:
Poorboys Natural Look interior cleaner
Auto Finesse Total interior cleaner
Gliptone Leather cleaner
Gliptone Leather conditioner
DJ Supernatural leather cleaner
Gtechniq L1 leather guard
 
Other Exterior:
Gtechniq G6 Perfect Glass
Autoglym Fast Glass (and interior)
Mothers Mag & aluminium polish for tail pipes
Chemical Guys new look trim gel
Chemical Guys Speed Wipe Quick Detailer
Gtechniq panel wipe
Gtechniq C4 Trim Restorer
Tardis glue & tar remover
IronX iron and fallout remover
Auto Finesse Citrus Power bug remover
Chemical Guys Orange Degreaser (engine bay)
Spray bottles and spray heads
Aerospace 303
Auto Finesse Dressle

Waxes  Some of the waxes listed are more suited to a dark car (mine is black), but DoDo Juice waxes are great and there are ones available for red cars too.
DoDo Juice colour charged waxes and Pro waxes
Swissvax Onyx
Collinite waxes
​Collinite 915
Chemical Guys Butter Wet Wax
DJ Supernatural hybrid

Sealant:
Poorboys Ex-P sealant
Pootboys Glazes - Black Hole
DJ Red Mist Tropical Quick Detailer/spray sealant
Poorboys Wheel Sealant
Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armour
Gtechniq C2v3

Polishing:
Poorboys SSR polishes, SSR1, SSR2, 2.5  etc
DoDo Juice Lime Prime/Lime Prime Plus
Chemical Guys Hex Logic pads - polishing pads, cutting and finishing pads
Meguiars Cutting and finishing pads
Meguairs backing plates
Dual Action polisher - Meguiars G220

Pre wax cleanser:
Lime Prime lite
Gtechniq Panel Wipe

Clay:
WoWo Clay mitt
Bilt Hamber medium clay
DoDo Juice clay pads/sponges
DJ Born Slippy clay lube

Rebecca 

PS: WoWo detailing gear is awesome!


 

[Watts]

Hi Dave - great choice of colour, red is definitely the best

I'm also new to all this fancy cleaning stuff but I do sort of enjoy it. It can get a bit obsessive though but better that than some other focusses! The Wo-Wo kit is excellent and I would recommend two drying towels as one isn't quite enough (I'm not on commission, honest!). I protected the bodywork with two coats of G-Techniq C2v3, very easy to apply, the bottle would appear to have enough for years and it still beads really well after 4 months. I removed the wheels and gave them two coats of Finish Kare FK1000p wax and that has helped to make cleaning the wheels nice and easy. Apparently it is great for the bodywork too but I haven't sorted that yet. I use G-Techniq G Wash shampoo which works well and smells good and if I have time (and it's not raining) I give a good going over with Bouncers Done and Dusted quick detailer - very quick and easy to apply, gives a great shine and leaves the paint feeling beautifully smooth. It also gets rid of water marks and leaves the red paint with a really deep colour and shine. Very happy with all those products. I'd also say it's well worth getting a snowfoam lance, particularly as you have a pressure washer. Hope that was useful, I'm sure you'll get plenty of other top recommendations but remember, us TR owners know best

[kalimon]

You're car looks gorgeous in them pictures.
Whatever you are doing, it's working

[Watts]

Cheers Kalimon! Not sure it would stand up to close scrutiny, I want to get it professionally detailed during spring as the garage I boughf it from had caused some areas of paint damage that needs correcting. But I love the depth you get from the red, it looks stunning when clean.

[davewilliams000]

Many thanks for the quick and detailed (especially Rebecca!) replies. Both your cars look stunning, and I am glad I managed to get a red one!

I have spent the past couple of days thinking and deciding what to get.. Have just done some ordering (ouch my wallet hurts!)....

2x buckets with grit guards off ebay.

Pretty much a full set of Wo-Wo gear (Wash mit, alloy mit, applicator pads, MF cloth set, drying towel, alloy towel)

and a pile of stuff from clean your car...

CYC Snow Foam Lance
Valet Pro - Advanced Neutral Snow Foam (1Ltr)
Dodo Juice Supernatural Shampoo
Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armour
Valet Pro - Bilberry Wheel Cleaner (1 litre) + sprayer bottle
Gtechniq C2 - Liquid Crystal v3
CarPro - Iron X LS Fallout Remover 500ml

Feels like I'm buying a lot, but figure it needs doing properly! In that spirit I decided just to go ahead and get a snow foam and lance straight away.

I went for sealant as it looks quicker and easier to apply than the wax given the weather conditions at the moment.

I am hoping I can get away without taking the wheels off.... looked at the video for the C5 and they did it without, and am thinking the gaps between the spokes of those Nogaros look big enough to get my hands to the back of the rims (at the bottom at lest - can roll the car forwards to access the rest).

Am planning on taking the car for a run on Saturday, and am hoping to at least make a start on Sunday, but I don't think the weather is going to be good enough.... really want to get some protection on there as soon as possible but I don't have a garage.

The interior should be spotless anyway and am more concerned with protecting the exterior for now with the weather.

Will post some pics up when I get it and also when I've completed my work on it.

Thanks,

Dave

[Booth11]

Many thanks for the quick and detailed (especially Rebecca!) replies. Both your cars look stunning, and I am glad I managed to get a red one!

I have spent the past couple of days thinking and deciding what to get.. Have just done some ordering (ouch my wallet hurts!)....

2x buckets with grit guards off ebay.

Pretty much a full set of Wo-Wo gear (Wash mit, alloy mit, applicator pads, MF cloth set, drying towel, alloy towel)

and a pile of stuff from clean your car...

CYC Snow Foam Lance
Valet Pro - Advanced Neutral Snow Foam (1Ltr)
Dodo Juice Supernatural Shampoo
Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armour
Valet Pro - Bilberry Wheel Cleaner (1 litre) + sprayer bottle
Gtechniq C2 - Liquid Crystal v3
CarPro - Iron X LS Fallout Remover 500ml

Feels like I'm buying a lot, but figure it needs doing properly! In that spirit I decided just to go ahead and get a snow foam and lance straight away.

I went for sealant as it looks quicker and easier to apply than the wax given the weather conditions at the moment.

I am hoping I can get away without taking the wheels off.... looked at the video for the C5 and they did it without, and am thinking the gaps between the spokes of those Nogaros look big enough to get my hands to the back of the rims (at the bottom at lest - can roll the car forwards to access the rest).

Am planning on taking the car for a run on Saturday, and am hoping to at least make a start on Sunday, but I don't think the weather is going to be good enough.... really want to get some protection on there as soon as possible but I don't have a garage.

The interior should be spotless anyway and am more concerned with protecting the exterior for now with the weather.

Will post some pics up when I get it and also when I've completed my work on it.

Thanks,

Dave

Sealant a good choice for the winter I think, as you say easier on in the lower temps.

Just get the protection on when you can.  It was 2 weeks before I managed to get some protection on mine. Typically it arrived (after an 8 month wait) the weekend I was going away, but it remained unscathed even on a mid length motorway journey. I had to do it over 2 weekends, first one wash and decontamination, and second weekend the protection.  Like you, also have to work outside - no available garage to use.

Look forward to seeing it when it's all done. 

[Watts]

It's worth taking the wheels off if you can, doesn't take long, saves your knuckles and gives you access to clean the calipers. I don't take them off often, so far just twice, once to seal and the second to give them a thorough clean.

Don't forget some pictures!

[davewilliams000]

It's worth taking the wheels off if you can, doesn't take long, saves your knuckles and gives you access to clean the calipers. I don't take them off often, so far just twice, once to seal and the second to give them a thorough clean.

Don't forget some pictures!

Oh I will definitely post some pictures! Only problem with taking the wheels off is I don't have a set of axle stands. I guess I could borrow my brother-in-law's and/or his 3-tonne trolley jack.

Also have been reading up on the C5 and they recommend you use their panel wipe first, however I will be using the bilberry wheel cleaner first (which I have been looking at some youtube vids and looks amazing) so don't know if I need to bother with the panel wipe as I haven't ordered any.

If the weather doesn't hold out this weekend, I have a couple of days off next week so fingers crossed I can get it done then.

Also need to get some decent glass cleaner (thinking Autoglym fast glass) and some decent de-icer (currently use the cheapo stuff from Tesco but had a bottle leak recently).

[Booth11]

Re glass cleaner.  I've just switched from AG Fast Glass to Gtechniq G6 Perfect Glass. Very similar to FG but even better.  Both are the best glass cleaners by some distance IMO.

If you use the Bilberry Wheel Cleaner neat or at a low dilution (1:3) it should do a similar job to panel wipe and be ok as a cleanser for preparing a pristine base for your G5..  When you want to use it as a regular wheel pre cleaner (spritz before a shampoo wash) then dilute to about 1:10, otherwise it may strip the protection on your wheels.

As said, advisable to apply G5 with the wheels off.