Long time since I had a car I actually enjoy so I thought I'd invest in a bit of protection
The car:2011 3dr Candy White GTI with 18" Monza Shadows.
The kit :Karcher K4 pressure washer
Karcher Snow Foam attachment
Valet Pro PH Neutral Snow Foam
Dodo Juice Born to be Mild wash
Dodo Juice Sheepskin Tribble Wash Mitt
Dodo Juice Basics of Bling Clay lube
Dodo Juice Basics of Bling Basics clay
Dodo Juice Lime Prime polish
Dodo Juice panel pot for a wax
First off was the snow foam. Never done this before and whilst it didn't seem to lift much dirt, there was no real effort involved so i'm happy to trust the pros on this one.
Rinse.
Next was a wash with the new mitt and the DJ Born to be Mild. Have to say, the mitt was brilliant. Having always sponged before the mitt makes life so much easier. You can't drop it, it's mega absorbent and allows you to get your hand in to all the nooks and crannies. It also lathers up the wash solution brilliantly.
Rinse.
Clay time. Again, never done this before. As I keep telling the wife, lots of lube makes this much more enjoyable
Very light pressure and keep spraying the lube until you can't feel the grittiness anymore. I was a little skeptical about this, but you really can feel the imperfections. Small area at a time until it moves smoothly and then move on to the next area. Claying took about an hour, was quite enjoyable and really made a difference.
Wash
Rinse
Dry with microfiber
.... balls, it's raining
So I managed to get it clean, but not protected. So next time I can skip the clay stage and hopefully make it as far as the polishing stage!
Lessons learned:Tar spots. Little b@rstards! I was annoyed I hadn't got some tar remover. Whilst finger nail and clay got me so far it was by no means perfect. Need to add tar remover to the shopping list.
Clay. It's a slippery little bugger and can end up on the floor. I ended up throwing a couple of little bits away as once it hit the deck I didn't trust it to be grit free. You can kind of fold a bit between thumb and finger to stop it flying off.
Microfibres. Can never have enough, need to add some more to the shopping list.
Even without the polishing, the clay has made a hell of a difference and looks a good as a polished, non-clayed car.
Lets see what the weather does tomorrow.... Apologies for lack of pics, I was trying to beat the weather and in the end, failed.
(Thanks to Mr Waxamomo for the advice and kit)
