Car cleaning

The Porsche cleaning update got some comments: http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/project-cars/1984-porsche-911-carrera/clean-car-happy-car/

So, let me ask a question: How much interest is there in car cleaning editorial? Some? None? Quick and efficient techniques?

I guess there would be some, but wasn't there an article in Classic Motorsports not that long ago?

I'd be interested in something using a homemade clay bar (didn't we have a thread about that at some point?). I'd also be interested in tips on cleaning an engine without wrecking all of the wiring.

I believe there was an intense/intensive discussion on here a while ago about clay bars and who sells them with a huge markup and where you can get exactly the same thing in bulk, like the hobby aisle at Walmart or something. This sounds like the perfect opportunity for the editors to debunk myths, find bargains, and generally seek out Truth, while letting some people around the office end up with nice clean cars.

Maybe you could find somebody with a red Miata. (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

I'm down.

Let me just say that the Mr. Clean Auto Dry Wash works tits for black cars. No spots at all, I'd never use anything else again. Soap and filters are pricey though. Find me something cheaper!

I took the advise on using a wax based modeling clay to clay bar my car. It worked but the type of clay I used was too soft and would melt with any heat. Maybe a recommendation as to what brand of modeling clay works well.

The real issue with cleaning tips is it almost always turns into a marketing campaign by a manufacturer of premium products. There is no way I'm going to ever pay 100$ for a can of wax or 40$ for a clay bar so I think it is best to just generalize to the techniques of various chemical(paste verse liquid wax), different washes, etc.

Lastly, there is already so much discussion online and elsewhere surrounding detailing that you may just be beating a dead horse, so to speak. Keep up the good work!

My only interest (besides more Porsche pix) would be in Grassroots clay bars.

To hell with cleaning a car. Drive it until it drops.

David S. Wallens wrote: The Porsche cleaning update got some comments: http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/project-cars/1984-porsche-911-carrera/clean-car-happy-car/

I just went and read the Porsche cleaning update and will add this:

I received such E36 M3ty service from Griot's the last two times that I attempted to purchase something from them that I would have no interest in a car cleaning editorial whatsoever. I get pissed off when their catalogs show up in my mailbox now.

+1 on homemade / alternative detailing tips/tricks etc. If I want a perfect detail I'll spend three weeks reading Autopia. I'm more concerned with presentable and easily maintained.

David S. Wallens wrote: The Porsche cleaning update got some comments: http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/project-cars/1984-porsche-911-carrera/clean-car-happy-car/ So, let me ask a question: How much interest is there in car cleaning editorial? Some? None? Quick and efficient techniques?

Guess I am in the minority but I would be all over that. I know this is a GRM board but I really enjoy washing and detailing my cars. Always looking for new products, opinions on what people use, comparisons, tips and advice on this subject. Just because a car is older or inexpensive doesn't mean it has to look bad although there is nothing wrong with it if it does..

Short answer: 100% for it.

I'm in. I just spent 6 hours last Saturday cleaning the wife's Trailblazer. Scratch buff, touch-up paint. Meguar's wax, armol-all, interior, windows, tires, and ........

I am one of those guys that waxes under the hood, doors, and inside all the door jambs. I also armor-all the black plastic stuff under the hood.

So count me in...

pete240z wrote: I'm in. I just spent 6 hours last Saturday cleaning the wife's Trailblazer. Scratch buff, touch-up paint. Meguar's wax, armol-all, interior, windows, tires, and ........ I am one of those guys that waxes under the hood, doors, and inside all the door jambs. I also armor-all the black plastic stuff under the hood. So count me in...

And so there was two.

Clay bar? Isn't that a brand of tires?

I'd be game for a chemical breakdown of certain products to break through all the "gaurantees" and outrageous claims similar to the article on oil additives you just had on the main page of the site. And then find cheap bulk cleaning products that have the same basic formula and can be had for dollars a gallon at any hardware store or somesuch place. And the clay bar idea sounds good too.

I'm with Feedurhead & pete240z on this.

I'd look forward to it.

Hey hit that full page advertiser of yours (Griots) for some tips and tricks. I know that Griots isn't very GRM, but their stuff is good!

And any tips on how to get the same kind of results from less expensive stuff would be a bonus.

Detailing your car with a host of products from Griots is a long way from grassroots, IMO. Sure, it's better than dropping it off at Joe's Detailing for a $250 detail...but at the same time, are the Griot's products really worth double or triple the money what similar products cost at your local parts store/body shop? A clean car is nice, but IMO it'd be tough to do an interesting article that doesn't look like an advertisement. Then again, I don't write magazine articles so what the hell do I know?

Bryce

I'd like to see it. Though I never really keep my car very clean.

Joey

Some comparison tests, especially with a grassroots budget vs expensive stuff, would be good. I very occasionally drop in on the detailingworld forum and they've had some interesting discussions about decent quality, but comparatively cheap polishes, waxes etc.

BoxheadTim wrote: Some comparison tests, especially with a grassroots budget vs expensive stuff, would be good. I very occasionally drop in on the detailingworld forum and they've had some interesting discussions about decent quality, but comparatively cheap polishes, waxes etc.

+1

the best lesson I learned in GRM was how to powerwash seats when buying a used car.

andrave wrote: the best lesson I learned in GRM was how to powerwash seats when buying a used car.

I must have missed that.....details?

Just take the seat out, and hit it with a power washer? I assume at reduced power. Then let air dry?

I believe power-washing seats was covered in the Trash to Treasure article. I think (no time to re-read it right now) http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/trash-treasure/

I'd read that. I'd especially be interested in beginner's detailing tips beyond the obvious, especially for restoring/preserving paint - what product to use for what application, appropriate usage of power tools, basics of buffing, that sort of thing. Underhood cleaning also seems to be one of those things that separates the men from the unusually-anal-retentive men in the realm of car cleaning.

Now that I have a nice car, I'd like to keep it that way, at least for a while.