Jan AMG

Do you use original MB stuff? Do you have your own wap press wash at home? Or do you leave it to professional washers/detailers?
If you do it yourself, please share what kind of stuff do you use .. thanks

BenzBee

My wife has an E-class and I have a 5 series. I am in charge of detailing both cars. I consider myself a detailing fanatic and finding the best product is kind of a passion for me. I only hand wash the cars with sheep skin mits using two buckets. I also use a foam gun loaded with Optimum Car Wash to presoak the car. For washing I use Meguire's Gold Class car wash. When drying I use a detailing spray. I had found that Finish Kare FK425 leaves the slickest finish.

About twice or three times a year, I clay bar the cars. I use a clay bar I can buy from a regular Autoparts store. After claying the car, I typically wipe them down with isopropyl alcohol. Since I don't have a polisher, I use a glaze (Chemical Guy's EZ Creme) before applying the last step product (wax or sealant). My preference for last step product is Blackfire Wet Diamond (BFWD). I like to put on two coats. A properly prepped car this way should last a least 4 to 5 months. In between, I use Optimum Spray Wax.

Since you are in Europe, Sonax has some pretty good products. Including a wax that is supposed to last a year.

The original MB stuff in the US is just regular over the counter Meguire's stuff which is not bad. Detailing can turn into an obsession. I would recommend going to autopia.org or autogeekonline.net if you want to learn more.

Bee Benz's Husband

epasc

http://www.yelp.com/biz/studio-car-w...sh-culver-city

That's my method. Worked on my E500 as well.

Corsa9000

There is no reason why you couldn't wash and detail your car by yourself. It is time consuming but if you have a passion for a perfect car, you will enjoy every minute of it, I do.

You do need some basic products and tools. I recommend you look at Griots Garage web site, and get a basic starter kit along with a CD which explains the process.

Nira_Lim

Personally, I do it myself at home. If you're willing to commit to actually washing, polishing, and waxing. It will take you a good afternoon (the results are worthwhile).

For waxing I use Meguiar's NXT 2.0 Tech Wax. This wax works miracles! Its hard to really see the difference with silver paint, but you can notice it. If you have a black car, you will really notice the difference.

For Car Washing soap, I use Turtle Wax's car soap. To me, I dont find car soap that important. Any brand or product will do as long as you dont use laundry detergents or dishwash soap. These products will strip off your clear coat! DONT USE THEM.

I rarely polish my car (around once or twice a year) because I clean and wax my car often. When I do polish I use Mcguiar's Deep Crystal System Polish. It really gets to those deep swirls or scratches. I always use a claybar before polishing and waxing. This will help get all the little specs you missed with your wash.

Hope this helps

Corsa9000

Yes, if you wash and wax your car regularly, no need for polishing, maybe every few years. Two basic things to remember is to never use dish soap to wash your car (too strong, will damage paint) and a wax application lasts about 7-8 car washes, so wax it (Carnuba based or Synthetic polymer) every 3 months.

Nira_Lim

Mcquiar's Ultimate Quik Detailer is great if you don't have time to wax. Just spray and wipe after you wash your car.

Another thing i would like to add is USE MICROFIBRE TOWELS! This will help you in the fight against swirls in your paint finish. Use it when drying the car and wiping off waxes or polishes.

When you get bird or animal droppings on the car... wipe if off ASAP. The chemical that they contain are very harmful to the paint.

absent

Drive through car wash,all my cars regardless of the brand....

Jan AMG

Guys - all of you have been really helpful, thanks so much! Thanks again for sharing your experience.
To Mr. "absent" - I used to drive through car wash with all my previous cars but with the last I started spotting the damage car wash can make (swirls) because M colours on BMWs (at least 5er) are really thin and much lower quality than MB uses.. really the difference in latest years BMW vs. MB is huge! It was Carbon Black - insane to keep clean and easy to scratch. With the S, I would like to do it properly and also, it is such a great relax doing it yourself! I've read somewhere it is among TOP 10 favourite activities for men.

So going through all your responses I tried to create a proper list of TO DO and tools and stuff and finally found a very nice PDF document while browsing the web (thanks for the tips).
I will upload it in a while.

I'm in Europe but Meguiars product can be bought easily at eBay so I will get into it.

Also, a forum member NSJ430 wrote me this:

I use a Porter Cable 7424 orbital polisher. It's pretty much the standard machine used here in the US. It's best to use an orbital polisher because it is highly unlikely that you will do any damage to the paint with it. There are two Menzerna polishes especially formulated for Mercedes nano paint. PO87mc (aka Final Polish II) and P106FA (aka Super Finish). The PO87mc has a stronger cut than the P0106FA. But the shine and depth you will see after using the P0106FA can't be beat. It's easy to forget which one is which so just remember that the white polish is the coarse and the grey polish is the fine. These are the polishes they use in the Mercedes factory. Use the PO87mc followed by the P0106FA. I apply them using green "German" (Green) pad on my orbital polisher. You can use a white one if you can't find the green. The colors denote the cutting power of the pad. The polish dissolves itself as you apply it leaving very little residue. Follow the polishing with an application
of Menzerna FMJ or Klasse. I like FMJ because it goes on real easy and it only takes me 30 minutes to apply it to the whole car. The Klasse always seemed a bit more difficult to work with to me.

I've been polishing my cars for a long time and there a few tricks I learned along the way -

*Masking Tape* - I use the Blue 3M masking tape and some paper to mask off the vents in the hood, the chrome strip at the top and bottom of the doors, the door handles, side marker lights, etc. If you don't, the polish will get into the cracks and you'll spend hours getting it out.

*Using the machine* - Place the machine on the surface and then turn it on and turn it off before you lift it off. If you don't, the polish will spray all over and make a mess wherever it lands.

*Damp Cloth* - Use a damp cloth (Not Wet) to remove the residue after polishing.

*Clay* - clay works really well to take out anything that has lodged itself into the paint. Although I don't use it much simply because my car is kept so clean most of the time it isn't necessary. If you have a stain or spot from tree sap or a bird you should use clay before you polish.

*Boar's Hair Brush* - If you don't put the scratches in then you won't need to polish them out. If you use a natural boars hair brush when you wash the car it won't scratch the paint.

*Micro fiber towels *- Same reason as above. Use these to dry after washing. I have a large super absorbent one that I bought from Griots Garage which I really like.





I will try to make some photos and send you Before & After ..

Jan AMG

Here we go - Detailing Hand Book

lkirchner

I have read the posts on this thread and many are helpful but not always accurate. Dishwashing detergent will not remove the clear coat on your car but I too would not recommend it. The polisher that is recommended is a good choice, the Porter cable machine but for a few $'s more the Flex dual action orbital made in Germany is far superior. The polishes and sealants being recommended are good mid range products but since you live in Europe I would highly recommend Menzerna poilishes and sealants. The products are made in Germany and many of their products are made specifically for the Mercedes Ceramiclear clear coat paint.
Another thing if you do get bird droppings on your paint, yes wipe it off immediately but this will not get rid of the damaging effects. The bird stuff will contain acid in it and wiping it off will not get rid of it. Make a paste out of baking soda and water, apply it to the spot let it dwell for approximately 8 hours and then gently wipe it off. This will neutralize the acid and stop the etching. I have always detailed my cars and while it is time consuming it follows the old addage "If you want it done right, do it yourself".
There is a great site that will give you great tips on how to care for your car. It is ;www.autopia.org.

Good luck and enjoy.

K-A

I have a pretty "different" way of caring for my cars in terms of washing. However, anyone who knows me or has seen my cars, always say I'm the most meticulous, and always have a shiniest, most "popping" looking car.

In terms of wash, I DO NOT use soap at all, until the day I wax the car (I just take it to a hand-wash that day now because I'm too lazy to wash and wax, considering Waxing takes me 3-4 hours as it is). I simply have a few chamois, one for the interior, one for the paint, and one for the wheels, and use them accordingly. I hose each section of the car, and gently wipe it with the chamois, "sponging" it constantly. I don't like soap, as I feel it dulls the paint over time, and can only help strip the wax more than anything. As long as the car isn't catastrophically dirty, I've had no problem getting it spotless with a chamois and water.

Also, my "nice car" is always garaged, and it's not a total DD, so when it gets dirty, it's more just layers of dust than anything. Also, I ALWAYS scan and wipe off bird poop or anything that "sticks" to the paint when I get home after driving around during the day.

As for Wax, I try and do it every 3-4 months or so (again, the car doesn't sit in sunlight too often). One time a year using a Cleaner Wax.

I've rarely had to Polish or Clay Bar, due to keeping the car clean, but if something unexpectedly harsh has occurred with the paint, then I go ahead and do it. Also, now that I have a White car, I'm realizing I might need to Clay it once a year or so.

Also, I always throw a coat of wax over the plastics, like headlights, grille, the B-Pillars, "chrome" (plastic) moldings, etc. It protects them for fading, and keeps the car having that extra "pop" and "new" look I think. As for rubber trim, I'll usually throw some Aerospace 303 protectant or something over them like once a year or so.

Oh, and I don't do this as much as I should, but after washing a car, especially if it hasn't been prone to lots of outside particles and dirt during the day, using a Car Duster keeps it clean for waaaay longer.

Nira_Lim

This is probably the worst way to wash your car.

absent

Maybe so.
I don't have the time nor desire to do it myself.
I keep my cars less then a year on average so there is no visible damage ,even with frequent wash (a must in Chicago).
All my cars have a clear coat (metallic paint) and that helps also to prevent "swirls".

Nira_Lim

+1 on the Masking Tape.

I wouldnt recommend using a machine to polish the car unless you know how. But if you do plan on using one, I would recommend that you use a DA (Dual Action) Machine. This will help prevent you from cutting too much into the paint. It will reduce heating between the paint and your rotor. Thus it will be safer to keep in an area for a long period of time.

Nira_Lim

All cars have clear coats, but not all will last long depending on the weather conditions, how much care is put in, and how often you wash it.

But if you only keep your cars for no longer than a year... I can see why you dont plan to take car of it. :P reasonable enough

absent

I thought metallic paint usually has a thicker clear coat then regular one.
At least they (metallics) seem to withstand the car wash exposure much better then the rest....

AHall

Keep cars less than a year???

Hopefully that is a lease.

jprescott

Jumping back to your comment, I believe that there is alot of urban legend out there:

http://autos.aol.com/article/automatic-car-wash-tips/

Not my favorite news source, but I have never been able to do as well in my driveway as a good car wash place.

Nira_Lim

really? I would think metallics are more prone to swirls.

From personal experience i would have to say that silver and white cars are the easiest (by far) to take car of. Black would be the hardest. Swirls really show on them and a pain to take off.

I live in Cambodia and my cars are pretty much washed everyday. Its currently rainy season right now and when it rains... it really pours.. I wax my cars at least twice a month to make sure that the clear coat isnt worn from all the rain and washing. Quick spray waxings are very handy after washes.

absent

In Illinois you have to pay entire sales tax regardless of the length of the lease.
When trading the car in ,you get the tax credit for your car.
I leased only once (2006 SL65) ,for 2 years ,with that car for over 4 months (combined) in service (a really nasty case of a lemon).
Never again.....

Corsa9000

Quick notes on automatic car washes:

1. Detergents used are very harsh, because they want the car cleaned quickly, not necessarily correctly

2. The railing system that carries your car in and out of the system rubs against your wheels and often scratches them

3. Watch the guy drying the car, often uses the same towels on the body, wheels, glass and interior

Besides these, they are great for people who don't have the time, don't care, etc.

K-A

I only use drive-through washes on my Chevy.

Red Marko

I let my housekeeper do it.
Bad? No?

K-A

Just make sure you tell her to use the Laundry Detergent if you're out of proper wash soap.... Don't want to let her get away with missing one of her chores. Also, to make good use of that dish sponge, you know, to get all the particles that are "stuck on" off.