AMGfan

Hey RR ...car finish looks fabulous! Makes me want to go home and get some sandpaper!

CynCarvin32

Are you serious?? Bounty? Yowsers!!

CynCarvin32

I could write a novel covering how to clean and care for a car. But to be realistic no one here wants to read it all

2004 and on R230's have nano paint and realistically that paint is 100x easier to care for than the older normal water based junk paint.

Unless your car is black a simple hand wash and quick spray wax makes the car look great (in conjunction with a proper detailing 2+ times a year).

I have a black SL55 and I keep it looking as close to perfect as possible. I have some marks in the paint I need to take care of but I normally wait a while just because every time I take a mark out I am losing a bit of clear coat. One day there wont be any left -- but I wont be owning it then.

Removing swirl marks all depends on how deep they are. Anything minor can be fixed with a orange pad (from lakewood county supplies) and some Klasse AIO. Deeper marks will need an orange/yellow pad and a more serious polish like those offered by Menzerna. Deeper marks need the lambs wool pad and real compound (then you have to go back up through the different grades of polishes and pads to bring the luster back).

Using very think pile wool mitts will keep you from scratching the paint when washing the car. A soap like that offered by griots garage is good simply because it is so thick and oily. The oil lubricates the dirt and then it also makes it so that water spots do not form even if the car dries before the final spray down.

The quality of the finish at the end is not related that seriously to the final sealant or wax you use. Its all in the preparation before that final series of coats. Getting the finish perfect before the wax will make it look like new. IF you just slap some sealant or wax on a car thats not prepped it will look like a shinny bunch of scratches covered in fall out!

But Royd is right when he says washing a car will scratch the paint. There is no way to prevent it. Just remove the marks now and then and enjoy. If its silver who cares you cant see the marks until the car is really bad.

slowrey

If you do go to a automatic car wash make sure it's a touchless type and not the rollers.

red60R

exactly.......in the winter I will only run mine through the spray/touchless type that don't let anything touch the car but water and soap......handwash all other seasons

Jon2007E63P30

Wow. People have either more time or money than I do.

bltserv

A couple doors down from me is Reus Radio. We have a Mexican Father and Son team that come by every Tuesday. He uses Ionized water. A leaf Blower for the dry and only the best quality towels and charges $ 25.00 a car.

NEVER TAKE YOUR CAR TO A CAR WASH.

My CL500 somehow got a handwash from a Beacon Bay when my GF had it.
They had some bacteria on the rag. Now whenever it rains my car smells like ***. That bacteria blooms. We have tried everything. NO WAY would I let my SL get in a car wash with some jockey who makes minimum wage at the wheel.

05VENOM

Gee...how do you guys clean the underside of the vehicle?...where all the road crap, salt and everything else hits. Going to a touchless car wash is fine, especially if the car is white or silver. With black your screwed no matter what. You will always get swirls unless you polish it (not even hand but with an orbital) every time you wash it. My car is a daily driver and don't have the time or desire to hand wash it. That time is reserved for my other auto and I still don't enjoy it like I used to.

RoydRage

Thanks very much! Careful Blocking a car takes a lot of experience... A new paint job for your car that will match the quality is frightfully expensive, Probably at least $6 or $7k.

Best,

RoydRage