Caring For A New Car

[Ennio335i]

I`m awaiting arrival for my apine white 335i. What steps should i follow upon taking car of this vehicle properly. Please list products and steps you guys take when detailing a brand new "WHITE" vehicle. Also, If i were to purchase the zaino ultimate protection show car kit will that have everything i need to get the job done.

[BobD]

The first step should be to call the dealer and demand that they do not touch, wash, or "prep" this vehicle. This will save you tons of headaches.

[Bigpoppa3346]

Don`t let the dealer prep the car at all-make them sign a contract saying if the car is delivered washed or the plastic is removed that you won`t accept the car. When you get the car, wash it, clay it, go a light polish (Menzerna FPII) with a machine to bring out the highest gloss, possible, then seal it, which in your case, would be Zaino.

[CroMag]

You don`t say where you are located, but I am guessing you have a winter and don`t have a PC so I would say....



wash

clay

AIO

SGx2

Collininte 845 or 476



Reassess in the spring (wash regularly of course) and go from there

[07GTI]

You don`t say where you are located, but I am guessing you have a winter and don`t have a PC so I would say....



wash

clay

AIO

SGx2

Collininte 845 or 476



Reassess in the spring (wash regularly of course) and go from there



I`m just getting into detailing and I`m curious about the paint on my new car. It`s about 2 months old and I`m wonderig if the clay step is really necessary right away. Also, how often should I think about doing it? I live in Canada so road salt is laid on by the dump truck load in the winter. My car is grey.



Also, if I apply nxt wax, can I put a sealer on top of it? which one might you recommend?



Thanks

[offcenter]

You don`t say where you are located, but I am guessing you have a winter and don`t have a PC so I would say....



wash

clay

AIO

SGx2

Collininte 845 or 476



Reassess in the spring (wash regularly of course) and go from there



CroMag gave you some good advice. I use AIO (old formula) and lately I have been using 4 Star UPP as a topper instead of SG since it is easier to apply/remove than SG. I also use OCW. Alpine White paint is soft, so be careful and watch for scratches and surface marring. Enjoy your new ride :woot2:

[fdizzle]

If your going to be spending your time doing a mild polish and sealing - you really should use clay, since the vehicle is so new use a fine grade clay like pinnalce ultra poly or sonius green clay so you wont worry yourself over swirling or marring.



IMO, you will see better results with your polish/sealant steps, and acheive a perfectly smooth finish.



you might wanna take rad 21`s advice on the sealant glaze - I have Klasse KSG and it, even when applied properly (super super thin coat) can be a mild challenge to remove. 4 star makes a good product too . . .

[07GTI]

If your going to be spending your time doing a mild polish and sealing - you really should use clay, since the vehicle is so new use a fine grade clay like pinnalce ultra poly or sonius green clay so you wont worry yourself over swirling or marring.



IMO, you will see better results with your polish/sealant steps, and acheive a perfectly smooth finish.



you might wanna take rad 21`s advice on the sealant glaze - I have Klasse KSG and it, even when applied properly (super super thin coat) can be a mild challenge to remove. 4 star makes a good product too . . .



So just to be sure, these are the steps I will follow:



Wash & Dry

Pinnacle Ultra Poly Clay

NXT

KSG



I will be using a 8" random orbital since it will be quicker. I usually don`t have more than 3-4 hours free to clean my car so I`m trying to keep the time spent to a minimum. I have the foam applicator that the orbital came with, some terry wax removers and a MF buffer. Will these tools work to apply and remove the wax and sealant? How many applicators terry pads and buffers do you think I will need to do the whole car?



Thanks for the tips.

[dpritchett]

I`m wonderig if the clay step is really necessary right away.



Thanks



Your new car has sat in a factory lot, been rail transported and loaded on a ship, unloaded at a port and railed or trucked to you.... don`t skimp and not clay. Also, BMWs produce a LOT of break dust, which you will notice on the wheels, but also carries to the body. If your car has 10 miles on it, you can run your finger across the wheels and see...

[CroMag]

So just to be sure, these are the steps I will follow:



Wash & Dry

Pinnacle Ultra Poly Clay

NXT

KSG



I will be using a 8" random orbital since it will be quicker. I usually don`t have more than 3-4 hours free to clean my car so I`m trying to keep the time spent to a minimum. I have the foam applicator that the orbital came with, some terry wax removers and a MF buffer. Will these tools work to apply and remove the wax and sealant? How many applicators terry pads and buffers do you think I will need to do the whole car?



Thanks for the tips.



I don`t know about the last two - KSG really wants to bond to AIO and people have reported problems when trying to put it on top of something else. If you don`t have AIO, I personally wouldn`t use SG and I definitely wouldn`t use it on top of NXT. Putting NXT on top of SG will be fine, as long as you let the SG cure for at least 24 hours.



If you do decide to go with SG, apply it by hand. You need very, very little of it, and putting enough on to lubricate an 8" pad would be about 10 times more than you actually need.

[fdizzle]

- Use only MF to remove product



- Use a foam or MF applicator to apply product



- Use the terry applicatory to apply tire/trim dressing since thats about all they are good for, unless they are super refined premium lint free terry, which is unlikely



- What color is the pad that came with your buffer?



- IMO - you should not apply KSG over NXT, it will not bond very well.



- DO you already have AIO/KSG and NXT?

[07GTI]

- Use only MF to remove product OK, will one do me for the whole car?



- Use a foam or MF applicator to apply product OK, will one do me for the whole car?



- Use the terry applicatory to apply tire/trim dressing since thats about all they are good for, unless they are super refined premium lint free terry, which is unlikely OK



- What color is the pad that came with your buffer? The foam applicator is green. Does it make a difference?



- IMO - you should not apply KSG over NXT, it will not bond very well. In anothr post, someone suggested Colonite 845. How would that bond? I`m really just looking for something that will last longer than NXT on it`s own



- DO you already have AIO/KSG and NXT? No, all I have is the NXT





Also, is there any other steps i need after I clay but before I wax? Do I need to worry about getting any wax on the black trim?



I`m probably going to end up using Meguires Gold class clay since I can get it locally here in Ottawa, Canada. Is that good stuff?



Thanks

[fdizzle]

you may need several mf towels to remove wax, turn frequently, you dont want too much product to build up on one section of the mf. I would suggest using three to four regular size (16x16) mf`s to buff your car - and that is per each application of product. I like the cobra indigo or miracle towel, but thast just what I use, there are plenty of other great MF products.



One applicator should be enough to apply one product to the entire car. Mist the applicator frequently with a quick detailer to aid in spreading the product to get a nice thin coat. you will acheive better results with less product.



I am not familiar with colonite products or the MG Gold Class clay. You may want do a search on this forum for NXT and Clay threads, you will find more info on application and product recomendations there.



As far as post clay pre wax - I would not clay a car and go straight to a protectant - I would use some form of polish, and NXT`s polishing ability is slim at best, and it contains mild fillers.



If you read some of the threads on this form where the Pros have posted - you will find that a polishing step is always a must. It may take you a little longer - but its worth the time.

[CroMag]

845 will last a lot longer than NXT.



The issue isn`t so much with 845 bonding to something - SG is the one that is finicky about what it bonds to. You can put a lot of things on top of SG, but you can`t really put SG on top of much.

[fdizzle]

i agree. sounds like colonite would be a good try