Why has thou foresaken thee with streaks

[advs1]

Well this is my first post. I have been reading for a while, and am amazed at the talent and knowledge on this board. I`m sure someone if not many of you will be able to help me.



First off, im having a problem with horrid streaks that drive me so incredible furious. I see my car in the shade or on a overcast and the beauty of the shine is seen by many. Yet I know how awful it looks in the sunlight. You can see as if my car was layer upon layer of streaks. From dead on it`s just so frustrating. If the sunlight hits my car from any direction (mostly dealing with the sides of the car) then i spend so much time wondering what the hell am i doing. I feel as if i can`t wash my car anymore. :sosad



Techniques are to wash the car with car wash soap. That takes a nice while to make sure i remove all the dirt and crud. I havent clayed the car in a long time, but im waiting for the spring to do that. Then I use the 3M and do sections. A pretty much common procedure that most use on the boards. Like i said i have been reading the boards for a while now. A question is that could it be my cotton towel. I heard something about when cleaning them if you dry them incorrectly(bounce pads or what have you ) then that can cause mysterious streaks?????



And the products used are 3M IHG, Meguirs Carnauba, and before i used Zymol....which i cant stand anymore, since it lasts as long as it takes my car to get up to 60mph.



And if the car matters it`s a Indigo Blue GTI.



So please, how can i correct this problem before i go crazy.



Change products?

Incorrect techniques?

Have a professional do it:bow



All the help will be gladly and so terribly appreciated:D

[ultrajim49]

Hi, and welcome to the board:xyxthumbs

Glad you found us:cool:



Streaks



Could be many things.

Maybe your former wax is dying and the paint needs a thourough(sp????) cleanup.

That would be my (but who am I:D ) first thing to do:

clay

wash

gentle polish

rewax



I guess you need to be a bit more precise what the pre-history in detailing of your car`s paint was: did you use carnauba`s, polymer sealants?



Christiaan

[F 355]

Be a lot easier to answer if you could post a pix...



Steaks??? Could be many things...



If they are tiny scratches it could be a result of many things including marks from not rinsing your wash mit, drying with the wrong or dirty towel, or wiping down/QD the car with the wrong towel. Cotton towels for the most part are history. If you are passionate about them, make sure you use only 100% cotton, made in the USA quality towels, like Fieldcrest and don`t forget to remove the tag.. Better off going with a micro....



If they are not scratches sounds like you need a good paint cleaner / polish prior to waxing.



All the products you mentioned are Glaze or Wax without any real cleaning properties...



Suggest you clay, then polish first to see if it removes the streaks before moving forward with the wax or sealer.

:)

[imported_memnuts]

3M IHG is notorious for causing a streaky ( varying shades of the base color) finish. You may want to try a Dawn wash to remove all the oils on you paint. Check and see if streaking is still present. If the majority is gone re-Dawn wash an area to see if any improvement. Hopefully, all streaking will be gone. Move next to a paint cleanser(GEPC, Pinnancle, Meguiar`s #9 ( also streak prone)). This is assuming that the surface is swirl-free. If not, remove marring with some type of SMR prior to paint cleansing ( very mild polishing). Protected with sealant/wax of your choosing.

The quest is to obtain the finish appearance you desire after each step of detailing. By starting with a "virgin" finish (post-Dawn) one can analyse the problem. If it is streak-free after Dawn any re-appearance of streaking would have occurred from the step just finished ( ie after GEPC streaking re-occurred). Analyse that step or continue to work with that step (product) until surface is streak-free again. Move to next step and proceed with reviewing results after each step. When finished the vehicle should be streak-free. Of course, at some point in the future you should clay the finish but now one wants to discover what the cause of the streaking is and by adding in a step that potentially could cause streaking on it own ( QD streaking) could possible just confuse things.

I would choose one panel of your vehicle that has this streaking problem and run this logarithm. If it works, proceed to do entire vehicle.

Hope this gives you some ideas in order to help solve your problem.

Welcome to Autopia :wavey

[imported_BretFraz]

Yep, I agree its an excess of glaze and wax that`s causing the streaks. Its easy to use too much of either.



I like the idea of focusing on one panel and working on your technique and product choice. Lots easier that way to experiment.



Keep in mind that cold temps and high humidity makes streaking even worse. Sometimes it`s best to wait until the weather helps you out.



Welcome to Autopia :wavey:

[advs1]

Thanks to everyone for the help and advice. This is definitely a great place with friendly and helpful advice. :bow



I will take a picture of my car tomorrow and you can see exactly what im talking about.



But if Sunday appears to be in the 50`s which is like spring after the last week or so of this weather, then i will try the advice given by everyone.



Once again thanks for the help.