I think I added a bunch of scratches.

[imported_blackjetta]

Recently I started detailing my 1 year old black Jetta, which had only been "touchless" washed since I bought it. I stopped touching it when I noticed I`d added a bunch of scratches while washing it. I was using a Meguiar`s Gold Class "deep pile chenille wash mitt", Megs Gold Class car wash. I tried to rinse well and be very gentle. Before I started, the paint was quite dirty, with some swirls from the dealer polish/waxing, but had no scratches I could see.



The scratches I see now are small (1/4 to 1 inch) straight lines in every direction. They are not dense, nor deep, but I notice them all over the hood and trunk lid especially. I tried to get some pics just now, but couldn`t get the camera to focus on the scratches (even manually, maybe just need daylight).



Here`s what I did:

Rinsed off as much as I could

Washed with above noted wash and mitt, rinsing suds off in sections before moving on

dried with new megs water magnet *

used megs 3-step red bottle stuff (cleaner, polish, wax) in a small area before noticing the scratches, then I stopped.



some things I noticed: while washing, the mitt left little wads of cotton(?) all over the place, it sometimes stuck to things I couldn`t see on the paint and I had to spray-jet to get it off. while drying, the towel(water magnet) seemed to be catching on things I couldn`t see, like if you ran it across a wood board it`d catch on splinters.



Also, I have excellent vision, so if I can`t see something it must be well camouflaged or very small. There were definately things I COULD see in the paint, on the front of the car. Some of these things I could grab with my fingernails and pull out of the paint, leaving a very tiny crater behind.



I hope some of you more experienced than me can help me figure out what to do and what not to do here.



Please forgive my huge post, I tend to type a lot when asking questions :hide:



One more thing: the products I have are what I could scrounge locally. I`m willing to buy more stuff online if necessary.

[papi_jay]

Did you give the wash mitt a good wash 1st and air dry ?

Same with microfiber(s) - per directtions , but wash them seperately ?

Maybe you don`t have a good drying technique down yet ? How did you dry the water off like how was the microfiber oriented ? Bunched up into a ball ?

[imported_blackjetta]

I washed the mitt first in a medium cycle by itself, then let it air dry. I did not wash the towels first, guess I missed that part of the label. I dried by laying the towels flat on the car and dragging them slightly, then lifting and repeating in a slightly different spot. I never pressed it on the car with my hands, never wadded it or even folded it at all.



Actually that`s not true... I remember trying to machine dry the mitt first for a few minutes with no heat... I did thoroughly clean the lint screen first though. I felt and visually checked the mitt afterwards and saw no "stuff" in it. Also I used only one wash bucket, I`ve since found out that two is better?

[papi_jay]

I dont know honestly , only thing I can think is you were using the mitt as a scrubber ?

Possibly also the touchless washing was also a waterless washing and they detailed it with fillers to hide those scratches ?

I have never used a chennille mitt although I wanted to try one .

I know some microfibers have something in them that you have to wash out before using them .

I see guys using oxy clean diluted to recommended strength with hot water for washing the MF . Then a rinse of all the stuff out , then a splash of distilled vinegar in the rinse cycle .

Someone who knows it all should chime in though ..

IN the meantime , here are a few threads that you might be interested in .



http://autopia.org/forum/showthread.php?t=35232



http://autopia.org/forum/showthread.php?t=5120



http://autopia.org/forum/showthread.php?t=59122



Me thinking now maybe that few minuutes of heat was more than a few minutes and damaged the chenille somehow ?



:think:

[acl99]

My guess is they were caused by the "touchless wash". Those things never get a car completely clean. Im guessing a thin film of uncleaned grime has been hiding the majority of the swirls until you gave it a hand bath. im *guessing* those straight scratches are from a dirty drying towel. At the end of the tunnel wash were there any people to dry off any water that was not blowen off?

[stevet]

How often did you rinse the mitt? Did you use two buckets, one for soap another for rinsing the mitt. It`s a good idea two use two buckets so you can keep the wash water clean. Don`t do a whole panel without rinsing the mitt. Do maybe a quarter of a panel than flip the mitt and do another quarter of a panel. Than rinse the mitt well in your rinse bucket and repeat. It`s also a good idea to use two mitts, one for the top portions of the car and another for the lower portions.

[kiaser]

Did you dust first with a california duster before rinsing?

[Jaymzx]

My thoughts are the stuff stuck to your paint that is grabbing your wash mit and dragging on your towel may be every-day bonded surface contaminates. I know that the local touchless car wash does a good job at cleaning the car, but there just seems to be some stuff that the nasty chemiclals there can`t remove without agitation. This stuff builds up and can be felt if you put your hand inside a plastic bag and run it over the paint. It should feel smooth as glass. If you feel bumps and hear a `scratching` sound as you move the bag, I would suggest claying the paint or using a good paint cleaner. The Meguiars Deep Crystal system you have has an OK paint cleaner. Try using that a couple times on the heavy spots (usually the back bumper and just aft of the wheels).

As for the scratches, my feelings are also from the `touchless` car wash. My local touchless sprays down your car with a wand then uses sheepskin wash mits to `pre-wash` the car before sending it down the tunnel. There`s usually a guy at the end to touch up what the high-speed blower doesn`t dry. They have to work quickly, and quickly doesn`t always mean carefully. I know...I`ve come out of there with some nasty halograms from some grit being in a wash mit :(.

[imported_blackjetta]

The touchless wash was just a machine wash at a gas station. No people at all. It has an automatic arm that moves around the car spraying it. It could not have caused these scratches, they are short, random and go in every direction.




Did you dust first with a california duster before rinsing?

No.




Did you use two buckets, one for soap another for rinsing the mitt.

No. I will next time.




few minuutes of heat was more than a few minutes and damaged the chenille somehow

It was on `air dry`, as in No Heat.




I would suggest claying the paint or using a good paint cleaner

I will have to learn to clay. I bought the Mother`s clay starter kit thing. I think rubbing with a paint cleaner while there are particles on the paint would make things worse?



I think I will start another thread for how to get rid of these scratches, once I can get them photographed.

[chml17l]

Before you do anything else, I would definitely recommend downloading David B`s free detailing guide.



http://www.autopia-carcare.com/freeguide.html



This will answer many questions and get you headed in the correct direction.

[papi_jay]

Post a picture of the scratches . Maybe they are just marring or light clear coat scratches ?