How has your approach to detailing changed as you`ve gotten older/wiser?

[Accumulator]

Desertnate- Heh heh, once I got Accumulatorette used to Autopian-level Detailing, she developed a very critical eye, and she takes great pride in how nice her `00 A8 still is. When we look at new vehicles in showrooms, she`s usually the one to comment on how marred up they are. She once asked a Porsche salesman "who would buy a mess like that?!?" about a six-figure car they thought looked great.


Heh heh..."black vehicles"...my Yukon XLD was a metallic black ("granite" or somesuch). OK, the metallic will be forgiving, right?

Nope. It merely concealed the marring under some conditions, which made my inspection challenging when chasing holograms (left by an Pro, who used to post here, he`s *NOT* a hack. That`s what I get for paying somebody to do my work for me). Stuff that "doesn`t show" did at times and I couldn`t stand it. I get enough of that with the dark blue `93 Audi (over-corrected to where it`s now stupid-soft). I can keep `em OK, but it`s not fun, so the Yukon got sold (and I`m careful with that Audi).

The one color on which I can stand (very minor) marring is white, and only if that`s kept clean and very shiny. And sooner or later I always end up fixing that anyhow.

[Lonnie]

To all Autopians:
My sincere apology for getting off-topic and making my comments/adding "fuel to the fire" about the Sig Sauer versus Glock gun controversy. So much for my feeble and hypocritical attempt to keep this a detailing-centric forum!!!

What were we talking about?? Oh yes; getting wiser about detailing as we get older. Back to the topic discussion at hand.

(And keep your off-topic/topic hijacking comments to yourself, Captain Obvious, and we will all be the better for it. JUST SAYIN`, as you say...
Yeah, right; like THAT is ever going to happen!!!
Say something (wrong), and then apologize; say something, then apologize.. we see a trend here.. Are you SURE you are an Obsessive-Compulsive Detailer , and not a politician, Captain Obvious? Because you sound (and act) like a politician! Just sayin`...)

[John U]

50+ years ago I used Pledge on the tires after a scrub with Comet and a SOS pad. Kit wax was it for me

[nan_wpg]

Perfection is the enemy of done.

at this stage I’m thining the product line down, and simplifying my process.

im financially independent finally (within the context of a simple frugal life) and can buy, and do anything that i want to do.

The only resource I’m not independent, of and have a limited amount is my time.

once my time is spent I can never get it back.

once a year my vehicles get a “super intense paint cleaning” instead of perfect paint. Then a coating, and from there a wash (time permitting) and spray sealant/wax as a drying aid.

one apc, a glass cleaner, rinseless wash, and some car soap (when the little ones want to see foam). Something to put on the tires. Whatever’s cheapest. That’s it. Spray polish, and sealants/waxes only. No more of the apply, wait, buff off nonsense.

I like a clean vehicle, and a shiny vehicle. I no longer wish to spend a day or 2, and dozens of products to do so.

‘I’ll spend one day, once a year, and then “as I feel like it”

at the end of the day it’s a car, and by no means anything remotely fancy. Sometimes I feel like washing a car, but honestly most days I’d rather be on a pontoon boat, or sitting on a dock reading a book. or strumming my guitar

[PoisonTheWell]

Detailing talk of the past was kind of like on gun forums where the 1911 versus Glock wars took place and now it seems to be Glock versus Sig Sauer, lol.

I`m a CZ guy lol. Lonnie, I think it was the first version of the P320`s that weren`t drop-safe.

Overall, detailing was a pandemic hobby for myself. Learned with all the downtime I had. Now that I have less time, I`m trying to find more efficient and faster methods, time saving tools, etc. Would love a whole weekend to work on a car, but it`s usually just not available. Mostly maintenance and trying to not do harm.

[Accumulator]

The only resource I’m not independent, of and have a limited amount is my time.

once my time is spent I can never get it back....

How does that Thoreau quote go? ..."The price of anything is the amount of your life you exchange for it".