what`s the worst mistake you`ve made while detailing?

**dudley doright** · 10-30-2006, 06:22 AM

......rinsing my car once and I took the spray nozzle off, and as I was pulling the hose who was caught between the wheels - I accidentally dropped the hose onto my black Audi A4 hood. It left a big dent exposing the primer. That car has been traded this Summer and I discovered Autopia and bought myself the fireman hose nozzle. Now if I drop the hose which I don`t intend to do, there is a rubber piece to protect the car. Live and learn!

**BigAl3** · 01-30-2007, 01:29 PM

Originally Posted by dudley doright

I discovered Autopia and bought myself the fireman hose nozzle. Now if I drop the hose which I don`t intend to do, there is a rubber piece to protect the car.

i also appreciate this as well. you can just drop it on the ground and move on to the next panel...

**imported_JoshVette** · 01-30-2007, 01:59 PM

I think the worst I`ve done was on a 140,000 mile Miata that was about to be sold.

I had it back to new looking and thought I should do another coat of polish.......

Put it on to fast and thick and tried to take it off just as quick.

Quickly waxed it and pulled it out to see it in the light. There were horrible polish smeared all over, it looked trashed like two tone paint smeared all over the car.

Spent the next hour (with the owner) trying to get it off. He didn`t seem to care though knowing how the car looked before to how it looked after.

**ExDelayed** · 03-04-2007, 01:00 AM

My worst, but I am still an Autopia noob so Im sure there will be more, was trying to remove thest strange dots in my `98 Volvo`s clearcoat. I tested different products in different corners as to not get any strange reactions with the chemicals. Nothing worked.

I had a long weekend and the garage to myself so I figured I was going to get the dots off the paint even if it meant taking the paint off too. Grabbed the trusty rotary and took the buffing bonnet out of the drawer (it had ended up in the same drawer as all the power tools, including sanders with paper still on them). Didnt think about it and went over the entire car with Meguiars Fine Cut Cleaner on its highest speed. I washed the head, dried it, then went over it with a Megiars Polish (cant remember the # right now). Popped out my little handheld waxer (one of the jitterbug type that always have too small of a cord). Sealed the paint and then waxed the hell out of it.

The car was beautiful, I was impressed....until the polish and wax wore off and I saw all the swirl marks and holograms I had put into each and every panel on the car. Bought my PC a couple of days later.

I always used bath towels to dry my cars up to a couple of years ago.

EDIT: I dont know how I revived a thread that had been buried for two months.

**BigAl3** · 03-04-2007, 02:44 AM

Originally Posted by ExDelayed

EDIT: I dont know how I revived a thread that had been buried for two months.

it`s okay! we all get a kick of how naive we were, before we knew any better....

**RTexasF** · 03-04-2007, 06:35 AM

Forgetting to ask if any areas had been repainted (which are usually thinner than OEM).

Sure enough burned the paint off of a raised edge on the hood.

**Broom** · 05-08-2007, 07:34 PM

My experience was pretty crazy and it happened to my first black SUV a few years back....I had recently purchased some fancy application pads and new sealant. When I got to doing the roof, I found it weird that everytime I applied the sealant back and forth it would make this weird metal to metal grinding noise!

I freaked checking the pad but nothin was there. I started applying it again and there it was- that grinding noise. I checked and still nothing! This went on and on for about 6 tries. - until I thought it was kinda funny wierd. Everytime I stroked - grind! It was like a joke was being played on me.

Anyways, I finally stopped, got off my little chair I was standing on and ------ I almost passed out when I saw huge scratch marks on the side of my brand new SUV!!!!!!!:hairpull I looked down and found my belt buckle filled with the paint that it scraped off!!! Man everytime I applied the polish, I was also swaying my hips causing the scratch!!

So keep the buckles off everyone!!!

**GlossyTundra** · 05-08-2007, 08:46 PM

Ohh, Broom, that had to make you sick. I would have vomited!

**laserracer** · 05-08-2007, 08:52 PM

Washing a customers car on a nice sunny day birds singing, ladys standing around out side office building talking away in there lunch hour so i finished drying it and stepped back to admire my work only when i stepped back i stepped straught into my wash bucket

and yes you quessed it the women that were standing around all pi--ed themselves laughing

**Saleenfan** · 05-08-2007, 09:42 PM

hmmm lets see.

Pre autopian

Using a pressure washer on my old Neon that had paint chips. It took chunks of paint off the size of your fist!

Not making sure your car is all the way in your garage before you close the garage door! :hairpull , Let me explain my garage at home is 2 deep and we had my dads mustang parked up front well I pulled in what i thought was far enough well i pressed the button and was taking my shoes off and heard scraping and my heart sank.

(see picture below for aftermath)

Post autopian

Put a cleaner wax on as a topper... DOH!

Dropping my PC with out the pad on and as I grabbed it the backing plate cut a gash in my hand (I still have a wound/scar and this happened 6 months ago)

**Gimics** · 05-08-2007, 10:27 PM

- first night I discovered autopia, I semi-learned the importance of drying a car, and took an old beach towel to my newly painted, poorly washed car.

- first time I used my new MF towels, I didn`t clean the door jams well and instantly turned more than half of my investment into lower panel/engine/jam towels

.

- clay baring sap off my GF`s car... dirty dirty sap.. off my GF`s car. :sign

**tstead** · 05-08-2007, 11:15 PM

...tellng my wife I`d be inside in just a few minutes, decidng to put that one last coat of wax on at the last minute....deciding to do the chrome exhuast after I was done with the wax right before going in....and then deciding to polish my headlights up a bit just for good measure....and then finding out that my wife had already gone to sleep and was "in the mood" while I was in the garage...

Tim

**clnfrk** · 05-08-2007, 11:25 PM

Polishing out a practically imperceptible scratch on the right rear quarter panel of my brother-in-law`s black `06 Porsche 997. Got the scratch out, but also ended up burning the clearcoat in that area. With a PC no less. Over $1200 to fix that damage. I didn`t pay for it, at least not directly. A few weeks later before the car was to go to the body shop, my brother-in-law calls me up one night and says that he wants to use my sealant on the car before it goes in. I thought this was a pointless thing to do, but nonetheless I set out the 20+ miles to his house to bring the bottle over to him and on the way while racing another car on the highway I overreved my `99 M3 by missing a shift and bent all the exhaust valves in the engine. Approx. cost of $2500 to fix that.

**JB_TSX** · 05-08-2007, 11:40 PM

Before I discovered Autopia, I used to wash my car in those 2 dollar car washes using their foam brush. Thank god I was doing that with my old car.. It makes me cringe now, thinking about the bad old days....

**Imatk** · 05-09-2007, 12:24 AM

I think the worst thing I ever did was trying to get out a small scratch on my black Volkswagen with rubbing compound. My friend`s Dad said, "It`ll get that scratch out"

Well yes... it got that out and the paint... it was powdery looking sandy stuff.

Then I used touchup paint on the hood where I removed the paint. It was there the day I sold it... awful.