If you have read some of the many posts, especially GOT WAX
http://festoolownersgroup.com/festool-tool-reviews/do-you-festool-your-car/ by Drew, the man who makes his living detailing [expensive and exotic] cars and even those of Dan Clark
http://festoolownersgroup.com/festool-tools-accessories/what-do-you-recommend-for-ro-150-feq-polishing/msg8173/#msg8173 and others
http://festoolownersgroup.com/index.php?topic=7848.0, I think most of them are making themselves far more work than is necessary for most peoples' eyes. I'm not talking about those who are preparing for concours d'elegance competitions. From hand wash with a soft synthetic sponge to waxed [2000 Audi A6] car took me only about 3 hours, and I wasn't hustling myself. I think the results speak well for themselves considering this is a nearly 10 yr old car with 121,000 miles, driven daily to work where it was parked outside across from the VA hospital which has its own electric and steam generation power plant (read acide rain), and also sat outside more than a year when I was without any garage at home due to remodeling, and I live about 1/4 mile from an active RR track.
Steps I used were:
1) Hand wash car -- cheapo car wash soap in Akron city water. Unsoftened
2) Dry with microfiber towel. Towels are washed after each car drying use in ordinary laundry detergent and dried in clothes dryer, sometimes with fabric softener laden towelette tossed in for rest of load. Hey, a man should not complain when his wife is willing to put up with such dirty cloths tossed into the laundry!
3) Clay bar. I think this is a most important step. It only takes about 30 - 40 minutes to do the entire car. I've used a Griott's Garage clay bar for >10 years and it is still good for a few more times. Wipe off any surface wetted with lubricant after using clay bar with microfiber or cotton towels. Lightly so as not to create fine scratches. I've also been satisfied with Mother's brand clay bar kits.
4) Apply liquid wax or sealant (free of any abrasive polishing agents) using Rotex on slow speed (I set my RO 125 on #2) with 6" diameter "medium firm" foam pad. I used a Griott's Garage Orange pad which is a bit harder [stiffer] than their Red pad that is designed for waxing. The harder Orange pad provides a little more polishing action. I used Griott's Garage Paint Sealant (not the "One Step" type which has some mild abrasives within); on other occasions I have used various liquid waxes (and even paste waxes) with equally good results. The Paint Sealant seems to hold up better against the winter weather (road salt) and car washing. Ohio uses a lot of road salt, and our winters are usually very wet and snowy. There is a reason they call it part of the "rust belt."
5) Wipe off the haze with clean microfiber towels.
6) Admire your shiny vehicle. Take photos and brag about all the hard work and sophisticated technical knowledge required to achieve a shine equal to or better than on most new cars. The larger scratches remain, though, as shown in PIC_182.
Total Time ~ 3 hours, including hand washing and waxing surfaces of the normally hidden sides of the door frames.
Note the reflections of other items in my garage. The paint surface has to be smooth and polished to get good reflected images. Lighting is dual 8ft fluorescent old magnetic ballast type T12 lamps. The photos would probably be even better if I had used a tripod to take them. I simply held the cheapo Brica digital camera.
Dave R.
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