Car washing....

[feeltheburn]

I've always used Karcher stuff. Recently upgraded to a K4 Premium- 145 barg- much more effective than the 110barg Karcher K2. Water cooled - metal pumps never had an issue.

I got one of these for the foam:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/151329579074? ... EBIDX%3AIT

Buckets:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Detailing-Val ... 43eecceb52

I get the mitts and autoglym items from Halfords- there is usually a 3 for 2 offer on!

[MikeFish]

Make sure you get one with a really long hose otherwise you have to keep moving the pressure washer. My extra long hose just about gets around the C7.

[kmpowell]

Excellent, will get one ordered up. Can use it on the patio too. It says it has a foam bottle, is this same as foam lance, or still need to order foam lance separately?

The Bottle has the spray/lance attached to it. No need to buy anything else.

The package comes with two main nozzles, one for the patio and one for the car. Do NOT under any circumstances use the patio one on the car, all it takes is for the spray to get inside one slight blemish in the paint and it'll rip it up.

[doodlebug]

To clarify, yes, you need to buy the foam lance.

http://www.cleanandshiny.co.uk is your friend.

[MikeFish]

I use this lance:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lance-Nilfisk- ... ce+nilfisk

Make sure you get the right connector (the one I linked above has the Nilfisk connector).

[innercry666]

It's well worth getting the car detailed and something like Gtechniq's Crystal Serum 'paint protection' applied to the car. Paintwork has the swirls and scratches removed via paint correction work (polishing process) and then the Serum provides a finish that looks really good and ensures the paintwork is relatively easy to maintain. There are other products available but this one seems to give the best, most durable finish and water beading properties. Road grime doesn't stick as easily to the paintwork and the car will stay cleaner for longer between washes and it's easier to get the car back to looking good without too much effort.

I had my RS4 paint work treated last year before the winter kicked in an it has been much easier to keep on top of. The Gtechniq wash products also work really well with the serum finish to get the car clean and the finish looking as good as possible. Also no real need to apply any other product over the top of it so it can be very much wash and go!

I've managed to get the wash routine down to 1 hour:

Pressure wash
Snow foam using Gtechniq W4 Citrus snow foam
RInse
Spray Gtechniq W5 All purpose cleaner around the dirtier sections of the car
RInse
Two bucket wash using Gtechniq Maintenance Wash Shampoo and Gtechniq Wash mitt
(Sometimes I will double up on the snow foaming and the bucket wash if she is particularly filthy)
Rinse
Towel Dry
Use Meg's rapid detailer spray to remove any remaining water marks

After that the car looks almost as good as it would if I had spent quite a few hours (up to 8 hours!) on it getting it clean and then fettled using Autoglym products - HD Cleanser / Ultra Deep shine polish / HD Wax.

The Gtechniq Crystal Serum can only be applied by accredited detailers as if you get the application wrong then it can only be wet sanded off! It's therefore well worth seeking out someone local to you who comes recommended. Here is a link to the detailer I used and to the finished article:

http://www.whitedetails.co.uk/portfolio ... 4-avant-1/

Well recommended...

[MikeFish]

As above, I have the crystal serum and exo on mine.

[vestax32]

Excellent, will get one ordered up. Can use it on the patio too. It says it has a foam bottle, is this same as foam lance, or still need to order foam lance separately?

The Bottle has the spray/lance attached to it. No need to buy anything else.

The package comes with two main nozzles, one for the patio and one for the car. Do NOT under any circumstances use the patio one on the car, all it takes is for the spray to get inside one slight blemish in the paint and it'll rip it up.

A bit confused, kmpowell saying don't need to buy another foam lance as included in this kit, but others saying do need to buy another?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00AGD5IFI/ ... qxb3C06X3A

[mat776]

As above, I have the crystal serum and exo on mine.

Mike - did you have Exo applied to the ppf ? (or serum - although I am not sure that serum bonds well to it - Exo and c1 apparently do) Can't decide whether it's worth it or not, mines having ppf applied next week.

If not, do you notice much difference in dirt retention or beading between the panels with the ppf and the ones with serum and exo ?

I also ask because whilst I have had gtechniq applied to my last 3 cars and always felt it was worth it. I had one panel resprayed on current car a few months ago and because i was waiting for the PE didn't bother to have the quartz reapplied. In all honesty I am not sure I could see the difference between the newly painted panel and the rest of the car, and I have begun to question whether the coatings are as good as I have always thought - particularly if you have a really careful wash technique. (Perhaps they are more worth it if you care less or don't have so much time for washing and/or use hand valets more, as I guess that they will help to prevent swirls and light marring from dirty mitts)

[S4WON]

The nilfisk lance/bottle is rubbish.. Get the one from amazon that was linked, its way better

[kmpowell]

The nilfisk lance/bottle is rubbish.. Get the one from amazon that was linked, its way better

It's adequate enough for me, but then again I'm not a [adenoid]detailer[/adenoid]. A coat of wax every 9-12mths and a quick wash every couple of weeks is all I do, rather than wasting hours of my life massaging crystallised monkey spunk into the wheel nuts.

Driving > polishing.

[MikeFish]

Mat I had the crystal serum applied to the whole car. Not sure if he applied exo under the PPF but it had it on top as it was beading the same as the rest of the car and asked him when I went back. I also applied some C2 to the PPF just for the fun of it.

[S4WON]

The nilfisk lance/bottle is rubbish.. Get the one from amazon that was linked, its way better

It's adequate enough for me, but then again I'm not a [adenoid]detailer[/adenoid]. A coat of wax every 9-12mths and a quick wash every couple of weeks is all I do, rather than wasting hours of my life massaging crystallised monkey spunk into the wheel nuts.

Driving > polishing.

Lol, fair enough, but the difference between the free one and one thats 30 quid is night and day and on a decent motor its money well spent

[mat776]

Mat I had the crystal serum applied to the whole car. Not sure if he applied exo under the PPF but it had it on top as it was beading the same as the rest of the car and asked him when I went back. I also applied some C2 to the PPF just for the fun of it.

Yea - thanks - C2 is a good idea on top of the ppf, did you dilute it (1:2 maybe) or just neat. I have been using gyeon wetcoat on top of Exo ( at the end of a wash). It's really easy to apply and seems to work well, if for no other reason than as a drying agent for the ludicrously hard water here. Diluted c2 can work well as a quick detailer for quartz coatings and would probably do the same job and keeps everything gtechniq - thanks

[Markp]

+1 for Nilfisk, and for going for the longer hose. Make sure the package contains their special car nozzle (wider fan than standard lance) - or buy it separately.