complete newbie to detaling, need some advice please

I think machine polishing really is the only proper way to get rid of swirls, there are products that will fill them in to improve the appearance, but in my experience they're generally more effort than they're worth.

Autoglym tar spot remover is awesome for the little black specs of tar. Wipe it on, leave it for 5mins or so, and wipe it off.

Some stubborn bits take a little more effort but the Autoglym stuff does work great. It made a huge difference to my car when I first did it.

Make sure afterwards, you give it a good soapy wash and get a coat of wax on top. Again Autoglym super resin polish is pretty decent stuff and doesn't take too long to apply.

ETA: Halfords always seem to do 3 for 2 on cleaning products - I grabbed the tar spot remover, super resin polish and a G2 Clay Mitt. Solid starting products to getting your really clean and fresh.

As Callorford said, machine polishing will take the swirls out. I got a glacier white, I purchased a DA polisher kit from cleanyourcar.co.uk.

Im no expert but I have a touch of ocd so here is what did.

1. Wash the car with car shampoo Dodo juice. (Not fairy liquid) lol. Dry using clean micro fibre cloths
2. I used autoglym clay bar kit, do a panel at time. Gets rid of black bits and other crap
3. Masked all the black plastic ready for the DA polisher
4. I used meguiars ultimate compound with the DA polisher to remove all swirls and blemishes. This took me about 2 hours to do, again a panel at a time. Wiping/buffing with a micro fibre cloth
5. Autoglym super resin polish with the DA polisher with polishing pad. Another 2 hours
6. Then I went straight to wax using collinite 476s, done this by hand using a autoglym sponge.
7. Admire your hard work.

thats just a quick guide that I did, other people might use a sealant between polish and wax. There's no real right way of doing it, it's just what ever works for you and what products you like. My paintwork looks amazing after I did this, so I was well happy.

Micro fibre cloths are a must, and it can get quite expensive as well cleaning your pride and joy :lol:

jake_T said:

so i recently washed my clio after buying it last friday and its coverd in swirls and back bits that are impossible to get off unless i scratch them of with my fingers. the paint just looks tired and it could really do with a freshen up.

so to lead to the question im asking...

what products do i need to use to get rid of the swirls and is there a solution to remove the black bits and what do i need to be using to freshen up the paint work?

also what would people recommend when it comes to waxing and polishing as in what they do, how often i should use them and what specific products i shjould be using?

the car is glacier white if that matters in relation to products.

thankyou in advance for any replys, im totaly new to the whole detaling thing so any help will be appriciated.

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It's worth watching some videos on YouTube, as you'll pick up lots of tips. The following video covers pretty much all of the basics and the three channels below include info on pretty much everything else.

[video=youtube;uWmtLSQYbys]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWmtLSQYbys[/video]

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYsa8SOy3TkoxI5D17s1u-w

https://www.youtube.com/user/chemicalGuys

https://www.youtube.com/user/AutoFinesseDetailing

As CallorFold said, the black spots are most likely tar, but also possibly iron. You'll need a tar and iron remover. AutoGlym Tar Spot Remover is good, but I've been using Auto Finesse ObliTarAte - http://shop.autofinesse.co.uk/oblitarate-500ml and Iron-X - http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/engine-and-exterior/carpro-iron-x-500ml/prod_726.html

Swirl marks are hard work to get rid of by hand, but you can get polishes which will help remove them but also fill them in so they'll look a lot better -

http://www.autoglym.com/products/products/super-resin-polish or http://shop.autofinesse.co.uk/tripple-250ml

Some people might kill me for saying this but on all my old cats . Impreza , golf Gt tdtdi and Clio 172 I used. Emmmm........... Petrol and a micro fibre cloth. Always worked a treat . Wiped off all tar, iron contaminants . Got paint work really smooth . Then just really good wash and dry then polish then it was good as new . Lol

Cars Not cats .

I found tar remover to be pretty useless.A good claying removes everything and then you can put on your winter protection(polish,wax etc)

You want to look at some sort of ferrous fall out remover in addition to the clay before the polishing stages, Auto Finess Iron out or Iron X is brilliant stuff. I usually treat all my cars to a full detail, not done the Clio yet but I've only had it since October, just need the weather to improve!

I usually do:
-Jet wash down/snow foam
-Hand wash with a lambswool mitt
-Iron x, 5min soak then rinse
-Clay bar
-Machine polish, I have a Kestrel DAS6 and use Merenza pads and polish
-A coat of good wax, Autoglym HD was is very decent for the price and beats a lot of the more expensive waxes
-A rinse and coat of sealant the day after

Using both wax and sealant helps persevere the look for a lot longer and just wax on it's own, especially if you like to use hot jet washes regularly between washes.

Bear in mind you can layer sealant over wax but wax over sealant won't work as the wax won't stick to it so your just wasting your time and the product.

I'll usually take the alloys off and give them a good clean up and seal as well. Usually caked in crap after winter.

Best tar remover i find is autosmart tardis, and iron x is good for iron contaminents.

In my opinion, by the time you buy all the kit to ie: polisher, polishes, pads, isopropyl alcohol etc, you may aswell get a pro to get it done properly and then spend time learning about sealants, waxes and correct methods of cleaning.

I'd rather learn and do it myself over just paying someone else to do it. The polisher comes in handy and to be fair you could pick one up second hand, use it and then sell it on again without loosing much if any money on it. Each to their own but I find it quite satisfying taking a dirty contaminated car, doing the works on it and seeing the results at the end.

i recognise this car from somewhere #basementapproved

[MENTION=53709]jake_T[/MENTION] yeah mate can't escape us can you haha