No big deal S Curvz! It's really hard to tell on these forums!

 

well Twinkletoes was a clue...but you never know.

 

Yep, I have a had my share of girls that were just guys.

Wait,..uh,..not sure if that sounded right. Nope,..that ain't right at all.

Allow me to re-phrase. I have had many girl friends which were treated like any guy would be. Better? Or have I just screwed it up too bad to recover?
--
As a soon to be new MC owner, when do you guys/gals suggest would be a good time to hit it with clay? Is it something that generally needs to be done, regardless of how clean you keep the car?

I hand wash my cars every weekend. And I wax once a month during the summer. Once every two months during the winter.

 

Wha...wha...WHA?!?!? Chikz0rz invading the sacred man-space of the Detailing Forum? Blasphemy! (Except for Heather, of course.. she who bringith forth a bounty of Slick, Epic and Monster-Fluffiness...)

The sky is falling! The sky is falling!!!

Seriously though... Sorry about that. Usually most women have the common sense to not obsess over cars like we menfolk do. They're too busy obsessing over the details of "Wife Swap" "Trading Spouses" and "Nanny 911" to bother with THIS silliness...

...

...I'm not helping am I?

No, no... we know exactly what you mean...

 

i clayed after my first wash. I asked/told the dealer not to do anything to my car other than maybe wash it down, but not to dry or wax it. of course it was shiny when I picked it up, so I imagine they did something. but it was relatively swirl free.

that's my first piece of advice -- tell the dealer... hand's off. OctaneGuy has some posts that show cars he's done that have basically come from the dealer and they are swirly.

second... I would definitely clay before your first wax and when the weather is good, of course. the car may or may not really need it, but you will be amazed at how smooth the surface is and the wax will bond to the paint that much better.

 

I second the idea to clay prior to waxing. Even if you only have light contamination of the top coat, if you wax on top of that dirt, it will become trapped beneath the wax and will simultaneously erode the clear coat and the underside of the wax - either way the life of both will be shortened. Not a huge ammount (unless the grime is very serious, which it sounds like it isn't), but why have any at all when claying is so cheap and easy?

Remember to use your grimy peices on wheels, glass and in the engine bay - my cabrio looked GREAT when I scraped off all that sticky black gunk coating the interior painted parts...

 

ROFL! ImagoX! That's just wrong. LOL!

Ok mini_dreams. Sounds good. I do have a question though and it may be a bit OT.

I keep seeing folks (see, the lack of sexual conatation in that?) talking about swirls in the paint. I have never had this problem on any car I have ever owned. Is this a specific issue to Mini's? Is the paint a bit soft? Not cured? I mean, the only time I have seen swirls in paint happens when some numpty has no clue how to use a orbiting polisher.

Or maybe I am missing something more fundamental here. Clue in the clueless please.

As a reference, I have been detailing my own cars since the late 60's. I have been known to take 2000 grit wet/dry and polish out orange peel on a new car. My cars have always had a mirror shine to them, no matter what part of the body you are looking at.

 

What MINI Dreams said. Getting into this hobby, detailing, not cars...thats a whole nother issue, can get expensive. Call Heather at Detailers Paradise or Griots and see what they suggest. Addistionally, read on here. I have learned a bunch from all the helpful people.

Also, join a local MINI club. I know our club has done alot with detailing, I have also been known to help people once or twice. So, if you want to drive from TX, I will let you use my stuff to learn.

 

^ i still can't see myself claying the engine bay, but i have to say, i was wiping it down yesterday and noticed that there were some grimy areas. and I really want to keep it clean. i'm hoping to pick up some engine detailing tips from OG in Vegas.

 

Be carful in there, its not clear coated...

 

well you sound eons ahead of me in your detailing skills.

i don't use a polisher (yet) and I think that is key to keeping a car swirl free... although i've never really known if a polisher gets rid of the swirls or just covers them up.

anyway, i think most swirls come in to play through the use of non Microfiber towels or those hideous brushes that I see people swiping across their paint at the wand wash yikes!

sounds like you will not have any swirl problems in your future!

 

careful in terms of claying?

I was spritzing some Slick (very carefully) on a few of the paint areas (only those) and wiping off.

I want to learn more about where I need to be careful in terms of electronics, etc. and how to clean hoses, etc.

 

I think he means that there's no topmost clear layer on the paint in the engine bay - even if you gently clay, the possibility of removing pigment exists. Of course, you'd have to clay in there a LOT to make a real difference in the thickness of the paint layer I think (I only do it oncwe or twice a year). Keep in mind also that clay isn't sand paper - it's designed to remove contaminents ON TOP OF the paint, not to actually abrade away the paint and dirt together.

It only takes like 10 minutes, tops to do the engine bay, so long as you get to it early... The creosote or whatever's in there grabs dirt like pine tar, turning it into a sticly black mess. I had the same goo behind my license plate frame in the rear (this is what got me thinking about removing it with clay). Even on a new(er) car though, it's can get pretty grotty in there, so I'd not waste "good" clay on that area - only the used-up/dropped stuff you'd never use on shiny new paint.

 

I never assume I know anything about a new car. You folks who have been keeping care of your car are light years ahead of my knowledge of taking care of a Mini.

I have no idea what paint is used on a Mini, or the application process. Those are key elements in making the paint look as good as possible for many years.

 

I believe the official name brand is "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!"-brand Clearcoat Top Spread...

OK, it's not THAT bad... but it IS soft.

And if you've wet-sanded away orange peel, then I guarantee you've walked in places that almost nobody here has ever dared tread. Well, Octane maybe, but not, you know, normal people.

 

It has gotten easier with clear coats. When I picked up my Lexus IS at the end of 2005, the car had a pretty nice paint finish on it. I dug around and found what paint they used, then used 400 grit dry to prep the lower body.

Added a couple of light coats of clear, then wet sanded to my satisfaction. Oh yeah, I have a paint stall. Today, that car looks really nice.

I already know I will have some work to do on the Mini, but I am having a devil of a time finding out about thier paint. Hmmm. Knowing that it is soft is helpful. BMW does not seem to open about thier paint process. Or I am just having no luck in finding the information.

EDIT: I do not see taking sandpaper, paint and fixing a paint job as taking care of the paint. That is just giving me a good foundation to work with. Keeping on top of all the changes in the car care world takes time and sometimes a bit of experimenting.

 

PM Octaneguy... He's the resident Font of Sacred Wisdom around here, and can probably tell you more about MINI paint than you'd ever want to know.

I'm jealous of your paint booth, BTW.

 

Thanks ImagoX. Hehe, yeah, my Wife would probably pay you to remove that stall.

It's not really setup for a complete paint job. But it is great for doing touch up work and detail work. I'd need to double its size to have a really good paint stall.

 

Yeah, the paint is soft and it isnt cleared, Just like ImagoX cleared up for me. As far as wires and what to cover up, intake filter, alternator and coil pack. Or use Octaneguys style and use a garden sprayer and cover nothing.

 

mini_dreams- re: your question of Does the PC get rid of swirls or just cover them up?

It depends.

It is nearly the only way to get rid of swirls, but to do this you have to:
1) use it with the correct pad (in other words, a pad with some density/aggression rather than a finishing or application pad), and
2) use it with an abrasive polish.

There are also non-abrasive products that can be used with the PC which do not get rid of swirls and only cover them up. The PC helps you cover swirls more effectively and more easily than using the same product by hand. However, these products, even when used with the PC, will not get rid of swirls.

So, althougth the PC can get rid of swirls, it has to be paired with the right chemical and pad in order to do so.

Does that make sense?

-Heather

 

^ very clear Heather... I've been wondering this for a long time.

I'm going to AMVIV and hope to attend one of OctaneGuy's clinics to learn more.

thanks for the explanation!

 

^ MINI Dreams...
Get his DVD too, that will help explain things to you.