[whatevs]

Hi Guys - I just picked up my first BMW (have always been a Mercedes guy until now - not sure why!!!) - a 2016 328i, and it stays outside in the sun rain etc :-( How do I keep the car shiny? Are regular washes and wax enough? Do I need to do anything else? Any help is appreciated!

[Billfitz]

I wash with this:
https://www.amazon.com/Optimum-NR201...t%2C180&sr=8-3

Protect the finish with this:
https://www.amazon.com/Jescar-Power-...s%2C180&sr=8-2

Wax is unnecessary.

[mbanks21]

Get a car cover

[CajunBMW]

Originally Posted by Billfitz

I wash with this:
https://www.amazon.com/Optimum-NR201...180&sr=8-3

Protect the finish with this:
https://www.amazon.com/Jescar-Power-...180&sr=8-2

Wax is unnecessary.

I like the optimum wash. I have had good results. They have some other products that I have tried with good results too.

[whatevs]

Thank You!! Will try it out.

[celsdogg]

the latest fad as of late is ceramic coatings. it's supposed nano tech that is smaller and fills in micro crevices better than wax and lasts a lot longer than wax too.

I did it a couple months ago. car always looks clean. dirt comes off with a simple spray from the hose. sometimes I've used a water gun just to shoot off bird pewp. comes right off. even when the car is actually dirty, step back 10 feet and it looks great.

[Wolfus Aurelius]

Cheap and simple: once a week, a $1.50 DIY car wash -- rinse only, no soap, unless you plan to hand-wax afterward. Don't use that soap brush; you don't know what kind of dirt the previous guy left in it. Dry the wheels first, as brake dust sticks to damp wheels. Then use a wax-as-you-dry spray like Meguiar's and dry with microfiber towels.

Depending on your climate and inclination, you'll want to hand-wax one or more times a year. Use detailing clay on the entire body (see the Chemical Guys website), then a glaze to fill very fine scratches, and then a good wax.

Keep a bottle of quick detailer spray and a couple of clean microfibers in the trunk. When you see bird crap or other contaminants, spray and wipe them off quick. The acid in bird crap can etch paint.

You can spend a lot more on fancier products, but unless they are really $$$uperior, the Meguiar's and CG products and the DIY car wash work just fine.

[whatevs]

Thank You!

[whatevs]

Ive been thinking about ceramic and watched a couple videos, but they say its semi permanent, and needs a lot of prep work etc. Did you do it? or get it done professionally?

[ooshnoo]

Originally Posted by whatevs

Ive been thinking about ceramic and watched a couple videos, but they say its semi permanent, and needs a lot of prep work etc. Did you do it? or get it done professionally?

Yes. It does take a lot of prep work. This is my method:

1. Wash
2. IronX
3. Clay bar
4. Compound and / or polish
5. Wipe off residue with water / alcohol mix
6. Apply Ceramic
7. Apply Si02 Sealant

[rjd598]

Originally Posted by whatevs

Ive been thinking about ceramic and watched a couple videos, but they say its semi permanent, and needs a lot of prep work etc. Did you do it? or get it done professionally?

get it professionally done. an amateur detailing knowledge will yield poor results, waste of time, and waste of money.

[whatevs]

Thank You guys for all the helpful tips!! Im really glad to have joined this forum!

[Shelby34_ns]

I just started using chemical Guys and it is great.

[celsdogg]

Originally Posted by whatevs

Ive been thinking about ceramic and watched a couple videos, but they say its semi permanent, and needs a lot of prep work etc. Did you do it? or get it done professionally?

Originally Posted by ooshnoo

Yes. It does take a lot of prep work. This is my method:

1. Wash
2. IronX
3. Clay bar
4. Compound and / or polish
5. Wipe off residue with water / alcohol mix
6. Apply Ceramic
7. Apply Si02 Sealant

yeah, it does take a lot of time. I did similar steps as ooshnoo did and also kept it sitting in the garage for almost a week to cure. it probably took about 5 days of on and off work to get it done but I've been incredibly happy with the results. it just always looks clean.

I did it and it can be a diy thing if you have time and are diligent about researching and doing the work. take a lot of time to understand what to do and why and then take your time prepping and applying. the newer the car is, the easier prep is too. you spend a couple hundred bucks instead of 4 figures and take the time up front and it'll save you time cleaning in the future.

[gdgraph]

The cheap and easy way is to wax or use a paint sealant every 3-6 months and when you hand wash your car use a cheap spray on wax or water-less car wash spray (apply the spray after you wet wash the car but before you dry it) to add some more shine to it.

[Solidjake]

Keep up with the car washes uses a mitt/bucket with grit guard and apply the jescar sealant every 6 months (before fall, after spring)

[jbb2388]

Originally Posted by Billfitz

I wash with this:
https://www.amazon.com/Optimum-NR201...t%2C180&sr=8-3

Protect the finish with this:
https://www.amazon.com/Jescar-Power-...s%2C180&sr=8-2

Wax is unnecessary.

Bill, How do you apply the Power Lock? A DA orbital? Thanks.

[Billfitz]

I apply it with a cheap low speed 6" polisher.

[B1ue52]

How to "make" a car shiny isn't about sealant, wax or any other coating. It's about polish.

You should polish your car once, properly, by machine or have someone do it for you. This will correct the paintwork. Anything from minor scratches and swirls to removing oxidised clear coat. This will also add extra gloss. That is what "makes" a car shiny.

Keeping a car shiny is about protecting the paintwork. This is done with wax, sealants or chemical coatings.

My point is, you have to decide whether your car is shiny enough and whether it needs to be enhanced in any way before you worry about protecting its gloss.

Yes you can go the ceramic coating route, which is well worth it, and contrary to some posts above is very easy to apply correctly if you invest some time in learning how to do it, and then some money in the correct preparation products, and then some time in the preparation. It will yield great results. Your decision as to whether you do it yourself or not should be based more off cost efficiencies than ability, because its not rocket science.

If you want to get a car in to and keep it in good condition, the common enthusiast methods would look like either one of these two options:

1. Decon with fallout remover
2. Decon with clay bar
3. Machine polish with a DA polishing machine if you're not a professional or experienced with a rotary polisher
3a. Heavy cut polish
3b. Light cut high gloss polish
3c. Combination of both depending on whats required.
4. Wipe down with diluted IPA
5. Glaze with something like Poor Boys Black Hole or Primo Amigo (this acts as a filler to hide any remaining swirls and adds extra gloss, but it washes off without a sealant or wax coat on top)
6. Wax or sealant of choice - I don't like spray waxes of any description. They don't last and over time will dull your paintwork. Same as wax in washing products. Use a good quality paste carnuba wax. You don't have to spend a fortune, Auto Glym High Definition wax or anything from the Dodo Juice range will work just fine.
7. Wash regularly and reapply wax every month.

Option 2:

as above up to and including number 4.
5. Apply ceramic coating of choice - I like G-Techniq C1
6. Apply an organic sealant of choice - I like G-Techniq Evo

As for regular maintenance of either option, the less you touch your car when washing the better. I touchless wash in summer 3 times per week and only mit and bucket wash in the winter. Regardless of how careful you are, using a mit, 2 bucket wash with grit guards etc, you will still damage your paint with swirl marks. If you do mit and bucket wash, always use a snow foam or decent APC first to lift as much dirt as possible away from the paint work.

Home detailing doesn't have to be rocket science. Its just whether you want to polish it yourself or have a professional do it and that's a cost viability thing more than anything else. Its easy to learn how to do properly. Considering in an ideal world you should only polish your car once, then using the above techniques to protect that polish/gloss, its often a better choice to have the correction done by a professional as the cost investment to do it yourself is probably more than paying someone else.

Hope that helps

(from an ex detailer)