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Warning… Incoming wall of text…

I’ve been reading these forums for a while now and keep seeing not only the same questions being asked over and over, but also, on occasion, the same “not so great” advice being offered. So for those reasons alone I thought it may be helpful to write a concise DIY Detailing for the Enthusiast guide. The aim is to not only give a complete novice a helping hand in getting started, but also to hopefully provide a different perspective for seasoned detailing enthusiasts and possibly help them out too. This is just my perspective, yours may differ. There are many ways to skin a cat. This is my way, or at least my way of helping people get started at a basic level without over complicating anything.

I have been detailing for years, know a lot of the products and brands like the back of my hand, have detailed professionally in the past and also done product testing for some major brands. As a result, I, like most have my favourite products. But what I aim to do here is provide an unbiased and factual guide to remove at least some of the internet myth and misinformation. I make absolutely no apologies for being an emphatic Gtechniq Fan Boy so as unbiased as I will try to be, most of my product mentions will be Gtechniq, but I am in no away affiliated to or sponsored by them. Their stuff just works for the minimum of cost and ease of use, it’s hard to recommend anything else when I have personally used most things out there myself. I also have some fairly strong negative opinions about some other major brands and widely used methods, so apologies if this guide contradicts your own methods or choice of product, I am just presenting my opinions based on years of experience and have no interest in debating whether X is better than Y as peoples’ opinions can be subjective at best, like mine, or ill informed and ignorant at worst. I also do not intend to undermine professional detailing whatsoever. There is, in reality, no replacement for a professional detail if you want the very best results. However, detailing isn’t witch craft and with a little effort and investment you can achieve fantastic results that deliver an immense amount of satisfaction. In addition, if you have had your car professionally detailed and/or coated, this guide will explain how best to look after what has been achieved professionally, within an enthusiasts budget and capabilities. Whilst I do have a fairly good knowledge of the US market and methods, I am from the UK and any products I recommend will be available in the UK, but probably in the US and elsewhere also, if not, sorry.

Whilst I will write a comprehensive guide, please feel free to pick and choose what is relevant to you. I am providing a comprehensive check list and guide, but you can take it as far as your desire or budget will allow, even if it is just learning how to wash your car properly.

I hope it helps at least a few of you.

Foreword A – Sealants versus Coatings
Before I begin the guide, I am going to address this issue up front. I see the same posts over and over again “should I get a coating?” and more often than not it is replied to with “No, I use a sealant and its better” - The two are just not comparable. Its like comparing apples to oranges. They both perform totally different functions, give totally different results and should be considered for totally different reasons. Common claims of “I have seen X Ceramic Coating side by side with Y Sealant (usually Powerlock, and I’m a huge Menzerna fan) and I prefer the sealant” are just nonsense. Yes, everyone is entitled to their own opinion but unless you have compared a coating on the same model car, with the same lines, with the same colour paint that is the same age, exposed to the same environmental conditions that has been prepared in the exact same way, side by side with another car that exactly replicates the first, you have no comparison to base that opinion on.

Secondly is the reason each product exists and what it’s intended usage is. A sealant is used to protect a cars paintwork and finish from environmental elements like UV, bird droppings, oxidation, tar, flies, water, road salt etc. A coating (when I say coating, I am referring to a chemically bonded nano coating that could be ceramic, liquid quartz etc) is applied to protect your car from all of the above, but in addition will make it considerably more scratch resistant. That is something that most sealants are not intended to do and those that claim to are just a very very poor comparison. They are not even in the same league. So please don’t compare any kind of silicone based "sticky" sealant to a chemically bonded coating, its just not a comparison you can make.

Some people will prefer a silicone sealant because it offers better gloss enhancement and/or water beading effect. In most cases this is true. However, there is a very good reason for this. The best coatings are aiming to be the toughest coatings with the longest durability. In order to achieve this, they have to sacrifice some of their hydrophobic (water repelling/bead effect) properties. That’s fair enough because they are developing a product to do a specific job. Those coatings that claim to be tough, durable and also very hydrophobic are sacrificing the purpose of the coating in the first place. So the answer is a two stage coating. Reputable major brands that acknowledge this and are open about it will often sell complimenting products. One coating that is tough, durable and provides scratch and swirl resistance as well as environmental and fallout protection and a secondary product that acts as a top coat that provides enhanced gloss characteristics, even better environmental protection and of course exceptional hydrophobic properties. So two products that work in tandem, both doing their own jobs to the best of their ability and as a result offering your car the best protection. A typical “tough coat” will last around 5 years with a typical top coat needing reapplication every 6 months. A dealer applied coating that aims to do both jobs will typically last around 1 to 2 years if you’re lucky.

Sealants on the other hand do provide good, if very temporary (around a month) hydrophobic properties and gloss enhancement but not really any better than a traditional carnauba wax (when I say wax I mean a hard/paste wax in a tub, not a liquid wax) – Indeed there are some waxes out there that will genuinely last for around a year, but they are incredibly expensive at around £1000 per tub. The major downside of a sealant is that many of them are silicone based which is just a very cheap alternative to Carnauba. The worst trait of this is that silicone is inherently sticky and dust and debris in the air will cling to your car. Watermarks after rain and sunlight drying will be very prevalent and for me, that is reason in itself to choose a coating approach rather than a sealant. Yes they’re cheap, quick and easy to use and offer good environmental protection for a short time. But if your choice is between sealant or wax, choose wax and if it’s between either wax or sealant or a nano coating, choose the coating, but choose the right one. You can’t go wrong with Gtechniq C1 Liquid Crystal or Crystal Serum Light for toughness and then two coats of Gtechniq EXOv4 for your top coating. Combined they provide the best durability, toughness, gloss enhancement, hydrophobicity and dust repellence I have ever come across in a DIY product and it wont break the bank. I will explain how it fits in to a detail programme later in this guide together with pictures of my own car “wearing” these products.

Foreword B – Gloss Achievement versus Gloss Enhancement
Again, another question you see all the time “will this {insert sealant or wax product of your choice} make my car more shiny?” – The short answer is no, it won’t, the long answer is… well, longer. Waxing and sealing (or coatings) exist in simple terms to protect your car. Polish exists to make it shiny. Typically, waxes and sealants have no cleansing or polishing characteristics, so won’t inherently make your car more shiny/glossy. What they will do is enhance the gloss your paintwork already has. Some people refer to this as depth, or the “wet look”, but in reality you achieve genuine gloss on your paintwork by polishing it and your top coat of choice enhances that and gives it a desirable, more wet look. All products vary in both how they achieve this and what the final result will be. Additionally there are “all in one” type products out there that claim to polish, cleanse and protect your paintwork all in one application. Yes the polishing action is gentle, especially if applied by hand, but you are still polishing. Polishing should be a rare occurrence on your car. Polishing works, like all polishes, by using fine grade abrasives to remove the surface layer of whatever you’re polishing. In this case, your clear coat. I have seen someone who was fanatical about cleaning their car once per week and always finishing the process using Autoglym’s all in one Super Resin Polish go entirely through his clear coat AND base coat and down to primer on the ridge lines of his car. It happened so gradually he never noticed he was doing it. I had a client bring in an old red Mazda MX5 (Eunos) for a 2 stage polish and I had to turn him away as he had the same weekly ritual with another all in one product and the red base coat (it was single stage paint) was translucent across the entire vehicle. There was little to no paint left to polish. My point is this… polish once (by machine) to achieve any required paint correction and to raise gloss levels, then use a safe non-abrasive product such as wax, sealant or coating as often as you like to protect that gloss and paint condition. Waxes and sealants don’t “make” your car shiny, polish does!

Foreword C – Paste/Hard Waxes versus Liquid Waxes
I just don’t like liquid waxes! There, I said it. I know that there is a liquid wax culture in the US and has been for years, but I just don’t like them. Even when they are carnauba wax products, they often, like most sealants have a silicone base, therefore making your paintwork sticky (not to the touch) and actually attract dust and debris. They are also, in my experience the least durable of wax products. Their only saving grace IMO is for those people who like to machine wax their cars. I don’t think that is at all necessary as hand waxing your car is such a quick and effortless job, but each to their own on that one. I find hand waxing very satisfying and therapeutic and is the only downside to having coatings applied to my car… I miss waxing it. There’s nothing to stop me waxing it whenever I feel like it, but then I have to accept that my car will now have the hydrophobic properties of the wax, rather than the top coating of my coatings I spent £££ and hours to apply. If you are just starting out, go with a paste wax from the get go. There are some really good tub waxes out there like Autoglym’s High Definition Wax for around £30.00, all the way through to Swissvax Crystal Rock at a £1000 per tub. You also have colour charged waxes out there like the DoDo Juice range. Rather than using coloured fillers like the old Car Magic crap you may have heard of, these colour charged waxes actually stain your clear coat for a short amount of time. I have used their Purple Haze wax on my Estoril Blue F32 on a couple of occasions and it changes the hue just slightly and really makes the blue pop. There’s lots to choose from but you can’t go wrong with the Autoglym High Definition Wax. It's a nice soft wax, is easy to apply and remove and a tub will last you years.

Don’t confuse waxes with Rapid Detailers. They’re really not the same thing.

Foreword D – Drying Aids
This comes up a lot and I have to think to myself… why? With the right products on your car, drying it without leaving water marks of any level should always be a race against time, regardless of how warm or sunny it is or isn’t. My car almost dries itself. Use the correct protection coatings and you shouldn’t need a drying aid, especially if you’re using a good drying towel (discussed below). The only drying aid I use is my Side Kick Air Force Blaster (basically a car hair dryer) to force water out of traps and to dry my wheels. With that said I know that people often use a rapid detailer as a drying aid or something like Gtechniq’s amazing product C2. They want an element of protection at the same time as drying. Consider drying your car first and then quickly applying the rapid detailer to the dry car. This will remove any water marks, towel marks, halos or fingerprints you may have incurred and will provide a better application of the product than using it on a wet car.

Right… with all that off my chest…. Here’s the guide. I have written this in the logical order I would do the entire list of works. However, jump in or out of it as you see fit for your own requirements:

Section 1 - The Engine Bay
Possibly the easiest thing to detail on a car. All you need is a pressure washer and some degreaser of some sort. Start with the engine warm but not hot. Liberally spray your degreaser all over the engine bay, components and shuts. I use Autoglym Machine Degreaser. Leave it to sit for about 5 mins and if you desire, agitate it with a soft bristled paint brush. Pressure wash off and then leave your engine running for 10 mins to help it dry or use a Side Kick Air Force Blaster to help it along. Dry down properly and then dress the entire engine bay with Autoglym Vinyl and Rubber care, leave to dry for 20 mins and then wipe off the excess with a cheap MF towel. My preferred option is to dress the whole engine bay as above with the exception of the engine cover itself, the air box and the black plastic cover panels across the bulk head. I wipe these down with an MF towel and 10% IPA (Isopropyl Alcohol) and water mixture, dry thoroughly and then apply Gtechniq C4 Permanent Trim Restorer for a clean OEM look with great protection.

Section 2 – Washing
Before proceeding, you need to wash the car properly:

1. Start by spraying degreaser in between panels, inside door and boot (trunk) shuts, under wheel arches etc, basically all the hard to reach dirty places. Leave to sit and then go around and pressure wash them down. Don’t be afraid to pressure wash inside your door shuts, using the correct angle you will barely wet your interior if at all with experience.

2. Spray the car with APC (All Purpose Cleaner) (optional) - APC is usually a citrus based cleaner that you dilute in to a large spray bottle, the type you use for weed killer in gardens etc. It help to soften debris and road film, remove flies etc and lift some dirt off your paintwork before your actual wash.

3. Spray your wheels with Wheel Cleaner – Choose a non-caustic, non-acidic wheel cleaner. I love Valet Pro’s Bilberry Wheel Cleaner.

4. Spray with Snow Foam including wheels– Snow Foam is a must if you want to keep your car as swirl free as possible. Buy a lance, any lance, they are all pretty much the same thing under different brands and some good snow foam. My current favourite is Dirt Busters Car Candy Snow Foam available on Amazon for around £16.00 for 5 litres. It has the best cling time, lather thickness and drawdown of any I have used. The purpose of snow foam is to lift the debris away from your paint surface and then using gravity drag it to the floor, preventing you from wiping it over your car with a mitt and creating swirl marks.

5. Pressure wash down your car and remove all snow foam residue.

6. Bucket wash your car – There is much debate on this subject, but here is the comprehensive guide. It all makes sense in the avoidance of swirl marks, but you must choose what works for you:

6.1 Use 3 buckets all with grit guards - One filled with warm water and detergent of choice (use one that is non-caustic and doesn’t contain waxes such as Gtechniq G Wash) DO NOT use washing up liquid! – One filled with clean warm water and leave the third bucket empty.
6.2 Use 3 wash mitts – Start with your “clean surface” mitt and from the top down of your car, wash the paint panels and glass all around the car. Avoid wheels, under arches and underside of sills and bumpers. Wash by dipping the mitt in to your detergent bucket then apply to car, then rinse in the bucket of clean water and then dip in to the detergent bucket again before going back to wash more panels. Repeat until the whole clean part of your car is washed. Now grab your ”dirty surface” mitt and repeat the above method on the areas you avoided before aside from your wheels. I use a Gtechniq mitt for clean areas (its red) and a Microfibre Madness mitt for dirty areas (its blue) so I can tell them apart. Now pour your detergent water in to your empty third bucket making sure to leave any debris behind, this is your wheel bucket. I use a cheap noodle mitt from Halfords for this and replace regularly. Now clean your wheels.
6.3 Pressure wash the car
6.4 Dry the car but don’t concern yourself with traps, water marks or getting it 100% dry, you’re going to get it wet again in a second.

A word on Wash mitts – Lambs or merino wool or microfibre are your best options. Wool mitts are great, but are expensive for good ones, they need aftercare and don’t last as long as microfibre. Microfibre lifts dirt away well, but not as good as wool, but are cheaper, more durable and require no aftercare other than the occasional machine wash.

Section 3 – Decontamination
Be aware that even if your car is brand new, it will likely need a decon. The vast majority of cars are stored for weeks, some times months outside. Often near docks or train lines and all the time they are, they are soaking up tree sap and iron fallout. Don’t skip this step no matter how new your car is.

1. Using a fallout remover, I use any of the following; Iron X, Autoglym Magma or Gtechniq W6, liberally spray your car all over including the glass and the wheels. If you have never used one before, you will notice that after a couple of minutes, it will look like your car is weeping purple tears �� This is the solvents dissolving debris embedded in your paintwork. Be it brake pad and rotor particles from yours and other cars, or metal debris from close by train tracks etc, we need to remove this for obvious reasons.
2. Rinse your car down with the hose or pressure washer.
3. Using a clay bar, I prefer Bilt Hambers medium compound, clay polish your car. You do this by using a lubricant and clay to remove organic fallout such as tree sap, tar and bird dropping residue, and you do it by feel and sound, not by eye. People are scared of this step but you shouldn’t be, but think carefully about whether you want to do it if you are not prepared to polish your car afterwards, either by machine or by hand. The process can introduce some mild marring of the paint. It’s not damage you need to worry about, but you will see it. If it is cold or you have chosen a hard clay compound, it will be difficult to make it malleable. When I start detailing the engine bay, I put my clay in a cup of hot water so by the time I come to use it, it’s nice and soft. Going by the size of a Bilt Hamber bar, you can also cut it in to three and use just one third for an average sized car. Start by moulding the clay bar in to a disk. Now, working on part of a panel at a time, spray the clay with your lubricant and the panel. You can use either a rapid detailer or a spray bottle with some car wash detergent in it as lubricant. Lightly wipe the clay bar over the surface of your paintwork on the part of the panel you are working on. If it is sticking, you are not wetting the surface enough. You should be able to hear when a panel is clear. Or rather, you shouldn’t be able to hear it. If it is contaminated, you will hear a slight scratching sound, keep rubbing lightly until the sound goes away, then move on. On heavily contaminated panels like the bottom of your doors above the sills, it will feel like sand paper, keep wiping lightly until the sound and feeling goes away. This is a finger tips job and is not about pressure. Keep it well lubricated and take your time and with experience you can fully clay bar a car in around 20 to 30 mins with little to no effort required. I grant you it’s a ball ache of a job, but it’s a vital part of polishing preparation. Look at the colour of the clay at the end…. All that crap was in your paintwork! As you proceed over your car, remould the clay as needed to a workable disk.

Section 4 - Wheel Detailing (Optional or do another day)
Some people detail their wheels, some don’t. If you’re going to, doing it now is a viable time or alternatively leave it for an entirely different day.

1. Jack your car up and remove your wheel(s).
2. Remove your centre caps.
3. Lay it face down on a suitable surface like a sheet of rubber or carpet off cut.
4. Liberally spray the interior of the wheel with your wheel cleaner, use a brush to agitate it, hose off.
5. Flip it over and do the same to the face of the wheel using a soft boars hair brush or similar to get in to the hub hole and bolt holes.
6. Dry with a Side Kick Air Force Blaster if you have one or a suitable drying towel if not.
7. Wipe down with 10% IPA solution and buff.
8. If you want to, polish the face of your wheels either with a DA and spot pad or by hand. Even by hand will reward you.
9. Apply a good quality wheel sealant inside and out. Poor Boys do a good temporary one that requires reapplication every couple of months, but Gtechniq C5 Wheel Armour is my preference. It makes wheels very easy to clean just like any sealant should but also protects your wheels from washing scratches and also helps your clear coat stand up to road salts etc. If you have just bought a new BMW, for god sake do this immediately. The BMW clear coat process is one of the worst I have ever seen. Expect clear coat bubbling in as little as 5k miles if you’re really unlucky. Yes it is covered under warranty but for the sake of the price of some decent wheel sealant it’s a must do job for me. Gtechniq states that a 15ml bottle will cover the face of 4x 17” wheel faces, or buy the 30ml bottle if your wheels are bigger or you want to cover the interior of the wheels as well. I can easily get my 4x 19” wheel faces covered with 15ml with some left over, so would happily do 20” wheel faces with 15ml. If you want a compromise, use C5 on the faces and Poor Boys on the interiors.
10. Just my preference and some will advise against it, but I like to put a thin layer of copper grease around the inside of my hub seats on the rear of my wheels and again on the hub seat itself.
11. Optional but worth it whilst the wheels are off is to clean up your rotor hats. They really let a car down when they're corroded. Its as simple as attaching a wire wheel to a drill and going at it. It takes about 5 mins per rotor.
12. Again optional but to stop my rotor hats looking like crap in a month, I paint my rotor hats with caliper paint. E-Tech does a great range of brush on paints that look sprayed on. You can get it on Amazon.
13. Whilst your wheels are off, liberally spray under the arch and all the arm assemblies and shocks with degreaser, pressure wash off and when dry, dress with Autoglym Vinyl and Rubber Care.
14. Take an upholstery brush to the carpet liners under your arches to remove all the stuck on bits and pieces.
15. Apply your tyre dressing of choice to your tyres. I prefer Valet Pro brush on slick style like the dealers use. It goes on gloss but dries matte and lasts well unless it really rains. Most important is to use something silicone free as those products turn your tyres brown.
16. Refit your wheels.

Section 5 – Polishing Preparation

1. Now once again, snow foam your car to remove any surface contaminants left behind by the decon process.
2. Rinse then dry thoroughly with 3 towels – I always use three towels for drying. I have a Purple Monster Long haired edgeless for clean area paintwork, a Purple Monster Waffle towel for glass and a cheap waffle towel for dirty area paintwork, shuts and wheels.
3. If you have one, get your Side Kick Air Force Blaster out and get in all the water traps and clear them out of water.
4. Wipe the entire car down with 10% IPA solution

If I was taking it easy, enjoying it and taking plenty of breaks, that would probably be me done for day 1. It’s a good place to stop as long as you plan on picking it up again tomorrow. If you're not planning on polishing, then this is where you would apply your wax or sealant and call it done if a wash and wax was your only goal.

Section 6 – Polishing

1. Wipe the entire car down with 10% IPA solution – Only necessary if you left your car overnight after completing Section 5. If you’re carrying on on the same day, ignore this step.
2. Mask up any black plastic or rubber trim using Frog Tape
3. DA or Rotary Polish your car with whatever compound and pad is required. If you are looking to remove defects and swirl marks then go with a dense pad and a heavy compound. If you are just after extra gloss and don’t need any correction, then go with a finishing pad and a fine polish. If you needed to correct, then the usual process would be to follow up with a finishing pad and fine compound afterwards, therefore performing a 2 stage polish. However, the truth is, you can use any combination of pad and polish you feel is required for your paintwork. Experience guides you here but the obvious choices are as above.
4. Remove polish with a long haired MF cloth. I prefer Purple Monster clothes for removing anything like polish, wax, sealant or glazes.

This isn’t intended to be a guide on how to machine polish a car, but if there is interest in that I would gladly write one. Here are some brief pointers:

1. DA or Rotary? DA every time if you are not experienced with a Rotary… like no exception!
2. Which DA? Not a Halfords cheapy, go for something like the Meguiars as the bottom end or the Rupes at the top end, or anything in-between these price points.
3. Which Polish? I love Menzerna. I use FG400 (now called Heavy Cut Compound) for correcting and SF4800 or 5000 for final finish – It contains no silicone and no fillers like any good polish shouldn’t. Its really workable with a really obvious flash point. It wipes off really easy and is relatively low dust. I have product tested many and I always go back to Menzerna every single time.
4. Which DA Pads? You want at least what are referred to as a finishing pad, a polishing pad and a compound or cutting pad. You want those three densities in both spot pads and full pads as a minimum. Personally I think you need three sizes of each pad. 4”, 5” and 7” with their respective 3”, 4” and 6” backing plates.
5. If you are hand polishing just do your research. Just like a machine polish you do not want silicone and you do not want fillers. The applicator you choose to use will make all the difference. You want a fairly coarse foam pad for polishing. You DON’T want to be using a MF cloth or a finger tip applicator. Research and buy proper hand polishing sponges.

Some people will say “My car is brand new, I don’t need to polish it” – You’re correct, you don’t NEED to, but don’t tell me its not worth it cos it really is. These days, it is rare that a manufacturer polishes a car before you receive it. Clear coats are applied in a chunky fashion and these days we just accept a certain level of orange peel in our paint jobs. The fact is that whilst the paint may not need correcting, machine polishing your brand new car will give it a whole other level of gloss! It really is worth it. There is also something you can do about the chunkiness of clear coat on modern cars and you can vastly reduce, even eliminate the orange peel. That requires you to sand your clear coat back, often called Colour Sanding. You see the guys on shows like Kindig Customs do it every time they spray a car. You can do it too if you have a machine polisher. I’m not going to cover it in this guide but you can quite safely flat back the clear coat either by hand or machine, as long as you watch the edges of ridges or panels. The safest way of all is to use a liquid sanding compound and lambs wool pad. The surface will easily machine polish back to a ridiculous gloss afterwards without much if any of the clear coat chunk or orange peel. Not for the faint hearted and like anything else in this guide, you do it at your own risk. I will be doing my F32 at some point so will post a step by step with pictures once I do.

[EDIT]
Added a colour sanding guide here:
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1651370
[/EDIT]

[EDIT]
Added a spray painting guide here:
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1653152
[/EDIT]

Section 7 – Glass Polish and Sealant (Optional)
It is hard to find the best place to put this step. Professionally, it would be now. As an enthusiast I would probably leave it until the next time I plan on washing my car.

1. Machine or hand polish all of your exterior glass. I personally use Gtechniq G4 and a Rayon Pad on a DA. You can hand polish with G4 also. Note though that this isn’t “cleaning” your glass with glass cleaner, this is polishing your glass, just like your paint and you need an appropriate product to do that with.
2. Wet and wash your glass to fully remove the G4. This is why it is hard to place this step. Realistically as an enthusiast you will do this on a separate day just before you wash your car rather than getting your car wet again at this stage.
3. Fully dry your glass.
4. Apply your coating of choice. Obviously, I use Gtechniq G1. It’s incredible stuff and lasts up to two years, though I do reapply at the end of every summer ready for winter. Apply three coats to your windscreen, one to your wipers, and two or more depending how much you have left to the rest of the windows. Remove the excess with the provided G2 solution, except on the wipers themselves, just leave it on there. Then clean and buff with Gtechniq G6 Perfect Glass and an MF5 Glass Cloth – The combination of the two provides the quickest streak free glass cleaning you could ever wish for… and yes, I am well aware of all the household cheats like white vinegar etc. This stuff just works for me.
5. Enjoy never having to use your windscreen wipers over 40mph ever again!

Section 8 – Snow Foam (Optional)
This is an optional step to remove polishing dust build up in panel gaps etc. Professionally, I would always do it, but as an enthusiast, washing and getting your car 100% dry again can realistically wait until the next time you wash your car.

Section 9 – Glaze (Optional) – Ignore if you are applying a ceramic or similar nano tech coating
Definitely consider this step if you are planning on applying a wax or sealant as your top coat. It really enhances the gloss, and does a great job of filling swirl marks that you didn’t remove above for whatever reason. Be aware though that a good glaze is NOT water resistant, so don’t bother if you are not planning on sealing it in with wax or sealant.

1. Either by hand with a very soft finishing sponge or by machine with a finishing pad, apply the glaze to all painted surfaces. This shouldn’t take any effort at all. You’re basically just wiping it on. However, bear in mind that whilst it is easy to buff off, the thinner and more evenly you put it on the easier it is to remove. I like Poor Boys Black Hole for darker coloured cars and Prima Amigo for lighter coloured cars including white.
2. Buff off with a long haired MF cloth. I like Purple Monster Cloths for removal of anything other than ceramic coatings.
3. Immediately proceed to section 10

Section 10 – Wax or Sealant - Ignore if you are applying a ceramic or similar nano tech coating
I gave you my views on waxes versus sealants above. It’s your choice, but if you have never used one, please consider a hard or paste wax. This guide will assume that is what you are using. If you insist on using a liquid wax or a sealant, then you already know how to do this part right? If you are new to detailing and don’t want to go as far as a nano coating, use a good quality Carnauba wax from a reputable brand from around £30.00 and you will be good to go and your car wont be half as dusty the next morning as your neighbour using liquid wax or sealant ��

1. Apply your wax by hand using a very soft finishing hand pad. You can get them from detailing sites or even on amazon. You don’t want the foam disk things, they’re too coarse. I have some lovely mushroom shaped ones that sit inside the wax pots between uses. They’re fairly ergonomic to use and are very very soft.
2. Buff off with a long haired MF cloth, as previously stated I like Purple Monster clothes for anything like this

Section 11 – Applying a Nano Coating – Ignore if you are using a wax or sealant as a top coat
So by now you know I am a total Gtechniq Fan Boy… I make no apologies for it and for this section I am going to write it assuming use of their C1 Liquid Crystal product. Other good coatings exist, but follow their instructions obviously.

1. Your car should have been very recently wiped down with IPA solution and buffed back.
2. Using the applicators provided, soak one with C1, then apply to a small panel or half a large panel in a circular overlapping motion. Dab on more product as required to finish the section you are on.
3. Then starting from the outside working in, using a Gtechniq MF1 cloth, remove the residue with a buffing action until all excess is removed from sight. It doesn’t take a great deal of effort, but notice that you will push product around, so always buff back from an area larger than you applied it too, including neighbouring panels. Also, don’t hold the bottle as you buff back as the warmth of your hands will cause it to cure prematurely.
4. Leave it to cure for at least 12 hours.

It really is that easy to apply a top quality coating. I really don’t know what all the fuss is about. Yes Gtechniq offer even higher grade coatings that should only be professional applied in exacting conditions, but this product is aimed at you, the enthusiast. Expect to get 5 years of gloss and scratch resistance out of it. Sit back and admire how amazing your car now looks….. for now… It’s about to get even better.

Note that Gtechniq recommend that you apply this product indoors. You really don’t have to. Panel wipe with IPA properly, and if you have to, re-wipe each panel as you come to it if there is visible dust settling on your car. I’ve done many cars outside without issue.

Section 12 – Top Coat – Ignore if you are using wax or sealant as a top coat
We are going to use Gtechniq’s EXOv4 for this step. Appreciating I have stated you can ignore this step if you are using wax or sealant as your top coat, there is no reason why you can’t use EXOv4 as your top coat in a standalone fashion as well. It doesn’t have to go over the top of C1, it can be used as a super long lasting top coat sealant in its own right. Not to be confused with sticky sealants mentioned above, this product will look fantastic for up to 6 months over any well prepared painted surface.

1. Wipe your car down with IPA solution or panel wipe.
2. Buff back
3. Soak the provided applicator with EXO and apply in a circular overlapping motion to an entire panel
4. Beginning with where you started applying, use one Gtechniq MF1 cloth to remove the residue from the entire panel
5. Beginning with where you started applying, use a second MF1 cloth to buff any remaining residue from the entire panel
6. You will move product around to adjacent panels, so be mindful to over-wipe the panel you are working on to remove residue from adjacent panels
7. Starting from where you first began applying, repeat the entire process from step 3 onwards so you have applied two coats of EXO
8. Avoid getting the car wet for 12 hours
9. For best results, don’t wash the car for at least a week after application
10. Repeat the entire process from step 1 every 6 months or when you notice a significant drop in hydrophobic performance

Section 13 – Top Ups
If like me you actually enjoy waxing your car, you may miss doing it with such durable coatings applied. You can always top up with less expensive products, but bear in mind that whatever product you top up with, you will inherit its hydrophobic performance until it wears off. You also may want to remove finger prints or such with a rapid detailer, but bear in mind that rapid detailers use comparatively poor grades of wax on the whole and repeated use over time will diminish the levels of gloss you have worked so hard to obtain, some will even introduce the sticky properties of many sealants. Gtechniq Quick Detailer is an exception in that it is compatible with semi-permanent coatings. There may be more but I am not aware of them. Use it to boost gloss levels even further and improve slickness and remove finger prints and smears. Another option and the one I currently use is Gtechniq C2 Liquid Crystal. It stacks perfectly with C1 and EXOv4 and doesn’t undermine the properties of EXOv4 much. Consider it to be effectively a very light coating of C1, so boosts protection as well. Some people use it as a drying aid but I have covered that topic off already. Dry, then apply for a perfect finish. If you want to just remove smears, prints or any water marks without leaving anything behind, then consider using something like Gtechniq W9 Water Spot Remover.

Section 14 – Chrome
If you have any chrome on your car, be it on the grill or exhaust tip, then don’t ignore it. A dirty exhaust tip can really let down a car. Buy a cheap set of wire wheels from Amazon for about £6.00 and attached to a drill. In the set I have, there is a wheel that is almost a perfect fit for the inside diameter of my exhaust. BMW pipes are stainless steel so you can really go to town on the inside and they will clean up really well. As for the tip itself, they are removable, so just give it a good yank and it will slide right off. Use a wire wheel on the inside of the lips where it will be tarnished, then hand polish the whole thing back with any good chrome polish. I use Peek and an MF1 cloth or Gtechniq M1 All Metal Polish. It really helps to hold it in a vice or work bench (protecting it of course) and work your cloth backwards and forwards with too hands just like you would dry your arse with a towel.

For any other chrome like trim lines and grill, just use an MF cloth and your fingertips.

Section 15 – Panel lines and Rubber Trim
Your local Hobbycraft or hobby store is your best friend for detailing, I have a box of tools that always come in handy that include artists paint brushes, tooth brushes, various little pick tools and such and these really weird things I once found that are a godsend. Imagine a thick round artists paint brush, but rather than bristles, it has a piece of silicone rubber on the end. They come in various shapes and sizes, I prefer the ones that look like slash cut exhaust tips. Use either on their own or with an MF1 cloth wrapped around them together with IPA solution to get in to any nook or cranny on your car without any risk of scratching. As for the paintbrushes themselves, I leave a few sizes as they are, and have multiples of the same sizes that I trim the bristles down on. Again, used with IPA solution you can get in to tiny cracks either inside or outside your car and get rid of polishing residue, dust, anything.

Go around your car and treat all rubber trims and seals with Autoglym Vinyl and Rubber Care or similar. If you inadvertently got polish residue on any rubber or plastic trim, hit it with a stiff brush and some IPA to remove it before you treat it. If you have an older car and have textured rubber/plastic trim you will find it really hard to remove polishing stains, hence why we mask them up. If this is the case, use a regular pencil eraser to remove the worst of it, then hit it with a stiff brush and IPA and you should be good.

My F32 has a terrible water trap in the wing mirrors and I have seen other members posting complaints about them dripping dirty stains down the side of their cars every wash or when it rains. You cant do much to stop this, other than to blow out as much as you can with a side kick air blaster, but what you can do is ensure that the water drips only clean water. Buy a cheap set of trim removal tools from eBay and using two of them with even pressure, pop off your mirror caps. Clean inside the cap itself and the mirror housing. You will be amazed at how much crap there is in there. Now when it drips, at lease it will be clean water marks that can be easily wiped off with a clean and dry MF cloth.

Section 16 - Glass
I clean my glass every time I wash my car. Especially having an F32 and people constantly closing doors using the glass and leaving fingerprints everywhere. It drives me nuts. I have used pretty much every product and housewives cheat over the years, and for me, the best solution is Gtechniq G6 Perfect Glass in conjunction with their MF5 Glass Cloth. Streak free glass with minimum effort.

I am not sure about other BMW models, but certainly on an F32, you will likely suffer with staining on the interior of your door glass every time you lower the window down. You can alleviate much of this by using one of the artists rubber paintbrush things I mentioned above, with a MF cloth wrapped around it, soaked in IPA solution. Lower your window fully down, jam the rubber brush/MF cloth down in-between the glass and the rubber seals and run it back and forth. This will mitigate most if not all of the staining for some time, but will need to be repeated on occasion.

Section 17 – Interior

1. Vacuum
2. Get in all the creases, panel gaps, vents etc with a short bristle brush and IPA solution, mop up excess with a MF cloth.
3. Clean all surfaces with Gtechniq I2 Tri-Clean and a course applicator pad or upholstery brush on fabrics and carpet
4. Treat carpets with Gtechniq I1 Smart Fabric to Teflon coat them and make them water/stain/proof/resistant
5. Treat leather with Gtechniq L1 Leather Guard
6. Treat plastics with Gtechniq C6 Matte Dash for an OEM finish that is both scratch resistant and dust repellent
7. Vacuum again

Section 18 – De-badging
A lot of professional studios will de-badge your car prior to polishing and then reapply them. Some members just want to de-badge their cars. The question on how is asked all the time and this is as good a place as any to answer it:

1. Using a hair dryer, heat up the badge
2. Using regular dental floss, slide it behind the badge and saw it back and forth a digit at a time. Reheat as necessary until the badge comes off
3. Using a soft edged tool or carefully with your fingers, remove any of the sticky backing pad left on your car
4. Spray some “Sticky Stuff Remover” on the residue and rub with an MF cloth
5. By hand using some rubbing compound, buff off the ghost left behind by the badge
6. Hand or machine polish back to gloss
7. Protect with your product of choice

If you are simply replacing your badges, before removing your old ones, simply place a piece of masking tape underneath the old badge to mark its vertical position, and another piece up one side to mark its horizontal position, then you can just put the new badge back in the exact same place as the old one.

Section 19 – Stone Chips
Again, this is something you can complete yourself if you have the time and inclination. Paints4u in the UK sell a great kit called a Master Scratch Repair kit that provides everything you need in order to virtually eliminate stone chips. They provide you with paint applicators, base coat, clear coat, cleaning solution, polishing compound, wet and dry paper, cloth and sponge all for around £16.00. It may take you several attempts on some chips and it is a multi-day process when taking in to account drying times, but you can easily fix stone chips to the point that the naked eye cant see them. I dedicate a weekend once per year, usually in spring to remove all the stone chips I can find. Follow the instructions provided and you can’t go wrong, but one tip is that if you have 2 stage paint (base coat and clear coat), which in all likelihood you will have, rather than painting the chips first with base coat and then filling the chip with clear coat, try mixing a small amount of the base and clear together in a 3 (clear coat) to 1 (base coat) ratio and just fill the chip straight off with that. Flat it back and buff out and you will never know it was there and it eliminates the wait for the base coat to dry. It’s particularly effective for smaller, less deep chips that you may find hard to leave room for the clear coat after applying base coat.

Chipex also have a system out there which you can buy from Ultimate Finish in the UK, that looks to be very easy to use. I can’t comment on results as I haven’t tried it myself but I plan on doing so next spring.

Section 20 – Products and Recommendations
Yes yes I love Gtechniq but the truth is I have many products in my armoury, those mentioned above are just my favourites for those jobs. Below are a list of manufacturers whose products I will buy with confidence. Avoid old school brands you have always found in Halfords like Turtle Wax, Wonder Wheels, Demon Shine etc. Meguiars, one of the larger and better known detailing brands even have some piss poor products out there. I only use them in a pinch.

1. Menzerna, especially for polishing compounds either machine or hand
2. Rupes, especially for their machine pads
3. Chemical Guys, machine pads
4. GTechniq, for pretty much everything else
5. Auto Finesse make a great range of products, now available in Halfords
6. Autoglym for fillers that other companies don’t make
7. Purple Monster for drying towels, but the vast majority of long haired, large, high quality towels out there are all very good
8. Gtechniq MF1 microfibre cloths. Not all MF cloths are the same. The cheap ones you can buy in large packs are awful and will create a huge amount of static on your car which will attract dust. MF1 cloths are very cheap if bought in packs of 10 and can be used in almost a disposable fashion. You really cant have too many cloths and it is important to have the best cloths for the intended application. I also have dedicated cloths for certain jobs and only those jobs to avoid cross contamination.
9. Shop around on dedicated detailing websites for applicators and such things. The ones you can buy from Halfords are both poor and expensive. You will find a great range of applicator pads for “hand jobs” of all types of size and coarseness

In closing

I think that just about covers everything to get even the most novice of novices started. I am not suggesting you have to go out and complete all these steps off the bat, but you can dip in and out of it at your leisure as time and budgets permit. Hopefully, even though this is “my way” and using the products I like, it will provide a good consolidated information source that will hopefully answer most of the common questions.

I hope it proves helpful. Happy to answer questions in thread or via PM.

Cheers

Andy

[B1ue52]

Saving this to post some pictures...

[MashinBenzin]

Thanks for taking the time to write all that up worth creating a PDF perhaps, so you can repost that in future.

[B1ue52]

Originally Posted by RichMB

Thanks for taking the time to write all that up worth creating a PDF perhaps, so you can repost that in future.

thanks man

[blueislander]

Superb Sir!

[RENT-A-GOAT]

Engine bay cleaning: You mention pressure washing the bay but you don't mention if this is high or low pressure setting, what protective measures you need to take to prevent any damage to some critical components etc. Can you please enlighten and expand on this thanks

[B1ue52]

Originally Posted by RENT-A-GOAT

Engine bay cleaning: You mention pressure washing the bay but you don't mention if this is high or low pressure setting, what protective measures you need to take to prevent any damage to some critical components etc. Can you please enlighten and expand on this thanks

On a modern engine you don't really need to take any precautions other than a warm engine and some common sense.

I use high pressure and direct close
contact limited to panels hoses and shut lines, which is where most of the dirt is. A combination of good quality degreaser and light passes over components is enough to clean them thoroughly. Common sense comes in to play in regards to anything electrical of course.

I've cleaned I don't know how many modern engines in this way and never experienced an issue of any sort.

Cheers

[BigJack75]

Wow that is insane!!! How long would this take to do?

[B1ue52]

Originally Posted by jack10525

Wow that is insane!!! How long would this take to do?

Without killing myself I could probably knock it out in 2 very long days. But for someone who's never done it before it would take longer. It also depends how much paint correction is required as that's a real time sink.

My recommendation would be this:

Day 1 do everything up to the polishing stage aside from the wheel detail.

Day 2 do the polishing and the C1 Coat

Day 3 do the two coats of EXO, little details and your interior

Wait a week

Day 4 do your glass polish and treatment and your wheel detail

Doing it that way will be relaxing and you will enjoy it more

Hope that helps

[sean2648]

Kudos for taking the time to write up the post.

But for something like Engine detailing in particular, err on the side of caution in terms of "assuming" common sense will be used because a lot of people just won't know. In a DIY, spell it out for them. Someone might take a gas powered pressure washer with the wrong nozzle and blast the shit out of the engine bay to "knock" some dirt loose. Luckily modern engines have all of the electronics and important things covered for the most part. But telling people water shouldn't touch ECUs or DMEs or whatever is a good tip, bag off things you don't want to get wet, don't blast delicate pieces, etc.

[B1ue52]

Originally Posted by sean2648

Kudos for taking the time to write up the post.

But for something like Engine detailing in particular, err on the side of caution in terms of "assuming" common sense will be used because a lot of people just won't know. In a DIY, spell it out for them. Someone might take a gas powered pressure washer with the wrong nozzle and blast the shit out of the engine bay to "knock" some dirt loose. Luckily modern engines have all of the electronics and important things covered for the most part. But telling people water shouldn't touch ECUs or DMEs or whatever is a good tip, bag off things you don't want to get wet, don't blast delicate pieces, etc.

I can't disagree, I just found it difficult, with how verbose the post is already, to include the smaller, if no less important details like that. I wanted to describe how to properly wad and use an MF towel, as I see a lot of people making life so difficult for themselves, but it's looooooong already so left tht level of detail out.

I will look to do some edits and will include your advice when time allows.

Thanks for the feedback

[Icarium81]

Awesome guide, I'm going to try to clay bar (meguiars kit) my car tomorrow, first time ever doing it but it seems easy enough, just be gentle.
I have MOTHERS wash and wax, which I'll be cleaning the car with first (and after claying), I also have meguiars wax in a bottle which I may use after the second wash, depends how I'm feeling.
Aside from ordering online, or spending a lot more, we only have those "old big brand names" available at most stores.

[B1ue52]

Originally Posted by Icarium81

Awesome guide, I'm going to try to clay bar (meguiars kit) my car tomorrow, first time ever doing it but it seems easy enough, just be gentle.
I have MOTHERS wash and wax, which I'll be cleaning the car with first (and after claying), I also have meguiars wax in a bottle which I may use after the second wash, depends how I'm feeling.
Aside from ordering online, or spending a lot more, we only have those "old big brand names" available at most stores.

Thanks, and hope you enjoy it mate. The Meguiars clay kit isn't half bad actually. My only complaint would be that the clay is too soft of a compound. That's only bad because it takes longer to Clay. You have to move the clay over the same spot more times before it's clear. On the other hand it's good for someone who has t done it before as much less chance of marring the paint.

Just bear in mind my comments above about the potential need to polish your car after claying. No big deal if you have to.

Yep, be gentle and like I mentioned, your ears will tell you an area is either contaminated or clear.

Good luck

[B1ue52]

Added a colour sanding guide as mentioned above here:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1651370

[Dyl]

Great write up. I wish I had as much free time as you.

Just a quick one re wing mirrors, they fold backwards for cleaning so all the water runs out.

[B1ue52]

Originally Posted by Dyl

Great write up. I wish I had as much free time as you.

Just a quick one re wing mirrors, they fold backwards for cleaning so all the water runs out.

Lol I just had two weeks off work and needed something to ease me back in last Monday morning

Thanks for the tip, never though to try that on my F32. Used to do it on my Kia but didn't even think to on this car. I'll see if it helps next wash

[B1ue52]

Added a spray painting guide here to compliment this thread:

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1653152

[jbb2388]

Have bookmarked this thread for much future reference. Can not thank you enough for the great information.

[B1ue52]

Originally Posted by jbb2388

Have bookmarked this thread for much future reference. Can not thank you enough for the great information.

You're welcome

[330iZSP]

This is a great write-up! I've been detailing for quite a while and everything you have said is great knowledge for someone who is new to detailing to have. I'd say it's a bit more than basic for a person who has never done it before, but it's GREAT knowledge!!! Taking the time to type it up and organize it is fantastic! I've written plenty of detailing how-to's and making them organized and easily understandable is not easy! Great work!

[B1ue52]

Originally Posted by 330iZSP

This is a great write-up! I've been detailing for quite a while and everything you have said is great knowledge for someone who is new to detailing to have. I'd say it's a bit more than basic for a person who has never done it before, but it's GREAT knowledge!!! Taking the time to type it up and organize it is fantastic! I've written plenty of detailing how-to's and making them organized and easily understandable is not easy! Great work!

That's great feedback, thank you I really appreciate it!

[TaranF32]

Fantastic write up!

I've personally got Cquartz UK 3.0 with Jescar Powerlock+ and Collinite 845. Could be argued that having a sealant and wax on top of a ceramic coating is pointless as it defeats the objective of the coating. I'd rather have the extra protection and layer them.

Defo learnt some things reading this post! A big thank you for taking the time to write this up. I've put less effort into uni assignments