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Anyone got any good carpet cleaning tips? Right now I just suck it out with the vacuum every few weeks. Anything special I can do? The carpet is black BMW e34 carpet if it matters.
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Nov 5, 2012 09:06
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Rent a steam cleaner. What year is your E34? I had an '89 with black interior but my carpet was gray.
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Nov 5, 2012 16:15
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Big Taint posted:Rent a steam cleaner. What year is your E34? I had an '89 with black interior but my carpet was gray. They completely changed the carpet color palette in 9/1990. You probably had the SHIEFER (slate?) carpet, and mine is ANTHRAZIT (a rock). I guess it isn't totally black, but it's the closet thing BMW makes to it (there is no SCHWARZ e34 carpet), and a lot darker than their actual gray (SILBERGRAU) carpet. I guess you might call it dark gray, but when nobody ever asks what color my carpet is, I'll save them this explanation. Mine is a '94 540 and it's all black except like the top abc pillar covers and the headliner which are "Silver grey". I'll eventually make it all black, but I don't think that was an option from the factory. I've never seen another Alpine White II e34 with a black interior, they're all grey or tan, but it's not like I've been looking for another.
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Nov 5, 2012 22:18
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I've used random foaming carpet cleansers in the past for spot cleaning, if it's in between 'just needs a vacuum' and 'tear out the seats and deep clean it'. I've owned two E34s, an '89 535i/5 speed (black on black) and a '95 540i/6 speed (Sebring? grey over black). Neither had black carpet, or even dark carpet. Black seats and dash/console, black door panels, but light grey above and below. Great cars.
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Nov 6, 2012 04:29
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My wife just bought a 2010 Camaro SS that has quite a lot of swirl marks. I want to use her love of the new car to convince her that I need a Porter Cable Dual Action polisher, pads and polish. My question is about the racing stripes and cutting/polishing. The stripes are vinyl decals and I'm worried that cutting/polishing could damage the edges of the stripes. Is this a justified concern?
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Nov 6, 2012 05:07
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bung posted:My wife just bought a 2010 Camaro SS that has quite a lot of swirl marks. I want to use her love of the new car to convince her that I need a Porter Cable Dual Action polisher, pads and polish. My question is about the racing stripes and cutting/polishing. The stripes are vinyl decals and I'm worried that cutting/polishing could damage the edges of the stripes. Is this a justified concern? Yes, and as such you should always use automotive green painters tape (as thin as possible) and tape the edges of the stripes and any trim/mouldings on the car.
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Nov 6, 2012 06:06
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So, I'm going to completely gush over Meguiar's Microfiber DA correction system. I've had couple of the 3" discs, cutting compound and finishing wax for awhile, but I haven't really gotten around to using them on my older car since I just haven't had time to do a really good detail on it. Well, Friday morning, my garage door didn't open the whole way and I couldn't see it in my rear view mirror. I back out and scraped the leading edge of the door (mainly the rubber seal) across the roof of my '11. Left a nice swath of scratches across the roof, many deep enough I could catch my fingernail in. Well, today I got to work on it with the microfiber system. The cutting disc and compound was like using an eraser on them. Even at a low speed, all I would have to do is just go back and forth on the scratch and it would eventually vanish. It's 100% corrected now and only took about 40 minutes worth of work. I can't find a hint of the scratches anywhere. Now all I need to do is have some paintless dent repair work done to pop up the slight dents in the roof around the antenna. bull3964 fucked around with this message at 20:13 on Nov 12, 2012 |
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Nov 12, 2012 20:10
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My wife just bought a 2010 Camaro 2SS. It only had 5700 miles on the odometer but the paint was very swirled. I had an auto parts store 10" orbital polisher so I decided to use it with Meguiar's Ultimate Polish to get rid of the swirls. The polisher lasted for about half of the car and then died. To its credit, it did a decent job getting rid of the swirls. I started looking online at autogeek.com for DA polishers but after seeing the Porter Cable, Griot's, Flex, and Meguiar's polishers I really couldn't justify the cost. So it was off to Harbor Freight. I know that HF is frowned upon but the deal I found was to good to pass up. For $67 I got a 6" variable speed DA polisher 2000-6400 opm ($48 with a 20% off coupon), 2 - 6" polishing pads, 1 - 6" finishing pad, and a two pack of really soft 16"x16" microfibers. Here are the 20% coupons. 
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Nov 16, 2012 03:45
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The HF DA seems to be a very similar machine, perhaps mechanically identical, to the DA that 3D/HD Car Care had brought to market, but seem to have supply issues with. To its credit, it's supposed to pack the most punch out of the "normal" DAs (in other words, not the FLEX 3401, which is forced rotation, or the new hot poo poo DA, the Rupes Bigfoot which has a monster 21mm throw), but it seems reliability/build quality isn't so hot. http://www.autopia.org/forum/car-detailing-product-discussion/142910-harbor-freight-6-da.html
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Nov 16, 2012 04:00
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I apologize if there's a better thread to use now, but this was the closest I could find. I got a new car and the leather seats are... I guess "textured" is the word. Basically not a smooth, perforated leather. What I'd like is something that keeps the leather cleaned and well cared for, but I don't want it having that really slippery/shiny feeling like some of Armor-All's stuff seemed to do on my old Jeep. I fully admit I'm a rookie to all of this but I busted my rear end to get this car and I really want to keep it in tip top shape because the thing is goddamn gorgeous when it's really clean. I have some assorted Meguiar's stuff sitting around my garage but I didn't want to touch anything until I got an idea of what I should be using. I've got some Invisible Glass spray as well and that's worked great so far but any other suggestions are welcome. I don't have a ton of time to dedicate to keeping it clean but any help you guys can provide in terms of things to use, things to avoid, would be great. Thanks!
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Dec 11, 2012 16:37
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DJExile posted:What I'd like is something that keeps the leather cleaned and well cared for, but I don't want it having that really slippery/shiny feeling like some of Armor-All's stuff seemed to do on my old Jeep. I don't use anything vehicle specific on leather. While I'm sure some product that doesn't suck exists, it's just not necessary. What you are looking for is saddle soap. Put a light coat on with a wet terrycloth rag. Scrub any parts that needs scrubbing. Walk away for 20 or 30 minutes until it dries/hazes up, and buff it off with a microfiber towel. It not only looks great (not too shiny) but it's not totally slippery, not greasy, smells good and it conditions the leather to keep moisture in it. It buffs right out of perforations (if you have any) on seats if you let it dry before your final buff.
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Dec 11, 2012 17:09
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Motronic posted:I don't use anything vehicle specific on leather. While I'm sure some product that doesn't suck exists, it's just not necessary. Awesome, thanks! 
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Dec 11, 2012 17:20
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DJExile posted:I apologize if there's a better thread to use now, but this was the closest I could find. I got a new car and the leather seats are... I guess "textured" is the word. Basically not a smooth, perforated leather. What I'd like is something that keeps the leather cleaned and well cared for, but I don't want it having that really slippery/shiny feeling like some of Armor-All's stuff seemed to do on my old Jeep. I'm going to disagree with Motronic here. Do not use saddle soap, beeswax, leather oil or similar products on your car interior. They are meant for bare leather only, such as saddles, shoes and so on. Only really old (or very bespoke ordered) cars have bare leather interiors. Modern furniture and car interiors are made from leather that is painted and sealed with a polyurethane lacquer. This means that oil- and wax-based products will not reach the leather. You would be putting wax on plastic and wiping it off again, for no benefit at all. What you need are a cleaner and a conditioner, both water-based. I like this stuff from Furniture Clinic. It strengthens the protective lacquer and maintains the leather's supple non-shiny surface, and it's good for bare leather products as well. It did absolute wonders for the interior in my car, the steering wheel in particular was all dried out, now it's nice and soft and feels durable again.
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Dec 11, 2012 17:35
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What about something like the Griot's Leather care?
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Dec 11, 2012 18:18
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DJExile posted:What about something like the Griot's Leather care? From the descriptions, it sounds a lot like the stuff I linked. Remember to follow the instructions, if you forget to buff it afterwards, it'll be a bit sticky. And if it smells just half as nice as the stuff I use, your car will smell amazing afterwards, like a well cared for Chesterfield sofa.
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Dec 11, 2012 18:36
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KozmoNaut posted:From the descriptions, it sounds a lot like the stuff I linked. Remember to follow the instructions, if you forget to buff it afterwards, it'll be a bit sticky. Awesome, I liked what you linked, i just don't live in the UK 
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Dec 11, 2012 18:51
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Are there any DIY kits out there for repairing gouges in alloy wheels? My wife's Camaro has the polished alloys with a clear coat. Two of them have deep scratches/gouges that I'd like to repair. What I'm looking for is a kit to repair the gouge and the clear coat.
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Dec 11, 2012 20:07
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DJExile posted:Awesome, I liked what you linked, i just don't live in the UK Neither do I, but I haven't been able to find anything like it here in Denmark. Plus it lasts a long time. Based on my usage, I'll be getting about 12-15 treatments out of a bottle. bung posted:Are there any DIY kits out there for repairing gouges in alloy wheels? My wife's Camaro has the polished alloys with a clear coat. Two of them have deep scratches/gouges that I'd like to repair. What I'm looking for is a kit to repair the gouge and the clear coat. Mighty Car Mods did a video on using bondo and spray paint to repair gouged and curb-rashed alloy wheels, but I'm not sure if you can do anything to polished wheels yourself. I guess you could polish it back to a shine, but you can't add lost material back.
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Dec 11, 2012 21:00
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Finally got around to clay baring my car - its absolutely amazing what a difference it made to how the paintwork feels, especially the hood (always thought that was just rough because its made of aluminium but after clay barring it feels like glass) The kit I used came with two 80gm clay bars and a fairly large spray bottle of 'instant detailer'. I only ended up using a small amount of one of the bars, but about 75% of the spray bottle so I'll need more of that when I tackle my parents cars next weekend. Should I just buy another bottle of what came in the kit, or is there something better to use as lubricant?
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Dec 16, 2012 10:40
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If you want something more economical than buying straight QD, you can use Optimum No Rinse Wash And Shine or Ultima Waterless Wash Plus+ Concentrate to make clay lube. Depending on the clay, a simple mix of soapy water works too.
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Dec 16, 2012 12:26
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Yeah, I've used straight water with Meguiar's clay bars and it works fine.
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Dec 16, 2012 13:00
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dissss posted:The kit I used came with two 80gm clay bars and a fairly large spray bottle of 'instant detailer'. I only ended up using a small amount of one of the bars, but about 75% of the spray bottle so I'll need more of that when I tackle my parents cars next weekend. Should I just buy another bottle of what came in the kit, or is there something better to use as lubricant? If your car isn't an Escalade or an F350, you're using too much quick detailer. You're just looking for enough of a mist to provide lubricity so you don't scratch the paint. It will spread, especially since the claybar doesn't absorb it. One ~16oz/475mL bottle should do around a half dozen reasonably-sized vehicles, or one reasonably-sized vehicle a half dozen times.
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Dec 16, 2012 16:55
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Molten Llama posted:If your car isn't an Escalade or an F350, you're using too much quick detailer. You're just looking for enough of a mist to provide lubricity so you don't scratch the paint. It will spread, especially since the claybar doesn't absorb it. One ~16oz/475mL bottle should do around a half dozen reasonably-sized vehicles, or one reasonably-sized vehicle a half dozen times. Thanks guys I did suspect I was using way too much, guess I'll go easy on it next time (sounds like the remainder of the bottle should do my fathers car anyway, its only a Ford Fiesta)
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Dec 17, 2012 06:54
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Can someone explain to me why a proper porter cable or the likes is better than simply attaching a pad to a hand drill for polishing? I know it is better, but I need to know why so I can justify my Christmas present to the wife 
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Dec 17, 2012 23:15
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Etrips posted:Can someone explain to me why a proper porter cable or the likes is better than simply attaching a pad to a hand drill for polishing? I know it is better, but I need to know why so I can justify my Christmas present to the wife Just suggest that she looks about the same with the cosmetics from the discount bin from 1000 feet. Either way it turns out, you get to spend more time with the car. 
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Dec 17, 2012 23:32
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Etrips posted:Can someone explain to me why a proper porter cable or the likes is better than simply attaching a pad to a hand drill for polishing? I know it is better, but I need to know why so I can justify my Christmas present to the wife Porter Cable and the like are random orbit buffers, whereas a drill with a pad is simply circular. A circular pad is not a bad thing in the hands of a professional, but with someone inexperienced, it is easy to scratch semi-circles in the paint at best and cut through the paint entirely at worst. Basically, the random orbit buffer makes it easy to polish and difficult to damage paint.
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Dec 17, 2012 23:37
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Etrips posted:Can someone explain to me why a proper porter cable or the likes is better than simply attaching a pad to a hand drill for polishing? I know it is better, but I need to know why so I can justify my Christmas present to the wife The Porter Cable has a random orbit and is very difficult to misuse enough to cause severe damage. The drill will burn through your paint lickety split if your technique is poor.
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Dec 17, 2012 23:37
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I just want to keep this out of the archives. I know there isn't a lot of car detailing love going on during the winter, but keep your chins up guys! Soon you will be able to make things pretty!
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Jan 26, 2013 04:11
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I just bought a cheap $25 leaf blower for drying the car. I'm sure towel and chamois drying has contributed greatly to the swirl marks in the paint.
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Jan 26, 2013 04:40
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My car desperately needs a good cleaning. Salt is all over the gorgeous black paint 
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Jan 26, 2013 05:02
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I am looking at cleaning under the hood but using a pressure washer scares me. Is it ok to just spray on some cleaner, no idea which?, and blast that poo poo off? If anyone is wondering I am not cleaning the lancia engine bay, that would remove all the structural support!
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Jan 26, 2013 15:12
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thegasman2000 posted:I am looking at cleaning under the hood but using a pressure washer scares me. Is it ok to just spray on some cleaner, no idea which?, and blast that poo poo off?
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Jan 26, 2013 19:06
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I need something that will soften up and help me remove built up pine resin from parking under a pine tree without loving up my paint. I tested some orange oil based spray on a small area and was amazed at what it did, but then realized that it specifically says on the labeling not to use it on auto paint. I looked at some other orange-based products as well as degreasers and they all said the same thing. Normal car wash products don't do jack poo poo, and it's on the car so much that if I scrubbed it off I'm sure I'd damage the paint or possibly die in the process from all that scrubbing. Any suggestions?
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Jan 26, 2013 20:21
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Powdered Toast Man posted:I need something that will soften up and help me remove built up pine resin from parking under a pine tree without loving up my paint. I tested some orange oil based spray on a small area and was amazed at what it did, but then realized that it specifically says on the labeling not to use it on auto paint. I looked at some other orange-based products as well as degreasers and they all said the same thing. Normal car wash products don't do jack poo poo, and it's on the car so much that if I scrubbed it off I'm sure I'd damage the paint or possibly die in the process from all that scrubbing. Coat the rest of the car in pine resin, preserve its paint for millenia. See this post and following posts: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3474488&userid=0&perpage=40&pagenumber=10#post407427579 I dont think pine resin will seep into the clear coat like berry juice, so maybe try the goo-gone towel soaked onto the resin for a while tip. Longpig Bard fucked around with this message at 20:42 on Jan 26, 2013 |
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Jan 26, 2013 20:40
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thegasman2000 posted:I am looking at cleaning under the hood but using a pressure washer scares me. Is it ok to just spray on some cleaner, no idea which?, and blast that poo poo off? Hopefully you have a brush of some sort otherwise you wont really be getting any dirt off. Spray on all purpose cleaner brush if you want to be safe just get another heavy duty spray bottle and fill it with water then spray all the gunk off. The water is just rinsing it off, it shouldnt be agitating any dirt
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Jan 26, 2013 21:03
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Bumming Your Scene posted:See this post and following posts: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3474488&userid=0&perpage=40&pagenumber=10#post407427579 And my reply to that post may apply here, too: Clay bar would help. However, you may want to try just letting water run over the hood for a while. I had one hell of a time with some tree sap that simply refused to come off, except when soaked in water, then it wiped right off. It was the weirdest thing.
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Jan 26, 2013 21:37
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I would post a picture of the car, but it's too humiliating at this point how lovely it looks. It isn't just on the hood, it's on the entire loving car. After reading those posts I'm considering using some Dawn to start with to see what that does. Failing that, I may need to use something more...solventy...on limited areas. It's my understanding that turpentine or mineral spirits won't be damaging as long as they aren't left on for too long. Now that I think about it, they make paint strippers that are citrus oil-based, so I guess that makes sense that it would be bad for the paint.
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Jan 26, 2013 23:59
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I had a good amount of luck getting Pine sap off the old mans prado with Wax and Grease Remover (prepsol)
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Jan 27, 2013 00:54
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TheGoatTrick posted:I usually spray with Simple Green and scrub with a brush. Rinse it off by running a hose (no nozzle, no spraying). As long as you're not dumb and don't spray up under electrical covers, it should be fine. Yeah, I've never had a problem spraying water under the hood. I would recommend using a good all purpose cleaner rather than Simple Green though. SG is bad for aluminum.
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Jan 27, 2013 13:24
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I just got a few globs of pine tar off of my car with a bit of Goo-Gone and a cloth. If you've got more widespread pine tar (and it sounds like you do) go for the clay bar. It will do wonders.
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Jan 27, 2013 14:31
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