UK-POLOS.NET - THE VW Polo Forum

The car has been a bit neglected over the last few months due to me finishing off uni, with me finishing I've been spending the last week or so sorting it out.

The Service and MOT went first (as well as another years insurance with Bell!), next step was to get the car clean.

Looking pretty grubby:



Interior hadn't been done for over 6 months also! I have before pics, but couldn't get after pics due to the rain so there's no point in posting them up!.

Ordered these earlier in the week in time for the big clean:


That's the 5th mitt I've been through now!

Interior was first. the arsenal:

APC 10:1 for dash doors and centre console.
APC 4:1 for the rubber mats
Chemical Guys Trim gel for dressing rubber mats
Shampoo foam for seats
Water spray for seats
baby wipes for seats and steering wheels
Large brush
Glass polish for windows
AG rubber and vinyl for the dash doors and plastics.
A pile of Microfibre clothes.

Then went onto the exterior. The arsenal:

Snow lance
Black Hole Glaze
Collinite 476s Wax
Chemical Guys trim gel (tyres)
APC 4:1
Paint brushes (panel cracks and seals)
Sonus clay
Diluted quick detailer (clay lube)
Billberry wheel cleaner
Large brush (splitter & tyres)
Applicator pads, tyre sponge, microfibre towels and clothes.
Microfibre mitt for wheels, sheepskin mitt for paint

Classic foam shot


Clay after the bonnet and wings:


The rain sucked, it was spitting throughout the clean. Only became an issue when applying the glaze and wax (had to do it panel by panel). I couldn't get good after pictures either because of this



I gave the bay a quick once over also. Came out alright, Also fitted the cover back on, and polished shield.

Some pics amongst the rain. (Upper strut brace present also!)




I had to wait 'til the next day at the South West meet to get some proper after pics.












Comments welcome

This car is too clean! Makes me very jealous lol. It looks amzing, how long did the clean take? I think I need some cleaning lessons...

wilde67 wrote:This car is too clean! Makes me very jealous lol. It looks amzing, how long did the clean take? I think I need some cleaning lessons...

Cheers mate!

6 and half hours?

Pretty good considering I also did some touch up, re-sprayed my plate brackets, and waited for dry spells in the weather!

Sounds reasonable and def worth it by the looks of things, think I need to give mine a good clean after exams. Are those still your original front lights? How do you keep them so clear and white (if that makes any sense?) Mine seem all hazy and dull.

Yep still originals. I machine polished them when I did my car last year. used a cutting pad and SSR3 polish on them.

I've never seen such a clean car! Mint, f'ing mint!

Just wondering wot claying your car achieves and how you go about doing, never done it before and am considering doing mine in a few weeks time.

It gets all the contaminants off the paintwork that washing alone cant remove like tar, chemical film, brake dust, overspray etc. Depending on what clay you use, youll need to use a lubricant such as a quick detailing spray to stop the clay scratching the paintwork. You basically warm up the clay and flatten it a little. You then spray where you are going to clay - do it one panel at a time - and go over the surface in smooth passes. Fold the clay in as it gets dirty to ensure you are always using a clean bit. Give it a wash before you start and a wash after, and then you can polish and wax

Looks spot on Tim,nice work mate.Sneaky blonde in the pictures too .

Seriously though hats off to you and your car really tidy dude.

Looking mint as ever Tim! how did you get that finish with the heatshield? i originally wanted to go for the polished look but coulden't get the darn thing off!

Further claying tips - when you wash the car, don't dry it, clay it straight away. Also, water in a spray bottle works great for lube, don't fall for the expensive products trap. Then when it's all clayed, wash it again.

Cheers guys!

Bradley - Haha, that would be the missus!

Joe - A friend off newport edition polished it for me! I've just kept it topped up ever since. It's not perfect (has a few pit holes etc) but looks good I think. Spraying it red was a disaster for me.

What clay do you guys recommend...meguiars?

wackojackso wrote:What clay do you guys recommend...meguiars?

No, Sonus Ultra fine detailing clay. It's better than megs.

Looks Amazing Tim Always does.

I use the Poorboys Black Hole stuff too, its awesome

6N2 GTI 00 wrote:Looks Amazing Tim Always does.

I use the Poorboys Black Hole stuff too, its awesome

Cheers dude.

It's the best paint product hands down for dark coloured cars!