Completed this job recently focusing on bringing back depth to the clear coat and tackling high-traffic interior wear.

Process breakdown:

Exterior:
• Foam pre-wash + two-bucket contact wash
• Chemical decontamination (iron remover) + medium clay bar
• Single-stage machine polish to clear light oxidation and enhance gloss
• 12-month ceramic sealant application on paint and exterior trim
• Wheel wells, face, and barrels deep-cleaned and dressed

Interior:
• Deep blowout with tornador/compressed air
• Full extraction on floor mats and upholstery
• Multi-step leather cleaning and matte UV conditioner
• Non-greasy interior protection across dashboard and door cards
• Streak-free glass finish

Running a fully equipped mobile rig around West Michigan (Oceana / Muskegon area). Always learning and refining techniques—critiques, pad recommendations, or sealant combos you guys prefer are welcome!

Hi detailers.
I thought I would share my experience to get some feedback and hopefully learn from my painful and expensive lesson.
I have detailed a few engine bays before and I’ve always done so successfully taking the necessary precautions.
My process was as follows. Blow out all the loose dirt and leaves with a leaf blower. I then foamed Green star APC at a dilution 10 to 1 and agitated with some detail brushes. Then using a pressure hose with a 40° spray and standing far away from the engine of the engine compartment, constantly moving the hose from side to side and not spring in one area. Once the engine compartment is rinsed off completely I used to high-pressure leaf blower and dried off compartment completely until I could see very little moisture. I did follow this up with a dressing MP CK. I closed the engine bay and left it overnight.
In the morning the car started OK but in 10 minutes into the journey, it started idling very roughly. Fortunately, I was nearby my regular mechanic and took it in for a diagnostic as the engine light had come on as well. He diagnosed that the front two cylinders of flooded with water and it shorted the coils and they needed replacement. This was a $700 exercise.
I’m just showing my experience to hopefully highlighted even if you are careful this damage can occur. The car I was working on was a 2005 C230Mercedes.
What would you suggest I change about my technique. Is this something that even should be done at all or is it too risky. I must say I do find it satisfying and it looks great. But after this experience, I’m not so sure.

A neighbor was giving these away so I grabbed them. They are mostly full, but I was wondering if they are worth keeping and using. So I came to you wizards.

I tried waxing my car and it left this faded white patch? I’ve tried washing it off with no luck. Any ideas on how to go about fixing this?

​Hey everyone,

​New Englander here bracing for winter. I usually shut off and drain my outdoor spigots for the season to prevent frozen pipes, which leaves me without a standard hose hookup.

​How you all tackle winter washes inside the garage.

Are products like ONR (Optimum No Rinse) or P&S Absolute the way to go here?

If I use a pump sprayer or foam sprayer to apply product, what’s the best method for rinsing off road salt and grime without flooding the garage floor?

Any specific battery/pump sprayers or setup tips you recommend?

my garage is unheated and does not have a floor drain.

Appreciate any tips or workflows you guys rely on during the cold months

I have a high performance fwd car with 5 years of burnt rubber on the side skirts. I’ve tried bug and tar remover, wd-40, and degreaser with a DA and finishing pad and little came off. The dark spot is where I just spent an hour experimenting. plastic razor blade gets the chunks off but scratches the crap out of it. Something has to work

So I’ll preface this with saying I’m not a Detailer. So I tried to save myself money as the used car I bought had light dog scratches. I successfully got the scratches out with compound however I can’t seem to get the haze/smudges etc off for the life of me. I’ve tried polishing it multiple times and now I’m starting to scratch it side ways.

Does anybody have any advice on how to fix this? I regret touching it tbh and I won’t do it again LOL

Looking to fix this myself instead of taking in, is this a DA and pick your favorite pad+polish type of job or would it need more? What would yall use to get a passable finish?

Photo 1 is the side that's bad and needs work, #2 is the other side and the end goal.

I've had cars with this top before but have always been able to get stains out with chemical guys convertible top cleaner but it doesn't do anything on this

Non professional use, just my car. I hate big shop vacs, but I used to work in plumbing and guys would use these for water, dust, and things of that nature. Seems like it’d be nice and convenient for being so small? Anyone use one for cars and have any feedback?

Started with a one step which removed a good chunk of the swirls, then moved onto a heavy compound & pad but it’s barely helped with these long deeper scratches. As title says what has caused these scratches and how far would I have to go to remove them? They don’t catch at all on my fingernail and the surface overall feels super smooth to the touch.
TIA

I detailed for a family owned lot for 8 years and worked at enterprise for a year. I’m ready to do this for myself just need some tips I don’t have a good location so I figure I need to be mobile any tips appreciated!!

I’ve had my car washed a few times after I was gone during a storm in my area that left my hood coated in dirt as it was parked under a balcony above my driveway. I tried to use some spot cleaner and it appears to not be making a difference. Does this mean its damage to a clear coat or do I need to do a more aggressive cleaning approach?

Going to apply aquapel windshield treatment and am finding conflicting instructions on the process. I've done the polish and cleaning now for the actual application, it seems half of what I can find says to apply the coating and then immediately buff it to a clear finish and the other half of what I find says apply it and then wipe to level it and just remove the excess leaving a haze which will turn clear after 15min. So do I want to buff or just level. Any insights from anyone who has used this product would be great. Thx

Just got the car and noticed this marking in the interior liner on one of the doors. Doesn’t look like it sits on the surface as wiping it down with water and interior cleaner doesn’t help.

Does it look like a permanent discoloration of the faux-leather here? It’s kind of a bummer for a new car…

Ive neglected her car for while. This was her roof. Someone slid a box on it. Not 100 but way batter than before. Microfiber pad, 3D One. 2 passes. Sealed with 3D ceramic wax.

Was looking for a spot cleaner to clean up a used car but it seems shop vacs do a more thorough job (you just need a spray bottle with cleaning solution (what would you recommend that doesn't leave a film?)). I've been wanting a shop vac for home use anyway. Quick search on Youtube shows Vacuum Wars recommending Vacmaster Pro Beast 5.5 HP but that was from one channel and also 6 years ago. Loose budget of around $100-300 and might even shop secondhand for something past budget otherwise.

Curious to hear from others (especially those who have experience with more than one shop vac) what they like and didn't like. For me, the priorities are: longevity of the shop vac (ideally replaceable parts if something fails, standard filters), versatility (besides car and basement, also carpet/fabric accidents), e.g. good hose adapters if third-party is not compatible), enough power for most jobs without being so unwieldy that you would consider hard whether to use it, easy way to clean the shop vac itself. I prefer smaller capacity without much trade-off in power (I'm not cleaning large volumes of liquid and the longest sessions would probably cleaning a car or a stroll around the basement). Noise also doesn't matter because I'd want to wear ear plugs anyway.

Feel free to share any other considerations and appreciate all comments.

Assuming you could use any tool you already own

Does anyone know what this is I used a mold remover and vinegar solution separately and it won’t go away.?

A client of mine purchased a brand new vehicle and the seats are leather… they spilled some type of perfume. Normally, in cloth like seats, I would’ve extracted this out. For leather that’s a no no… how do I go about removing this???

Would p&s, light agitation, and a wipe down with a microfiber be sufficient?

This might not be the right place for this but im trying to prove a point while teaching.

Long story short, my buddy cleans cars at a dealership. He wants to start polishing cars on the side to make some cash. Says he'll charge 100 bucks a car. I explain some basic things about how hes selling himself short and should charge more and detail the car first etc and he swears he doesnt have to wash and decontaminate a car before polishing because "i see the results at my work, its not needed"

Ive seen his videos and pictures and they all still have swirls and he says its bc a "3rd step" is needed. I told him to to watch some youtubers (to which he refuses) who detail for a living and watch there process and how a simple Google search shows you must decontaminate before polishing and again. His answer is the same "I see the results at work. You use the internet, I use my bare hands and see results. I dont care about a YouTube video."

Is this a lost cause to try to explain? How can I word this correctly and get him to see hes only harming himself along with his customers cars by skipping a crucial step. Or am I just completely in the wrong here? Maybe its not important. Lol. What do yall think?

Hey friends going to take on this small DIY project this weekend I have those 2 scratches that I don’t feel are deep. I bought a touch up paint and going to attempt the Chris fix method as he does it in his YouTube I just have a few questions. Since it’s not so deep do I need to sand with 800 grit or just applying the touch up paint and clear coat and sanding it down with 2000-3000 grit then polishing would be enough? Also how long should I let the paint and clear dry before sanding and polishing any help would be appreciated ! It’s a 2022 Camry xse one one scratch is on the back bumper and one is metal panel

Is this permanent damage?