My first detail and product mini-reviews

[BlackObs]

Okay, so I've done my first detail ever on my brand-new 2007 Mazda 3 GT hatchback (in Electric Blue). Actually, I did it a few weeks ago, and I'm just now getting around to posting about it. Here's my thoughts on the process and products I used (all of them ordered from here, most of them recommended specifically by other members).

Washing:
The Foam Wash Gun makes washing quick and painless, also quite entertaining. I load it with Meguiar's Gold Class Car Wash and water in a 1:1 ratio (2oz of each is usually enough to do the whole car) at the 2oz:1gal setting. I use the Cobra Green Micro-Chenille Wash Mitt, which works well both picking up and letting go of dirt. I have one bucket that was just laying around the house for rinse water; on my next order, I'll pick up one of the big bucket/trolley/GritGuard combos available here, they were just sold out when I placed my first gigantic order.
The Brass Quick Connectors make switching between the foam cannon and the Fire Hose Nozzle (and just the hose, for paint flooding at the end of rinsing) a breeze. A small thing, but really quite handy.

Drying:
I use a Cobra Ultimate Guzzler to dry the majority of the car, which it does all by itself, after using paint-flooding to get rid of most of the water on the car. Then I use the Metro Vac 'n Blo on reverse to blow out water from random cracks, crevices, and seams, and mop it up with a generic yellow MF towel that came with something in my order (no idea what... I've got MF towels coming out my ears), along with drying door jambs and seals.

Wheels:
I foam-cannon the wheels and then clean them with a Short Handle Tire/Wheel Brush, which works well, but isn't terribly useful, because my car has what I think are called snowflake-patter rims (five spokes, each of which splits into two spokes before they reach the outside rim), and the brush doesn't fit between the spokes. The [b]EZ Detail Auto Brush[b], however, does fit. It likes to spray ME with dirty water on the out-stroke, but otherwise it works very well, and has been invaluable for wheel-cleaning.
I dry the wheels with a couple of cheap MF towels from Canadian Tire, because they usually end up with a lot of black gunk on them (the brushes are great for loosening dirt, but not so hot at actually removing it from the wheels).
The DP Wheel Glaze does its job well and smells pleasantly like grape jelly... it has a purplish color too. It says to apply weekly, but I'm experimenting with bi-weekly, and eventually monthly. There's no way to apply it to the inside of my rims while they're still mounted, so there's some baked on... black dots, which I'll have to figure out how to remove over the winter, once the winter rims and tires are on. Speaking of applying the grape jelly, I use Wolfgang Finger Pockets for that. They work quite well and let me get in the narrow gaps between spokes. I've discovered they don't like going in the washing machine, even on the delicate cycle, so I'll need replacements before long. Doh. I use another couple of cheap MF towels to buff off the Wheel Glaze. I'm still putting too much on, but I'm having trouble moderating the amount. There's plenty in the container anyway.
I finish off with Pinnacle Black Onyx Tire Gel, and there's nothing to say except that it works exactly like it's supposed to. Seems I need to reapply every couple of weeks to maintain the best look. It smells rather like simulated fruit punch.

Claying:
Given that the car was all of two weeks old when I detailed it, I don't think there was much purplse to claying, but I did it anyway for the experience. I used the Pinnacle Ultra Poly Clay Kit. Since there wasn't much for the clay to pick up, all I can say is that the clay lubricant makes an unholy mess of the car (had to rewash afterwards, even wiping it off with the included MF towels), and it doesn't taste very good, either. I sure had to use a lot of lubricant, too. I might get two clayings out of a bottle if I'm lucky. Fortunately, I only intend to clay twice a year anyway.

Waxing (and stuff):
I've got the Ultimate Detailing Machine and a complete set of foam Edge 2000 Pads. I love the Edge system, it makes swapping pads fairly painless. I'd love it if the UDM didn't accidentally turn on so easily, but there's a fix for that now. I have XMT #2 for light swirl removal, but didn't need it on this outing. I did use the Duragloss 101 on the blue pad, doing the whole car and cleaning it off with a pair of Cobra Indigo MF Towels. They did a great job. Followed up with Duragloss 105 on the white pad. I know I didn't really need to use the UDM for this, but I bought the thing, and it makes for quick work; it probably took longer (90min) to tape off all the emblems and plastic trim on the car than to actually apply the two Duragloss products. I have some Duragloss 111 to follow the 105, but I'm saving that for the spring. Doing the first two was plenty of work already.
Afterwards, the paint was as smooth as glass, something I've never experienced before. Definitely really happy with the end result.

Other Exterior:
I wiped the black plastic trim and rubber seals with Pinnacle Vinyl & Rubber Protectant, applied with an MF Applicator Pad. It seems to leave an almost "greasy" residue on the plastic, making it very apparent what I've wiped and what I haven't. Not sure I'm fond of that.
Glass I do, by popular suggestion, with Stoner's Invisible Glass. The container says to spray it on a cloth and wipe the glass, but I find that leaves an ugly residue, so I just spray it right on the glass and wipe off with a Cobra Waffle Weave Glass Towel, which works quite well.
For monthly details, since I only intend to do the whole clay/wax cycle in spring and fall, I use [b]Duragloss 951 Aquawax[b], sprayed on and buffed/removed with a pair of Cobra Miracle Towels. It seems to renew the shine nicely (and smells kinda like sunscreen).

Interior:
I had a couple of sets of MF Gloves that came with various stuff. I decided to use one set for dusting, which worked okay, and another set for applying the DP Total Interior Cleaner, which didn't work quite so well. The gloves shed bits of themselves like a shaggy dog when damp, but by this point, all my other MF towels had a purpose. Next cleaning, I'll probably pick up some cheap MF towels for the cleaner... maybe even dilute it in a separate bottle, since apparently I don't need to use it full strength. It smells like banana! The [b]Metro Vac 'n Blo[b] does its thing here, too, with all the handy attachments. I'm not sure if it's the black interior, but this car seems to get dirty way faster than the beige Malibu or the grey Alero interiors ever did, even with multiple users of those (the 3 is just me... and occasionally a lady friend).
I wiped everything but the seats with Pinnacle Vinyl & Rubber Protectant using an MF Applicator Pad, although the annoying film isn't as noticeable as it is when used on the exterior.
I then wiped the seats with Pinnacle Leather Cleaner & Conditioner on another MF Applicator Pad. There was a bit of difficulty removing some white marks from the leather (the aforementioned lady friend has a habit of not brushing sand off her behind after a midnight frolick at the beach), but a bit of DP Total Interior Cleaner seems to have done the trick there. I also have to remember to hack up some old sheets and use them to cover areas I don't want to get this leather stuff on, because it leaves a residue on any plastic it splattered on.
Stoner's Invisible Glass does its thing on the interior, too, definitely living up to its name. In fact, it works so well, I'll probably start using it to clean my glasses.

Other Stuff:
Pinnacle Micro Rejuvenator: Well.. I dunno. It went in the wash with the dirty towels, and most of them came out cleaner. I figured the ones used for the wheels would be hopeless, and they remain pretty dirty; whatever's making my wheels dirty obviously doesn't want to come out, so I'll probably be replacing those towels every few months.
Pinnacle Bug and Tar Sponge: Woo, this little fellow WORKS. It's also a cool neon yellow/green color. Since crap doesn't clean out of it very well, I've taken to cutting off dirty parts, rather than risk having the trapped dirt hurt the paint on future uses.
Pinnacle Gel Wheel Cleaner: This stuff doesn't seem to do much--if anything--that regular car soap from the foam cannon doesn't do. It's certainly not removing the evil little black dots. It gets used quickly (I'd say 1/3 of the bottle to spray all four wheels), and I'm going to have to replace it with something stronger to get rid of anything the foam cannon can't handle. Any suggestions?
Pinnacle XMT Polishing Pad Conditioner: It seems to do its job. Having never used polishing pads without it, I really couldn't say how much easier it makes things.
Pinnacle XMT Polishing Pad Cleaner: Haven't used this yet. The used pads are just living in their Ziploc bags, staying moist and waiting for their next use, or until I'm bored enough to clean them.

[klumzypinoy]

Nice review! I may add, don't leave your polishing pads moist in a ziplocked bag or else you will have a nice moldy pad it's suggested you clean your pads right away after your detail.
For clay lube, I suggest buying a bottle of DP 4 in 1 and you can make bottles and bottles of clay lube I love it, when I run out, I put an ounce of DP 4 in 1 in a 32 oz spray bottle and fill the rest with water from the sink. I did use distilled water but I didn't wanna keep going back to the store and buy more of it.
Also, wash your microfiber towels in batches so you won't cross contaminate them. Wash the paint towels, door jam towels together, and grunge towels (wheels, and other dirty places) all separately.

[Meghan]

Thanks for the informative review, would love to see a few photos too!

[alban61]

Thanks for that great review/write-up.
I agree with Klumzypinoy. Wash and dry your pads after you're done. Don't leave them wet and place them in their bags. I can attest to mold growing on the pads. Had 1 polishing pad start growing green stuff! Yuck! I use DP 4n1 as a clay lube too, as well as a rinseless wash.
You're right about getting cheap MFs for the interior. I just use the bulk stuff you get from BJs/Costco for the interiors and other dirty jobs. On those filthy towels, just pre-soak them in a pail of hot water with your MicroRejuvenator (1oz to 5 gals water)
Now where are the pics of your hard work?

[Fredrick2003]

Thoughts on the products recorded .

I would love to see some pictures as well.

[BlackObs]

By popular demand... pictures!


Here's my AG order, fresh off the FedEx truck. I started feeling like a kid in a candy shop right about now.


Here's everything unpacked and on the couch for display. The plain box holding up the Pinnacle products is the foam cannon box. Pictured but purchased locally: painter's tape, hose, extension cord.


Here's the front of my baby, all taped up. No, I'm not blurring the plates, as they've already been replaced.


Side and roof all taped up. This took approximately forever, and the whole car consumed most of a 55m roll of painter's tape. Next time, I'm getting help for this part.


And the rear. Plate's off just so I can polish and wax the painted surface beneath it. Total taping time? A solid 90min, and about half a gallon of lemonade. It was HOT that day.

I don't really have any in-progress shots, so I'll skip to the After shots. They're not too different from the Befores, since the car was brand new. Detailing again in the spring, after a long messy winter, should be a different story.


Here's the front... angle's wrong to see much reflected except the sky.


From the side. The dark mark along the bottom of the doors is a big puddle in the driveway being reflected. Please ignore the rusty brake rotors, I hadn't moved it at all since the wash and they clean right off after a tiny bit of use. You can also see my only mod to date, a smaller antenna from a CX-7, to replace the horsewhip that Mazda equips their cars with.


Here's the rear again, one of my favorite shots of the car. I do so love the color, and also the LED taillights.


Here's an angle I liked while shooting, right down the roof of the car from the rear. I especially liked how it reflected the trees and building behind my place, in actual color, and pretty sharply, too.


One last angle I liked, right over the hood. Now that I look at it, there appears to be a bit of micromarring, but I'm really not sure.

Anyway, that's the result of my first-ever detail; indeed, my first time with any car care more involved than the automatic touchless wash at the Esso up the street. It might not be show-quality flawless, but my goal was to learn to use the products and tools, and make sure the car didn't look WORSE than when I started.

And now... now I'm going to go wash those Edge2000 pads.

[klumzypinoy]

Wow nice results! I agree, I feel like a kid in a candy shop when I get my orders, no matter how small they are

[alban61]

Very nice job there! Love the color of that car. Awesome tape job too, especially around that Mazda emblem! Be proud of your first detail!

[BlackObs]

Thanks! I held out until I could find one in that specific color. It's peculiar, though, and you can kinda tell from the pictures, which are spread out across six hours of work; the color seems to change, depending on the lighting. It looks deeper in the early morning, bright at high noon, and has a slight tinge of purple to it around sunset.
The trick'll be getting her back to this condition in the spring, after surviving all the ice and salt and sand on the roads over the winter