New guy, new car, old question

[mattmann]

Hello all!! I am going to pick up my very first “toy car” tomorrow. I’ve always wanted something to play around with and have fun in and finally pulled the trigger on one. 2003 Nissan 350Z. It only has 38,000 miles and is garage kept. My brother was the original owner, bought it, fixed it up and had to sell it when he got married. Sold to an employee of mine and he has never had time to do ANYTHING with it. Not even tags. It will have a few things needing done when I get it but overall it is in great condition. It is the pearl white color and I am going to do all my own detailing. I am going to order a GG6 tonight but need to know what products I need. I know there is a million brands and I’m not asking that, just asking for materials and a QUICK how to. My plan is as follows, foam cannon the car, power was it (maybe repeat this 3-4 times), decontamination spray, rinse, blow dry, Clay bar, and some light paint correction/polishing and IF and that’s a BIG IF, you all think I could handle it, coat the car. It will be garage kept and only driven on certain occasions (date night, beautiful day, track racing, etc). Thanks in advance and sorry for all the blabbing!!!


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[mattmann]

Anyone??


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[JB007]

Anyone??


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Hey man !!!! I applied Klasse sealant to my black Lexus IS in September. Followed up with Blackfire wax sealant. Was a little apprehensive about Klasse due to all the comments about making sure it’s applied thin. It was SO easy.
Go for the coating you will be fine.

Do some research here probably are some better sealants. I don’t do this for a living.
Its easy to get lost with the products Auto Geek offers. Call them, they are great and will put you in the right direction.

Best Wishes
JB.

[MarkD51]

As Mike Phillips would no doubt say, 'Work Clean", and that is the basis of where a great detailing begins, by cleaning, and removing dirt from wear and tear, storage, and getting everything back up to snuff.

Exterior, Interior, Engine Compartment, Wheels, Undercarriage, Wheel Wells, all maintenance aspects addressed, fluid changes, etc.

One thing surely leads to another, lets say just the engine compartment, it can get involved, underside of Hood, Trunk Lids, etc.
The proverbial "dog bath" can take weeks, and even months, dependent just how far and OCD you wish to get.

As for wheels, there's no way to fully get them right unless one does a wheels off detail. This as well makes wheel well detailing, calipers, etc a whole lot easier too. I know I've spent an entire day just doing wheels-tires and wheel wells. One key is not to rush, take your time, enjoy the processes, they should be both fun, and rewarding.

Any of AGO's house brands are all up to the task of doing their said claims admirably. You cannot go wrong with the selection of any of them, the Pinnacle Line, Wolfgang, Blackfire, McKees. All are outstanding 1st class products. Meguiars and Griots Garage are again two fine product lines to select products from.

[mattmann]

Thanks for the replies everyone. Does my process look OK? I agree with what you said about taking your time. With this car not being my every day driver I can definitely do that and I am very OCD so it may take me a month or two. My initial cleaning is going to take a while and I’m OK with that but I want to make sure I’m doing the process correct. I am assuming a coating is a good idea on a car like this? I’m just nervous about messing something up permanently.


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[briarpatch]

Congratulations on the new toy. Love your choice of the GG6, it will serve you well. Purchase the 5" conversion kit, some 5" Griots BOSS pads, and you're on your way. Here's a link to a post by Mike Phillips, that outlines how many pads you will need...

https://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/2009-to-2016-how-to-articles-by-mike-phillips/88109-how-many-pads-do-i-need-buff-out-my-car.html?highlight=many+pads

Here's another link you may find helpful, as Mike goes over the aggressive method to wash a vehicle..

https://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/2009-to-2016-how-to-articles-by-mike-phillips/86146-aggressive-approach-washing-car.html?highlight=aggressive+method

[DaveT435]

Thanks for the replies everyone. Does my process look OK? I agree with what you said about taking your time. With this car not being my every day driver I can definitely do that and I am very OCD so it may take me a month or two. My initial cleaning is going to take a while and I’m OK with that but I want to make sure I’m doing the process correct. I am assuming a coating is a good idea on a car like this? I’m just nervous about messing something up permanently.


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There are some very user friendly coatings out now. I've heard McKee's is one of the easiest. Process looks pretty good.

[SWETM]

Looks like a good plan you have. The thing I would look into and get if you don't already have it. Is the mf towels and wash media and look around to find what suits your need to maintain your car. The quality of this things I want great quality stuff. This is the things that are going to touch your nice finish in the end and even during to get the finish you want.

If you would go with the coating way. I recommend you to check out Polish Angel on the sister site. They are easy to apply and the quality is awesome and the looks is really head turning. Since you have a white car it needs that little extra to stand out. Their is Sonax polymer net shield and Sonax Briliant Shine Detailer also. That for some reason looks really great on white cars. The downside of Sonax is that it's not slick to touch. But the water behavior and self cleaning ability is great as a ceramic coating IMO.

Good luck with your new car and drive the h... out of it lol While it's have an amazing shine :)

[Klasse Act]

Congrats on the new ride and because it's an 03' Z car I'm 100% sure it needs headlight restoration. Griot's makes an outstanding kit. This not only makes your car safer to drive but improves the looks 100%[emoji106][emoji106]

As far as everything else, well, Griot's has great products to get started with. Because you've got a Japanese car the paint is going to be on the soft side and your GG6 will make it shine when using their orange pads, fast correcting creme and just about any of their waxes, can't go wrong anywhere with Griot's. Their waterless wash is not only great for light cleanings but also for clay lube.

I've been using Griot's products since 2005 and will continue to do so because of quality and the best customer service in the field[emoji847]

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[mattmann]

Well just got her home. Drives super nice. Way faster than I expected lol. Attached are some pics. Overall exterior is AWESOME!! Interior is so bad. Looks like it was abandoned for 15 years!! Any suggestions on something to clean the leather??


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[mattmann]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180211/b8d1d7dd7ad3d4214efa5a1c55f6d1b1.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180211/45d20d2980b5a2a437c083fb630c7e66.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180211/b04d8e1ec3d226cbf4d1e524f0ac68fe.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180211/574e66ebf51392eadfc2f00ead366c02.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180211/bd1f8d483d0ffc24f2c13226d4ffe7fd.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180211/479ca8bb18b629d87c26724a170769de.jpg


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[Klasse Act]

Great trans, 3 pedals and a Vortech[emoji106][emoji106] I was wrong as hell about the headlights but that's good!

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[rangerbay]

I wouldn't even think about coating it until you are absolutely sure it is 100% corrected. I'm not a coating fan, but I love hydro blue or similar Sio2 spray and rinse sealants. Get the hang of correcting before you apply something that lasts a very long time. Have fun, take you're time, get addicted!

Bill

[custmsprty]

Enjoy the Z.

First thing I would do is change out that nasty air filter asap. :props:

[Klasse Act]

Enjoy the Z.

First thing I would do is change out that nasty air filter asap. :props:That's gotta be the shortest open filter I've ever seen, LOL.

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