What product would you use on this...

[canuck09]

I just washed my new (used) car for the first time today so I got my first real close look at the condition of things. I took some pictures with my phone, hoping you guys can suggest some products to use to take care of a few problem areas.

The tip on the left isn't so bad but the one on the right is pretty black. I've never bought or tried any metal polishes.
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii43/canuck09/IMAG0044.jpg

It was tough to get a clear picture but you can see the grime built up in the corners of the spokes on the rim. Others are in worse shape and scrubbing with regular soap and my wheel brush did no good.
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii43/canuck09/IMAG0047.jpg

This is the hood, tough to spot but there's two yellow/orange (sap?) stains. Will this come out with something like Meguiars 105 and a DA?
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii43/canuck09/IMAG0037.jpg

This is the roof, and only somewhat clear picture that shows the little dot (sap? tar?) that seems to be above the paint but couldn't be picked off. There's at least 10-15 of these on various panels. I've never clayed before, will clay get something like this off or do I need to get a Bug/Tar remover and clean it off before claying?
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii43/canuck09/IMAG0051.jpg

There's black trim that runs all around the car. I'd like something that gives it a nice dark look and isn't super glossy. Something like Perl for this? Other suggestions?
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii43/canuck09/IMAG0054.jpg

Being a GLI it has a crazy honeycomb pattern grill up front, and down below by the fog lights...plus my matching rubber floor mats with matching honeycomb pattern. Same product as the bottom trim?
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii43/canuck09/IMAG0022.jpg

Thanks for any and all input!:xyxthumbs:

[dougaross]

Trim: PERL or UTTG
Wheels:SONAX Wheel Cleaner
Tar: Tar-X
Chrome: P21S Polishing Soap

[weavers]

exhuast try never wool or steel wool #0000. this one won't scratch.

wheels, try some compound with a terry cloth/mf. also clay your wheels then follow up with some wax like collnite 845. Waxed wheels are so easy to clean.

etching...try DA and 105. or if you don't have those then try terry cloth and ulimate compound. if that doesn't work then try wet sanding with 1500 grit and 2000, compound and polish. you could go down to 1000 or lower if your brave.

Wash car with dawn dish soap and then clay it before drying. the dish soap will remove bugs/grease/wax and is slippery enough for lube with the clay. always clay then wax.

is the trim stained or a different color? to be honest that sort of time is very easy to spray paint black. otherwise use any tire shine gel. if it works on a tire it works on trim. i like megs endurance shine, it last for 3 weeks in the dry.

any plastic, trim, ruber or tire you can use the same dressing on. i prefer megs endurance tire shine on tires/trim and megs interior dressing inside the car.

Most people on here love megs hyper dressing. or Ultima Tire & Trim Guard Plus for long term protection.

[dtuna42]

Never Dull on the pipes. Clay to remove contaminate from paint surface, then on to Megs 105/205 if you feel you need to compound and polish. Picking the pads for 105/205 has a lot of variables, but for 105 compound, white pad is safe place to start, and up to orange pad if white doesn't do it; then use a white pad for the 205. Finish with your choice of wax...

[ThirdgenTa]

For the grill if you use Ultima Trim and Tire Guard+, make sure you pick up a very small foam paintbrush. It will take you quite a while, but it will last. Otherwise I like Stoners Trim shine. It will be a lot quicker because it's in an aerosal can.

[canuck09]

Trim: PERL or UTTG
Wheels:SONAX Wheel Cleaner
Tar: Tar-X
Chrome: P21S Polishing Soap

Is UTTG that much "better" than Perl to be about double the price?


wheels, try some compound with a terry cloth/mf. also clay your wheels then follow up with some wax like collnite 845. Waxed wheels are so easy to clean.

etching...try DA and 105. or if you don't have those then try terry cloth and ulimate compound. if that doesn't work then try wet sanding with 1500 grit and 2000, compound and polish. you could go down to 1000 or lower if your brave.

I'm going to be taking the wheels off for a set of steels and winter tires in a week or two but I would like to clean them up good before they sit for 3-4 months. I haven't bought a DA yet but will be soon, I assume it's safe to use one to buff them up nice?

I don't think I'm anywhere near brave enough to try wet sanding! I'm new to trying this stuff and haven't even used a DA machine before so I'd like to start real basic.


Never Dull on the pipes. Clay to remove contaminate from paint surface, then on to Megs 105/205 if you feel you need to compound and polish. Picking the pads for 105/205 has a lot of variables, but for 105 compound, white pad is safe place to start, and up to orange pad if white doesn't do it; then use a white pad for the 205. Finish with your choice of wax...

Sounds like I'm on the right path then, this is one of the initial setups I was leaning towards, followed by a sealant/wax of some sort after 205 right? Would the 845 be an easy product to start with?


For the grill if you use Ultima Trim and Tire Guard+, make sure you pick up a very small foam paintbrush. It will take you quite a while, but it will last. Otherwise I like Stoners Trim shine. It will be a lot quicker because it's in an aerosal can.

The grill and fog light housings scare me, it's going to take FOREVER to get in and around each one of those little honeycombs...ugh! I hadn't considered a product in an aerosol can but maybe I should, at least for the front and my floor mats.

Thanks again everyone for your input!! :xyxthumbs:

[IOMCAMARO]

UTTG will outlast almost any other trim sealant on the market so yes it is worth it. :props:

[weavers]

[QUOTE=canuck09;581567]Is UTTG that much "better" than Perl to be about double the price?

UTTG last for a very long time, months of protection. So for some its worth it. For me its not worth it.

You can use a DA on parts of the wheels. its kinda hard. Most people perfer a cone shape. the mother's power ball is hard to get into tight spaces. I haven't used this product, but its where I would spend my money. It attaches to a drill, i wish they would attachments to a DA. to be honest you can polish wheels by hand with a towel and compound. honestly those very few wheels need this. most just need all purpose cleaner and a brush, clay and wax
Meguiars Brilliant Solutions Wheel Polishing Kit, Meguiars G3400, metal wheel polishing kit, polish aluminum wheels (http://www.autogeek.net/meguiars-wheel-polishing-kit.html)

If your thinking of buying a DA. do it. My griots DA was only 115 and comes with a lifetime warranty. It gives me amazing results and does so much work for just 100 bucks. buy a 5" backing plate and 5.5" pads, they are the best size to work with for most jobs. tight spaces may require 3-4" pads, but most people do those spots by hand with a terry cloth towel and compound
Griot's Garage 6 inch Random Orbital Polisher, Dual action buffer, DA polisher (http://www.autogeek.net/griots-random-orbital-polisher.html)

So wash, clay, then wax. collnite 845 is easy to work with, just warm the bottle up in the sun or by a heater. Its an amazing product. Selants are just man made wax. If your car has swirls or scratches then you need to compound and polish. megs ulimate compound and polish are over the counter and work very well. Or if you want slightly better results use m105 and m205 with a DA, surbuff pads, lake country pads, hydro pads and the megs MF pad system all work very well.

Try a dressing that you can spray. megs endurance has a spray bottle
Meguiars Endurance Tire Dressing Spray, tire protectant, meguiar's endurance tire shine (http://www.autogeek.net/endurance-tire-spray.html)

[shoeless89]

For the wheels try SONAX if that doesn't work, you could go really aggressive and use Meguiar's wheel Brightener. For the trim, Ultima Tire and Trim. For the sap, fist try clay. If that doesn't work try something like TarX from CarPro.

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[SkateForGirl]

For the tips the p21s metal soap is amazing.
Sonax wheel cleaner for the wheels
stoners tarminator for the tar and
Black again or poorboys trim restorer for the trim.
Congratulations on the GLI. I had a red 2006. Are you going to mod? I had a full stage 2+ with lots of supporting mods and made 275 whp. It was a quick little car

[canuck09]

For the tips the p21s metal soap is amazing.
Sonax wheel cleaner for the wheels
stoners tarminator for the tar and
Black again or poorboys trim restorer for the trim.
Congratulations on the GLI. I had a red 2006. Are you going to mod? I had a full stage 2+ with lots of supporting mods and made 275 whp. It was a quick little car

Thanks for the last round of suggestions everyone. I'll start out with the p21s and Sonax Wheel Cleaner for sure. Still haven't decided on Perl or UTTG.

I've only had my GLI for about 2 weeks now and I'm really happy so far. It's a 2008 with only 32,000KMs (20k miles) so it's still pretty new. It's completely stock right now (aside from clear corner markers) and has factory warranty until 2014 so I don't know if I'm going to do any mods yet...definitely not in the next 6 months. I'd like to lower it a little to start with then maybe look at a stage 1 kit for a cheap hp boost.

[shoeless89]

Thanks for the last round of suggestions everyone. I'll start out with the p21s and Sonax Wheel Cleaner for sure. Still haven't decided on Perl or UTTG

PERL is more versatile, but UTTG will last much longer.