Good morning,

I hope this is okay to post here. Just looking for a bit of direction.

I recently bought an M4 in tanzanite blue and the bodywork had a lot of swirls, scratches and hologramming etc, which is sad because it’s such a gorgeous colour. I took it to my local detailers and was quoted £1200 to sort it out, I decided I’d rather give this a go at home first. I spoke to a couple people who just said “just pay the £1200 love, you’ll burn through your paint” love being a woman 😂 (also, I didn’t burn through my paint… winner).

This is the process I went through:

1. Citrus prewash
   
2. Snow foamed
   
3. Shampooed
   
4. Autoglym Magma as fallout remover
   
5. Clay barred
   
6. Cut with Meguiars ultimate compound
   
7. Polished with Stjarna Gloss’s Skära
   
8. Wax with Meguiars Carnauba.

I’ve posted my results (I don’t have a garage/unit so apologies for the reflections in the photos), and also a comparison video of the swirls in the door compared to the rear quarter during the process (one video in comments)

I’ve got some deeper scratches that I don’t think are going to come out with the compound and polish I have - should I be looking into something harsher?

Overall, I’m pretty happy with the results, it looks 10x better than it did, but it’s not perfect.

Basically I’m just asking for any tips to make the finish even better (at home), or anything you’d change in the prep etc!

Like header says, these are the chemicals I use to wash my cars. Everyone has their own likes and dislikes when it comes to chemicals, but I want some thoughts. I now have money and a little time so I enjoy washing my car. I am not loyal to any brand, I just want to have a large variety and see what works and what doesn't for me. Is it a bit overkill? Probably. Repetitive? Probably. Good way to pass time and get away from work? Yes.

Let me know your thoughts on the products listed down below.

My setup consist of:
KC Active Foam
KC GSF
KC Reactivation Shampoo
ADS Amplify
ADS Wheel Cleaner
ADS Tire cleaner
ADS interior cleaner

Thinking of adding:
CarPro Reset
CarPro Perl
CarPro Descale
Bilt Hamber Touchless
Bilt Hamber Traceless
KC Green Star
CarPro Eraser
P&S Rags To Riches
Obsessed Garage Drying Aid
Obsessed Garage Tire Dressing

Which one do yall like better or use in your own set ups? Comfort is my personal priority.

Made a post about my terrible well water(extremely hard, high in sodium), HOA says no way I can have a rain water tank outside, RO costs 30-45k to install and would run another 1k every 6 months for service. Moving the well location runs 32k. So yeah, not there financially yet since I just moved into this home. Looking at DI water carts. I see 2 styles, 1 has filters with resin inside the filter(isprings) the other is a just add resin style. Sounds like theyll do the job and it still will be cheaper than the 40 miles round trip to pay for a self wash.

What DI water cart do you use if you have one, do you like it?

Reddit fam, need some serious advice from you guys. Professionals especially. I have a now almost 6 year old full front PPF which is supposed to be Stek USA DYNOshield (this is a story in of itself… owner of shop that installed my PPF admitted to me that he contracted out the work and does not know whether they actually used Stek or not… said owner no longer does detailing work as he’s closed shop more than a year ago). The PPF has completely lost all of its clarity and just looks dull and hazy and it’s a massive eyesore for me.

I have seen people polish PPF on YouTube and all of them have gotten some phenomenal results bringing back clarity. Not necessarily defect removal, I don’t care about removing swirls or light scratches, no, I just want the clarity back. So they say use little to no pressure and use a finishing or light cutting pad with some finishing polish (no compound).

Ok great, I went and got myself some Gyeon PPF Renewal polish for this exact job and am planning on using a white polishing pad with it and my Griot’s G8 polisher on a speed setting of 2 so I don’t generate any heat whatsoever. I was gonna buy Sonax PPF polish and actually reached out to Sonax and they said they recommend applying by hand but can do a machine just make sure I’m not going aggressive and not generating heat.

Tonight I decided, before I go testing with my Griots G8, let me put a little bit of that polish on a microfiber applicator pad and went ahead and applied it with light pressure in a very small area on my hood near the fender.

Not only did it yield absolutely zero result, removing the polish itself during the buff was quite sticky and I needed to use a 50/50 IPA mixture to fully buff it off.

I’ve seen a YouTube short of a Sonax rep polishing a PPF’d rear quarter panel with an orange medium cutting pad! And got insane results (using their Sonax product of course).

So what course of action would you recommend here? I took such amazing care of this car/PPF meticulously maintained it, annual ceramic coat maintenances, two different times full ceramic applied, toppers, biweekly washes the correct way using the highest quality products. And yet even after all that, this is what life with PPF is like - mind you my car was a garage queen for 4 out of the now almost 6 years of the PPF’s life which adds greater insult to injury.

I’m doing this in hopes of being able to avoid taking it off considering all the horror stories I hear of people taking PPF off their cars. So I’m trying the most reasonable avenue available to me before I go potentially stripping paint or clearcoat (it’s original paint btw).

Sorry for the long post guys & thanks a gazillion for reading. Any direction provided is seriously appreciated.

🙏🏼

Going to switch from ceramic spray sealants to cancoat (got it for 50% off so might as well give it a go).

My day time temperature is within the application temperature range of 15-25C, however it will go under 10C overnight during the curing period. Is that still ok or should I wait till it is warmer to apply the coating?

Also, any tips and tricks for apply coating to the roof of a large SUV?

Got into the detailing hobby and read a lot of posts here about Costcos 12 piece adams detailing kit. I went to Costco that had it in stock by my job, cypress CA, and i found it for $39.99,! Hope to put these to good use!

I posted before, attrocious well water(crazy hard and high sodium). Quotes came in a 32k to move my well due to depth of our area(coal mines nearby), RO system for our home run 30-45k and will take half of my garage up. So for now I am considering a DI water cart to fully wash(every step with DI water). So if you have one, how do you like it? Is yours filter built in resin like ispring or just resin? I realize this will be pricey but I have to drive 20 mins to use a self wash and 20 miles back home each wash on my cars.

Any cart users?

Is headlight restoration a typical service of an auto detailer? I didn’t see it listed in the list of services of some local guys. When I called them they referred me to Walmart, specifically a woman that works there, they both said she was the best, and indeed I’m extremely happy with the results, and the price ($40). Perhaps it’s not profitable? I try to spend my money with small businesses as much as possible but it just seemed like they didn’t want the work in this case.

Hey everyone. I’ve got epoxy stains on my leather seats and I was wondering if anyone knew what a good way to get them out would be. It’s completely dry and cured. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Good afternoon everyone, I’ve been trying and failing on removing these weird stains that appear on my glass in the mornings.

I took my car to a drive through car wash (lack of time while living alone in an apartment) and every morning when the condensation covers my car I get these stains EVERYWHERE on every piece of glass of my car. I tried both Windex and Invisible Glass with microfibers and, quite literally, nothing changed. I really put in elbow grease with both of them to try and scrub off whatever residue that is to no avail. Wiping them with my wipers makes them fade just enough to see and then they cloud up 10ish seconds later.

The only way they go away is when the sun comes out and bakes my car in the afternoons. They’re not visible until they get wet but they dry pretty quick when the Sun is out.

I don’t want to keep buying random cleaning products to gamble on a fix. It’s incredibly difficult to see out my car in the mornings because of it but I have no idea what to do. Has anyone here seen this before and know what I should do?

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Greenworks-High-Flow-Automotive-1200-PSI-1-8-GPM-Cold-Water-Electric-Pressure-washer-with/5016491623

what’s some good lighting set up for paint correction? i been looking into scan grip and next led, both look good but since i work in a not so illuminated area i’d like something that covers up a bigger area, i’ve had an eye on set ups like Dr. Shine’s and precision detailing at Instagram but i haven’t been able to figure out what’s the name on these lights, any suggestions help or anything that gets me close to choosing an option would be appreciated !

Hi all, I was wondering how often and how to wash a drying towel, if youre using a spray wax or drying aid.

I have a 2020 Honda Accord Sport with cloth seats, and my puppy had an accident on the rear seat cushion. I removed the entire seat from the car and have spent weeks trying to get rid of the smell. So far, I've used Resolve Urine Destroyer, Nature's Miracle enzyme cleaner, OdoBan, and a wet/dry vacuum to extract everything. I also completely flushed the seat foam multiple times because there was a lot of soap residue trapped inside. The seat has dried for about a week, and the smell is now very faint, but whenever the weather gets extremely hot outside, the urine smell comes back. At this point, I'm trying to figure out whether the foam is permanently contaminated or if there's another product or method that can completely eliminate the odor. Has anyone dealt with this before, and what finally worked for you?

Hello all,

I'm looking into opening an auto detailing business in my area, and I'd appreciate some feedback from professionals in the detailing industry.

Here's the concept.

Imagine you're driving along and notice a business that looks similar to a quick oil change shop with a drive-through service bay. A large sign says:

FREE Clean Car Inspection

From the road you can also see a menu of detailing services like wheel detailing, clay bar & polish, paint protection, ceramic coating, and other appearance services. The inspection bay is brightly lit with LED lighting, and a technician performs a quick 3–5 minute walk-around inspection before recommending any services.

The inspection isn't about oil changes or mechanical issues—it's strictly about vehicle appearance and cosmetics. The idea is to identify things a normal car wash may have missed, such as brake dust, road tar, paint contamination, faded trim, oxidized headlights, and similar appearance issues.

A few questions:

• Would you stop for a free appearance inspection?
• Does a drive-through "quick service" format fit a detailing business, or would it feel out of place?
• What would make you trust—or distrust—a business offering a free inspection like this?
• If you've worked in detailing, what operational challenges do you immediately see with this concept?
• What am I overlooking?

I'm coming at this from the perspective that vehicles are one of the largest investments most people make, and regular appearance maintenance helps preserve both pride of ownership and long-term value.

I'd really appreciate honest feedback, especially from detailers or shop owners who have been in the business. Thanks!

Ok... by now I'm sure most of us have seen a few of the videos on Turtle Wax Pure Bead. I'm sure you've heard about how easy it is to apply, it's great hydrophobics and it's lack of slickness.

So, should you buy it? That's what I'm hoping to help answer.

TLDR; It's great on every household surface I've tried it on... I just don't know if I love it on the car.

Want more details? Read on...

I ordered my bottle of Pure Bead as soon as it became available. I immediately applied it to a section of my wife's SUV, and will be conducting a long term test on it. In the meantime, a bunch of review videos have come out on it, and they all pretty much say the same thing... it's NOT that slick.

Well, here's my take on it: I've used it on so many surfaces around my house that I've actually forgotten everything I've applied it to. I put it on my outdoor gas grill, some outdoor furniture, stainless steel appliances, stone countertops, my laptop, etc. It's hard not to love this product because of how easy it is to apply. The hydrophobics are no joke. Water beads up, rolls off, and carries a lot of dirt and debris with it. In the case of my outdoor stuff, I can see that those surfaces are cleaner after a hard rain. My appliances and countertops wipe clean with ease. I think this stuff is awesome on metal and plastic. In the case of stuff like my grill, it seems to hold up to heat really well.

The downside: Yeah, it's not slick. That's not to say it's un-slick. If I was ranking it on a scale of 1-10, it would be a 4 or a 5. It's more slick than bare paint, but if you're used to products that create an extremely slick surface, then it would be very easy to think that Pure Bead is not slick or even grabby. The sad part is that even though this product excels in other categories, if you're someone that likes to touch your car and you value that slick feeling under the towel, then you may not want to buy this for use on your car.

How much does slickness matter? That's what I'm going to try to test over the next month. I applied Pure Bead on 2 wheels, and on the other 2 wheels I applied Cerakote Wheel Sealant, which is a product I am extremely familiar with. Cerakote is very slick after application, lasts 2-3 months, is very easy to apply and has very noticeable self cleaning properties. So my goal is to see if greater slickness translates to a cleaner surface and/or a surface that is easier to keep clean. I figured the wheels would be one of the best places to test this. I'll be documenting how much the dirt and brake dust accumulates on the wheels and how easy it is to clean them off during the wash process. I expect the whole test to take about a month, so please stay tuned for the update.

In the meantime, here's the video I made showing the application process and my thoughts on the application and overall feel of Pure Bead: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7Jyn6k-A5Y

As always, no product links and my channel is not monetized. I'm just doing this for fun and my own education.

So, if you've used Pure Bead, what are your thoughts on it so far? What do you think of the slickness (or lack of) that it creates? Is that a deal breaker for you or are the benefits enough to outweigh that?

Has anyone used or heard of Kovalent? Looking for some feedback as this is what my local shop uses, would be on my C7 Corvette. Thanks! 

https://kovalentcoatings.com

Hey everyone, looking for some honest feedback from people running XPEL Prime XR Plus or LLumar IRX/Stratos.

I’m dealing with some serious heat and planning to get ceramic tint done soon. A few quick questions for the community:

1. Film Quality & Clarity: If you’ve used either, how has it held up over time? Any issues with haze, glare, or weird blue/low-angle reflections on light shades?
2. XPEL vs. LLumar: Is XPEL actually better, or is it mostly hype/marketing right now?
3. Windshield + All 4 Sides: Is doing a light ceramic (70–80%) on the windshield along with all 4 side windows worth the extra money for heat reduction, or is it overkill?

Would love to hear your experiences before I pick a shop. Thanks!

Any recommendations would be appreciated I’m interested in getting flex fire and ice seems good to me but I hardly see people using it and I don’t have a wet extractor which I heard is best for that product I see people just buying the head for the vacuum and converting it I wanted to find Adam’s tire armor but stores didn’t carry it unfortunately
And if theirs anything I should add or take off people tell me🙏🙏 thanks

Got a second hand bumper from a breaker, but it has some slight scuffs around the headlight area on one side presumably from the previous owner trying to polish them. What are my options for getting them out?

I'm pretty much a noob compared to most on this sub, but wanted to share the auto detailing station I just setup. The wife wanted a system that took less effort/time so I suggested a pressure washer, foam cannon, and 1 bucket system and it turned into a small project. I think it turned out great. She's happy after only taking an hour yesterday on her Tacoma and seems more into it each time. It's therapeutic!

My car had a couple of bird poop on it, i went for an automatic car wash

Now i have like these little stains, drops and obvious mark of bird poo. I dunno where these little stains came from, the bird poo i understand the others i do not.

Is there anything i can do to remove those ?

hey all - I want to put a ceramic coating on my '24 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon. As I am planning my work there are 2 problem areas I am scratching my head on how to handle.

1 - It has lots of nooks and crannies that are going to be hard to polish with a machine. I can use a clay towel on them and they probably don't really need to be polished for correction purposes. Would I be OK not polishing these areas as far as adhesion of the ceramic is concerned?

2 - The sides of the hood has big "RUBICON" decals on it. Is it safe to get iron remover, clay towels and polishing machines on these or should I steer clear of them? I don't want to lift the corners of the letters and have them look like crap.

Thanks in advance for your inputs!

TW