I need advice on how to clean my MX5!

[Pyramus]

Hi Guys,

I have a silver MK2 MX5 with soft top!!!

I am going to give her a good clean. I need to clean the tires/wheels/body and soft top!

I wont be taking it through a car wash as I want to clean it properly myself. So what do I need to get to clean it from head to toe so that it shines like new!

Thanks for your help!

[BroadbandPlacey]

autoglym, cleaner wheels gets rid of the brake dust and crap, then give them a good rinse with a soapy sponge then rinse well and makes those alloys gleam

autoglym car shampoo/wash stuff works great - soap car then rinse off

once your car is de-dirted get out the

autoglym car polish - works like a charm - does exactly what is says on the tin (bottle)

then autoglym glass polish (or autoglym fast glass if you have a vinyl sunstrip)- this works supremely well

sorry dunno about your softop

[XTR]

how clean do you want it?

Wash the car with hot water with Zymol Auto Wash. £6 at halfords. Chamios it dry....


Wheels

What i'd do first is to remove each wheel from the car... and use Wonder Wheels on them.

Then spend a bit time with Meguiars step2 polish (£7 a bottle) cleaning the wheels... and then put a wax on the wheels. Zymol Cleaner Wax (£12 a bottle).

Why polish ya wheels? It stops brake dust from sticking to the painted surface..... Makes it alot easier to clean in the future.


Tyres

Meguiars Endurance Tyre Gel (£6) applied using a Meguiars Applicator Pad


Fabric Roof

Autoglym Cabriolet Roof Cleaner. It comes with the cleaner and the conditioner. Superb Stuff.



Bodywork.

Buy Meguiars Quik Clay. If you run your hand over the paintwork of the car it should be as smooth as a glass surface. If its not.... then your paintwork isn't upto scratch.... Meguiars Quik Clay removes all surface contiments from the paintwork and leaves it with a glass finish.

If your paintwork is faded or in bad condition then you will have to use a paint cleaner. Meguiars step 1 paint cleaner. (£7) Applied using Meguiars Applicator pads (£4).

Once that step has been done then you need to polish it.... Meguiars step2 polish.

And finally it needs waxing... to seal it. I personally prefer Zymol Cleaner Wax £12.... instead of using the Meguiars step3 wax. Zymol Cleaner wax gives a better wet look deep shine.



For the windows.... use Autoglym Glass polish (£5.99)... and for the plastic rear windows in the cabriolets... use Autoglym Fast Glass. If the screen is scratched or misted up.. use metholated spirits on a piece of kitchen towel.

[BenW]

Wow, lets see how clean your car is!

[XTR]

Wow, lets see how clean your car is!

www.xtr.me.uk

[BroadbandPlacey]

I've heard nasty things about wonder wheels - namely it eating away at peoples alloys - and its more than the odd case - the autoglym cleaner wheels stuff is better for your wheels and cleans just as well.

[Lowe]

Wonder Wheels WILL eat your alloys, it's designed to. It's meant to be used once every 6 months at the most, or if your wheels are really, really badly covered in brake dust. Using it week in week out will kill your wheels.

You also can't use it on powder coated rims.

[XTR]

Yup..... but in this case where he's probably never cleaned his MX5 for years.... then wonder wheels is spot on


I use autogylm alloy wheel cleaner for the quick job.... but every once in a while ill use wonder wheels

[Pyramus]

Yup..... but in this case where he's probably never cleaned his MX5 for years.... then wonder wheels is spot on


I use autogylm alloy wheel cleaner for the quick job.... but every once in a while ill use wonder wheels

I only have it 3 weeks! Its due its first clean!

[Pyramus]

Thanks for your input guys!
I went to Halfords today and bought the following:

Autoglym Bodywork Shampoo Conditioner
Autoglym Super Resign Polish
Autoglym Vinyl & Rubber Care
Autoglym Clean Wheels
Turtle Wax Glass Polish
Turtle Wax Foaming Tyre Shine
Sponge
Bucket
Cloth

[Lowe]

You're missing a wax - Super Resin Polish is like a super mild Tcut. Get some Zymol Cleaner Wax or some Meguires NXT for a top coat finish.

[Pyramus]

You're missing a wax - Super Resin Polish is like a super mild Tcut. Get some Zymol Cleaner Wax or some Meguires NXT for a top coat finish.

Sounds like an awful lot of effort. I didn't even use the polish on the car today. I just cleaned it with the warm water and shampoo and it came out looking really well.

[Lowe]

True, but what's protecting the paint from traffic film build up, tree sap, bird poo, UV etc etc?

Nothing!

Over a period of time, all this builds up which means the paint gets duller, fades and any imperfections get brought out and out. Ever seen a red car that's now looking pink? It's because the owner's just thought - yeah it looks great after a quick wash.

Think of polish as an exfoliant for the paintwork - it helps remove the build up of crap. Wax is the top coat which protects the paintwork and makes it shine. Washing the car gets rid of most big bits of dirt, but you need to polish the car once in a blue moon to really clean it up.

The AutoGlym Super Resin will do the job, but it's quite a mild polish and it'll require a fair bit of elbow grease, though it does have some protecting qualities - though not a lot compared to a proper top coat. Personally I prefer to use Safecut polish, then follow up with a good top coat wax.

The Zymol which XTR recomended is actually a combined polish/wax though the wax side of things is so good, you can use it as a top coat. It's hard work since it's a natural wax, but the shine is second to none. It also makes the paint look a whole lot deeper than it is. I use Zymol now and then, but I prefer Meguires NXT for general use since it's a lot quicker and the shine is as good and lasts a smidge bit longer.

Polishing and waxing is a lot of hard work, but the difference it can make will blow you away. Whilst it might not be as rewarding polishing a car that's only a few months old, getting into a habit of cleaning and waxing when you can is good thing and will benefit you in the long run. After all, a clean car that's been looked after commands a higher resale value compared to the rusting knacker sat next to it...

As an example...

Before:
http://www.al004a2442.pwp.blueyonder...ges/Coupe1.jpg
http://www.al004a2442.pwp.blueyonder...ges/Coupe2.jpg

After:

http://www.markdolloway.pwp.blueyond...s/Megane10.jpg
http://www.markdolloway.pwp.blueyond...s/Megane14.jpg

[5lab]

or just get an electric polisher.. i got one for £20 and it got results like this...





granted, the same results can come with manual polish, but its a *WHOLE* load easier with a machine

[Lowe]

Problem with machines are that it's a whole lot easier to ruin your paint too.. But agreed, same result with a whole lot less effort

[BroadbandPlacey]

so polish AND wax should be used?

i polish mine once every couple of months, but i never wax it? should i?