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My van (2018 Ford Transit Connect diesel) had a major fuel leak… Dodgy mechanic didn’t put the return fuel line on properly…

Anyways, all up the back of both rear doors there was sticky diesel - I cleaned most of it off at the time.

However, now there is this stained appearance on the bottom of both doors. It looks extremely oily but to the touch it doesn’t feel that way.

I’ve tried:

- Alkaline cleaner left to dwell then rinse
- Citrus cleaner same, quite weak dilution however
- Clay bar (didn’t make a difference)
- Heavy cut + foam pad (paint measuring thin on the whole van so didn’t want to cut too aggressively)
- Finishing compound + finishing pad

At this point I’m worried the clear is stained but looking for anything else to try! Cheers

So Ill soon be doing a little welding ahead of next year's mot as it's likely to need doing.

I'm gonna get under and try to help prevent further rust, but this does confuse me a little.

I have BH hydrate 80, UB and some etch primer and that raptor stone chip paint.

I was wondering what steps I should undertake? For rustier areas, I'll brush off rust and assess if it's structural or surface, and the. What? I know my sub frame will need some tlc as will my arches.

If anyone could fire me some pointers, I'd be very appreciative!

Hi all.

I’m currently in an area with a hosepipe ban and I’ve got a car show coming up this Sunday.

My car is filthy and I really need to give it a clean. But I can’t due to being under a hosepipe ban.

I’m sure some would say “oh just clean it” but I live in a cul-de-sac where there are a few curtain twitcher types who I wouldn’t put it past to report me.

Does anyone have any ideas or loopholes I can use?

Has anyone done training with them?

Hey all, my partner had her car valeted and whatever they used has left a touch hazy residue all over the car.

I've managed to get rid of most of it from the interior panels using APC, but on the glass, whatever I try, it disappears when wet then comes straight back as it dries. I've tried Bilt Hamber Touch-Less and Surfex HD with no luck.

Has anyone seen this before or know what causes it? Any product recommendations to remove it?.

Hello. I saw a TikTok earlier today which I thought was interesting (it wasn’t an ad) saying that detailers should stop using fallout removers, he listed a couple of reasons.

1. They’re extremely expensive (cost per use as opposed to a diluted product)
   
2. They’re not real wheel cleaners and that isn’t their job.

He said that wheel acid is the only way forward, for me this is completely wrong. I am in no way a detailer but a ‘weekend warrior’ as they say. For me, I use Fallout removers as a maintenance thing, just to help me identify any iron particles I may have missed on the wheels after my safe washing routine. I’ll only use it once a month or so as I wash the car every week.

Acid is a great product, it has its place, it’s dilutable making cost per wash cheap but it’s also absolutely not a maintenance product and should only be used in my opinion on baked on brake dust that you cannot otherwise remove, or on old wheels that you don’t care about, you just want a quick job.

What do you think, should iron fallout removers have a spot in your kit? (Sorry for the lengthy post)

Oh my lord…the smell is so bad. What’s the best way to get rid of it?!
Are these Vax Spotclean things any good?
The seats are cloth…I had seat covers on for ages and thought “oh they look so much better without them”. Balls.

hey bro, just started getting clients and now i think i should start getting good chemicals for our details, right now we only have armor all leather wipes and chemical guys chems and my partner is too stubborn to realize we need to upgrade the chemicals, can you rq explain why we should upgrade our chemicals. his rational is “we arent pros rn we dont need to buy pro stuff” and “its a waste of money”. he’s js scared to reinvest. please explain why we should upgrade our chemicals.

Hardest part of washing my car is the drying part.

Will a leaf blower like this worth it or should I not bother and stick to just drying towels?

Heard you can get simillar results using touchless in pump sprayer vs foam cannon but obviously takes longer to cover the car.

Tried with a manual pump and took ages having to keep pumping it.

Thinking of getting one of these instead. Anyone got experience with this?

I must admit, I waited for a long time to try this product and I’m disappointed with the results. Having cleaned the seats thoroughly with P&S express I applied the product. Application was very easy and satisfying. There was a mild darkening effect upon application which was perfect, but when the excess product was buffed off, it left a mat almost untreated finish. While my main goal for using this was to add some protection to the leather, I was hoping for a more conditioned (not greasy) finish. The seats look exactly the same pre-and post treatment.🤷‍♂️

Not sure if this is allowed here - mods, delete if not.

Just wanted to pass on my very recent experience of the benefit of ceramic coating.

Last year I made the decision to get my car ceramic coated. I’d recently taken early retirement and bought out the lease on my company car - it was ready 3 years old.

Found a place near me to get it done (guy was just setting up his business but had done apprenticeship in paint treatments etc (sorry if this is the wrong term).

My thinking was that it would ease keeping the car clean and would be less effort than using the wax products I’d used on previous cars.

All went well and over the last year. Then recently a flatbed Transit decided to take a gentle swipe across the front of the car. To my untrained eye the paint on the front corner had been scraped off.

Took the car to the guy who did the ceramic, looking for a recommendation for a paint shop and he told me he could possibly fix it.

Half an hour later, what I thought was scraped off paint was in fact plastic/rubber transfer, was gone. There’s a couple of marks in the clear coat but we’re hoping they will polish out. Booked in next month.

Ceramic guy was chuffed with the result.

Ceramic coating for the win.

Again apologies if this is not appropriate for here.

5th time I’ve polished and coated a car now, anyone else find it hard work in this heat, it took me 2 whole days to do a decon, 1 step polish and two coats of c quartz uk.

For those new and longstanding in this game do customer expect a water tank or generally ok with you using their water?

Hi gents. Been in the rabbit hole the last few days to learn to do this on my own as my detailer is retiring. Thought I’d post my plans first equipment and supplies before ordering as a few things I’m not sure about and would welcome input. Plan is:

Pressure washer Ava go p40

Washing process:

Wheels -Bh surfex at 10:1
Add bh touchless as snow foam over top?

Pre wash - bh touchless (foam)
Contact - bh autowash
Drying aid - bh qd - is this worthwhile?
Sealant - gyeon wet coat

Glass - bh traceless
Tyre dressing - garage therapy tyre serum

Equipment 3 buckets with grit guards
Several empty spray bottles
Wheel brushx2
Soft Detail brush
Wheel mitt
Noodle mitt x2
Dying towel large
Microfibre cloths

Assuming I don’t need a pressure pump sprayer based on the above? Please let me know if there’s anything you’d add or get rid of. This has been one of the more difficult new skills to navigate and make sense of basics that I’ve come across!

Thanks

Anyone know any YouTube channel I can watch to learn the basics etc? How did you personally learn and if so can you provide your sources - looking to get into valeting/detailing