What products and the order to use them?

[mazda3ndp]

Hey guys, so I am new to detailing. I was trying to not do it myself but have found myself with quotes ranging from $180-$600. I have no issues detailing myself, but I have no idea which products work best for our car. can someone give a rundown of the products they used and the order in which the products should be used?

[Jasonnator]

If you're new to detailing and haven't gotten the basics down yet on which product to apply when, take some time and get a solid foundation of knowledge.

This is a great resource that explains what each stage is and when it should be used:
http://www.detailedimage.com/Auto-Detailing-Guide/

Professional level detailing is not cheap up front. If you take the time to learn the craft yourself, the costs average out well over time. With your lower end being $180, you may have a little trouble getting top notch results unless you can borrow equipment/supplies from someone.

If you are no kidding wanting to keep things on a $100-ish budget, you should probably skip polishing and go for:

2 bucket washing
proper drying
clay
glaze
sealant
carnuba wax (optional if you use a sealant)

There are tons of products out there but that link above should get you pointed in the right direction and help you build a solid foundation to work from. There are some very talented detailers on here so ask any questions first before figuring out that your paint would have wished you didn't assume .

Good luck.

[Suprane]

You'll get some good info here also:

http://www.autopia.org/forum/car-det...s-newbies.html

Are you referring to just the polish and wax steps? or the entire detail process? The entire process is quite tedious to list here but like Jasonnator said, learn the basics of the two bucket method wash, clay bar, polishing etc.. from these sites.

With polish, it depends on the correction needed (if a lot, you need a compound...if a little a mild cut polish). Some popular products: Meguiar's 105 and 205, Menzerna SIP, 106FF, PO85RD to name a just a few. Then, there's what polisher to use. Rotary, Dual action ?
Start with Autopia forums...its a good place to learn the basics and listen in on what the pros use and how they use them.

Glad your'e pursuing it... its very rewarding to do it yourself. Good luck.

[Envious Eric]

Originally Posted by mazda3ndp

Hey guys, so I am new to detailing. I was trying to not do it myself but have found myself with quotes ranging from $180-$600. I have no issues detailing myself, but I have no idea which products work best for our car. can someone give a rundown of the products they used and the order in which the products should be used?

depending on the work done and by whom, the $600 quote will probably be your best bet, then you can maintain if from there! Get a started PC kit with something like menzerna 203 and 85rd with some white and black pads in 5.5" size. I say the $600 would be best not because its the most expensive, but because it sounds about right for paint correction work to take a car back to perfection! $180 is not even a fair one step price, let alone full paint correction!