New Member First Time Post! Want Help Detailing my 3000gt!

A

Animosity

New member
Ok, well to start off I'll introduce myself. My names mike and im 16 and live in ohio, currently a sophmore in HS.



I have a red 93 3000gt sl. I love washing it every weekend using meguires soap (smells like coconut not sure what kind it is heh).



After spring break (2weeks) I plan to polish my summer rims up. Shampoo the inside up. Condition the leather. Install my new struts and at this time repaint my rotors (red). And I also want to do a full out detailing job. I plan to leave the car for 2days off the road leaving me time to do all of this.



Now for the questions:



1) What should I polish the wheels with I want to polish them and then coat them with something to help repel water and dirt and to give them a "wow" shine.



2) What soap should I wash the car with? I currently have this kit

Meguiars Car Detailing Kit (please check to see what I have/need)



I want to wash the car and then claybar it and I suppose use a glaze then a wax? Like I said im new and not sure how that goes or exactly what I need.



3) Finally for the interior what should I do to clean the leather, and wash the cloth headliner and carpet ect. I want to also give it a nice aroma!
 
well i'm a newbie here too but welcome aboard i guess lol

i love 3000GT's :-)

Anyway, i dont have too much experience, but from what i've read here and on other detailing forums and sites, Mothers makes some good stuff you could use for the wheels.....

For soap, look about 3 or 4 posts down (As of 7:33PM EST Tuesday) for a thread about that.
 
Also I don't have A PC to buff... I will be doing it all by hand.



Another question is what is the difference between glaze / show room polish / and wax. Do I use all 3 or just a glaze/polish and then wax?
 
Welcome. Nice to see you want to take care of your car. Where to begin?

In order to help people would like to know the condition of your paint, interior, color, and so on. That being said, you really would be doing yourself a favor by searching, reading, searching, reading....educate yourself as much as possible about products, applications, etc. Then you would be better informed to ask the questions you really need to know. For example, do you want a sealant or a carnuaba wax? Do you want shine, durability or both? What can you afford and what products can you get locally? Do you know the abbreviations everyone uses? (There is a link on the Home page.)

I'm not the "Ace Detailer" that some guys here are so I'm not going to start telling you do This and That, and try this over that, etc.

Right?



Speaking for myself, I have no idea what you already know. If you've been reading A LOT you may already have a pretty good idea what to do. By the way, Meguiars is generally very good stuff.



FOR WHAT ITS WORTH>>>>>Don't be in a hurry because you don't want to waste money on inferior products or find out you would have liked to buy XYX and instead have a bunch of ABC coming in the mail. I know this isn't the answer you were looking for, but I think you won't regret thinking about what I'm saying.



Best to you, and if I can help later, I will!



A 3000GT! Man, I started with a '54 Jeep W. Flat head!



:welcome :usa
 
Here is something to read up on Glazes/Polish:



http://www.autopia.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=35008&highlight=glaze



You know we could go on for hours about different combos of products..... here is my 2 cents:



Wash with Gold Class car wash in your kit, great stuff and works well, then...



Optional step but can be worth the time you may have to clay the car, if you feel little bumps on the car more on hood, roof and trunk then you might want to clay the car, then...



Step 1: Meguairs Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner (easy to find and inexpensive)

Step 2: Meguairs Deep Crystal Paint Polish (easy to find and inexpensive)

Step 3: Use the Meguairs Gold Class in your kit



Apply all with some applicator pads do not mix the products and remove with some microfibers or good 100% cotton towels.



The reason I suggest Meguiars Deep Crystal is that its easy to use priced well and most of all friendly to first time users. I think the Deep Crystal system works very well and something good to start with and move up from there. A tip on the polish is you don't want to let it dry it can be very hard to remove, I know this!



When using the endurance thats in you kit apply it to the tire let it set for a few min. then wipe the tire with an old towel, this will give a more even shine and help prevent the slinging of the product.



as "MartyGrant" said do your research
 
Do you have a picture? That will help us determine your first steps. I would definitely, wash with a good soap, clay bar, then we need pictures or a very good description of the condition to see what is next…



I would look into a swirl remover and then a sealant like wolf gang or poor boys…

But to save you time Klasse may be your best way to go.. Works great on everything..
 
Yay, another Autopian with a cool car.



The kit looks like good products. And what GB said up there is good info too. but...



Let me get this right, Meguiars Gold Class Shampoo, that I've been walking past in the isles of different stores, smells like Coconuts? Heck yeah. I think I"ll have to pick some up as I only have about 80 oz of other washes.



But...



As we haven't seen the car, we don't really know how much oxidation is on it. It might do you well to wash, then use the Meguiars Step 1 Cleaner (like GB said) and then clay, and then continue with the other steps. Cars with questionable oxidation should not be dismissed as "eh, probably not that much." You can eat up some clay ($$$) that way.



Definately take before and after pics. We love that stuff here.



You'll notice we talk about products here constantly. But there is also a ton of stuff we agree on and never talk about. Most of that stuff is very basic and can be found in either Dave's half-a-free-ebook or in the FAQish section (we do have one, right?).



Search is your lil pal too, just remember to use the * on words shorter than three letters.
 
About the rims, I still havn't heard what to use to spruce them up! below is an attachment of the rim I am talking about
 

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