Envy Professional Valeting Show and Shine Comp!!!!

[Stew]

Envy Professional Valeting 350Z Show and Shine Competition

 

 

Envy Professional Valeting have kindly donated the prize in a competition where we aim to find the best DIY detailing job carrried out on a 350Z by a 350z-uk member. All club members (registered users on the forum) are welcome to join in and enter the competition.

 

All you have to do is document a detail you carry out and post it up in a professional way. This would involve listing the items used, the techniques used and the method and write it up with loads of pictures!. Not to mention plenty of 'after' shots to show off your 350Z to take the crown of http://www.350z-uk.com show and shine winner!

 

The Rules

• 
  [*:1qx74b70]The car that the detail has been carried out on must belong to the competition entrant
  [*:1qx74b70]Only one entry per member
  [*:1qx74b70]No Professional Detailing work will be judged. We have spies to check up!
  [*:1qx74b70]The competition will remain open for 4 weeks closing on 30th August at midnight.
  [*:1qx74b70]Any entry deemed unsuitable (not within the rules) will be removed by the Admin/Mod Team
  [*:1qx74b70]The judging panel are not permitted to enter
  [*:1qx74b70]The judges will be the 350z-uk Team and Tim from Envy Professional Valeting
  [*:1qx74b70]The judges decision is final!

 

Method for Entry

• 
  [*:1qx74b70]Compose a post listing the items used, the method and techniques used and the time taken
  [*:1qx74b70]Add in plenty of pictures in order and don't forget the afters
  [*:1qx74b70]Add a sentence or two explaining why you enjoyed or didn't enjoy carrying it out
  [*:1qx74b70]Add a sentence with your top tip!
  [*:1qx74b70] Sit back and hope you win the prize!

 

The Prize!

Envy Professional Valeting have offered £50 worth of detailing products which will be tailored to your needs by yourself and Tim as the prize for the winning entry!

 

 

I think we can all agree it's a great prize and we all look forward to seeing the pictures of the winner using the products on the winning car!

 

Thanks to Envy Professional Valeting for supplying the prize for this great competition. Tim will be helping with the judging so ordering lots of supplies as a bribe might well help! All bribes to the 350z-uk team can be made via the Donate button!

 

Best of luck everyone and don't be afraid to enter, you have until the 23rd of August to do so. Remember it's not the prize that counts, it's the glory of being the winner!

 

 

 

 

 

All comments on the competition can be made in this thread - viewtopic.php?f=9&t=25493

Only entries (one per member) in this thread please! All comments will be deleted.

 

*EXTENDED BY 1 WEEK*

[Stew]

A nice example found here viewtopic.php?f=22&t=22569

 

 

Roadtrip! A nice BH jaunt to the lake district saw me get to do this evo for Steve in Barrow in Furness. Had a nice 2day break in Ulverston but no earthquakes for me, but the car was a SHOCK! Passed Martinmacs turn off, looks a lovely area then also called in to see Nick at Clenz on the way back down.

 

Looks ok from the front

 

EEK

 

A hint of things to come...notice the orange colouration?

 

 

 

Also available in white

 

Now a look at the problem. Steve had mentioned an orange residue/colouration to the car. This was on most surfaces from the front wheels back, and I mean everywhere.

 

Here is the door half clayed, top done/bottom to be done. I knew I was in trouble now as it was taking a lot to remove the bonded contaminants. Started with Dodo Gentle grey, then the Purposeful Purple and ended up with the Scholl blue clay.

 

Not pretty

 

 

Getting there

 

By now I was seriously behind schedule as the claying had taken 4hrs and I had a correction to do. I was not sure if there was time but after a few frank discussions with Steve (sorry Steve!) I pressed on (under cover in the garage...it rained pretty much all day!)

Paint thickness readings were taken and it was OK to proceed.

 

 

Polish used FastCutPlus and UltraFine and a megs polishing pad

 

Not a lot of pics from here on in as time was pressing and I needed to get on.

Join the dots and you can get a rough 50/50 of the roof. Made it a hell of a lot brighter and there was a lot of hazy paint. Top half untouched, bottom half done.

 

And again

 

Machined until it was all done, dedusted and cleaned up. Then given a coat of Swissvax Saphir, tyres etc and moved out for some final pics. Please excuse the slow puncture:cry:

 

 

 

 

I was glad to actually manage to complete the job after the claying took so long, and thanks to Steve and father for their hospitality during the day and putting up with the frustrations!

 

Back to the hotel after to just make last food orders and a few pints of Theakstons

 

Tim

 

ps nice car on the M6:

[Stew]

And another from here viewtopic.php?f=22&t=23620

 

1st off have got home and the pictures are $hite! Colour doesnt look as good as it did...yeah yeah I hear you say, see for yourselves:)

 

2 days on this 58 plate C63 AMG, had this booked a while and couldn't wait.

Just back from a trackday and the tyres were more than slightly worn and it also needed some love.

A story of few words today, but any questions ask away. Main core products used Swissvax after the correction stage. A thorough once over with the PC to sharpen up the reflections and Crystal Rock as LSP.

 

 

 

 

 

Nothings safe around here!

 

New rubber fitted.

 

 

 

Orange pad and worked at speed 5 on the pc.

 

No probs with the pad once loaded up with product

 

Right of bulge done, LH not. Spot any difference?

 

 

End of day 1, day 2 saw bumpers and skirts finished. Wax time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apologies again for the substandard pics, she really did look amazing...

 

Tim

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gives you an idea for getting started!

 

Best of luck and I'm sure we are all excited about seeing the entries for this comp! Or maybe it's just me....

[clarkie34]

Right here goes my entry.As if the neighbours didn't already think i was crackers,this a put the icing on the cake taking photos between each part of the wash.

 

Some before shots.

 

Car was foamed using a mix of ph neutral snow foam and CG citrus wash.

 

While this was left to work i tackled the wheels with billberry and a couple of brushes.

 

Car was then rinsed leaving this.

 

Car was then washed using the 2 bucket method and Blackfire shampoo.

 

Then rinsed with a open hose.

 

It was then dried using 2 waffle weave drying towels and Megs last touch.

 

This is how it looked after the drying.

 

Tyres were dressed using Blackfire long lasting tyre gel.

 

The wax i chose today was Swissvax best of show.

 

Here it is being applied.

 

While that cured i tackled the exhaust with Duraglit.

 

Before.

 

After.

 

I then removed the wax.

 

Finally gave it a wipe down with Zaino Z8 sealant which left the paint feeling like silk.

 

 

Time taken around 3 hrs.Now time to have a well deserved pint of cider

 

Top Tip - I think that would have to be using the last touch as a drying aid.

[LRF4N]

i dont have a photographic commentary cos everyone thinks im wierd takin one photo after i wash my car so il just give a quick run through of my detailing progress to date

 

had the car a year almost to the day, to start with the paint was in pretty good nick for a 53 plate car but could have been improved. it all started with a full clay followed by polish with auto glym super resin polish topped off with a coat of meguires tech wax. from then on it was pretty much a quick wash, dry and every few weeks another coat of tech wax. that continued for 8 months or so before getting round to another claying session, super resin polish and more tech wax

 

wot i loved about the tech wax is it really brought out the depth of the azure and gave it a nice glossy shine, tech wax is easy to pretty cheap

 

then i came across meguires quik detailer, which i used between waxes to keep the shine. as i was drying with a microfibre i gave each panel a quick spray with the detailer and the results were great

 

then not long ago my bottle of tech wax finished so after consulting the azure legions on here i decided to buy some dodo juice purple haze wax. was better than the tech wax in some ways, it really brought out the sparkle in the paintwork, and is really easy to buff off. but i felt it lacked the glossy shine that tech wax gave. so i got myself some megs tech wax 2.0, easier to apply than dodo juice but takes a bit more effort to buff off.

 

i love them both in different ways so now everytime i wax i alternate between dodo juice and tech wax and here are the results.

 

my top tip for detailing- enjoy it!! and always do it urself- ur smile always gets that bit wider lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

heres another tip- always establish a boundary from 2yr olds who ask to help u clean ur pride and joy! the hose worked for me lol

 

[srobrien]

**WARNING NOT DIAL UP FRIENDLY LOTS OF PICS!!**

 

Right folks here is my entry into the Envy show and shine competition.

I've not had the opportunity give her wash leave alone a proper detail in ages so this is the perfect chance.

 

First a few dirty pics (not many as it didn't really look that dirty...some flies though):

 

 

OK, first things first, my pre-pre-wash, for this I’m using tesco's All Purpose Cleaner APC, the purpose of this is to get rid of all the gunk which includes previous layers of wax. It will be applied using my Karcher and Foam lance:

 

 

Use an ENVY brush to get into all the nooks.

 

 

Next thing is to tackle the wheels now the APC stage is over. So move the car to a flat spot and break out the trolley jack:

 

 

So up goes the car and off goes the wheels:

 

 

The products I am using for this task are:

 

- Bilberry Wheel Cleaner (Dilution ratio of 10:1)

- APC (Tesco's own brand)

- Meguiars Gold Class Shampoo

- Meguiars Bug and Tar Remover

- Claybar

- Various brushes/mitts, including ENVY detailing brushes (I know the stuff is on the ground but its my "dirty" cleaning stuff for wheels/arches)

- Karcher Powerwasher plus Foam Lance

 

Anyways, wheels off, wheel nuts dunked in some APC/Degreaser and left to simmer and the Wheels given a generous coating of Bilberry.

 

 

Wheels given and good scrub with brushes and shampoo then left to dry on the grass:

 

 

Now to tackle those minging arches:

 

 

A liberal blasting with the foam lance containing 5:1 dilution of APC then a going over with the brushes:

 

 

**GLEAM**

 

 

Wheels are now lovely and dry so its time to seal them with some Poorboys Wheel Sealant LOVE the smell of this stuff :

 

 

Left to cure and wiped off, then just to be sure a quick coating of Collinite 476!

 

 

Left to cure again:

 

Whilst I went and made this:

 

Tesco's cheese and pickle sandwich filling..mmmmmmmm

 

Wheels going back on, check the spacing on those bad boys

 

 

Now just a case of taking off the other two and repeating.

 

Wheels back on and car back to the wash position

 

Next thing is the pre-wash, using Bilthamber Autofoam, a very good frothy snow foam, again applied with the foam lance which is my single best valeting product I have bought so far :

 

 

Finally on to the hand wash. Using the 2 bucket method, one for sudds and one for dudds, also a grit guard to stop any nasties getting onto my nice clean Euromitt. I am using Meguiars Gold Class shampoo for the wash, also MORE ENVY brushes!

 

 

Getting into all the door jams and seals.

 

 

Rinsed off soap with the hose, bye bye wax protection all gone as you can see from lack of water beading :

 

 

Time to clay! Thankfully I keep the car very clean so the paint is generally silky smooth. This is when I realised I had ran out of Quick Detailer, so here is my TOP TIP: I simply filled a spray bottle with 10:1 mixture of shampoo and voila, homemade clay bar lube!

 

 

Here is the state of the Clay after doing the main body panels:

 

 

And here are the bits that never get done, the bodywork that wraps round the arches, mankymanky!:

 

 

Now I open a can of worms by peeling a sticker off my windscreen only for it to leave most of it stuck there..quickly dealt with using Meguiars Bug and Tar Remover and my Shell V-Power card

 

 

Claybarring over, move onto another course of snowfoam and handwash using the same methods as before:

 

 

All dried using my Polished Bliss SuperPlush Towel, best towel I have bought so far, dried the whole car and it was hardly even damp at the end!!

 

 

Phew.....time for a cup of tea I think!!!!

 

Anyway back to the car and now using an old favourite Autoglym Super Resin Polish SRP, applied using a microfibre cloth:

 

 

And after:

 

 

Now, I need to seal and protect the paint, first using Jeff Werkstat Acryllic spray, spray on wipe off:

 

 

Whilst I was doing this, look what arrived

 

 

Now wax, using base coat of good ol' Collinite 476s, best and most resilient wax I have ever used, total bitch to remove if the panels are hot, which unusually they were:

 

 

WAX ON:

 

WAX OFF:

 

Day2:

Lip spoiler back from painting and fitted. Time for some Dodo Juice Hard Candy!! Love the smell of this stuff too mmmmm....have to stop myself eating it

 

 

All the exterior trim done with Aerospace 303 and Poorboys Trim Restorer, a reall good combo for cleaning, protecting and shine.

 

 

As you can see from the before and after pics on the front grille:

 

 

Windows done with Autoglym Fast glass and a some paper towels.

 

 

Time for the interior, want to be thorough so time to take the seats out (yes I realise half my dashboard is missing ):

 

 

Seats cleaned using Zymol Leather cleaner:

 

 

Floors hoovered and all plastics wiped down with Meguiars Interior Detailer:

 

 

Seats back, looking good

 

 

And the same on the other side.

 

 

 

And the back.....

 

 

Time to do the Zorst with Autosol, Wirewool and a Cloth:

 

 

Before:

 

 

After wire wool and Autosol:

 

 

Buffed up:

 

 

Shining up the tyres with some Meguiars Hot Shine and Applicator:

 

 

The engine bay was already quite clean so it was given a once over with some Aerospace 303 and a Microfibre:

 

 

And finally...................................

 

 

 

PHEW.....................................................

 

R

[Envy Valeting]

Some nice entries so far, good commentary, wide selection of products used and all with good results.

Nice to see Envy brushes being plugged too LOL

[rtbiscuit]

Well I'm fairly new into the whole detailing scene, i have slowly progressed from just cleaning to more and more detailing as i've gone on with my car ownership. and i must admit the 350 is the first car that i've really gone all out on. and this is the first time i've ever documented the process. As a newbie Detailer if anyone has any pointers for me with my process or methods i shouldn't be doing i would greatly appreciate it as it means i can improve on where I'm at. i do try and wash the car once a month. i know its not every week, but i don't have the time, but i do try and make sure that when i do it its done well and gives good protection between washes. hence why even when its dirty it still looks quite sparkly.

 

THE GRATUITOUS DIRTY PICTURES

 

 

A lot of the pics don't really show how dirt the car was, i had been away for 2 weeks, and hadn't cleaned her for about 1 month if you look at number 5 and 6 it shows you what the whole car was like. we're on a nearly finished new development and all the building in that area kicks up a lot of dust and when it rains it just clings to the car. The wheels in particular had really got covered in brake dust, and as i was to find out later the car also had specs of tar from the road works round the corner. She was proper filthy, and in desperate need of a proper clean ready for the airfield day tomorrow.

 

STAGE 1 - THE WASH

 

I'm still building up my armory of cleaning products and sadly i don't have a snow foam lance so i have to stick to the old fashioned power washer, bucket wool mitt. shampoo wise i like to use Megs NXT car wash, i find it very good as it doesn't strip away the previous wax, and helps build up a good multilayer protection. I also use Megs hot wheels cleaner, but i only do a wheel at a time and leave for 15 secs.

 

 

I try and make sure that i don't mix dirt with old when it comes to the water so my method is to give the car a good pressure wash first and try and remove as much of the surface rubbish as possible (see next pic)

 

 

i then get straight in with the wool mit and warm soapy water. i suppose my top tip here is to start at the roof and work down, which should mean i'm not dripping dirty suds over a cleaned area. (see next pic)

 

 

once fully soaped up i then rinse away immediately with the pressure washer. i think some people use a hose or a fresh bucket, but i always like to think the high pressure water removes any particles i might have missed but the soap has helped loosen. (see next pic)

 

 

The above pic shows it rinsed, i forget to take pics as i did the wheels, but i tend to re soak them with the washer. spray on the foam, count to 15 and then pressure wash off. i don't use it all the time, but this particular time they were very dirty.

 

STAGE 2 - CLAY TIME

 

I've not owned the car for a year yet but clayed it around christmas time, and this will be the 2nd claying the car has ever had. i've heard cars should be clayed every 6 months, i don't know if thats true or not, but thats what i've done so far. my weapon of choice is again Megs clay kit.

 

 

as you can see its not terribly filthy, but it did work wonders on the tiny tar spots.

 

 

i've tried to show a pre clay pic but my photo skills seem to be lacking and it doesn't really show the before and after.

 

pre clay

 

post clay

 

i then use a clean terries towel to wipe the car down after.

 

STAGE 3 - POLISH AND WAX

 

as you can probably tell by now i'm a bit of a megs fan, but i got it all bought for my birthday and christmas present last year for my first venture into the proper world of car cleaning. i must admit its hard work, and my arms are normally knackered by the end of it.

 

 

i don't normally polish as well, but as i had clayed the car i thought it a worthwhile venture just incase i had picked up any tiny paint scratches. i the megs polish is very good with nissan lacquer, i find the lacquer quite soft and the megs polish is very good and not so much removing layers but more helping push it back over a scratch.

 

i have some before and afters but again the real test is in the touch, and when i've used this wax it feels like my finger glides over the paintwork as if on a magnetic levitation. it feels so soft, and with the claying the whole surface is like glass.

 

 

all those pics are after the polish and wax, i hope they show you how much it brings out the color. the car has gone from a shiny grey to almost white with the metal flecks that seem to glisten in the sun. but there is still more to go.

 

STAGE 4 - TYRE DRESSING

 

i always like my wheels to have the wet look, but the stuff they use at the hand car wash only lasts a matter of days before wearing off, so i've been using (you might have guessed already) Megs tyre gel.

 

 

This stuff is really good and smells quite tasty, i don't have a special applicator as its on my list of next things to get but i use an old rag, its easy to apply and this stuff lasts for weeks. i have learnt form my first time of using it that you should wipe off as much excess as possible. as i had an incident when it rained not longer after applying that it splattered up the arches. but it wipes off really easy, especially if the car is well waxed.

 

Pre gel

 

post gel

 

STAGE 5 -WINDOWS

 

for me visibility is very important so i already use the PIAA wiper blades but to complement these i also give them a good wipe with some windolene and then buff with a towel, and then finish off with some rainX. i will be trying out the PIAA version but i'll wait till this bottle runs out.

 

 

i found the best tip with rainex is to apply it and then buff off with a tea towel, now i usually find that it still looks a bit smeary even with a good buff, so i wait till the next morning and with the mist that is usually on the screen and a terry towel is the perfect combo to finish it off and remove the streaks. the rainx is fantastic though, anything over 40 mph and the windows clear themselves, i hardly use my wipers even in torential rain. this stuff is a must have product. its great to watch it in action.

 

STAGE 6 - EXHAUST

 

last stage of the exterior and again i don't do this every time, but thought i would give it a buff up. so i use the magic substance that is autosol. it smells a bit ammonias but it works a treat. forgot to take a picture before hand but there is one of the after effect.

 

 

 

the reflection is so good you can do your make up in it.

 

STAGE 7 - SEATS

 

Moving on to the interior i try and take care of the leather, and one product i've found to be very good (you'll be surprised here as its not a megs product) poor bys leather care.

 

 

Pre poor boys

 

post poor boys

 

again you might not be able to see a huge difference but i find it gives the leather that new car smell again. its very satisfying and keeps the leather supple.

 

STAGE 8 - DASH

 

I'm a bit lazy when it comes to some of the interior cleaning and this si possibly an area i need to work on and develop so i use interior wipes. Armorall matt finish dash wipes. possibly not the most professional method, but it does leave the dash in its original matt finish, and avoids all the shiny finish that other products leave.

 

Before

 

after

 

THE FINISHED ARTICLE

 

 

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

time taken - 5 hours

 

For me detailing is a love hate relationship, i'm not the biggest cleaning fan, but i do like to see the end results, and it is really starting to grow on me, and i am starting to enjoy the process as well as the end results. I'm not sure i have the perfect method and i would always appreciate some guidance from the pros, but for me its the best i've done so far, and my car is always the cleanest and brightest at work. hope you guys like it. (sorry if its a bit long winded)

[Chris`I]

Did look good yesterday Rich

[brummybird]

I have never done any car detailing before and I always thought a car wash was one of them things you drove through and it does it for you

 

So I read the forums and this is my result:

 

Some pics before I touched it:

 

 

I had to buy a foam lance for the pressure washer and some foam. I really don’t think I bought the right stuff as the foam was pants:

 

 

I then rinsed the car down:

 

 

I then washed it with the 2 buckets method. I used Meguiars gold class shampoo and conditioner:

 

 

Once I had dried the car I left it for about half an hour and went for the clay bar. I have never used one before so I was really nervous about my paint. However, as soon as I started to use it I could really feel the difference. The bar would slide over areas I had already done but were really sticky when removing the muck from the paint. I would show you a photo of the mucky clay bar but my lad got hold of the clay before I got chance :

 

 

This is the pictures of it after the clay bar:

 

 

I am pretty tired by know but I persevered and we went through the megiuars 3 step system. So first it was the paint cleaner:

 

 

Then the car polish:

 

 

Then finally the car wax:

 

 

I also cleaned the wheels using AutoGlym wheel cleaner and then sealant:

 

 

This is my first major clean so I don’t really have any tips. Although I can recommend getting a little helper as it was hard work

[shire350Z]

right guys even though theres been some fantastic entries thought id put mine forward, spent all day doing the car and dint get as much time in the engine bay as as id have liked but here goes

 

few pre wash photos

 

 

just a few cleaning products ill not put writing with every picture ill let the pictures tell there own story

 

einszett works a wonder to help remove insects

my top tip leaf blower to get in all them nooks and crannies

meguiars all seasons dressing transforms your arches after a good clean

 

few finished pics

 

[Envy Valeting]

Excellent work all. Excellent results no matter whats being used and nice to see entrants really getting into the spirit of it all. The Megs 3 stage seems to be well featured too.

Love Shire's collection but also claying with a clay man looks good to me Brummy Bird

[Stew]

Locked as the competition is now over!

 

Thanks to all the entrants that put in the effort. I'm sure everyone has benefited from the write ups!

[Stew]

And the winner is...

 

Ok, after a break for the hoon etc I am finally in a position to announce the winner of the competition.

 

It was judged by the Team and Tim from Envy Professional Valeting.

 

 

We are pleased to announce that Clarkie34 is the winner of the £50 voucher. Well done Wayne, the finish on the car was outstanding!

 

We are also delighted to announce a second prize of a £20 voucher which Tim himself judged. The winner of this is rtbiscuit. Well done Rich! Tim felt you had achieved a great result and wanted to reward the effort put in.

 

So guys, start browsing to pick your prizes! I'm sure Tim will help out with this to ensure you spend the prize vouchers wisely!

 

 

 

Congratulations to Wayne on Rich and well done to all the participants.

[M13KYF]

well done wayne

 

commiserations to all the other entries. Great effort by all