First time detailing my black car


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First time detailer, haha, I've owned my 2007 Honda Civic since new, and being a black car I have to say I've really neglected it :p So a few weeks ago, I decided to stock up on some detailing equipment, and do the job myself. My car had tons of swirls and scratches with a billion rock chips, which I've fixed. I then used a claybar to clean off the crap off the paint, and did a 3-stage power polish. After 10 hours of hard work, here's what I ended up with.

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I have to say I am very pleased with the results :yes:

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I have black vehicle and i am sure they are the hardest to keep clean.

I pretty much have given up and just pay the detailers the money as it is so much work.

looks good and i congratulate you on the effort.

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Nice. Next step: interior :p

I too have a black car, and it's a PITA to keep clean. Everything on it shows. :( Luckily, every time I bring my car to the dealer, they'll clean both exterior and interior.

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I have a brown/bronze 2010 version of this car... It needs to be cleaned so bad. One time, I had it parked in a field during a fireworks show. Turns out the fireworks launched a few hundred feet from my parking space, so there's a lot of remnant ashes / stains from the fireworks all over the roof, hood, and trunk. And mud from the field. Ugh.

If I'm ever in Canda, you can do mine...

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Haha thanks everyone :p

Yeah I am super hardcore on the interior. It's always been really clean, but I've never shampooed the uphostery (It was never necessary, but I think the driver's seat is a bit darker than the rest). I usually use an electrostatic dust wipe and wipe down every corner, microfiber wet cloth all surfaces, vacuum everything, then spray some air freshener in there every few months. A few months ago I shampooed the driver's side carpet because there were some minor salt stains near the gas pedal where my OEM rubber floor mats did not cover. I never leave any crap in the car, and I rarely eat in it, so it's always 200% clean. The worst it ever gets is dust on the dashboard.

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I have black vehicle and i am sure they are the hardest to keep clean.

I pretty much have given up and just pay the detailers the money as it is so much work.

looks good and i congratulate you on the effort.

You want to use a 2nd level cut cleaner from Mequiar's then a good polymer wax with paint sealant in it. My 97 eldorado is black. I don't recommend clay the car, the older the paint job, the more damage it can do, a good car wash before should eliminate the need for claying.

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Detailing For teh win! There's a nice forum that got me started as well, 'autogeek.net'.

How did you cover up the scratches and chips? I bought touch up paint but it's a real pain to get it done right!

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sarcasm alert...

It's still only a Civic!

only joking, nice job. Doing that to a car where I live is pointless as the first time you take that bad boy out, you'll get rain the like of which hasn't been seen since Noah. Then some ###### will key it.

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Very nice :) What products did you use, if you don't mind me asking?

I've recently built up a collection of auto detailing products, always interesting to see what others are getting good results with.

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That is beautiful! I need to get mine done... my back problems make it impossible for me to spend that long working on it, just washing it makes me sore for a day or two--not that it ever stops me. But my car is black too, and it's about time I got some of the chips and etc taken care of :) I love my car, and you have inspired me!

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Very nice!

Have to say though, come winter time you'll be raging at the amount of salt making cars look (and feel!) like crap :p

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I have a black Honda Civic... Except it's an 08... Ex...with umm.... A ricochet dent in it......... What can I say? I was in the wrong part of town. :p

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You want to use a 2nd level cut cleaner from Mequiar's then a good polymer wax with paint sealant in it. My 97 eldorado is black. I don't recommend clay the car, the older the paint job, the more damage it can do, a good car wash before should eliminate the need for claying.

1. Older paint won't be damaged by a clay bar if you do it right, but the amount of dirt picked up may be more, so you'll need to be sure to fold your clay frequently, and use a new piece if it gets too dirty.

2. Washing won't even close to get the deep dirt out of the paint that clay can. A clay bar is one of the most important steps in really detailing a car. That embedded dirt is what really kills the shine.

OP: The car looks great after you were done. Nothing compares to how good a black car looks when it's detailed. Too bad for the factory installed orange peel :( Be prepared to spend a lot of money if you get the detailing bug, haha. I've got a whole collection of waxes for different paints.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Detailing For teh win! There's a nice forum that got me started as well, 'autogeek.net'.

How did you cover up the scratches and chips? I bought touch up paint but it's a real pain to get it done right!

For minor scratches, they just polish right out. For major ones, I paint over it with touch up paint, wet sand it down, the polish out the scratches. It's not a 100% perfect solution (Especially on a black car), but it's pretty close.

Very nice :) What products did you use, if you don't mind me asking?

I've recently built up a collection of auto detailing products, always interesting to see what others are getting good results with.

I used Mother's California Stage 3-stage because I forgot to buy the polish when I ordered them online, lol. These are just off the shelf products, which are okay, but definitely not the best. There are a few scratches on my car that I really need something more abrasive, so I'll probably pick them all up in my next order with better rubbing/polishing compounds.

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