My 2005 Odyssey

[emaxxman]

Well, it's not an exotic sports car...but I do like to take care of it as best as I can. Exterior detail only (didn't have time for the inside.)

I wash the van at least 1 once every two weeks if not more so it was pretty clean. Just needed a quick cleanup so I could apply some EX-P for the winter. Had OCW all summer long. I used a PC to apply the EX-P because it puts a much thinner coat on than I can by hand.

• Washed tires and wheels with Eagle One Tire and Wheel cleaner
• Washed wheel wells with diluted Simple Green (wasn't too dirty so no big deal).
• Foam gun, Meg's Gold Class, Meg's wide body brush (to avoid freezing hands here in cold-a** NJ).
• Used Meg's chenille wash pad for tight areas.

Was recently clayed so I didn't feel like I needed to again.

• Dressings:
  • Tires - Eagle One Tire Dressing
  • Wheels - EX-P
  • Paint - EX-P applied with PC, taken off by hand
  • Glass - Meg's Glass Cleaner concentrate
  • Wheel Wells - No Touch tire spray (stuff isn't worth squat so I said, what the heck!)
  • Trim - Meg's Hyper Dressing

The sun was brutal..glare everywhere. My off-white house didn't help with the glare either. Pictures are OK. I don't have open shade on my driveway so it was either these or drive somewhere.

Nice reflection of my arbor and entrance to my backyard.

Nice little gift from a hit and run driver who doesn't know how to pull out of a parallel parking spot...we'll be getting it fixed in Spring.

This drove up as I was taking pics. Real estate agent for house across the street. This is my dream car ironically.

I'll be doing my Accord next. For that, I'll be using the DP sealant I got free as a prize from AG. Just haven't had a chance yet. I bought so much stuff this past summer, I haven't had a chance to try out half of them.

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Resharpened some of the pics Photoshop to get rid of the bluriness.

 

[ryandamartini]

very nice! how did a cowboys fan get stuck with a minivan? I always swear to myself that Id rather pay the gas for a SUV

 

[emaxxman]

very nice! how did a cowboys fan get stuck with a minivan? I always swear to myself that Id rather pay the gas for a SUV

Personally, I wanted a Dodge Ram 1500 or the Honda Ridgeline. I do all the landscaping and renovation work on my house. A pickup would've been very convenient for those trips to Home Depot. But since my wife was going to be the daily driver, she won out and got the van. She really wanted a minivan for whatever odd reason.

I'm really trying to figure out how to swing payments on a sports sedan after the van is paid off...I see a TL, G35, or 3 series convertible in my future...I hope.

 

[ryandamartini]

Personally, I wanted a Dodge Ram 1500 or the Honda Ridgeline. I do all the landscaping and renovation work on my house. A pickup would've been very convenient for those trips to Home Depot. But since my wife was going to be the daily driver, she won out and got the van. She really wanted a minivan for whatever odd reason.

I'm really trying to figure out how to swing payments on a sports sedan after the van is paid off...I see a TL, G35, or 3 series convertible in my future...I hope.

Cant go wrong there! Those new Twin turbo 3 series are niice G35 must be black of course, to allow your further accumulation of detail supplies TL, well its an expensive, but nice Honda. It must be Black as well. Black TL with souveran would be mad sexy.

 

[Reddwarf]

Good job on the Mini-Van! We have a Nissan Quest but I think the Honda is a much nicer van. It's a lot of work to a mini-van!

I think you will like the DP sealant. Be sure to post your experience with it! I used it on the wife's Quest and I really like the results.

 

[sparkie]

I don't see anything wrong with the pics, I think they came out great. What the! Exotic sports car no. It don't matter what you detail, it's the pride after you done it. Heck, I done a John Deere, just to play with some new products. I had a guy called me yesterday wanting his tractor done after seeing that John Deere.

Outstanding work on the van.

 

[aceshigh73]

Nice work on the van..... I have a Sienna ('04) that I detail, but never post pics of it....
Plus, its grey, so it doesnt show off well (reflections, etc)...
When you have kids, nothing beats the convenience of a minvan... especially when you take long trips.... An SUV is not a replacement for a minivan.... trust me, I've had both....

 

[emaxxman]

Cant go wrong there! Those new Twin turbo 3 series are niice G35 must be black of course, to allow your further accumulation of detail supplies TL, well its an expensive, but nice Honda. It must be Black as well. Black TL with souveran would be mad sexy.

As much as I would love a black car, I don't think I could deal with the work required. I have trees near my driveway and the pollen in the summer is brutal. I can wash my car one night and the next morning it's covered in dust. I may go with a deep graphite grey or nice pearl mettalic white or silver. The Odyssey is a silver metallic pearl so it has a nice shimmer to the shine. The Honda white metallic pearl that I've seen on TL's is pretty sharp..not flat at all.

I'll have to see what the pre-owned, certified market has to offer when I trade in my Accord. All of those cars brand new are out of my current price range.

 

[emaxxman]

I don't see anything wrong with the pics, I think they came out great. What the! Exotic sports car no. It don't matter what you detail, it's the pride after you done it. Heck, I done a John Deere, just to play with some new products. I had a guy called me yesterday wanting his tractor done after seeing that John Deere.

Outstanding work on the van.

Thanks Sparkie! I agree with your sentiment. I take great pride in taking care of anything I own. My 9 year old Accord looks better than some 1-2 year old cars in my office parking lot. The EX-P really brings out a glow to the silver metallic paint on the van.

 

[justin_murphy]

I see you're a dedicated Honda man! Nothing wrong with that........I worked for them for 5 years.
My wife wants that EXACT same van. Nice job on a tought color. At least it's one that's easy to keep clean!

Can't wait to see the Accord!

 

[Surfer]

This drove up as I was taking pics. Real estate agent for house across the street. This is my dream car ironically.

Normally I'd think a guy would have his dream car with Lambo, Porsche, Viper, Ferrari, Pagani etc.................not a Bangalized 5 series

Nice job on the van.

 

[emaxxman]

I see you're a dedicated Honda man! Nothing wrong with that........I worked for them for 5 years.
My wife wants that EXACT same van. Nice job on a tought color. At least it's one that's easy to keep clean!

Can't wait to see the Accord!

Thanks Justin. Your work is always inspiring. I'll be giving the Purple Power a shot after my Eagle tire/wheel cleaner is finished. The Ody wheels and tires used up a huge amount of the stuff.

I do really like Honda's. My first one, a 94 Civic that I bought new after college lasted me 12 years. My Accord is going strong still...knock on wood. The Odyssey was the only minivan we really considered. I like it for it's fit and finish inside (doesn't even like a minivan with the second row captain's chairs) and the sporty look on the outside.

Silver may be a tough color to bring some pop to it but I do agree that it's really easy to keep looking clean. There is a very, very faint miniscule amount of spider web on the clear coat. However, because of the paint color, it's only visible late night with a very bright light source.

The Ody is a great van too...extremely agile and very comfortable to drive. Your wife will love it.

 

[emaxxman]

Nice work on the van..... I have a Sienna ('04) that I detail, but never post pics of it....
Plus, its grey, so it doesnt show off well (reflections, etc)...
When you have kids, nothing beats the convenience of a minvan... especially when you take long trips.... An SUV is not a replacement for a minivan.... trust me, I've had both....

The van is great for my two kids. The power doors makes getting in very easy for them. My son is still in a car seat so the height of van makes it easy to buckle him in. The only down side of the van is that it is a huge cavern of space to vacuum...and kids manage to drop stuff everywhere.

I agree on the SUV at this point in my life. The cost of a comparable SUV (in size) would be way too expensive. I would like a pickup truck though.

 

[emaxxman]

Normally I'd think a guy would have his dream car with Lambo, Porsche, Viper, Ferrari, Pagani etc.................not a Bangalized 5 series

Nice job on the van.

For some reason, Porsche's don't excite me. Viper's, Lambo's, and Ferrari's are nice but I'm not one for a coupe anymore. I like the comfort and feel when driving a sedan.

I should say, technically, it's the M5 that is my dream car. I think it's the perfect blend of a sedan and sports car handling...and the 500 horses under the hood help with the fun factor too.

 

[justin_murphy]

Thanks Justin. Your work is always inspiring. I'll be giving the Purple Power a shot after my Eagle tire/wheel cleaner is finished. The Ody wheels and tires used up a huge amount of the stuff.

I do really like Honda's. My first one, a 94 Civic that I bought new after college lasted me 12 years. My Accord is going strong still...knock on wood. The Odyssey was the only minivan we really considered. I like it for it's fit and finish inside (doesn't even like a minivan with the second row captain's chairs) and the sporty look on the outside.

Silver may be a tough color to bring some pop to it but I do agree that it's really easy to keep looking clean. There is a very, very faint miniscule amount of spider web on the clear coat. However, because of the paint color, it's only visible late night with a very bright light source.

The Ody is a great van too...extremely agile and very comfortable to drive. Your wife will love it.

Thank you emaxx.
EO Wheel and Tire is good stuff just not very cost friendly. You will be happy with Purple Power.
I've owned 28 cars and 15 were Hondas.......err Acuras too. 4 Civics, 6 Accords, 2 Integras...1 GSR and 1 Type-R, and a 2002 S-2000. The car business killed me but my insurance agent loved it!!!

 

[Surfer]

Since you guys are into Hondas/Acura did they ever fix the transmission problem with the TL's? Back some years ago when the TL-Type S came out, they got my sister one for her 1st car. Within 20K miles the transmission was replaced 3 times, not the dealers fault as apparently searching around seemed everyone was blowing the transmissions. I think they got her a lemon lol, car was a rattle trap, could not believe how many creaks and groans it had. Traded it on an Explorer which she still has.

 

[emaxxman]

did they ever fix the transmission problem with the TL's? Back some years ago when the TL-Type S came out,.

There is a known issue with Honda transmissions mated to their v6's. It's not clear if it's been resolved yet. It was also a big issue with the Odyssey's (which I didn't find out until after I bought mine.)

So far, it looks like it's been resolved for they Ody's. There haven't been any epidemic level reports. For 2007, Honda is also taking the highly reinforced v6 transmission from the Honda Ridgeline pickup truck and putting that into all the Odysseys.

I don't know about the TL's though. I hope they've resolved it as that's most likely going to be my next car. The M5 would be nice but I can't remember where I left that $95k stash.

 

[FloridaNative]

It looks great!! :applause: EX-P looks so good on lighter colors.

 

[emaxxman]

I am amazed at how reflective the silver paint is with the EX-P. I just wish I had time on Sunday to put a second coat on. I may give the Optimum no rinse a shot to give it a quick clean and apply a second coat.

The OCW looked nice but nowhere near as reflective.

 

[emaxxman]

UPDATE - NOVEMBER 18, 2006 - I added a second coat of EX-P. Wow! This stuff is amazing. The van was really reflective before...it's amazing now. Cleaning process was the same..except the addition of a chemical resistant glove (it was cold outside and the water felt like ice). The glove allowed me to use a wash pad and not feel the cold at all.

I also applied EX-P to the entire car by hand using an mf applicator. Not sure which is best to minimize product waste. The PC uses more because the foam pad absorbs a ton. By hand, I applied it too thick I think. After letting it sit for 30-45 minutes, it was a little difficult removing it.

Should I saturate the mf applicator with some QD first to help with application?

Will the QD impact bonding?

I also found out ACDSee 5.0 does a horrible job resizing hi-res pics. All of my pics were super blurry. I used Photoshop this time and applied some sharpening afterwards...I may have over done the sharpening but hey, it's not my strongpoint.

I was never a big fan of silver before for eye-popping shine...but EX-P has definitely changed my mind. The van is actually a champagne color but it's just glowing now. I may follow it up with a quick QD and then a coat of OCW to see what the nuba will add. I'll have to add a jar of Natty's or Collinite with my next order.