Winter Clean up tips?

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USMCAMMOMAN

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Hello everyone,

I would like your tips and feedback on detailing after winter. My F-150 has some rust colored spots on the paint that won't just wash off. I think they are caused by the chemicals sprayed on the highways and city streets. What steps would you takeFeed back please

1. Hand wash & dry
2. do you think a clay bar would remove these spots? or some type of cleaner wax?
3. Sealant or wax?

I don't own a buffer of any sort. Thinking about getting myself a DA buffer. Recommendations for casual user? Would only do my own vehicles.

Thanks for your comments.
 
USMCAMMOMAN said:
Hello everyone,

I would like your tips and feedback on detailing after winter. My F-150 has some rust colored spots on the paint that won't just wash off. I think they are caused by the chemicals sprayed on the highways and city streets. What steps would you takeFeed back please

1. Hand wash & dry
2. do you think a clay bar would remove these spots? or some type of cleaner wax?
3. Sealant or wax?

I don't own a buffer of any sort. Thinking about getting myself a DA buffer. Recommendations for casual user? Would only do my own vehicles.

Thanks for your comments.
Click to expand...

Welcome to AG!
I would power wash the car. If you don't have one bring it to a touchless car wash, they should have 3-5 bays with power wash.

I would recommend you get a Griot DA polisher. Its one of the more powerful DA in the market. Get some orange and white LC flats and maybe surbuf pads for the more studburn stuff. Get Meguair's 105/205.
 
:welcome: To Autogeek online!

Cleaning winters grime and crud off your vehicle during a cold winter can be somewhat challenging to say the least...

Items


  • Clean 5 gallon bucket with lid
  • Car wash soap
  • Car washing brush or sponge
  • Spray wheel & tire cleaner
  • Wheel & tire brush
  • $1 bills
  • Waterproof gloves
Before heading to your local wash, mix up a solution of hot water and your favorite car wash soap. Place this and the other items securely in the back of your truck and you're ready to go.

At the car wash you'll want to use the high pressure water and NO SOAP. The idea is to blast off as much of those winter deposits as possible before soaping it down with your own solution, not theirs

Don't forget to do the undercarriage including the wheel wells... Clean the wheels and tires next.

Now wash your truck from the top down with your brush and soapy solution carefully going over each section several times then rinse with water only. Do this until the truck is nice and clean.

Use a clay bar and solution those pesky rust spots.

If you can, dry the exterior with a Microfiber guzzler towel..

Sealant

Menzerna Power Lock

Wax

Collinite 845
 
Ammo man,
Where are you located? If you're in my neck of the woods we may be able to try some clay or other products before you go buy a bunch of stuff. I have a lot of products.
Fellow Marine here living in Jacksonville, NC.
 
FastZR1 said:
Ammo man,
Where are you located? If you're in my neck of the woods we may be able to try some clay or other products before you go buy a bunch of stuff. I have a lot of products.
Fellow Marine here living in Jacksonville, NC.
Click to expand...

FASTZR1 I left NC in 2007 and retired in 2009. I'm now in Iowa, and the winter really does a number on the truck. Semper Fi.
 
BobbyG said:
:welcome: To Autogeek online!

Cleaning winters grime and crud off your vehicle during a cold winter can be somewhat challenging to say the least...

Items


  • Clean 5 gallon bucket with lid
  • Car wash soap
  • Car washing brush or sponge
  • Spray wheel & tire cleaner
  • Wheel & tire brush
  • $1 bills
  • Waterproof gloves
Before heading to your local wash, mix up a solution of hot water and your favorite car wash soap. Place this and the other items securely in the back of your truck and you're ready to go.

At the car wash you'll want to use the high pressure water and NO SOAP. The idea is to blast off as much of those winter deposits as possible before soaping it down with your own solution, not theirs

Don't forget to do the undercarriage including the wheel wells... Clean the wheels and tires next.

Now wash your truck from the top down with your brush and soapy solution carefully going over each section several times then rinse with water only. Do this until the truck is nice and clean.

Use a clay bar and solution those pesky rust spots.

If you can, dry the exterior with a Microfiber guzzler towel..

Sealant

Menzerna Power Lock

Wax

Collinite 845
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tips!! I don't have much experience with the clay bar. I've been reading some other posts and looking at the video on how to clay. In the event the clay bar does not remove these spots, what would the next alternative be? Would a cleaner wax work? Brands?? Is the stuff you pick up at Wal-mart sufficent?
 
I washed, clayed and waxed a white Honda last year in Michigan and it had small rust colored spots on it too. The clay got some of them but not all and I worked them pretty hard because it bugged me I couldn't get rid of them. Didn't have access to ironite or anything else so just had to leave them there and push on. But I would look into the Ironite, I have read some good stuff about it on here.
 
S2K said:
I washed, clayed and waxed a white Honda last year in Michigan and it had small rust colored spots on it too. The clay got some of them but not all and I worked them pretty hard because it bugged me I couldn't get rid of them. Didn't have access to ironite or anything else so just had to leave them there and push on. But I would look into the Ironite, I have read some good stuff about it on here.
Click to expand...

Claying will get rid off them, but it can take a while. I clayed a white car that was covered in them, took several hours to remove.
 
Yea it did get rid of some but not all, maybe I needed a more aggressive clay, I was using Megs clay.
 
USMCAMMOMAN said:
FASTZR1 I left NC in 2007 and retired in 2009. I'm now in Iowa, and the winter really does a number on the truck. Semper Fi.
Click to expand...

Good deal.
Good luck with whatever you get. This place is a great resource when it comes to anything in regards to detailing.
 
USMCAMMOMAN said:
What is IronX, wax of some sort?
Click to expand...

It's a liquid that dissolves embeded iron particles in your clearcoat. Clay shaves off the top portion but the embeded portion can remain and cause those rust spots that you mainly see on white cars. Google it. i think it's made by carpro
 
S2K said:
I washed, clayed and waxed a white Honda last year in Michigan and it had small rust colored spots on it too. The clay got some of them but not all and I worked them pretty hard because it bugged me I couldn't get rid of them. Didn't have access to ironite or anything else so just had to leave them there and push on. But I would look into the Ironite, I have read some good stuff about it on here.
Click to expand...

The white S2K I worked on yesterday had a lot of rust color spots on the car. You just need more aggressive clay. I used DP but still had to put a lot of pressure to remove them.
 
I also have a white F150 and i have found that a clay bar will remove most of the rust colored spots but not all of them. For the stubborn spots i used a 3M claener wax and they came right off.
 
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