TheBurninator

Odd, I've seen more foam out of the new car shampoo than the old and my wash pads seem to slide across the paint easier. Also less product required is nice. But I do agree that the smell is meh.

Depends on how aggressive of a clay you use. A fine grade clay like the one Adam's sells shouldn't cause marring but this also depends on how soft the paint is as well. Either way it wouldn't stop me from claying a black car. Oh good, looks like we have a dealership detailer that doesn't know what he is talking about and obviously doesn't have any experience in this department since he is afraid to touch black paint anyways.

I'd at least do a waterless wash... Just because you don't see it doesn't mean its not there.

I had a C5 A6... we did it in about 12 hours in the driveway. Dropped the subframe down a bit and snuck them in without having to pull the engine and trans. My buddy does a couple a month in the shop he owns. He has it down to a science. The CC may have a worse job to do than 2.7TT turbos... Oil pump bolt issue. They moved the oil pump to behind the transmission on the 3.6's This works pretty well as long as the interior is black.

After every wheel well or tire. It's easier to work clean around the car than have more and more build up as you move around the car. Mine also soaks in my wheel bucket while I wash.

I'm willing to bet its the soft touch pieces coming apart. Worst part about late 90's/early 2000's VAG cars. Possibly more annoying than doing turbos on a 2.7TT.

I would just do one normal application of quick sealant. Make sure you spread it around then wipe off any excess. I am getting 3-4 months out of it. Afterwards you can maintain with just car wash shampoo. Brake dust just kinda falls off with minimal work. Yes, in regards to the DWC I am using that for a lubricant when claying for deeper brake dust pitting. I wish I would have grabbed pics the last time I did this but my gloves were covered in DWC. Fine grade clay from Adam's is what I am using. Less chance of marring and having to come back and polish.

I would use Quick Sealant over LPS on wheels. It seems to handle the heat and abuse better. For the wheel weights a plastic razor and goo gone should work well. I found that any really deep embedded stuff on wheels I've had to clay with DWC. That seems to work REALLY well. Even if the wheels are just painted on the barrels you should be fine. Treat it the same as a clear coat.

This is what I do essentially. I have rubber mats for normal use in the car and then stock carpet mats for shows. I just swap them out in the garage the night before I am heading to a show.

Yep! That is why they smell like Crayons inside on warm days. Always made me laugh.

I can see that being an issue. I usually do a left and right circular motion but my grid guards don't move in the bucket. I haven't corrected the CC since about August 2014, and nothing more than a couple fine scratches here and there. Sometimes you have to manually pull stuff off out of a wash pad. Kinda name of the game. At the same time the wash pad is doing its job by grabbing the debris from your paint. Might be worth it try and rinse a little bit better prior to washing. Especially in areas on the vehicle that are prone to catching things like stuff from trees, etc.

I wouldn't worry about VRT to cause any pollen to stick. It dries pretty quickly, and I would rather have dressed trim and deal with a bit of pollen than not have dressed trim at all.

If they use a lot of it, then you will notice it weeping out on hot days. My ex used to have a Jetta that just seemed like a never ending fountain of the stuff.

How are you guys getting so much debris in your wash pads? Do you not blast off any debris before actually washing the car?

Aaron, I've even gone as far as having microfiber towels soaking in a bucket of water or rinseless and placing them on the panel I am about to work to cool the panel before I start.

Dan, I don't think a wheel woolie is going to get in there at all. The handle on the smallest one is bigger than that pencil. Maybe try getting the lugnut brush over top of the lug nuts and get it to fan out inside the recess. Or hold the bristles to guide them into the area.

How warm was the panel? Working without a garage gives some interesting challenges with polishing. Do you have a good LED flashlight? It would probably help you identify any haze/scratches in the paint. What kind of pressure are you using? If you haven't done so I suggest putting a mark with a sharpie on the side of your pads so you can make sure they are always rotating. If they aren't rotating you are using too much pressure. What is your arm speed like? 1 inch per second is the general rule of thumb with a DA style polisher. How much product are you using? Are you using the MF pads or foam pads? Either way priming the whole face of the pad with polish helps a ton. You don't want excess product, but enough to cover the whole face of the pad. Try doing the top of the trunk. Take a piece of masking tape and tape off half the trunk. Polish right up to the tape. Make 4-5 passes on that half of the trunk with orange pad and correcting polish. Peel the tape off and wipe the polish residue off with a single/double soft towel. Inspect your results in the sun or with the LED light. Either your paint is already perfect, your technique is off, or you have the hardest paint on earth.

I do the same but with a sample bottle of DS in my backpack that I take to work.

I change towels when I feel the need. It all depends on the task at hand, and the towel type, and the product used. If a towel gets too saturated with product I will generally switch to avoid streaking. Again dirtiness of a towel really depends on task at hand. Cleaning rubber trim? I'll use most of the towel until it is black from the oxidized rubber. If I am doing a detail spray wipedown or drying the car, I will check the towel after every panel or large section for dirt, flip to a clean side as necessary I don't keep track of how many towels I have. Not everything I have is Adam's either. Towels get washed as needed. More towels means less laundry for me.

I have the original set that, and still use them every time I clean wheels or engine bays. I just wish the small one had a longer handle. The bent wheel woolie is awesome, but doesn't clear my brake rotors in the front. I wish it was smaller diameter.

You can tell it is tar if it is sticky generally. If it is caked on brake dust, then I would clay it with DWC and maybe polish if needed.

This wouldn't rule it out, it just means you have to be more careful when pulling the badge off. You'll have to carefully remove the adhesive and then clay any remaining outlines instead of polishing. The truck is new enough that it shouldn't be an issue.

I can see it attributing to the issue based on Kazzle's experiment, but I don't think quick sealant alone was the issue. Technique plays a roll in this as well. As is mentioned bellow it is better to apply quick sealant to an applicator and then the panel to prevent these issues in the future. And maybe a bit less product as well. Just wondering if the area you ran into this issues with if you could get to it with a super plush microfiber towel? For example if you sprayed the area and then followed up with the soft towel before the QS dried to level it out. I do this on wheels all the time as an applicator isn't exactly ideal for some of those tight areas. This right here would have avoided the issue all together, but it is a tighter area so maybe follow with a towel to level the product. All comes down to technique to prevent these types of issues in the future. Part of new products is learning how to utilize them and what they do when you run into an issue. Not necessarily. This area has a larger exposed surface for over spray from QS, but it is difficult to be able to access afterwards. Less product would lessen the effect for sure though.

Polish by hand then.

Rust Bullet. Independent test have proven it to hold up better than POR15 and is worlds easier to apply without having it peel.