Valeting

[Clark@Polishedbliss]

I wouldn't be polishing your car everytime you need to make it shine. I would polish it until the paint is nice and smooth and preserve the finish with Wax.

Polishing removes wax which protects the car, waxing protects the paint. You can't build up layers of polish, but you can build up layers of wax.

Remember that!

Well said. Polishing your car every week or so WILL harm your paint as you are removing small amounts of paint every time. We had an owner of an A6 Avant come in by just over 2 years ago so we could look at an area of his bonnet where he'd been trying to remove a scratch by hand - he'd managed to take off approx 15 microns just by using Autoglym SRP and that's on rock hard paint! You should Clay the car once every 6 months (and a chemical cleaner such as Tardis for large tar spots etc) or so as a rough guide to make the paint as smooth as glass, then followed by a Glaze or light polish if the paint even needs it, other than that you should only be topping up the sealant/wax protection to maintain the finish - not removing paint every week.

It's fair enough giving out advice but don't give out the wrong advice.

Can you assist regarding interior cleaning. I recently purchased an S3 but have noticed that the previous owner may have been a smoker due to the smell in the car. I think it may be in the plastic trim if that makes sense. Any ideas how best to clean it?

Thanks

What to do is clean all surfaces as best as you can with an All Purpose Cleaner ( Meguiar's All Purpose Cleaner | Meguiar's Car Care & Detailing Products ) and then follow it up with a rather amazing product called Carpro So Pure ( CarPro So Pure | CarPro Car Care & Detailing Products ). This product was one of the best products of 2010 due to it's ability to completely eliminate (not just hide them) strong odours such as smoke.

Yes it is possible but it will most probably be alot of work. I saw a new shape A3 the other week which had the roof and bonnet totally covered in either tree sap or fallout. It was eventually sent to a bodyshop because it was so bad. I guess alot depends on the colour of the car, it was bright red, if it had of been silver it would`nt have been anywhere near as visible.
Your car may be able to be sorted out with a good mop, very abrasive polish will need to be used depending on how bad it is. If it is still visible afterwards then a bodyshop may need to respray the panels in question

HTH

I'm sorry but that's not correct, tree sap and other organic contaminants can be safely removed either by a chemical cleaner such as Autosmart Tardis ( Autosmart Tardis | Autosmart Car Care & Detailing Products ) or a clay bar ( Clay Bars & Clay Bar Lubricants | Car Care & Detailing Products ). Even if you have iron filings contaminating the paint then there's even a product for that called Iron-X ( CarPro Iron X | CarPro Car Care & Detailing Products ). All these products will safely deal with whatever situation you're faced with WITHOUT removing any paint - there's absolutely no need to machine polish with a heavy abrasive or re-spray.


For those that aren't aware, we've put together a fairly comprehensive guide on all things car care related on our website which you may find usefull for future reference: Car Care Advice | How To Detail Your Car | Polished Bliss