Pazza said:
Hi all
Having acquired my Z4 coupe I am now considering investing time and money keep it clean and tidy.
I am after products from start to finish, I guess from shampoo all the way to polish.
My Zed is not garaged and just driven at weekends and holidays.
Any recommendations of brands and products ?
Thank you
Silver is quite a forgiving colour in terms of dirt, but a harder colour to get an ultra glossy ‘wet look’ gloss finish on (compared to the darker colours)
Some good pointers in the thread already, and a logical question would be how much time do you want to spend at the outset and then on regular upkeep?
If you’re prepared to put more hard work in at the beginning then maintenance washes will be easier.
For a car that’s going to sit outside 24/7 I’d echo Nanu and suggest an easy to use ceramic product.
If you’re not intending to machine polish the car, then I’d suggest you select your clay carefully as some are harsher than others and you don’t want to mar the paint whilst claying.
If not correcting the paint with a machine, I’d probably go
Bilt Hamber surfex HD 1/20 for decontamination
Then a fallout remover - lots of good ones available
Then a tar remover - Tardis etc, many available
Then Clay
Wash
Top coat - ceramic (spray type product)
I’d do it this way around because you’ll have reduced detritus to clay off of the paint, so likely to cause less marring.
If you really don’t want the cost or expense of doing all that then something like
Wash
Clay
Wash
Sonax BSD
Sonax BSD isn’t ceramic, but it gives a very glossy finish, excellent water repellency and lasts reasonably well - not as well as ceramic sprays, but you could top up easily even with a wash every couple of weeks. After initial application you can spray it on to wet panels after washing, it helps with drying and will top up the finish- Very easy to use
Finland