How do I care for my new car?

People often believe that new cars need no or very little care. Not true! When vehicles leave the factory, they sit in dirt parking lots, they are transported by trains, trucks, or ships, and then they are subjected to harsh washing conditions at dealerships. This is how I spruce up a new vehicle:

1. Scrub the tyres & existing greasy, oily tyre dressing, with a general purpose cleaner like dish washing liquid diluted in a spray bottle.  The percentage is not important; I use about 20% cleaner, 80% water. Thoroughly wash and dry the vehicle.

2. Use Adam’s Detail Spray and a Clay Bar to remove rough surface spots and contaminants. Clay the paint, chrome, and glass. Leave Clay Bar and Detail Spray residue on the vehicle.

3. Rub Adam’s Vinyl, Rubber, & Tyre (VRT) dressing on exterior rubber and plastic. Do the tyres last.

4. Apply Adam’s Revive Polish directly over the Clay Bar and Detail Spray residue. Remove polish with a microfiber polishing towel. Follow with a fine coat of Butter Wax.

5. For interior detailing, rub VRT on the dashboard and door panels and use Adam’s Leather Conditioner every two weeks for the first two months that you own the vehicle. Leather is very dry in new vehicles, so be sure to moisturize seats and other areas frequently.  

Maintain your vehicle’s shine by hand-washing and drying it regularly, and by using a mist of Adam’s Detail Spray on the paint and glass. You will have to reapply the water-based VRT after each wash.

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How do I remove swirl marks?

  In order to understand what Causes Swirl Marks and Surface Scratches, you need to understand
  ways to help avoid them;

  It’s important to understand the difference between Swirl Marks, Spider-webbing, and Surface Scratches.  It’s
  also good to know what causes each type of scratch, and how to avoid them.
 

  Here is a brief guide the most common scratches plaguing today’s finishes:
 

Swirl Marks are ultra-fine scratches in the finish caused by a high speed buffer and compound.  After a vehicle or panel is painted, colour-sanded, and buffed, you will see swirl marks, especially in the sun or under lights. 

1. Avoid high speed buffers, wool pads, and heavy compounds unless you are a professional car detailer!
2. Avoid low-end body or paint shops.  Cheap body and paint work can reduce the value of your vehicle below it’s damaged value!
3. Stick with a Dual Action, Random Orbital Polisher.
4. Only use foam pads with the polisher.

Cobwebbing or Spider-Web scratches look like a spider web when viewed in the sun or under lights.  These ultra-fine scratches are caused by a few things:

1. Driving through a Car Wash or other mass-volume wash system is the #1 way to scratch your vehicle. 

2. Using Terry Cloth Towels or Cotton Diapers to wash, dry, or dust is a bad idea, and will always scratch the clear coat or paint.

3. Use a new Wash Pad every twelve to fifteen washes.  It’s an investment of $6 every quarter that makes good sense, and helps reduce scratching while washing.

4. Over-use of a car duster is a bad idea.  If you do use a duster, it should be at a show, or after a short drive only. Do not use a duster on a dark vehicle more than once or twice a month.  Use a duster on a light coloured vehicle not more than five or six times before polishing and waxing again.

5. If you like to keep your car free of dust, use one of these methods:

                    i.     Keep a car cover on the freshly cleaned vehicle.

                    ii.    Use Detail Spray and a Microfiber Polishing Towel to remove dust. 

                           This lubricates the dust while picking it up, and adds shine at the same time!
 

Fine surface scratches unfortunately happen with vehicle use or storage.  If you drive it, it’s going to get a scratch or two!  Scratches happen, and it’s important to think about minimizing their possibility.

1. Don’t park close to other vehicles.

2. Park far, far away!  Further is better.  Enjoy the exercise!

3. Think about carrying boxes or bags through your front door, and not your garage.  Most scratches happen in your garage or driveway!

4. Make sure your kids watch our Adams DVD before having them help you wash or detail your vehicle!

    Want to Avoid Scratches altogether?

Store your vehicle up on a lift, in a locked garage or warehouse, with a soft cover.  I’ve got many customers who do just this, and it’s the only way to positively avoid scratches! 

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How do I remove overspray, tree sap & surface roughness?

  Minimizing Swirl Marks by hand, Adam’s Style;
 

1. Wash vehicle, or use the Detail Spray and Microfiber Polishing Towel to clean the surface.
    

2. Determine the need of a Clay Bar.  Using a sandwich bag or piece of flimsy plastic bag, gently rub the surface to feel for roughness.

    

   1. Feel little bumps?  Clay it!

   2. Smooth?  Skip it! 

    

3. Dress your plastic, rubber, and vinyl with our Vinyl, Rubber, & Tyre Dressing.  It’s okay to be a little sloppy and get some on the paint or glass.
    

4. Determine a good part of the vehicle to use a test spot.  Find a spot on the trunk or hood, where inspection is easy.
    

5. If working by hand, use our Swirl & Haze Remover (SHR) and a Microfiber Applicator pad.
    

6. Apply a small amount of SHR to the surface of the vehicle.
    

7. Spay one mist of Detail Spray into the applicator pad.
    

8. Rub up and down over an area, say 10 inches square, covering each square inch at least five times.
    

9. Now do the same going side to side.
    

10. Do not remove the SHR residue!
     

11. Using the opposite side of the MF Applicator, Apply the same amount of Revive Polish in the same manner as the SHR.
     

12. Remove the residue with a clean Microfiber Polishing towel. 

    1. Note:  Be sure not to use the cheap, bulk Microfiber towels on your paint.  The cheap towels can scratch just like a terry towel.  Use only high quality Microfiber, which should be ultra soft to the touch, wash after wash.
        

13. Apply a thin coat of Buttery Wax to the vehicle, then remove the residue.

Did you reduce the swirls to your satisfaction? 

1. Yes:  Great!   Finish the car, completing one step at a time, one panel at a time. (Complete the SHR step to the entire vehicle, then on to the Revive, etc.)

2. No: If you aren’t afraid of the work, repeat steps 6-12 above and see if the results are acceptable.  Otherwise, you’ll need to get a Random Orbital Polisher in order to get the results you want, and with 1/8 the effort.

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How do I restore a faded & oxidized finish?

Some finishes need to be repainted if they have been neglected for too long. I back my products with a 110% guarantee, yet nothing we manufacture will replace missing paint or disintegrating clear-coat. Note that because boat and RV finishes are different from standard vehicles, the restoration process is dependent on the age and colour of the gel coat or fibreglass. Contact me directly and give me specific details of your boat or RV. I’m happy to discuss your unique situation.     For all other vehicles, follow these steps for removing oxidation:   Wash and dry the vehicle.   Follow with the Clay Bar and Detail Spray. The combination removes surface contaminants and facilitates polishing. For sever oxidation, use Scratch & Swirl Remover and Revive Polish, combining the two 70 – 30 respectively. Applying by hand, you can reduce swirl marks by 60 – 85 percent. To reduce marks by 95 – 100 percent, I recommend using a polishing machine like a Random orbital polisher, available at most home improvement centres, using sponge pads.  We sell the applicator pads you’ll need at  adamspolishes.com.au Polish the entire vehicle.  Remove residue with a clean microfiber towel.    With a clean applicator pad, apply Revive Polish to the entire vehicle.  Remove residue with a microfiber polishing towel and follow with the Butter Wax. Remove residue with a microfiber polishing towel. Back to Top Ask a question here that's not answered in our video   © 2010 Adam's Premium Car Care Products Australia - A.B.N. 56507531194 Pages best viewed with Internet Explorer : Web Design - Steve Mack