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Vacuum thoroughly
http://www.dri-wash.com videos at http://www.dri-wash.us/eti/driwash_video_library.htm The only cleaning products that ever touch our Roadster's top are original Dri Wash 'n GuardR, DWG Upholstery, Fabric & Carpet Treatment and DWG All Weather Tire Treatment. For cleaning (inside and out) we use high quality Micro Fiber towels. Important- The only places we recommend using regular Micro Fiber towels is for convertible tops and cloth interiors. The only Micro Fiber towel that should touch your Corvette's exterior is the DWG Buffing Towel. The DWG Buffing Towel is the only Micro Fiber towel we tested that will not feather scratch soft clear coat finishes. Quality white terry cloth wash cloths work well too. If you choose to use terry cloths, spend a few extra dollars for good ones so they won't be shedding lint, especially if your top is black or another dark color. Wet a clean micro fiber/ terry with tap water and wring it near dry. Mist DWG Upholstery/Fabric/Carpet on a 2 ft. x 2 ft. section of the top. Draw the damp micro fiber/terry across the section you just misted. Check your micro fiber/ terry for dirt and discoloration. If soiled change to a clean section and draw across the section again. Now switch to cross grain (other direction) and draw across section yet again. Buff completed section with a clean dry terry. Work small sections until you have cleaned the tops entire surface. Always discard dirty micro fiber/terries (for washing later) so you are not smearing dirt from place to place. It takes only a light misting of DWG Fabric/Upholstery to do an outstanding job so use sparingly. The keys are to turn or change micro fiber/terries often, wet micro fiber/terry with tap water and wring it to get drawing effect then draw or pull the micro fiber/terry across your top in two different directions (cross grain) followed by buffing with a clean, dry terry. For in-between cleanings use a damp (tap water) micro fiber/terry and draw across the fabric in both directions followed by a light buffing. In some instances you may have a stain from diesel oil, a bird dropping, etc on your convertible top that needs a little more attention to remove. Clean your Corvette's entire top as outlined above first. Then, with a soft bristled brush (a soft tooth brush or hand brush works well), work DWG Fabric/Upholstery into the stain. (Be sure the brush is soft so you don't mark or damage the canvas). You will create some foaming at this point.
Use a clean, damp micro fiber/terry to frequently blot the spot. When the stain is gone you will have a wet spot. Leave your top up until the spot has dried. For your Corvette's rear window (plastic or glass makes no difference) we use original Dri Wash 'n GuardR. IMPORTANT! Do not spray from the AIRosol applicator directly onto the window. YOU DO NOT WANT OVER-SPRAY ON YOUR ROADSTER CONVERTIBLE TOP's FABRIC. Instead, spray a small amount of DWG on the corner of a terry and apply the DWG with your terry to window, being careful not to get any on your tops fabric. (You can clean a slipsy from your top's fabric with DWG Upholstery/Fabric cleaner but try not to get DWG on the fabric.) Buff with a clean terry. You'll be amazed. This works especially well to sharpen up plastic windows. All that's left is to apply DRI WASH 'n GUARDR All Weather Tire Treatment to your tops rubber weather-stripping several times a year. Don't spay it on, instead use a corner of a clean rag, wipe on and using a second cloth, wipe off. Be careful not to get Tire Treatment on the fabric. Also, the best sprayer for the bottles are from Griot's Garage They are not very expensive and work perfectly.
I believe you cannot rinse a
car too much before washing it. I have a 1 inch hose I purchased from
Griot's Garage that gives me some major water pressure.
This helps to loosen any bugs, heavy dirt, etc... prior to washing
The trick here is to use
something that is gentle on your car's current finish. You do not want to be
striping off all traces of wax or polish every time you wash. Because I use the
entire Zaino car polish treatment on my C5, I use
Zaino's Z-7 Show Car Wash. It contains no detergents and does
deteriorate the Z-2 polish.
That same 1 inch hose from
Griot's Garage
comes into play here again. However, this time is use it without the nozzle.
Letting the water run freely from the hose with no nozzle seems to minimize
water spots for me. It is also helpful if you can get someone else to rinse the
car for you as you wash. Keeping water flowing over the car right up until the
point you want to dry also minimizes the chances for water spots.
Drying the car is another
multi-step process.
1.
First I use the Original California Water BladeTM.
It removes the large amounts of water very quickly. I am convinced that the
faster you dry the car off, the less chance for, you guessed it, water spots. I
use it on the entire car being very careful to always go in the same direction.
I am also careful to thoroughly rinse off the blade before using it to make sure
there are not particles left on the blade from its last use. I have read a few
post from folks who do not care for it because they are worried about scratching
their finish. I have been using the Water Blade for about 3 years on a Red
finish and have noticed NO scratches of any kind. Make sure it is the California
Water Blade though. I have no idea how some of the other brands on the market
may affect you car's finish. I found my Original California Water Blade at a
Corvette show in Spearfish, South Dakota
2.
Next, I blow dry the car with my leaf blower. I use an electric leaf blower and
I use this leaf blower only on my car. This works very well at blowing the
excise water out of the mirrors and around the emblems, all of those places that
manage to drip on your car later when you drive.
Finally, I cleanup any water
still left on the car with the Absorber, something else I found at
Eckler's. It soaks up lots of water very quickly. I also
have a variety of real and synthetic chamois that I use during the final drying
process. The trick to using a chamois or the Absorber is to keep it clean. If it
falls on the ground, stop using it until it gets laundered.
I use only 100% white
cotton towels by Cannon or Fieldcrest.
I have cut the edges off to eliminate a bulky hard edge.
I have only used one polishing
product on my 2006 Victory Red; Dry-Wash & Guard.
After the car has been completely dried, I do one panel at a time using
Dry-Wash and a small white towel.
When dry and a haze appears, I use a large (clean) white towel to remove the
haze.
The shine is GREAT!
Cleaning my engine is another multi-step process because some of my covers have
been custom painted. A little special care when detailing the engine is
required.
1.
I hose down the entire engine
compartment with a high pressure nozzle. This removes most of the dirt. I then
spray everything, and I mean everything, with S100 Total Cycle Cleaner
"Aerosol". This stuff is available from almost any motorcycle shop and it is
amazing. You just spray it on and rinse it off. It cleans all of those small
hard to reach spots too.
I clean my engine every time I wash the car so it is never really "dirty".
I then attempt to dry as much of the engine as I can.
2.
I dry everything, apply some Dry Wash & Guard to
the painted stuff, and that's it.
3.
A friend in our car club turned my on to this next
step. I didn't believe him when he first told me to try this. However, even
since I did, it has become a major part of preparing my engine compartment for a
show. I clean everything black in the engine compartment with Pledge. Yup, the
furniture polish, Pledge. It does a great job or dressing up all of those black
pieces.
I also have factory Chrome
wheels, not an easy wheel to clean.
When they are clean, I apply a
light coat of Zaino's Z-2 polish. The Z-2 makes it easier to keep the wheels
clean and cuts down on the amount of time needed to touch the wheels up before a
show.
I use Stoners brand
“more Shine, Less Time to clean my tires. I like it because it leaves a more
natural finish. It does not leave the tires all glossy, just clean, almost brand
new looking.
A friend turned me on to a
product called Blue Magic Metal Cleaner that I use on my Corsa Stainless Steel
Exhaust. This stuff is great!
It does a much better job than wheel cleaner.
It makes those exhaust pipes sparkle.
It's time to clean the glass,
front, rear and headlights. I use
Griot's Garage glass cleaner.
I have tried just about everything on the market and believe that Griot's
cleans best. I always spray the
cleaner on the cloth and then clean the windows.
I do not spray anything that might get on the finish. This is especially
important when trying to clean the insides of the windows.
Even though I always show my car with the convertible top down, I still
make sure the glass in the top is clean, both sides.
And remember to clean the head lights, they get dirty to.
I always use a shop vacuum
that plugs into an outlet. Those
portables are nice for quick and dirty touch-up work but they just don't have
the power to really clean the carpets in a car.
So I pull out all of the mats, vacuum everything I can reach, vacuum the
mats outside the car, replace the mats and I'm done.
Cleaning Rubber i.e: Floormats
It now time to clean all of
the plastic inside the car. I clean everything (console, door panels, etc...)
with Zaino's
Z-14 Plastic-Magic Cleaner & Polish. Everything with the exception of
the Dash. I absolutely do not use
cleaners on my dash. I dust it and if it needs cleaning, I use a soft cloth and
warm water. The dash has a non-reflective surface that must be maintained.
If you use a cleaner on the dash that leaves a shine you are asking for
driving problems.
I usually only clean the leather right before a big show or when something "needs" to be cleaned up. I use Griot's Garage Leather Care Spray (11082), Blue Detailing Sponges (11205) and Micro Fiber Interior Cloths (11080). These products do a very good job without overkill. Back to top
Finally, at the show, there is
all that last minute touch-up. If I have time I will apply a complete coat of
Z-2 Pro Polish. If the car looks
really good already, I will just touch the car up with Z-6 Gloss Enhancer and
Z-8 Grand Finale™ Spray Seal.
Before applying Z-6, I dust the entire car with the California Duster.
I use the large Duster for the outside and use the small California
Duster to clean the interior. I
clean the tires with More Shine, Less time, clean all of the windows with
Griot's window cleaner, clean the wheels with Z-6 and I should be ready for the
show.
Don't forget to clean and
polish any of those extras you bring along for your display. We polish my
toolbox, fire extinguisher, and clean the glass on our signs to insure there are
no finger marks.
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