Hi George,

Might be a strange question but I'm wondering what you would prescribe for engine cleaning. I used to clean the engine out on my 350z with orange blast and water and a brush and finish up by using tire shine on the rubber lines.

The G37 seems to have quite a bit more gadgetry in the engine bay and was wondering what you would recommend as I love having an engine bay that looks brand new.

Thanks.

 

Hi George, So I layered the G with product a about a month ago (glaze, sealant, wax) and it's not really due for a major detail any time soon. I was at the dealer yesterday and got a few small scratches on the side that I'd like to polish out before the next major detail. What's the best way to do this? I know i should strip the wax/sealant prior to polishing but since it's a fairly small spot how do I approach this without stripping the whole side of the car? Also when re-applying product i'm going to overlap sealant over the wax on the edges of the work area, any issues? Should I just leave this till the next time it gets a full detail?

Cheers!

 

Thanks very much, George.Sorry for not replying sooner. I have been out of town for biz.

Great stuff, as always. It's like having a detailing advice expert on retainer!

Tom

 

You have the basic process down, you want to degrease the engine, rinse, dry, and dress. Here's a good read on properly detailing your engine bay. Using something like a mini EZ Detail brush really helps clean between things and hard to reach areas. When your engine bay is properly protected, maintaining it should be relatively easy.

Good question. What I'd do is just treat the area or panel that the scratches are on. If you want to strip the protection, you could simply use some isopropyl alcohol and water in a spray bottle like a quick detailer. Polish the scratches away then reapply your protection. The key is to make sure you protect the area that you used the isopropyl alcohol on and the areas you polished. That certainly would be plenty until the next detail.

Tom, thanks for the kind words. Let me know if there's anything else I can help with.

George

 

hey george,

so i got a spot of thick hard white stuff on my trunk. it i thought it was bird poop, but it's a lot harder than that. it turns out to be white only on top and a dark color underneath so i think it may be tree sap, but again it's got a white top layer. what do you think it is? any ideas on removing?

 

I have a question as well George! I had some color transfer off of my black leather jacket onto my beige leather interior and it's darkened/discolored the leather. I've tried a few different things but nothing has seemed to work. I was thinking of trying the Leatherique to see if it would do the job but I've also heard a 20/1 solution of water and Woolite may do the trick. I obviously don't want to harm the leather so if you can suggest anything please let me know.

Thanks!!!!

 

George or anyone:

I have an appointmenmt next week to get a clear bra and window tinting done on my 09 G37 sedan (moonlight white). The vendor has recommended 30% tint on the side windows (front and back) and 15% on the back window. This is going to be done in Florida.

My question is about mixing the amount of tint (30 and 15) in one application. The vendor recommends the darker tint for the back due to more sunlight coming in from that angle. Is this a big deal? What are your thoughts on this? Would you recommend darker tint for the back window?

Thanks in advance for your feedback.

 

Tough to say exactly what it is without seeing it in person, but it very well could be some sap. What I'd recommend trying is some Isopropyl Alcohol on a towel, let it soak on the sap for a couple of minutes, then try to pick at the top of the sap to try to remove it w/o scratching the paint. If that works, chances are there will still be a ring of sap where it was located and you can try to use a clay bar on the remaining sap. Another option is to use something like Stoner Tarminator which can help break up the sap. I'd recommend following up with clay as well.

After removing the substance from the paint, you'll want to assess the finish to see if it stained or etched the paint at all. If so, you'll want to polish away the etching so that it is completely eliminated. Depending on the severity of the etching will determine how aggressive of a polish would be needed.

Hope this helps, let me know if you're able to remove the sap or whatever it may be.

You can certainly try the diluted version of Woolite on the leather to see if that will remove the dark color from the beige leather. If that doesn't do the trick, a full Leatherique treatment should certainly help. The key to getting the most out of Leatherique is the application process. Here's a full write-up on how to properly use Leatherique for maximum results. Using a leather brush to agitate the surface will help remove the stains.

I never installed tinted windows for customers, so I can only give my personal preference. Personally, I think cars look cleaner with the same tint all the way around, so if I were in your situation, I'd probably go 30 on the whole car.

Sorry I couldn't really offer any more advice on this one.

George

 

Thanks George! A follow up question as well...what should I use to protect the leather? I was thinking 303 but I wasn't sure if I should go for something more "leather specific." I want to minimize the chances of having color transfer be an issue again.

Thanks!

 

303 Aerospace Protectant is certainly a good choice to UV protect your leather. Another product that does very well and has some mild cleaning agents in it is Optimum Protectant Plus. If you look in the picture of the 17 oz bottle, they actually call it Leather Protectant, but it works on vinyl, rubber and plastic as well.

You really can't go wrong with either product. 303 dispenses thinner than the Optimum product, so it may be easier to apply thinner, but the 303 does not offer any cleaning characteristics, simply a UV protectant.

Hope this helps.

 

Yep that helps a lot! Considering the Nor'Easter is on its way this will be the perfect weekend to work on the interior in the garage. I just have to figure a way to get the temp up in the cabin so the Leatherique can be as effective as possible.

I appreciate the help and the quick responses. Thanks!

 

Anytime, keep us posted on how things turn out!

 

thanks for the tip, i'll try it out and let you know if i run into any issues. question though, if i have a rag soaked with isopropyl and just let it sit on the paint on top of the spot, is that bad for the paint at all?

 

It's not bad for the paint, however, if you have any sealant or wax on the paint, using the alcohol rag will remove any protection. After any type of prep work with ISA, clay bar, polish, tar removes, etc... you want to follow up with some protection for your paint.

 

Hi George,

I wonder is there is any update on the recommended wax for a Blue Slate G37? I have a P21S Concours Carnauba Wax from you guys, is that still recommended?

I know it's been asked before, but since time has passed, I just want to know if you have any updates.

Thanks for all your comments in here, it's greatly appreciated!