OK the snows melting and the nice weather is coming back time to clean up those diesels!

I recommend starting with a good wash, including the engine and undersides. Then clay the paint and follow that up with a nice polish. Finish the paint off with two coats of a nice wax.

Now onto the interior, 303 the heck out of it and vacum away.

Don't forget the door jams!

Pull the wheels off to inspect the suspension and Simple Green the wheel wells. They look awsome clean and are not hard to keep clean. Don't forget to clean the brake dust out of the back of the wheels.

A clean MB is a happy MB!

__________________
2016 Corvette Stingray 2LT
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Thought you might be clearing out parts cheap....

__________________
Bill Reimels
Now down to one:
1972 300SE 3.5 W109 (Euro delivery)

Ha no I don't have enough parts to clean out. Just a "small" private stock. Ie about 1/2 of a 420SEL is in my basement.

__________________
2016 Corvette Stingray 2LT
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Snow? Basement? What are these things?

__________________
Rick Miley
2014 Tesla Model S
2018 Tesla Model 3
2017 Nissan LEAF
Former MB: 99 E300, 86 190E 2.3, 87 300E, 80 240D, 82 204D Euro
Chain Elongation References

I gave my car a good washing yesterday in the nice weather. Unfortunately my paint is not worth claying or polishing (the clearcoat is coming up all over), but I do throw down a coat of cheap wax just to keep it from getting worse too fast.

I used the Eagle brand wheel cleaner for the first time the other day, and was very pleased. It took the brake dust off like nothing else! Worked pretty well on the diesel stain down the side of the car by the fuel filler door too.

The inside of the car is in good shape, but the carpets need a serious shampooing. I'll get to that soon..

Its nice to have it clean again.. I'd been spraying off the underside regularly through the winter, but I didn't spend much time on the rest of the car, since I knew it wouldn't last. Particularly the wheels, I've forgotten how nice they can shine.

peace,
sam

__________________
"That f***in' biodiesel is makin' me hungry."

1982 300TD Astral Silver w/ 250k (BIO BNZ)
2001 Aprilia SR50 Corsa Red w/ 5.5k (>100 MPG)

LMAO

__________________
BENZ THERE DONE THAThttp://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...c/progress.gif
15 VW Passat TDI
00 E420
98 E300 DT
97 E420 Donor Car - NEED PARTS? PM ME!
97 S500
97 E300D
86 Holden Jackaroo Turbo D
86 300SDL
(o\|/o)

Eagle wheels cleaner works well but with any wheel cleaner they are strong and you have to be carefull. I treat my wheels like my hood, they will get clayed, polished and waxed. I also use a dedicated wheel wash mit to prevent brake dust from damaging the paint.

__________________
2016 Corvette Stingray 2LT
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I do need to take the time to do a good wax on my wheels. They're a set off of a newer mercedes (I think a late 90's CLK), and look very sharp with my silver paint. They are worth taking care of. They've got a little curb rash, but are in very nice condition.

If only I could say the same about the rest of my paint... I can now say with honesty that the paint is the worst part about my car. Mechanically great, wonderful interior, great wheels, new suspension, terrible paint. Oh woe is me. I suppose things could be worse, right?

peace,
sam

__________________
"That f***in' biodiesel is makin' me hungry."

1982 300TD Astral Silver w/ 250k (BIO BNZ)
2001 Aprilia SR50 Corsa Red w/ 5.5k (>100 MPG)

What do you mean by clayed? I never heard that before.

Danny

__________________
1984 300SD Turbo Diesel 150,000 miles

OBK member #23

(\__/)
(='.'=) This is Bunny. Copy and paste bunny into your
(")_(") signature to help him gain world domination

"Claying" your paint means rubbing it down with a clay bar. Not just any clay, but clay meant for paint. Its one of the 'secrets' of pro detailers. The clay is a mild abrasive (way mild, nothing like a polishing compound), and it attracts and rubs off paint contaminants like an eraser. Its a great final step before waxing, and really cleans up paint well, without abrading it down like polishing compounds.

Meguiars sells a clay bar kit that you can get at many auto parts store (they have it at my Autozone) which is a good basic kit. There might be better ones out there, but the Meguiars is a pretty good one, and very easy to find. Just follow the directions on the package, and enjoy that final step in nice paint.

peace,
sam

__________________
"That f***in' biodiesel is makin' me hungry."

1982 300TD Astral Silver w/ 250k (BIO BNZ)
2001 Aprilia SR50 Corsa Red w/ 5.5k (>100 MPG)

Thats right...if your dog digs a whole in your yard it fills up with water.......in Florida.....

You don't get snow....and we rarely get hurricanes....I'd rather have the snow.

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
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Section 609 MVAC Certified
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"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

Yep I just bought two Meguiars clay bar kits, I will do my paint, plastic, windows, and wheels with them.

Claying the paint is the only way to make it realy shine. Wax only protects the paint. A clay bar will take out all of the crap that is in the paint leaving you with a nice clean surface to start from. Then you need to follow it up with a polish like Meguiars #7; a polish will fill in swirl marks and imperfections. Then the last step is two coats of wax to make the shine last. I like Meguiars paste wax. On realy tired paint you will need probably a 2-3 step polish system, Griots has a nice one. One more step up is wet sanding. Also hand polishing is a waste of time use a buffer. You should clay and polish your paint once or twice a year. My car is outside and blue so I wax it every 2-3 months.

My wheels are similer to the CLK wheels you have, they are only a year old and I would like to keep the paint on them nice for a long time.

__________________
2016 Corvette Stingray 2LT
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Can the clay be left on to hide the rust?

Best Regards,
Jim

Hatterasguy-

Cheers to your spring cleaning thread. Heres a pic my fresh and clean paint. I always keep this thing clean, rarely a day it goes with out so much as tire shine. No rain, always garaged.

I highly reccomend using Meguirs Color-X, followed with 2 coats of Meguires NXT.

Happy Motoring!

Attached Thumbnails

 

__________________
Nate

1995 E420
1992 BMW 525i
1984 300D Turbo sold
1993 Volvo 244 sold
1995 Volvo 944T R.I.P!


"The details are not details. They make the product."
-Charles Eames

www.cbs.nu

Spring? Nicer Weather? Whats that? Its still quite cold and quite snow-laden around here, and the roads are white from salt dust.....I want it to be warmer!!!!! Supposedly its finally supposed to come on Monday and then progressively get warmer....finnaly. I'll be able to clean off the car and make it all nice and tidy.

__________________
-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)