Oh NO I am one of THOSE guys now!

[acdii]

OK, yesterday before I went to pick up horse stuff, I dusted off the car, then went over it with Turtle Wax black car detailer spray. Picked it up, came back and wiped the bugs off.

 

This morning we were going to the stores in Woodstock, and again, wiped down the car, and cleaned the windows.

 

We were on our way back, and needed gas, so as I am driving to our regular station, I saw bugs hitting the car and frowned and said damned bugs, and pulled into the station just as a storm hit. Oh no my baby is getting wet. As we were on our way home with the rain pouring down, and me grumbling, my wife pulled up the music screen and did a quick search and played Im in love with my car.

 

I laughed, she laughed, kids were puzzled.

 

We get home and after pulling into the garage and emptying the trunk, I grab my drying stuff and towel off the car. This time my wife just looks at me and says, Man you are getting ANAL about your car!

 

OK, I have to admit, I am obsessing over keeping it clean more than any other car I have ever owned, and I guess it is because it is the best looking car I have ever owned, and between this one and the Flex, I will be a busy guy on the weekends. :) I got a trunk organizer and everything is neat and in a place for the first time ever. Yeah I have gotten anal about this one.

 

Sad part though, there is a little ding on the drivers door just below the window, and I am pissed about it, going to see if the body shop and massage it out. I don't know how it got there or when, but it stands out!

[djminfll]

I cannot let a weekend go by without washing mine. No matter what else we are doing, I have to leave 30-45 minutes minimum to wash, dry, and vacuum.

[clummus]

could you post a pic of your trunk organizer accdi

[kuzzi]

My parents visited so I naturally let them park their car in the garage. It was a sprinkler night so I had plenty of water spots on the Fuzzi in the morning. I've been too busy to wipe them off but that's probably going to happen some evening soon.

[corncobs]

Don't feel bad acdii I'm in the same boot; I already feel watched by my neighbors especially after doing the Zaino.

 

A few weeks a friend came by and actually took a picture me washing my FFH. He said he never believed he would witness me washing my car!

 

The FFH has already gotten more washes than the HHR in 5 years - upps.

HHR was Sunburst Orange so dirt didn't show up at all it pretty was cleaned itself in the rain.

Those times are gone the FFH is way the stunning to drive it around dirty! After the rain I have to say I'm even more impressed with the Zaino treatment the finish still looks very good.

I guess RR helps a little bit and that's one reason I don't want a black car again even if they always look awesome but it's a pain to keep spotless.

[HenryVIII]

Welcome to the club! Hey there is nothing wrong about keeping a clean car! After all you spent thousands of dollars on it, might as well keep that investment clean!

Edited June 25, 2013 by HenryVIII

[hermans]

Sad part though, there is a little ding on the drivers door just below the window, and I am pissed about it, going to see if the body shop and massage it out. I don't know how it got there or when, but it stands out!

I use a hairdryer and a can of computer dust spray. Dry ice also works great. I've done this many times to several different cars. Why pay a body shop? I removed a small door ding just last week.

Edited June 24, 2013 by hermans

[hybridbear]

That's hilarious!! So which car does she drive then?

[hermans]

The door ding was in the FFH, the car I now drive. My wife laid claim to the MKZ the day it was ordered.

[LEM]

How do you deal about parking your car next to others? I'm extremely paranoid about somebody hitting it with the door! :runaway:

[Riggo]

You could get something like this LEM

I thought about getting something like this but then thought people might want to key my car or mess with it more after seeing it on the car.

[SteveB_TX]

I was just as anal about keeping my convertible clean acdii. I dusted it every time I was going to take it out of the garage, and it only got driven it the rain once in the 8 years I owned it. I think I have dusted the MKZ a couple of times now, and has been driven in the rain once also. I wanted a white car this time so the dust would not show up as easily as it did on the dark red Mustang. What I didn't think of about a white car is that those stinking bugs show up like crazy! I too clean off the bugs immediately after I pull into the garage. The front bumper and mirrors always get an extra coat of wax to help remove those little paint suckers! ;)

Edited June 24, 2013 by SteveB_TX

[acdii]

I'm sad, it rained on the way to work, now I have to start all over again :(

 

 

I will give that heat up cool down method a try, just need to make sure I don't over do it since I don't actually have a hair dryer but a heat gun that can strip the paint off a battle ship. I meant, what the heck would a balding dude need a hair dryer for anyway!

[LEM]

You could get something like this LEM

I thought about getting something like this but then thought people might want to key my car or mess with it more after seeing it on the car.

 

hehehe... that would be too much! :)

[hermans]

Be really careful with the heat gun. I use my wife's hair dryer, she's not bald.

[Osofast]

Herman's could you go through the process on how one would go about removing a door ding with the above mentioned items.........I have a ding I would love to take care of. Thx.

[SteveB_TX]

Be really careful with the heat gun. I use my wife's hair dryer, she's not bald.

+1 there Hermans! My heat gun could burn the paint off the car in a split second!

[hermans]

Herman's could you go through the process on how one would go about removing a door ding with the above mentioned items.........I have a ding I would love to take care of. Thx.

Just heat up the area with a hairdryer and then spray the area with a can of compressed air, like computer dust spray. You can also use dry ice in place of compressed air. Make sure you use some pretty heavy gloves if you use dry ice and rub the ice over the dent.

 

If you Google repair fender dents you will see much info and even some YouTube videos. It works. You may have to do it a couple of times and I've seen some pretty big dents come out that way.

 

I've been doing this for a long ti,e now on my cars.

Edited June 24, 2013 by hermans

[Riggo]

I've seen a few videos showing it doesn't work at all. So you've tried it yourself and it works huh? Is there a certain technique to get it to work?

[GrayStrider]

How do you deal about parking your car next to others? I'm extremely paranoid about somebody hitting it with the door! :runaway:

I totally get that!! We're nearing 7 mos of ownership and dingless... will be so bummed when the first one happens!!

[hermans]

I've seen a few videos showing it doesn't work at all. So you've tried it yourself and it works huh? Is there a certain technique to get it to work?

Just as I described and it works.

[acdii]

I am pretty handy with the heat gun. I use it to shrink the covering on my planes, and have only one time put a hole in the stuff because I got too close. I will give it a try, but will test it out first on our other car.

 

As for my trunk, need to vacuum it, but its finally neat.

 

[hermans]

I've seen a few videos showing it doesn't work at all. So you've tried it yourself and it works huh? Is there a certain technique to get it to work?

OK, I looked at two videos, one dry ice and one with compressed air. Both videos were put up by collision repair ships and both were doing it wrong.

the guy, after heating the surface, is taking way to much time to apply the compressed air. The surface is cooling off and he is spraying the center of the ding and not the outside. The same with the dry ice video I watched.

 

In the videos, again, both were posted by collision shops - you think they had an incentive showing it not to work????

Edited June 25, 2013 by hermans

[acdii]

A collision shop would screw themselves showing how its really done. They heat and cool to shrink and stretch metal all the time.

[rico567]

How do you deal about parking your car next to others? I'm extremely paranoid about somebody hitting it with the door! :runaway:

This is one of the things I dread about buying a new car. Used = no problem. But it won't really become "our" car until its first ding.