Run what ya brung
There are four courses to choose from,
but we opted for the most popular, Detail
What You Bring option. It’s exactly as you’d
expect: a day spent detailing your own
car. What’s particularly good about this
course is that it’s tailored to your exact
requirements, a bespoke lesson in the
areas you’re most interested in. For me
it was an ideal opportunity to refresh my
knowledge and hone new techniques...
9am – Meet and Greet
The Detail What You Bring, Enthusiast
and Advanced courses are all one day
workshops and run from 9am to 5:00pm.
Our day started with a cheeky latte and
informal introduction with Academy
Technician Joe Huntley, where we
discussed what I wanted to get out of the
day before getting to work on my dirty,
daily 325i Touring.
DON’T WEAR
LIGHT CLOTHES
The guys were slightly amused
by my choice of attire. You get
pretty mucky when detailing a car!
I’d always wondered why Team
AF wear black and now I know.
Obvious really.
PUT THE
SHAMPOO IN AFTER
YOU’VE FILLED THE BUCKET
A lot of people (including me) put the
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as it froths up nicely. But this isn’t the
optimum way of mixing your solution
as the products will have a higher
concentrate in the bubbles and not
the entire water/shampoo
mixture.
9:30am – Arch Enemies
Always start with the dirtiest part of the car
and in my case that was my wheels. First up
we hit them with a liberal coat of Iron Out
and let the product work its magic, before
giving them a blast with the pressure
washer. We repeated this process, while
also tackling the barrels and arches.
10am – Wash and Go
Next we hit the car with some Avalanche
snow foam, using a detailing brush to work
the foam into all the nooks and crannies.
I’ve never been a massive believer in this
process and always thought it to be a bit
of a gimmick. But I’ve got to admit, after
seeing Avalanche in action and discussing
the process with Joe, I’ve been converted.
Next up was a quick jet wash to remove
the foam before starting the contact wash
using Lather. Joe advised to use two wash
mitts here; a noodle mitt for the wheels and
lower sills, and an ultra-soft mitt for the rest
of the car. So it’s not just two buckets, it’s
two mitts, too!
After another blast with the pressure
washer, we hit the car with Iron Out. Yup,
this stuff isn’t just for wheels and it proved
to be a vital step on my car.
After yet another hit with the pressure
washer, we covered the car in Aqua Coat
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dry the car before heading for lunch...
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AUTO FINESSE
