How often do you polish your French car?

This is the place for posts that don't fit into any other category.

Moderator: RichardW

Post Reply
User avatar
Napoleon
Posts: 647
Joined: 04 Nov 2008, 18:32
Location: Walmington-on-Sea AKA Bristol
My Cars:
x 4
Contact:

How often do you polish your French car?

Post by Napoleon »

I only ask as I just dedicated an hour or so to my 1.9TD.
Tim
2009 HV09 C5 2.2
1996 N679 Xantia TD VSX estate - sold August 2012
1995 M289 Xantia TD SX hatch - sold March 2012

Tarte au Citroen

2009 24" iMac 3.06GHZ
Citroenmad
Posts: 8125
Joined: 04 Dec 2008, 22:08
Location: Northeast
My Cars: 07 Citroen C6 V6 HDi Exclusive - Red
07 Citroen C5 HDi VTR - Red
09 Citroen C3 1.4i VTR - Silver
01 Citroen Saxo 1.1i Forte - Mango Orange
93 Ford Mondeo 2.0i GLX
19 Hyundai i10
x 110

Post by Citroenmad »

An hour or so ....

If im really going to give my car a good clean it takes me a day, a whole day.

First i wash it with e microfibre mit, then dry it with a microfibre cloth. I then take it round the blockto get the water out of the rubbers etc and dry it again. When its dry i start of with a clay bar and cleaning spray, then use a paint cleaner, followed by a polish and then a wax.

Each step takes me an age and does require a full day - just for the exterior.

I find if i start to polish then i have to do the whole process, or it just seems a little pointless to me, as the paint never gets as smooth as it can be jhust with polish.

I very rarely do this mind, usually its just a wash every week and a polish of any iffy looking bits.

I really need to give my C5 a good clean with the above steps. Need to do a few others too but i dont have a spare week!
Last edited by Citroenmad on 04 Jun 2010, 22:44, edited 1 time in total.
Chris
07 Citroen C6 V6 HDi Exclusive - Red
07 Citroen C5 HDi VTR - Red
09 Citroen C3 1.4i VTR - Silver
01 Citroen Saxo 1.1i Forte - Mango Orange
.
93 Ford Mondeo 2.0i GLX
19 Hyundai i10
User avatar
Napoleon
Posts: 647
Joined: 04 Nov 2008, 18:32
Location: Walmington-on-Sea AKA Bristol
My Cars:
x 4
Contact:

Post by Napoleon »

When I wrote it, I had a feeling that my, 'hour or so' could cause a ruction here or there.

:D
Tim
2009 HV09 C5 2.2
1996 N679 Xantia TD VSX estate - sold August 2012
1995 M289 Xantia TD SX hatch - sold March 2012

Tarte au Citroen

2009 24" iMac 3.06GHZ
Deanxm
Posts: 3327
Joined: 18 Dec 2008, 17:57
Location: Isle of wight
My Cars: Citroen XM
x 87

Post by Deanxm »

Oh dear Chris.................

Ok, well i can very easily spend a day on the XM which i try to do once a month, leather conditioning, clean inside and out.........
To answer the question i wax it every two weeks and wash it oince a week, i have to wash it to put the car cover on...........honest :lol:

D
XM Prestige PRV6 92
Talbot Express Autotrail Chinook 89
Mitsubishi L200 Trojan 14
Xantia Activa 95, sold (missed)

Service Citroen is awesome, it shows me pictures of all the parts i used to be able to buy............
Citroenmad
Posts: 8125
Joined: 04 Dec 2008, 22:08
Location: Northeast
My Cars: 07 Citroen C6 V6 HDi Exclusive - Red
07 Citroen C5 HDi VTR - Red
09 Citroen C3 1.4i VTR - Silver
01 Citroen Saxo 1.1i Forte - Mango Orange
93 Ford Mondeo 2.0i GLX
19 Hyundai i10
x 110

Post by Citroenmad »

Yes but your Xm looks stunning and deserves the attention im sure 8-)

Id possibly bother more with my C5 if it was not silver, as its a poor colour for polishing, it usually always looks the same. It looks better with a polish but you never get a mirror shine.

My black car, when i wasnt hating it because it was black, was actually very rewarding to polish. I find white cars the worst though, if you neglect them they take an age to bring back. OUr maroon Xm is a lovely car to polish, i dont do it enough but it really shines lovely, the colour changes too.

I really need to get a day spent on the C15, it lives under a cover but it does need a spruse up before it becomes dull.

I dont like car cleaning, though im always doing it. As much as i dont like it i guess im kind of into it.

So a normal polish takes me a good few hours. It really depends on how long the car has gone without a polish and how much you want to do.

It does come in stages, unless the car is often polished then wax is useless, if a strong polish is used to remove scratches or marks then this usually removes any past protection so i feel a light polish and wax is then needed. Once i start, its very hard to stop.

I used to take the wheels off and clean the insides and polish the whole of the wheels, though ive not done that for a while. Ive let my car cleaning lapse.
Chris
07 Citroen C6 V6 HDi Exclusive - Red
07 Citroen C5 HDi VTR - Red
09 Citroen C3 1.4i VTR - Silver
01 Citroen Saxo 1.1i Forte - Mango Orange
.
93 Ford Mondeo 2.0i GLX
19 Hyundai i10
R9UKE
Posts: 1070
Joined: 21 Mar 2010, 21:18
Location: Belfast, N.Ireland
My Cars:
x 3

Post by R9UKE »

I despise polishing cars. The Mégane gets polished about once a year if it's lucky. I'm the opposite for the interior though, leather is conditioned once a month religiously.
French is best.
User avatar
Napoleon
Posts: 647
Joined: 04 Nov 2008, 18:32
Location: Walmington-on-Sea AKA Bristol
My Cars:
x 4
Contact:

Post by Napoleon »

Chris, n00b question...

Is there a difference between polishing and waxing?
Tim
2009 HV09 C5 2.2
1996 N679 Xantia TD VSX estate - sold August 2012
1995 M289 Xantia TD SX hatch - sold March 2012

Tarte au Citroen

2009 24" iMac 3.06GHZ
HDI
Posts: 1468
Joined: 22 Sep 2009, 15:46
Location: West Mids
My Cars:
x 7

Post by HDI »

Never polish mine, don't have the time or inclination :)
Now using '00 Xantia LX HDI, pov spec :(
My past Citroens :-
'00 Xantia SX HDI, now dead due to accident :(
'99 Xantia HDI 110 Exclusive, RIP :(
'97 Xantia TD SX
'96 Xantia TD LX
'96 ZX TD
'89 BX TD
'88 AX GT
'79 CX2400 Pallas (scrapped :( )
& a couple of Peugeots !
addo
Sara Watson's Stalker
Posts: 7098
Joined: 19 Aug 2008, 12:38
Location: NEW South Wales, Australia. I'll show you "Far, far away" ;-)
My Cars: Peugeot 605
Citroën Berlingo
Alfa 147
x 93

Post by addo »

My Xantia has very thin (white) paint in many places. I've hand-rubbed through to the stone chip undercoat on the sills.

A week is about what it takes, to do the thing thoroughly inside and out. Many interior parts need removing to get the dust from inside their fine details.
Online
User avatar
myglaren
Forum Admin Team
Posts: 25365
Joined: 02 Mar 2008, 13:30
Location: Washington
My Cars: Mazda 6
Ooops.
Previously:
2009 Honda Civic :(
C5, C5, Xantia, BX, GS, Visa.
R4, R11TXE, R14, R30TX
x 4888

Post by myglaren »

Ten minutes every couple of months - at a drive through wash'nwax.
Deanxm
Posts: 3327
Joined: 18 Dec 2008, 17:57
Location: Isle of wight
My Cars: Citroen XM
x 87

Post by Deanxm »

The words "drivethrough wash 'n' wax" make me cringe.......i would rather wash my car with a grit filled garden broom than use one of those things!! besides automated car washes dont like MK1 XM mirrors :lol:

D
XM Prestige PRV6 92
Talbot Express Autotrail Chinook 89
Mitsubishi L200 Trojan 14
Xantia Activa 95, sold (missed)

Service Citroen is awesome, it shows me pictures of all the parts i used to be able to buy............
User avatar
old'uns
Posts: 558
Joined: 06 Mar 2010, 20:21
Location: Cannock / 72800 sarthe
My Cars: '02 C5 - gone
'09 X7 - gone
CMax - X7 replacement - gone
Acadiane - lost to a V5c applicant
'06 C5 VTR auto est
'90 Honda Beat
'73 ST70 Dax
'75 ST Dax - 120 powered
x 127

Post by old'uns »

polish!!!

mine gets washed once a year, used to be twice, MOT & hols time, both now at similar time
currently '06 C5 2.0 HDi auto estate Tip run and France trekker - well should be!! occupied currently by '10 Superb DSG 170 elegance- whistles and bells that work
Online
User avatar
myglaren
Forum Admin Team
Posts: 25365
Joined: 02 Mar 2008, 13:30
Location: Washington
My Cars: Mazda 6
Ooops.
Previously:
2009 Honda Civic :(
C5, C5, Xantia, BX, GS, Visa.
R4, R11TXE, R14, R30TX
x 4888

Post by myglaren »

Deanxm wrote:The words "drivethrough wash 'n' wax" make me cringe.......i would rather wash my car with a grit filled garden broom than use one of those things!! besides automated car washes dont like MK1 XM mirrors :lol:

D
Least of my car's worries!

There was a story last year of a C5 saloon being more or less wrecked by a Morrisons car was. Boot lid ripped off and thrown through the rear window by the drier.

Usually I leave my engine running while th car is washed. Last time I noticed that as the drier traversed then the car altered it's height. No ill effects fortunately but I did wonder if this could have been the cause of the other car's problems. If it had risen faster than the drier's sensors could accommodate I can see it contacting the bodywork. They probably aren't designed with height-changing Citroen's in mind.
User avatar
Clogzz
Posts: 2115
Joined: 15 May 2005, 18:04
Location: Australia
My Cars:
x 36
Contact:

Post by Clogzz »

The Xantia had a clear coat, so never got polished, and got a quick wash twice per year.
The C5’s had a recent clean after 7 months of ownership.

The roads are much cleaner than in Europe because of dry spells followed by torrential rain that cleans the roads.

Image
2002 C5 2.0i AL4 230,000 km 76372389
red_dwarfers
(Donor 2020)
Posts: 2504
Joined: 29 May 2008, 15:59
Location: Zomerzet UK
My Cars:
x 54

Post by red_dwarfers »

I will polish generally once a year.
I generally just give it a wash when its starting to look a little dirty. I cant afford to keep it in top condition as most of my driving life is spent with half the car getting intimate with hedges. The recent purchase of front mudflaps is a god send as the car does tend to stay clean even after driving through mud and puddles.

As long as it looks good from 10 paces, I'm happy :D
Kev

'19 C4 Cactus 130 Flair
Post Reply