Citroen Zx16v

[R9UKE]

I'm really coming round to the Laguna III - lovely looking car, shame there's no V6

[bxzx16v]

I'm pretty sure you would like one Luke , the ride isn't as supple as on the laguna II but the handling is sharper. And with around 280lb/ft of torque the midrange is quite amazing .

Mark

[R9UKE]

Sounds excellent, the Laguna II is a bit mushy around the bends. Glad to see a much better quality key card as well, that was badly needed!

[Citroenmad]

Your ZX is looking great in those pictures Mark, I bet it was quite a treat to be using it daily for a few weeks?

Your new 'bus' looks ok, they are not bad and very spacious.

Your LagunaIII does look excellent, it really suits that colour and wheels. Its a shame they Laguna is out of production now, I might well be tempted by one at some point and I really want to have a Coupe at some point too.

I totally forgot about that IronX, ill get some ordered, it looks to work a treat. My C5s alloys have been self colouring (black!) for a good few weeks now, its in real need of a good clean.

Is the next Northern event your planning on making the Weatherby Racecourse rally? If so, ill see you there!

[bxzx16v]

I will be at Wetherby Chris in the Zx which is now back in retirement . I'll bring a few sample products for you to try

Mark

[Citroenmad]

Thanks Mark

Which day will you be there?

Ill have my Activa there on Saturday, I think you were wanting a go in one?

[bxzx16v]

Either really , are you there both days or just Saturday ? I could do either , I would love a drive in a well set up activa and would love to take you up on your offer Chris .

Mark

[Citroenmad]

Ill be there both days, though I was thinking I might bring Activa on the Saturday and the 2cv on the Sunday, as my dad will be taking the Traction down so probably go in convoy. That is only if the weather is good, if not the Traction wont be out to play.

If you are going, Sunday is the most popular day so its the better one to attend. Im sure I could always bring the Activa on Sunday if your going to be there then. Of course your welcome to a drive

[Citroenmad]

thanks for looking , Mark

Do you use the IronX as a sole wheel cleaner or do you use a wheel cleaner and then the IronX?

I have a list of stuff in my basket on cleanyourcar.co.uk, just thinking what else I need.

[bxzx16v]

I clean the wheels with valet pro bilberry diluted as required , the 1ltr bottle will last for ages , rinse well and let the wheels dry as I find ironx works better this way . Don't use either bilberry or ironx on hot wheels . Once the wheels are clean & dry give them a coat of Finishkare fk1000p and this will make them easier to clean next time with a very mild solution of bilberry or car shampoo . Ironx isn't a wheel cleaner as such it's meant to remove contaminants of paintwork etc that cleaning/clay won't remove . I've just got the 1tr squigy refill pack but the 500ml spray will last well . I tend to do the underneath the side rubbing strips as this is were it seems worst it just depends where the car has been , my old dispatch's roof was covered but the ironx removed it easily . If you want any reccommendations Chris just ask as it can get a bit confusing at times with such a big choice of products . I can bring some detailling brushes and few samples to Wetherby in a couple of weeks if you want . I'm a big fan of the Finishkare products at Cyc , there isn't anything I've tried yet which hasn't performed . A good combination is Fk1000p sealant , Fk1016 polywash shampoo and the Fk425 polywipe which is an absolutly fantastic product which I'll sometimes use to bring some bling back to the paint , it's also great on exterior glass , beware it CAN get addictive

Mark

[Citroenmad]

Thanks for that Mark

I have ordered some IronX and some other products, detailing spray, tyre dressing pad, polishing pads etc.

That sounds like quite a routine you have there, must take the best part of a day?

I ideally want it for the bottom of the car and the wheels, my car has specks of tar and some small spots of metal filings which are a pain to polish off. So this should remove those?

So im best to wash the whole car and the wheels (usually use meguiars hot rims) and then use IronX on the lower half of the bodywork and the wheels, once it has all been cleaned and dried?

Is it a must to clay and wax after using IronX or not?

I need to get some more clay actually, forgot about that.

Ill look into the Finishkare products, so the fk1000p sealant is what you use for a wax?

[bxzx16v]

Once the cars clean and dry Ironx the bottom half , I let it work it's magic and for stubborn bits apply a second spray or wipe with a microfibre , thoroughly rinse then use a tar remover ( citrus tar & glue on Cyc ) or tardis spray on and the tar will run off , you could wipe over with an old micofibre for the stubborn bits again . After everything is rinsed your ok to clay , the tar remover will destroy the clay otherwise . Once you get the paintwork upto a good standard and sealed/waxed cleaning is quite easy it's just getting the it to a good standard if it's not been cleaned much . The doblo I've just got had took litterally 3/4 days on and off to get it to a point where I'm pretty happy with it , I spent allday yesterday shampooing the seats/carpets , removing rubber trim on the roof to remove tree sap/slime , cleaning all the rubbing strips , hoovered the scuttle panel as there was a mass of leaves and crud in there , cleaned the strut tops as they were harbouring tree crud too , and gave it a coat of finishkare pinkwax on the paint , finishkare 108as on the tyres , autoglym glass polished all the windows and dressed the arches and bumpers , here's a few pics

Rubber roof trim removed , not nice





The opening rear quarters soaking in Apc to remove the green slime



Windscreen pillar rubber trim removed and yet more black slime



Tailgate area soaking in Apc to soften grime



Side repeaters removed , area cleaned with Apc to remove dirt etc



Tailgate/boot trim removed hoovered/cleaned

Before


After


Trim replaced


Wheels requiring a good clean



And done with bilberry wheel cleaner and tyres with fk108as



And waxed with Finishkare pink wax , easy application and easier removal





Thanks for looking , Mark

[Citroenmad]

Thanks again, looks like I need a few more products then!

Another excellent cleaning effort on your Doblo there, when would you be free to come and do my C5?

What drew you to the Fiat over a Berlingo?

[bxzx16v]

If you were closer I would have loved to do your C5 . The reasoning behind the Doblo started a few years ago when I was self employed and had an ex royal mail Ldv convoy which was a fantastic van which i had for about 4 yrs but it was getting expensive fueling it at the time so I decided to look for something smaller , berlingo/dispatch hdi . After looking at plenty of overpriced junk I came across a Doblo 1.9 jtd 105bhp not far from me , it was 3 1/2 yrs old but had covered 140k with fsh and had been vinyl wrapped by the previous printing company owner so the body work was very tidy other than a dent in the osf wing , the best bit was the price £2150 , the only berlingo I could get for that was a tired 1.9 D plodder , no contest really . I ran the fiat for a couple of years and tbh it was fantastic with bags of character and one of the most fun vehicles I have had . This led us to the fiat 500 we have now as we were that impressed with the doblo . Here's a pic of it ,



You really need to have a drive in a Jtd engined car they are fantastic , very responsive and economical .
I had the cat took of mine and a full stainless exhaust fitted and upto 50 would leave my 2.2Hdi C5 I had at the time.

Mark

[Citroenmad]

Ah, it is a shame you rnot closer, I'll have to see what I can do myself To be fair the paintworks is good on the C5 (its my pride and joy!) but it could be a little better if I spent more time doing it, hence my interest in car care products.

So the Doblos make excellent value for money vehicles then, I have to say I do prefer the later styling. I have been in a JTD Doblo MPV and it did seem to pull quite well, I remember it doing 100 without too much effort. I have not driven a JTD engined car though, in fact my Fiat driving is limited to a couple of 1.2 Punto Actives and a 1.6 Active Stilo, which we had for a short time.

I will need to own a Italian car at some stage, I quite like the idea of an Alfa though, either 159, Mito or Guilietta, all very nice!