What did you do to your Volvo today? Topic is solved

[Ocelot]

So a while back I used Carpro Hyrd02. I washed, clayed, and polished the coat before using this stuff and the S70 was like new. Water just slided right of the coat. Now, 1 month later, I'm not really all too happy with the product. The shine is gone, because of the salt on the roads and snow, so I washed the car and dried her of. But the shine is gone, the water doesn't slide of and it looks that the supposed minimal protection of three to six months isn't achieved. Anyone else have experience with products like CarPro Hydr02? Maybe I'm using it wrong, but I highly doubt that because all of the steps I've taken to really clean the coat before using this stuff.

I've used Gyeon's WetCoat and CarPlan No1 Super Gloss - same thing different brands. You aren't using it wrong per se - I'll delve into that shortly. Firstly, it is worth noting that this isn't a going to have the same hardness or durability as a properly installed ceramic coating - in the best conditions you'll only get 3-4 months out of it (despite product claims), and this timescale will decrease when its under attack from stuff like salt and strong cleaners. Its quite possible to remove the product entirely by using strong shampoos/snow foams/TFRs/APCs. What did you use to wash the road grime and snow off?

Back to using it correctly, when you had polished the car did you wipe the panels down with a grease/wax remover or similar before applying it? The durability of these products does rely on it being directly on the paint as opposed to on a layer of polish residue/grease/whatever. I'd also like to mention that drying aids or quick detailers like CarPro Reload, Chemical Guys V7, or even formulated shampoos like Gyeons Bathe+ are essential in maintaining the hydrophobic properties and should really be used each wash to get the most out of the durability.

These products are great for quick protection or when you're tight on time but they do not have any great longevity and you should not expect them to last more than a month or so in bad conditions and maybe 2-3 in 'good' conditions with regular washing.

Thanks for your reply man! And gosh darnit, I've used a snow foam cannon (as we use to call them in the Netherlands) to clean the car from all the salt buildup from last week. Perhaps that wasn't so smart. And no, I did not wipe the car with a degreaser/wax remover after I polished the car. Do you have any tips for products to use after polishing the coat? Because I now remember that after the polish, the coat felt a bit greasy. I just buffed the whole coat with a big soft Meguiars microfiber towel untill the greasy touch was gone. Also, all the other products I used are from Meguiars, except for ofcourse the CarPro Hydr02.

[Rattnalle]

I'm using a similar product from Labocosmetica and I get a solid month down on the sides by the wheels and at least three higher up on the car. We've got a ton of salt on the roads this time of year and I've done a bit of wet gravel driving as well. Regular wash is an alkaline prewash, rinse, neutral schampoo with a wash mitt, rinse. I've used iron fallout remover and petroleum degreaser a couple of times in between on top of the first steps though.

I've never polished or prepared the car really. I just make sure I give it a proper wash with degreasers and everything before I top the protection up. I've used about half a litre for three applications on the car. I've used the matching top up schampoo only once or twice, carpro has one that matches their product as well, and it seems to work about the same as applying the sealant again.

When using a wax schampoo I notice poor beading compared to when using a neutral schampoo.

What I have noticed with this Labocosmetica product compared to the carpro product is that the car is much glossier. Durability might be somewhat better but it's a small difference if any. Since they're so easy to top up, adding only a few minutes at the end of the wash, that doesn't bother me too much.

[Cookeh]

Thanks for your reply man! And gosh darnit, I've used a snow foam cannon (as we use to call them in the Netherlands) to clean the car from all the salt buildup from last week. Perhaps that wasn't so smart. And no, I did not wipe the car with a degreaser/wax remover after I polished the car. Do you have any tips for products to use after polishing the coat? Because I now remember that after the polish, the coat felt a bit greasy. I just buffed the whole coat with a big soft Meguiars microfiber towel untill the greasy touch was gone. Also, all the other products I used are from Meguiars, except for ofcourse the CarPro Hydr02.

Snow foam itself can be perfectly safe - at the correct dilution rates and dwell times. Some snowfoams are very tame, others more aggressive, a good one is Bilt Hamber Autofoam - which is arguably better used in a pump sprayer than a snow cannon but that's a different story - or something like Autobrite Magifoam. I have personally noticed that if I use too strong a dilution on my snow foam then the durability of my sealant decreases from around 3 months to just over 2. That being said I really don't mind this during winter as I'd rather get the nonsense salt/grit/nastiness off the car and the lower dilution does increase the cleaning power.

Did you do any contact washing after using the cannon? If so a particularly strong soap solution there or a stronger shampoo can also degrade the durability of Hydr02. Make sure you're using pH neutral soaps (Megs Gold Class is great, actually) at the recommended dilution rates.

Regarding removing wax/grease/whatever, there are dedicated 'detailing' products for it like CarPro Eraser for example, but honestly just your typical panel wipe will work more effectively at a fraction of the price. Any decent bodyshop brand like U-Pol or even 3M will have a panel wipe.

Nothing wrong with Meguiars, they're a good brand with some excellent products. They can be a touch pricey and there are arguably superior products available but nothing so extreme that its in a different class.

As Ratnalle points out, the top up stuff really does help with maintaining performance and stretching that durability. Also worth noting that the petroleum degreasers and tar/fallout removers are a proper prep too

[Rattnalle]

Also with the top up schampoo I wash the car with regular neutral schampoo first then use a new wet wash mitt and schampoo mix from a pump sprayer since it's supposed to be diluted quite litte so it would take a lot in a bucket.

I've never used a detailer afterwards. I usually just drive home and the wind dries the car in a few kilometers. No wiping.

[WhatAmIDoing]

That 850 OBD-II app is great, I bought it a couple months ago. It also showed the mileage on my GLT to be a little higher than the odometer says, but it says it's due to downtime from the ABS module. However in my ownership I've never lost the speedometer/odometer due to ABS malfunctioning. My ABS light has been on and off constantly over the past 6 months or so. I really need to get a rebuilt module soon.

Changed the oil on the GLT yesterday. I was going to use Rotella T6 5w-40, but I went with Castrol Edge 5w-40 since I didn't feel like buying two gallons of Rotella (for some reason nobody sells single quarts... maybe they're trying to deter people from using it in gas engines that use less oil?). I just wanted to finish the quart I already had on the shelf, and I didn't want a bunch of extra.

I went with the 5w-40 over my usual 0w-40 because I wanted to see if the thicker oil quieted my whiny oil cooler thermostat. So far, she seems to be running great. I'll report back in the coming weeks on how she's performing with the 5w-40.

I am really digging the 850 OBDII app. Gives a bit more finer detail about the car and it can reset the service light and program tire size. Learned my S70 has an extra 600 miles on it, probably from when the ABS module was intermittent when I bought it.

Rotella is a fleet oil, and most diesel engines measure oil capacity in gallons. I bought 2 gallons of T6 since it was on sale with a $7 rebate for each gallon (and quarts are just too expensive per unit). With filter my oil change came out to ~$25... 5 quarts of mobil1 was $26. I don't particularly mind having 2 quarts left over. It's good to have a little extra lying around. So far I haven't driven enough to come to an opinion on whether I prefer M1 HM 10w-40 or T6 5w-40.

[Cookeh]

That 850 OBD-II app is great, I bought it a couple months ago. It also showed the mileage on my GLT to be a little higher than the odometer says, but it says it's due to downtime from the ABS module. However in my ownership I've never lost the speedometer/odometer due to ABS malfunctioning. My ABS light has been on and off constantly over the past 6 months or so. I really need to get a rebuilt module soon.

Is this the app we're talking about? I know it would have limited functionality on a <'96 850, but would it still be able to do some of the programming/service light reset/live data feed stuff?

[bmdubya1198]

I am really digging the 850 OBDII app. Gives a bit more finer detail about the car and it can reset the service light and program tire size. Learned my S70 has an extra 600 miles on it, probably from when the ABS module was intermittent when I bought it.

Rotella is a fleet oil, and most diesel engines measure oil capacity in gallons. I bought 2 gallons of T6 since it was on sale with a $7 rebate for each gallon (and quarts are just too expensive per unit). With filter my oil change came out to ~$25... 5 quarts of mobil1 was $26. I don't particularly mind having 2 quarts left over. It's good to have a little extra lying around. So far I haven't driven enough to come to an opinion on whether I prefer M1 HM 10w-40 or T6 5w-40.

Yeah, mine was about 1,100 miles off. App showed 191k, I had just shy of 190k at the time.

Yeah, I realized that's why it's pretty much only sold in gallons. They also have a 2.5 gallon container that's a decent value.
I would have just bought two gallons, but I already have a quart left on the shelf that I wanted to use. It was leftover from my dad's E39 (that car takes 7 quarts), but he didn't like the oil. No idea why, but I thought the car ran just fine on it. I'll agree with him though that in my experience that M52 runs best on M1 0w40. Keeps the cold start lifter noise to a minimum and it runs smooth as silk.
Anyway, my OCD won't allow me to just leave that quart on the shelf all alone in that gallon bottle, haha. Maybe next time, so far I'm happy with the Edge 5w40. The Rotella is a little cheaper, so I may go with that next time. It's $19.97 on Amazon now, so $40 for 8 quarts of oil is a great deal.

I will mention that my V70 made no lifter noise yesterday when I first started it. It usually gives a few clacks, but yesterday there was nothing. Also didn't notice any noise from the oil cooler t-stat. It's under 40 this morning, so this will be the real test!

[erikv11]

Over the last 3 years I have found that you can basically always get the $7 per gallon rebate on Rotella T6 if you just google around a little bit. E.g. now, https://rotella.shell.com/en_us/coupons ... 90NXQ2Lw==

My MO has been find the 2.5 gallon jugs cheap at Walmart or Amazon, buy two of them, cash in the $35 in rebates, then wait until I run low in the basement and do it again. It ends up being about $70 for 20 quarts. I use the T6 in all of my P80 cars.

[dalel]

Not a problem you guys would have but since I'm paralysed from waist down I use hand controls in my V70. Driving to the store yesterday the brake pedal assembly just fell apart. (Driving when that happens is another story in itself.) The problem was the nut that holds the assembly together is way down inside a pipe and it really can't be seen let alone held still to tighten. While pondering the situation I decided to glue the nut onto the end of coat hanger wire and could then position and hold the nut still to re-assemble it. When the nut was tight the glued coat hanger broke away. I am quite relieved.

So now, since it is 3 (THREE!) degrees outside, I'm inside painting my V70. On canvas. I paint cars on canvas, not with air gun.

[bmdubya1198]

Over the last 3 years I have found that you can basically always get the $7 per gallon rebate on Rotella T6 if you just google around a little bit. E.g. now, https://rotella.shell.com/en_us/coupons ... 90NXQ2Lw==

My MO has been find the 2.5 gallon jugs cheap at Walmart or Amazon, buy two of them, cash in the $35 in rebates, then wait until I run low in the basement and do it again. It ends up being about $70 for 20 quarts. I use the T6 in all of my P80 cars.

Ah, they have the rebate available again. I couldn't find it when I searched, I only saw the last one that ended Dec 31st. Castrol rarely does rebates. M1 usually has them, but I don't think they currently have any. All the Shell brands are good about rebates.

Not a problem you guys would have but since I'm paralysed from waist down I use hand controls in my V70. Driving to the store yesterday the brake pedal assembly just fell apart. (Driving when that happens is another story in itself.) The problem was the nut that holds the assembly together is way down inside a pipe and it really can't be seen let alone held still to tighten. While pondering the situation I decided to glue the nut onto the end of coat hanger wire and could then position and hold the nut still to re-assemble it. When the nut was tight the glued coat hanger broke away. I am quite relieved.

So now, since it is 3 (THREE!) degrees outside, I'm inside painting my V70. On canvas. I paint cars on canvas, not with air gun.

So that's your painting of the P1800? Very nice work!