:RedZed:

People say sponge is what causes swirls as it gets tiny bits of dirt on the spongey surface, then you rub them in to your paint work. Everyone raves about microfibre mitts and stuff.. I've had my z about 3 weeks and haven't washed it yet lol

I just wanted to expand on this a bit. Sponges are crap, they induce swirls because any left over dirt on the surface (normally that you can't even see) gets trapped between the sponge and the top coat. When you push the sponge around these tiny bits of dirt create the swirls. Swirls are tiny scratches in the top coat which reflect the light at different angles to the rest of the unscratched paint, this is why the scratches can be more obvious under certain types of light.

A wash mitt is designed to trap the dirt in its fibers instead, keeping them away from the paint to reduce the risk of inducing swirls. Some other stuff can also be done (such as the two bucket method, various pre-cleaners, eg, snow foam) to reduce the risk of the dirt in the first place and thus the likelihood of inducing swirl marks.

All that being said, swirls will always come back! It doesn't matter how good you are or how much care you take, they will always return, it is inevitable. If you follow a good routine you'll definitely reduce the frequency and depth of the swirls making them easier to remove. I'd honestly be surprised if you needed to fully machine polish a whole car more often than once every two years.

Subscribed. Same wheels, same requirements!

EDIT: Oh, and another thing, to gain full access to the site (so access to all the guides and classifieds etc), you must PAY to become a full member. It's only £12, but still.... Another reason we are awesome

That's a yearly payment as well. Mine just ended but I got no value from it so didn't renew.

Someone else just said hi

Keep seeing the same Azure heading into Woking as I leave each evening about 5.30.

Normally too close to each before I realise it's you to give you a wave....I'll try harder!

Saw a fellow GM in Deepcut last night. I was about 4 cars behind trying to catch up but had a granddad taking the pee in front of me who I couldn't pass.

thanks guy's for all your views good and bad, yes I knew it would be a marmite moment but I like it. it's not the finished article and does look a bit off with the wheels but like I said one thing at a time I've been to meets and the only thing that is different with a lot of the zeds is colour so wanted to add these type of discussing points to future meets . and yes I do like termite haha

I admire you for brushing off those of us who have been quite rude! As for termites, not my cuppa tea.

Makeover? That's debatable

Hoping someone is going to explain the difference otherwise I've got to go research what synchromesh is and how it works lol

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After reading this thread yesterday I watched a few videos on youtube. I've been playing with left foot breaking and double clutching when changing down, both are going to require some practice!

Double declutching isn't something you need to do with modern gearboxes with synchromesh. Certainly it's not a technique I ever use, or have ever used for that matter. I guess I could train myself pretty quickly to do it, but a decent HaT (is there an acceptable shortened version of that?! I got pilloried on PH for saying heel/toe!) does all you'll ever need it to.

I think I'm getting confused between double declutching and rev matching. I meant to say rev matching (for downshifts).

After reading this thread yesterday I watched a few videos on youtube. I've been playing with left foot breaking and double clutching when changing down, both are going to require some practice! Played with heel-toe when stationary just to get the pedal feel, that's going to take a while!!

I love all these advanced driving techniques but I do find it hard to remember what each one is for, I guess once I'm using them it'll make more sense.

If you're considering a car, post the advert and we'll help with the extras. I'm not familiar with the 370 personally but plenty around here are!

How much would it cost for dipping and how long does it last? If it chips as easy as spray paint not worth it I guess lol. At least carbon wrap is cheap and very resistant to damage.

Dipping is obviously more expensive but imo looks a lot better. Prices vary but for smaller item's like the interior switch panel's maybe £50-£80 (est.) for the pair to be done. Depends on how much prep work is involved & how large the item is though tbh.

They're usually Clear lacquered after dipping so very resilient.

 

Here's an example below just to give you an idea.

 

 

Nothing wrong with a carbon wrap instead though if you like it.

Not usually a fan of carbon (unless it's real) but that looks amazing!

I'm in Farnborough and there's plenty of us in Camberley. As others have said, sounds normal. Happy to help if I can

Three of us are heading to the 'ring over the May bank holiday for a stag do.

We might be leaving it a bit late but we still need to book 3 nights accommodation and I'm looking for recommendations as none of us have been before.

As it's a stag, one evening is likely to entail consuming copious amounts of silly juice so should we look at being in a town close by with a choice of establishments rather than on the doorstep of the track? Is there a town close enough? As we won't be driving the day after, it would be handy to be somewhere we can spend a day not needing the cars.

I literally have no idea what to expect so any information, if you have been before, is greatly received!

Get some trophy wheels, get rid of the checker plate stickers and a dash of yellow in the bay (and the calipers), job done!

My girlfriend thinks they are!

lol

GTR isn't a supercar...

We'll be there 2-5th May (we're expecting it to be busy!) It's fxn's stag do!

Your lids...

 

Good to take two copies of all your documents and licence, keep one copy somewhere other than where the originals are kept and one set with someone at home as worse case scenario they can be faxed or E'd over if need be...

 

Good thinking...by lids do you mean helmets??

Halfords do a kit with everything you need apart from the bulb kits as they're specific to each car. Didn't think a fire extinguisher was a requirement though? At least not for the countries I went to.

Great, I see the AA do one but I did think the bulb kit would be useless. Is there such a thing as a spare bulb kit for the 350? I've never had a car with HIDs before.

I don't suppose you are going to the Nurburgring are you??

Might be...

I've done some more research, the French did drop the requirement for the breathalyzer and the fire extinguisher is only required in Belgium if the car is registered there.

Myself, fxn and Lewish are off to Europe in May, whilst the route isn't set yet we'll be driving in France, Belgium and Germany. I'm compiling a list of @*!# we need to take and do before we go and I'm wondering if I have missed anything?

The list so far:

One reflective jacket in the vehicle

Warning Triangle

First Aid Kit

Fire Extinguisher

Spare bulb kit

Breathalizer

GB stickers (or badge on number plate)

Headlight modifiers (any recommendations for these?)

Driving licence (both bits)

V5

Insurance certificate

Passport

We'll also need to check that tyre depths are more than 1.6mm although more than 3mm is recommended.

Other than the above, the obvious car checks will be done such as fluids, tyre pressures and oil levels.

I've ridden bikes in Europe before and not had much of the stuff listed above but not having driven a car (and being in three zeds potentially drawing more attention) we want to be totally legal.

Thanks in advance!

Oh hi Will!

The next two roads I use are the cemetery pass and the remaining (freshly tarmac'd) 60mph part of the bends so not so bad

Cheers Roscoe. What's odd is that it only started happening after it went for a P1 and the oil was changed despite the other thread on my350 suggesting oil has nothing to do with it.

Someone in a 370 roadster gave me a wave as I was avoiding potholes in Brookwood at about 5.30pm this evening so didn't get a chance to wave back!

Then at about 5.50pm I saw a 350 heading onto the BVR from Farnborough, didn't catch the plate but it had LED number plate bulbs.

Sorry for the bump but this issue is really bugging me now. Has anyone had this issue and subsequently resolved it with an UpRev? Should I just contact Abbey?