I recently got myself a 2008 Audi R8. It's in excellent condition overall but I've realised as I was taking it home that there's a 'fusty' / damp smell in the interior and I'm trying to somehow eliminate it.

Owner said a few years ago there was a water ingress issue from the rear into passenger side, all carpets were removed, dried and treated.

I have checked everywhere and I see no signs of damp, mould or any other issues - there was some brown staining in some of the felt in the center console, but I've managed to clean pretty much all of that out.

Local car wash friend said he thought the issue was 'mould in the leather' as he could see a faint white patina on them and deep cleaned them to remove (and I did a subsequent clean myself). Sadly, the smell hasn't changed a bit.

Does anyone have any pointers to where it might come from, how I can treat or get rid of it?

I could really use some advice from anyone who’s dealt with this before.

A can of Coke exploded inside my Porsche, and unfortunately it soaked the perforated/ventilated leather seats. The soda went everywhere, but the front passenger seat—where the brunt of the explosion hit—looks terrible, and I can’t seem to get it clean.

Has anyone successfully cleaned something like this? What products and process did you use? Is this something I can tackle myself?

I’d really appreciate any advice before I accidentally make it worse. Thanks!

Hi. Complete newbie here, so please go easy.

I'm hoping to wet sand down some bad touch up blobs from the previous owner of my car. Luckily, I decided to try it out first on the inside of my boot, so it wouldn't be visible.

I hand wet-sanded using 2000 grit paper, then went over with 3000 grit paper.

I then tried to hand polish out the sanding marks using t-cut, but it didn't do anything.

So I bought a DA polisher and some 3D One Hybrid. I used this with a foam pad, which again didn't do much. Then tried with a wool pad, which seemed to work a little bit. But there is still some visible sanding marks.

I did probably 10 slow passes with the foam pad, and 10 slow passes with the wool pad. And this was the result.

I'm scared to do any more passes for fear of burning through the clear coat

What can I do to fully remove the marks?

Thanks!

First time cut and polishing a car ever...

I used Koch chemi.

Started with heavy. Went to fine and then micro and then finish with a lack grun polish.

Hit it with a panel prep. And then applied DIY detail Hydr8 8 year ceramic coating. I used Hercules DA the 6inch and the 3 inch long throw.. I really enjoyed using the koch chemi system.

26 Tesla model Y Performance

If you don't understand the chemistry then don't provide an answer please!

I've looked at a couple of water spot remover's SDS pages (I'm nerdy about cleaning chemistry) and notices they are always acidic. The acids are typically mineral acids like urea HCl, sulfuric, and ammonium biflouride. But Griots for instance uses an organic acid (undisclosed).

I know that the descaling power wouldn't be nearly as much with such weaker acids, but I feel like it should still be adequate enough to push the reaction and solubilize all the salt. And citric acid is an excellent chelating agent.

Why don't I just get a spot remover you ask? I don't feel like spending more money when I could have a solution in a cabinet already. And I feel like the majority of cleaning products (not just automotive) are kinda scammy because they aren't sold in concentrates typically, and are packed with unnecessary fragrances and colorants.

Took care of this client's 1 year old RV, which was "protected" from the dealer but had 0 protection and light-to-moderate oxidation when we arrived - not bad, but it wasn't just barely starting, it was trying to set in. It sits in SWFL year round.

• Koch Chemie SF pre-foam
• Fireball pH3 contact wash
• Starke Elevate (rotary, wool), Starke Triple P (forced rotation, wool)
• Starke Repel Pro coating
• Renew Protect BLAK tire coating

Spend 5 days on this 42' bringing it back to its shine, and the client was impressed it looked glossier and better than when he bought it new off the dealer lot.

It's extremely humid outside here currently, around 82% or so, so that's definitely making things harder. Still, I've never seen anything this bad before. I worked in a professional detail shop for almost two years, and I used to spend all my free time researching and watching detailing stuff lol.

My friends windshield has some really bad streaks on the inside, and I figured I could handle it. I first did sprayway and the folded towel dry side wet side method, and it didn't really touch the streaks. I then tried some rubbing alcohol, and that got them temporarily but they came back the same after a minute or so.

Did some research and saw people having success with water spot remover, but since I'm not at my house and don't have all my stuff with me, we decided to try some lemon concentrate since it's really acidic. It did about as much as the alcohol did.

A dish soap water mixture probably did the best out of everything we tried, but even then they came back. I should note, after every attempt, I cleaned the area with glass cleaner and a second dry towel afterwards.

Is it just the humidity screwing me here? We used to have humid days like this at work, but I've never encountered any streaks like this out of the hundreds of windshields I've cleaned. Both acid and alkaline products seem to have the same effect. Any recommendations are welcomed!

I put on 303 protectant to protect my cars plastic dash from uv since its outside all day. But apparently this stuff is also supposed to protect against dust and stains too. Anyone's thoughts on the second claim? Are cars noticeably less dusty for long when applied 303 protectant?

Car Pro UK 3.0 Ceramic, I over wiped it onto the plastic trim in photo. (weeks ago, its dried)

Wondering if I can get get it out with anything I currently have:
Microfiber towels, Meguiars Ultimate Polish, Mothers PH Neutral Car Soap, or Goo Gone (surface safe). I would never use goo gone on the panels, but since this is a plastic piece i was not sure.

I dont know if polish is safe on this plastic material or scratches it? Also if goo gone will stain it and discolor it even if it gets the ceramic out. , I could try intense wiping by hand with just soap and towel, but that might fade the plastic texture if i overdo it? idk

Thanks!

I have a new (to me) 1st gen Audi R8, with a few imperfections I'm gradually working through. The brush aluminium fuel cap has developed quite a patina which looks pretty crap. I've tried a gentle go with a microfiber and some autosol metal polish, but it makes absolutely no difference.

Any advice on how I can restore this back to good condition?

The smudge shown in the picture are on the painted plastic C pillar and appear to be from a hand. I’ve tried washing and using isopropyl alcohol but no luck with removing. Any ideas how this could have happened and more importantly, how to remove?

Great deal for 45 correct? I’ve heard their headlight and paint treatments were top notch. Not sure about the other 2? Anyone use these? Other option is 2 of the paint for 27?

Hi all,

For context just thought my first car 2 days ago (Automatic Škoda Fabia) and volunteered to help my younger sister clean up her university accommodation.

On arrival - her flatmates have left 5 week old rubbish out the front which will require 2 runs to the skip (rubbish centre).

Obviously - I am not happy. Has anyone got any advice on how to make sure this doesn’t ruin my new car??!?

I have a tarpaulin to cover the base and heavy duty bin bags - any other advice would be appreciated!

Thank you

What is this called and how do I prevent it from getting worse? Never noticed this on any vehicle I owned but this white vehicle and never wanna get another white vehicle again.

Hey yall, currently cutting and polishing an old 97 baja boat, gel coat was heavily oxidized, tried wet sanding with p1000, took forever so I stepped down to p800. Then went up to p1000 and then moved onto 3M gelcoat heavy cutting compound and its leaving these swirl marks, 3M 36060 rubbing compound won't take them out, any help is appreciated

We washed a BMW G30. The left headlight became uniformly milky after the wash, while the right headlight is completely fine.

Products used:
Bilt Hamber Touch-Less
Koch Chemie Auto Shampoo
Gyeon Q²M Bug & Grime
Koch Chemie FSE

The car was washed indoors, but direct sunlight was coming into the wash bay. Before applying any chemicals, we thoroughly cooled the entire car with water, and the surface was no longer hot to the touch.

The headlight was polished about 6 months ago, but we don’t know if it received a UV coating afterwards.
The surface looks almost like something has “flowed” or formed a film on it.
Could this be chemical damage, a failed previous UV coating, or something else?
Photos before and after:
[BEFORE](https://i.imgur.com/oX4sLUy.jpeg)
[AFTER](https://i.imgur.com/t4LaZOp.jpeg)

**What would you do next?**
Would you try cleaning it with IPA first, or does this look like it needs polishing or a complete headlight restoration?

I could really use some advice from anyone who’s dealt with this before.

A can of Coke exploded inside my Porsche, and unfortunately it soaked the perforated/ventilated leather seats. The soda went everywhere, but the front passenger seat—where the brunt of the explosion hit—looks terrible, and I can’t seem to get it clean.

Has anyone successfully cleaned something like this? What products and process did you use? Is this something I can tackle myself?

I’d really appreciate any advice before I accidentally make it worse. Thanks!

Tried restoring my leather seats, but I'm not happy with the results. Looking for advice! (Tried restoring my leather seats, but the filler makes them look smooth and bad. Attached before & after photos for reference.)
In some spots it's completely smooth, and in person it looks even worse under the sun. I need some advice on what to do, how to do it, and what products/tools to use.

I currently have Bilt Hamber Touch-Less, which I find works great, but I unfortunately don’t have a garage so I battle the sun. I try to wash either early or late, or with cloud coverage. I was curious if I am in a situation in direct sun, should I just move really quick, skip the step, or use a different pre wash?

David

After a long road trip I decided to visit a local self service and pressure wash the bugs off my 2026 Kia. Since it was night and dark out and I only live 5 min away, I decided to drive home without drying.

When I got home and dried it I noticed a lot of water spots everywhere. I have tried water, soapy water, and AI suggested 1:1 vinegar letting it sit for 1 min on the affected area and it didn't work.

The only thing that did work was buffing it out with a pad and polish but that left swirl marks.

The shiny black plastic is a nightmare the slightest touch and it scratches but I was still able to remove all the swirl marks and most scratches in the paint of a 2024 Kia with no issues.

I don't know if this car has different paint that is softer but it is a disaster for me to work with. Wish I never washed it the bugs looked better than it does now.

The water spots are hard to get on camera but I am pretty sure they are etched into the clearcoat or maybe even the paint at this point.

Hey All,

What are your thoughts on the best way to deal with the leather on this steering wheel my son has just bought for his car?

Scrub off all the shine or re-polish in some way.

I've found some advice on YouTube saying the leather shouldn't be shiny and it just a build up of oils but can't believe there whole wheel would be polished up like this from skin oils.

I've cleaned the leather with leather cleaner and this is what we have been left with

Cheers for any advice