ELITE_KOV

The weather has warmed up and time to wash the cars again.


What products are you guys using? Can they picked up at stores like Advance Auto Parts or Pep Boys or the like?

Just looking for exterior wash products.

tlambert

I like Meguirs products. I've used the car wash and quick detailed for the paint and other products for the interior.

RikTT

I've been using the Meguiars Ultimate wash & wax for a number of years now. Helps to bead water off as a bonus. I don't use any quick detailers as it's the same energy as washing. Grab a nice micro fiber towel to go with it. A bucket with a grid on the bottom comes in handy to keep crud sediments at the bottom & off the rag when you re soak it.

While I'm at it, I use:
1z Einszett Cockpit Premium for interior care like the dash/screen/cluster etc. I also use Aerospace 303 protectant - solid product.
1z Einszett Leather care AFTER I wipe the seats clean with a slightly damp towel to lift unseen dirt.

If I use a certain product on one of my rides, I usually stick with those brands to it. But for car washing, I wash all of them with Meguiars Ultimate wash & wax (yellow)

Denroll

Optimum No-Rinse Wash and Shine:


It may sound like a gimmick, but it's the real deal. Being able to do a 1-bucket wash inside my garage with just a gallon of water is pretty badass. If you have a 5-gallon bucket with a lid, you can have a wash ready to go for the rest of the year. Here's how I do it:

- Get 1-2 gallons of water from my reverse osmosis system (extremely hard tap water here).
- Mix in the appropriate amount of the product (just a couple of ounces).
- Throw several clean microfiber towel into the bucket.
- Take one rag, wring only slightly, fold twice, and wash one section of the car at a time.
- Take a dry microfiber towel and dry the section you just washed.
- Move on to the next section, flipping and folding the washing towel to one of the clean sides.
- When that towel is dirty, do NOT put it back into the wash bucket. Throw it into the discard pile. I have a second bucket for this.
- Grab your next clean towel from the wash bucket and continue.
- I sacrifice one towel as the "pre-wash" for the really dirty sections. I go along the sides, fenders, rear, and then the bugs on the front to remove the majority of the dirt. Then, I go over the sections again with the clean towels when I get there.
- Heavily-soiled towels get set aside to live out the rest of their miserable lives cleaning the engine bay or exhaust tips.
- Lightly soiled towels get rinsed, then ran through the washing machine using liquid detergent that is free of perfumes and dye.
- Put the lid on your wash bucket. Since no dirty towel was put in there, your wash bucket with rags is ready for your next wash.

I typically use 4 towels for washing and two for drying. Costco has large bales of decent quality microfiber towels for like $15. That lasts me about a year. When I get a new bale of towels, I throw them all in the dryer for an hour to get rid of the lint. When I grab one for use, I rip the tag off, that way I know which ones are new and fresh.

To make the Optimum No Rinse even more versatile, it can be mixed with water in a spray bottle and used as a quick detailer or even a clay bar lubricant. It works for the painted body, wheels, and even glass.

If you live in an area where you can't really wash your car with a hose, then this will be the product for you. It would be great for California or any drought-stricken area, or if you just want to conserve water. Personally, when I'm washing my car with this, I turn my water hose on and let it run down the driveway just to assert my Alpha-male dominance over all the betas in my neighborhood. Only a true badass flagrantly wastes water in the middle of the desert.

Max.H

I stopped allowing car washes to use soap on my car that blue bubbly stuff is so powerful it strips all the layers of your wax right off the car. Horrible for your paint and clear coat on wheels, everything.

I get my car hand waxed once every 2 months. So it's always protected. Every week I have it washed with just high pressure water. Yes, that's it. The layers of wax protect and the dirt and grime just drips right off the car. I have the wash guys use my own plush microfiber drying towel and finish her off with some quick detail spray. Just for an added layer of carnuba.

every 3 or 4 washes I have them clean the Interior. Inside of my cars are always clean.

That's it.

Minty Fresh

I've considered ONR because we turn off our well in winter, and the hose water comes from the well. Yours is the best write-up I've seen on how to use it. Next winter will be ONR time.

When the well is on and the hoses are working, I use a pressure washer with the foam cannon attachment. Just a little Meguiars car wash in the foam cannon is enough to make the whole car look like it's covered in shaving cream. Hand wipe the whole car, then a light rinse to clean off the soap. The pressure washer gets serious use on the wheels. You can get Meguiars car wash at all the usual car stores.

ETA: If you plan to detail your car with clay, polish, and sealant, however, the general consensus is to use Dawn dishwashing liquid as your car wash soap that day. It strips off most of the old stuff so you can start clean before you wax.

RVAE34

I also use Meguiars wash and wax. I use the two bucket method. When done, I drive the car through the neighborhood to get the water out of the rotors etc and then dry with an absorber. Lastly, I follow up with black spray detailer. I also use Griot's garage glass cleaner.

toymr2trd

I use Chemical Guys products. They have it all and the guys at work wonder if I waxed my car last night since it's so glossy. Many good products those guys have. On Black Friday they have some seriously good deals.

http://www.chemicalguys.com/Quick_De...icants_s/6.htm

I have pretty much each one of those on that link above. My favorite is the speed wipe. I keep that in the car for a quick detail if needed. Cleans everything.

stevieg

For years, I have stuck with Griot's. I usually just order everything online.
You will find that even though you wash your car regularly, using some paint clay will really get the contaminants off of your paint and leave a clean foundation for the wax.
If you go on Griot's website you will see that Richard is a car freak and has products and gadgets to clean every inch of your car, inside and out !!


Good Luck. StevieG

Minty Fresh

I finally got my two buckets, my grit guards, and the ONR and fresh towels are on their way from Amazon. My car was professionally detailed last week, and the detailer said ONR is the absolute best way to wash a car, even if you have a hose and plenty of water.

Have you tried the Optimum Wash and Wax? Would that be overkill to have the wax mixed in every time you wash?

Dublinoh

I try to keep soap use to a minimum too, and finish with a detail spray. No absolute right way to do this but lots of clean microfiber towels is a must.

Denroll

I had the OptiCoat sealant put on my car. My detail guy said the Wash & Wax is for cars that don't have it, or if it doesn't get waxed regularly.

Dat Carguy

Adam's Polishes are the best by far!!! and if you follow them on social media they give out discounts like once or twice a week

Toadster

Optimum No Rinse Wash & Wax - 32 oz.

Minty Fresh

I did my first ONR wash last night in my garage. Everything worked out and the car looked decent, but the towels got pretty dirty even though the car was relatively clean. If the car is really dirty in the future, I will use a hose. Doing the wheels is no fun at all.

dchl21

Maguiers and mothers only