WHat is the best way to clean a car?
soap?
drying?
wax?
what is the best product?
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I use
Mr. Clean soap
Mr. Clean auto dry
Zymol wax
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Cleaning car...
WHat is the best way to clean a car?
soap?
drying?
wax?
what is the best product?
________________________________________
I use
Mr. Clean soap
Mr. Clean auto dry
Zymol wax
In the summer when I do a proper cleaning, I like to hose down the car, take a tablespoon of zip wax soap into a bucket of lukewarm water (fill bucket from the hose, left in the sun for a while), get that all soapy, hose down. Take the chamois (a real one) and dry the car. Now she looks good... put a bit of wax on the buffer, wax that sucker up.
Nice
In the wintertime, you have to wash the car very frequently, sometimes every other day. Once you have that white salt film, it must be washed off immediately. I hit the car with the hose with my thumb partially inserted (to raise pressure) and then use a wash mitt and a bit of soap to get off the rest of the salt. Then dry with the chamois, particularly important because water freezes quickly at -20 C. I only wash after driving the car for a while, a lot easier on your hands.
Well if you REALLY want to get into it, go to http://www.autopia.org, I've been a lurker there for a long while....
Currently I use Meguiars's soap w/ a wash mitten (two bucket system), Dry with a big MF towel, Wax: Klasse AIO/SG topped with S100 or Pinnacle Souveran. But I have tried a LOT of different waxes.
"Find a product you like and use it often"
Many people will tell you that Zaino is the best, and if you're talking durability, Zaino is pretty much the king, hands down. But for appearence, there are a lot of other products out there that will give you a much better look than Zaino IMHO.
Jim
The best I have ever cleaned my car involved the following:
- A good automotive detergent using a very soft applicator (not a regular sponge) for the bulk of the dirt
- The Mother's California Gold clay bar for the embedded small stuff
- A good wax like Mother's or Meguiar's to take care of the little scratches and swirl marks
That will result in a perfectly smooth, very shiny finish. The wax is especially important because that's the step that prevents grime from building up quickly when you're done. It's time well spent.
You guys will think me anal.
I wax it practically every day.
For me:
Must be in the shade. I want as little drying and leaving spots while I wash or rinse as possible.
Usually I go to spray car wash armed with the following:
Bucket
Westley's blue soap
Shaggy mit
Big white towel
Many small white terry clothes (maybe a dozen)
Small varnish brush
Armor All (both dash spray and tire foam)
1. I take a varnish brush and clean out all seams and vents.
2. I bought a big Craftsman shop vac (with auto attachments) that has the same power as commercial vacuums just for vacuuming my car.
3. Spray and wipe all plastics with Armor All (the xtra shiny kind) I've got a "custom custom" dashmat so the dash doesn't glare off the window.
4. Fill the bucket with soapy water (using the Westleys).
5. Fully wet the car & power spray the wheels
6. Lather car up from the soapy water I made using the shaggy mit.
7. Fully rinse the car, then rinse it again with the spot free rinse with the sprayer.
8. Pull out of wash into the shaded area for drying. For drying, here is my routine. I use the big towl to wipe off the water beads from the roof. Then I use a terry cloth to dry whatever water is remaining on the roof. Then I do the same thing to the hood, then rear deck, then fenders, doors, quarter panels, rear, then front, then windows. In that order. Here's my crazy logic: At first, I start out using the big towel first because it will soak up a lot of water as well as push it off the car, leaving it a simple job for the small terry cloth to actually dry the part without leaving any streaks. By the time I am finished, some of the water will have dried, naturally. The big towels job is then to dampen that part of the car so that I can use the terry cloth to finish drying it. That way, any water spots that have formed will come off easily because it has been re-dampened by the big towel. Then I pop the hatch, and wife down everything in the well - hinges, rubber sealers, etc. Then I open the doors, wipe the door wells off on both the door and the car, and hinges. Then I pop the hood, wipe off the engine, belt, battery, fluid reservoirs, radiator, air intake, block, underside of the hood, rubber seal along the back of the hood, and inside fenders all using terry clothes. Turn on the headlights (opens them) and wipe off both lamps on each side inside and out. Finally, I take the wet used damp terry clothes and wipe off the wheels, inside and out, followed by wiping down the outside with a clean dry one.
9. Spray the tires with Armor All Tire foam.
10. At sunset that day, I'll wax the car with Eagle 1 spray wax, in the same order that I dried it.
Every 6 months (give or take) I'll wax the car with a real wax (usually the Eagle 1 brand liquid wax) using my Craftsman orbital. But for every day use I use the Eagle 1 spray-on. It gives the car beautiful luster, and it beads up very well at every washing. It's fast, and relatively cheap, considering how much I use it.
The car never really gets dirty unless it rains (couple times a year...) because just about every night I will take a white towel, dry-damp it, and wipe the car down with it. It is just damp enough to hold the dust to it, but not wet enough to leave any streaks. Then I spray it again with the Eagle 1. If I happen to go more than 2 days without doing this quick wiping down, then I'll just forget about doing it until I wash it again, which will occur within a week.
Every six months I take some GM branded silicon grease to all the weather stripping (as prescribed in my owners manual).
OK...be easy with me people...
:wink:
For waxing use Nu Finish http://www.nufinish.com/products.html# This stuff does magic! The polish. I use the bottle. However the bad side is it takes forever to get your car done.
1. wash wheels with P21s wheel cleaner.
2. wash car with meguiars gold class soap. using a different mit.
3. dry car off immediately with microfiber towel.
4. claybar entire car.
5. rewash with meguiars gold class soap.
6. dry off with different microfiber towel.
7. wax car with meguiars NXT wax. let dry for 1 hour.
8. buff out wax with microfiber towel.
9. wax with S100 (p21s) carnuba wax. do not let dry.
10. immediately buff out wax again with microfiber towel.
11. detail interior and engine.
12. wipe down entire car with fresh microfiber towel.
Photo Evidence: Left click.
http://anywhereenterprises.com/1/1/a...l1OAApQZOAArl1
http://anywhereenterprises.com/1/1/a...l1OAApQZOAAsOW
http://anywhereenterprises.com/1/1/a...l1OAApQZOAAIOQ
Hmmmm....wash on wash off.............
WOW........I like a nice clean car .........but this sounds like my brother and his 2001 Cobra. The one I call the "Garage Queen" washes it every time he puts it back in garage. Side by side it puts my SS to shame.
But my SS is still faster, louder, meaner.........and that is because of the dirt................LOL
A cleaner car is not faster..........
a cleaner car provides less resistant/drag. so scientifically, it will be faster.Originally Posted by A 2000 SS in Jersey
The Dirt on my car has been specially formulated ............so it does not induce drag..........
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