Shampoo Selection (besides ONR)

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PointyStick

New member
Did a quick search and ONR seems to be very common, but I am looking to still wash with soap, water, washmit and a bucket.



Could anyone suggest a shampoo for the weekly wash. Optimum Car Wash good? Dont mind ordering online.



Car is a 2006 BMW 323i, Arctic White. Currently have a few coats of Menzerna Power Lock, which I follow with coats of P21S 100% Carnauba Wax about monthly. Usually strip everything off and do a clay & polish about every year. On my next wax I am going to try Dodo Juice Diamond White Hard Wax.



Thanks,
 
I love Optimum Car Wash it is great stuff. It creates nice bubbles, foams up well and leaves a nice finish. I use it in both my foam gun and the wash bucket.
 
The normal things to look for in a car wash concentrate is that it; cleans well, is gentle enough on paint protection products, provides more than sufficient surface lubrication, this is very important, as it reduces the possibility of scratches, and that it contains some form of encapsulation (surfactants). Lubricity can come from the hydrocarbon portion of surfactants or it could come from additives such as polymer silicones and fluorocarbons. The lower the coefficient of friction, the higher lubricity the product offers.



Some concentrates add a glossing agent to produce a shine; this is usually a polymer (silicone) which may affect some waxes ability to bead / sheet water



Some car wash products are polymer-based and not soap-based and therefore do not generate foam suds, this doesn’t have a negative effect on cleaning ability as this comes from surfactants. In reality suds (a chemical foaming agent, Diethanolamides or coconut oil) do absolutely nothing to clean, they are simply a structure that a portion of the solution had taken due to being mixed with air. The amount of foaming produced has nothing to do with its cleaning efficiency (although it does provide a means of encapsulation as well as acting a cushion between the paint surfaces and cleaning tool)



I'm sure others will provide their favoured car wash concentrate, fwiw Groit's Car Wash is one of mine
 
Optimum's wash is my favorite, Griots is excellent as well. I've never used DG but I'm pretty sure you can't go wrong with any of these three.
 
DG is pretty slick, leaves that great gloss behind and if you can get it locally at CarQuest near you, it's a winner; but if I needed more car wash right now, I'd go with Griot's especially because of the free shipping.
 
Bill D said:
DG is pretty slick, leaves that great gloss behind and if you can get it locally at CarQuest near you, it's a winner; but if I needed more car wash right now, I'd go with Griot's especially because of the free shipping.
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Advanced Auto Parts carries Griots stuff in some locations too. Actually I found their prices are as good or better than online as well (their speedshine is the same price as online plus it came with the sprayer).
 
Phishy4 said:
Advanced Auto Parts carries Griots stuff in some locations too. Actually I found their prices are as good or better than online as well (their speedshine is the same price as online plus it came with the sprayer).
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I just got a gallon of SpeedShine, never saw it in that size at Advanced, but when the shipping promotion is over, I'm probably going to pop on over there a lot more often, even though the new Auto Zone by me is my preferred local parts store.
 
Megs Gold Class is still the best that I recommend in the cheap, over the counter shampoo category. It is better than turtle wax ice, armor all, etc. But really there is a noticeable difference between that and something like Duragloss or even Griots. Anyway, I thought I remember reading that Gold Class was discontinued?
 
extrabolts said:
Megs Gold Class is still the best that I recommend in the cheap, over the counter shampoo category. It is better than turtle wax ice, armor all, etc. But really there is a noticeable difference between that and something like Duragloss or even Griots. Anyway, I thought I remember reading that Gold Class was discontinued?
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I completely agree - Meg's GC is pretty much tops for high-availability, OTC shampoos. I was very disappointed in Meg's newer OTC shampoo (Ultimate Wash and Wax). With that said, there is definitely a noticeable performance difference when you consider online shampoo products - Some of which are very inexpensive. I would recommend:



- Duragloss 901/902 - available OTC but only in specific regions

- CG Maxi-Suds II - great performance at ~$11 a gallon

- Top of the Line Bubble Bath - very lubricious and gentle... perfect maintenance wash that won't strip wax

- Griot's - Great performance but a little on the costly side (~$35 a gallon)
 
I use GC Wash & Gloss (Will last forever at the proper dilution level for a maintenance wash) or Dodo Juice Born to be Mild (smells great)
 
If cost is important, be sure to calculate it based upon the dilution you will use since they can make a big difference.
 
I gotta say I wish Gold Class was better based on the availability. Maybe other WNY'ers will chime in but I cannot get any sort of lubricity from GC, and it takes FOREVER to rinse. It seems to be a very thick, luxurious shampoo, but when in solution just doesnt do anything for me and is actually a PITA to work with.



I even got away from shampoo plus, which seems to be a tweaked version of GC. Same properties, that simply doesn't work in the water I am on.
 
....DG 901 is the one I currently use most although that may change with my wife's Forester now that it's Opti-Coat'ed.
 
Have tried (in normal full car washes) FK118, Griot's, 1z perls and in 1/2 oz samples (on my wheels) DJ born to be mild, CG citrus and CG maxi suds. Will try very soon DG901 after all the good reviews.



FK and Griot's are my current favs. From the samples, DJ has left me with the best impression.
 
autoaesthetica said:
...Maybe other WNY'ers will chime in...I even got away from shampoo plus, which seems to be a tweaked version of GC. Same properties, that simply doesn't work in the water I am on.
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I'm in East Amherst...I haven't used Gold Class in a couple years, so I don't really remember it's lubricity (or lack thereof). I'm using Shampoo Plus currently, and aside from the lack of suds (which really don't matter anyways), I actually like it a lot. It is pretty slick, not really as great as Optimum Car Wash or DG 902, but it seems to be a bit less harsh on LSP, which I sorta prefer.
 
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