Suggestions for........

B

BostonBull

New member
This may come off as a NEWB question, and if it does I apologize ahead of time. I have been using OTC products for years, and want to invest in some decent stuff for the summer.



I have two cars in my household; 2006 Metallic black Honda Accord 4 door with tan leather, and a 2004 Light Pewter Metallic Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited with Tan leather.



Both cars have roughly 80K on them and have never been professionally polished. That being said, money wise it probably wont happen till late this summer. I would like to get some products to keep the paint and interiors in great shape until then, and after a pro has their way with them.



I am looking for:

-Wash

-Clay

-Cleaner wax

-Wax/Paint Sealant

-Wheel cleaner

-Tire cleaner

-Vinyl cleaner

-Vinyl protectant

-Plastic cleaner (headlight, taillight, dash, etc)

-Tire protectant

-Carpet shampoo

-Windows (Stoner's?)



I also would like suggestions on towels/applicators/detail brushes. Are the microfiber ones available OTC good enough or should i invest in some nicer ones?



I have some items here, but like I said they are all OTC. Who knows maybe they are decent and you guys will recommend different ones?



if a product will not be good for both cars please let me know which to use on which vehicle.



BIG thanks up front on this one!
 
After reading the first 20 pages of this forum, i see the can of worms i would potentially open here, and why noone has responed yet.



let me clarify some:



WASH I hand wash, 1-2 times per month. My wife and I do a lot of highway driving so a good cleaner is necessary.



WAX/CLEANER/SEALANT

I would say the cars get waxed 3-4 times per year at most. I wish I had more time, but i am being hinest to try and get the correct products. as I said above i do NOT have the experience with an orbital to use one safely.



WHEELS/TIRES

I would like something that doesnt need a ton of scrubbing. As for a dressing I like a slight shine or matte finish



VINYL/RUBBER

Same as the tires, slight shine or a matte. Not a big fan of super slick shiny finishes.
 
Wash-ONR, DP Rinseless and Gloss, Meguiars Gold Class

Wax/Cleaner/Sealant- Klasse AIO, topped with any wax

Wheels/Tires- Stoners More shine/less time

Vinyl/Rubber -Meguiars natural Shine

Clay-either Mothers/Meguiars clay kit



just my 2 cents
 
This has been covered so many times its not even funny...but here goes



Wash: ONR

Clay: Top of the line (purple clay) or Sonus Green

Clay Lube: ONR Diluted to lube strength

Cleaner Wax: M80 (good all around polish, and will clean it up a little)

Sealant/Wax: IW845 by collinite

Tire/Wheel Cleaner: Optimum Power Cleaner

Tire Dressing: Opti-bond Tire Gel

Glass: Stoners IG



as far as microfibers go, ProForce towels from Sams Club are really decent towels. I would suggest getting some drying towels like the Waffel Weave from Detailed Image. I would also suggest picking up the Optimum stuff while you are there. FWIW It might be worth it to pick up some OPII and some applicator pads so that you can polish by hand if you dont have a machine. OPII is a mild product IMHO and shouldn't cause any harm.



Most OTC products are decent enough, if you find they work for you then dont change! But if you want to try something new, then welcome to the addictive world of detailing!
 
Thanks for the responses!



I know its a subject that's asked a lot, I didn't ffind my answers in 20 pages so I figured I would post.



couple of questions:



what is the best APC?



carpet shampoo?



for tire protectant I don't need it to last more than a rainstorm, after that the cars look like shite anyway!



I was always under the impression that applying polish by hand is futile? I see it recommended above. are there certain types of polish that are OK by hand?



looking forward to see what others recommendations are as well!



thanks again!
 
BostonBull said:
Anyone else have suggestions?



Wash

Wheels

Leather

Vinyl

Carpets
Click to expand...



You seriously don't need half the stuff you're asking about. Also you don't need a "pro" to do anything. Other than having a machine polisher, and maybe a carpet extractor there isn't a thing they are going to do that you can't do yourself.



Ditto for "professional" products vs OTC. The top of the line OTC stuff is equal to or better than any professional products for the most part. Which makes sense given that OTC is much larger and more competative market, and the fact that ingredients are generally not cost limiting.



For hand washing, I like TW Ice car wash, but you could use any top of the line car wash and get roughly similar results. Having discovered self-serve car washes, its been a very long time since I hand washed any cars. Too much work for what you get.



Wheel's are tricky. I've been impressed with Mother's FX wheel cleaner which is an oxalic acid based cleaner. I'm kind of iffy on TW F21 wheel cleaner, except that its very good on tires, and so so on the wheels themselves.



You'll want a soft wheel brush.



Vinyl, just get some Armor-All or else I personally really like TW's Ice Total interior care, since it cleans everything up and don't make anything unaturally shiny.



Tire's. Depends what look you want. If you want bling, go for a silicone gel dressing. If you want flat matte, go for Black Magic Titanium Matte Finish. Either way you'll want some Eagle 1 tire swipes.



For wax, I like to separate the tasks of polishing the finish from protecting/glossifying it. I really like TW Ice liquid, its non-abrasive, very easy to apply and buff out, and looks great on metallic cars.



However because TW Ice doesn't have any cleaning ability, an attack with mother's pre-wax cleaner is good move every now and then.



I think the best spray wax out there in my limited experience is Lucas Slick Mist, which has the neat property of developing full gloss over the next 24hr after you apply it.
 
-Wash: Megs' Gold Class shampoo, Duragloss 901

-Clay: Megs' Claybar Kit

-Cleaner wax: Duragloss 501, Megs' ColorX, Megs' M20

-Wax/Paint Sealant: Wolfgang Fuzion, Collinite 845, Collinite 915, Finish Kare 1000p, Ultima Paint Guard Plus

-Wheel cleaner: I usually use regular car wash shampoo

-Tire cleaner: APC+

-Vinyl cleaner: Megs' M40 or M39

-Vinyl protectant: Megs' M40

-Plastic cleaner (headlight, taillight, dash, etc): Megs' PlastX (exterior), 1Z Cockpit Premium (interior)

-Tire protectant: Mother's Reflections

-Carpet shampoo:

-Windows (Stoner's?): Invisible Glass
 
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