Car Care Products

[Halo2]

I switched to products from Griots Garage several years ago. Great products and great customer service with very knowledgeable staff.

[Thrillz]

ugh i dont know where to begin. Meguiar's is just fine. The old boutique vs over the counter products topic. Before u do anything u gota be realistic on how much u want to spend time detailing your car. It does u no good if u buy zaino but hate detailing as u will do it one time find out it takes hours and hours to apply then never do it again. Zaino has a wonderful all in one product for those who dont have the time. People who say boutique products are the only type of product and the otc are garbage are 100% wrong. There are some dam good otc products like collonite and duragloss just to name a few. The most important thing is technique and the proper tools over product. For the average joe get some good car soap(gold glass),clay bar,colorx and nxt tech wax,some detail spray and call it a day. Use colorx and clay bar as needed for most it will be 2x a year or less. Use your topper nxt tech wax every 2 months or so as needed and in between wash and use detail spray its really that easy. For tools get 3 buckets with grit guards(2 buckets for your paint one for the rims and tires) good quality wash mitts,microfiber drying towels and some scrub brush's for your tire's and rims. 2 other great poducts that are optional is a foam gun and the 7424 pc.
If you want more in detail explanations goto autopia.org. These guys know there stuff. Good luck

[beowulf80]

Do you mean autopia.org?

[Moose]

Paint:
Strip of old wax using Dawn
Zaino Clay Bar
Zaino car wash
Zaino polish

Glass (interior/exterior)
Stoners Invisible Glass
Wheels:
Eagle One Wheel Cleaner (if absolutely necessary. Otherwise wash with separate sponge with Zaino Car Wash)
polish with Zaino
Tires:
Armor-All
Interior: leather -
Zaino cleaner/conditioner
3M carpet/upholstery cloth, carpet,
dash, door panels - Turtle Wax "Ice" (noN-greasy matt finish)

For daily drivers; full detail every 6 mo.

*Important* USE GOOD QUALITY WASH MITTS AND TOWELS

[beowulf80]

Moose / Nexus6, what kind of wash mitts do you use?

[jmcbeth]

Dawn
Zaino Clay Bar
Zaino car wash
Zaino polish

Ditto. Zaino all the way.

I don't like their window washing fluid. I prefer 20/20.

If you use Zaino, read the application tips carefully. Make sure you buy the right cotton cloth, etc.

I also love the Zaino Tire product. It returns the tire to original look and feel without the oily shine.

Dawn also removes any oil from the car.

[Moose]

Originally Posted by beowulf80

Moose / Nexus6, what kind of wash mitts do you use?

I get my detailing towels, wash mitts, and Zaino from Carl.
http://www.hcvind.com/

[BrianGriffin78]

May I recommend...

TurtleWax Spray Detailer. It gets all those water spots and dirt spots out and all you need is a microfiber towel. My car looks still great and I was down the shore with the salt in the air. So had to wash and polish up again, and it still looks like I just picked it up from the dealer. Here is the link for more info..

http://www.turtlewax.com/main.taf?p=2,1,1,2

[Nexus6]

Originally Posted by beowulf80

Moose / Nexus6, what kind of wash mitts do you use?

I use real sea sponges and real sheep skin mitts

http://www.autogeek.net/sheepwas.html

http://www.autogeek.net/natseaspon.html

I got the 4 pack sponges and 2 pack mitts

and for bugs and tar is use this http://www.autogeek.net/pinsafscrub.html

And for winshields i use the 3M white scrubbie pads that window tinter's use

Turtle wax....

[tribone]

I use SP80 for my tires and my interior.

[2010SSRS]

i just spent a small fortune on enuff Zaino products to do all 4 of our vehicles for a couple years.

never tried this stuff before but a co-worker has 2 black Firehawks and uses Zaino religiously..........................his cars look amazing. deepest gloss i have ever seen. i'm sold!

[dvnt88]

Originally Posted by 2010SSRS

i just spent a small fortune on enuff Zaino products to do all 4 of our vehicles for a couple years.

never tried this stuff before but a co-worker has 2 black Firehawks and uses Zaino religiously..........................his cars look amazing. deepest gloss i have ever seen. i'm sold!

Have been using the Zaino stuff on My 97 Z-28 and will never go back to any other product. The stuff is amazing when you follow the directions and the results are bar none, trust us that use the product, you will not be disappointed in any way, shape or form. ")

[gofast908z]

Originally Posted by Vr0d

Agreed! However, the cost is not for the faint of heart. But the results of this stuff is incredible. I have the Concorso and love it.

Though I only bust it out for very special cars. Most of the time I use my trusty Zaino for all my customer cars.

[Katie.Gilmour]

I have never been one to take pride in washing my car, but maybe thats because I never had a car that I felt needed it. Since I picked up my car May 21st I have probably washed it 4 times. I didn't realize how hard black was to keep clean!! For being a newbie with this and being at the risk of sounding completely stupid I have a few questions...

1. Can you over wash your car??
2. Is there some sort of cloth/brush that is safe to wipe my car down between washes?? (I live in an apt. so I don't have a good spot to wash my car :(
3. How do I get my car completly dry so its not spotty?? Do I just keep rubbing it was a shammy until it is dry??
4. What is a good product to use to wash my car with that is not real pricey?
5. I have leather seats with suede middles, is there anything to use that would clean those is something gets spilled??
6. Bugs and bird poop are terrible, any advice on this topic would be nice!!
7. Is there some sort of shammy or rag or something that is really good to wash cars with

I know these are probably pretty stupid questions, but any help you guys could give me would be great!! If you have any other advice for me that would be awesome too!!!