Best car wash equipment?

Well the Absorber I know for a fact WILL scratch paint. They are pretty abrasive...

I've never used the Meg's product though.

 

Never use dish washing detergent. It eats whatever wax right off. I use a traditional chamois to wash and a fake chamois to dry. I use only clear water, and if something doesn't come off I go back and use a little Zymol wax on a soft cotton rag to get bird crap, road tar, etc off. What you want to avoid is the micro-scratches to the clear coat finish. Based on what you wrote, if it were my car I would give it a good wax job front to rear using Zymol wax. For the next few months after use something like Macquire's Liquid detailer to keep a killer shine [always wash first] and ALWAYS use a clean, soft cotton cloth. Walmart sells packages of bartender's towels for not much and they are very good and soft.

 

You don't want to just use water to wash a car. You need some sort of detergent to break down dirt and grime without grinding it into the paint. If you just use water, it WILL scratch the paint.

You also never want to use a chamois to wash a car. You need something with some nap to pick dirt off the surface and draw it in so you can wipe it away without it scratching. The chamois has no nap, so you just drag the dirt along the surface and with no detergent and no lubricity...you will destroy the paint on the car.

Plain water+chamois as wash media is a terrible washing technique.

 

It will?? I just bought one and they told me at Auto Zone that it was the best for drying!

I also do not really know how to properly wax a car. Not that I've never done it, just that I've never been taught how to do it properly, which would probably explain why the crystal black paint on my last car was terribly swirled.

I've always used those round, padded terry cloth applicators. Are these ok? And a microfiber cloth to remove? Am I on the right track, or destined to scratching my beautiful Blizzard Pearl paint?

I also just purchased the new Meguiar's Ultimate Liquid Wax because I've been doing some reading and this one seems to have everyone's interest. I'm assuming this is fine. Is there any kind of quality difference between liquid and paste wax or is this just a personal preference?

After a regular washing I've been using the Meguiar's quick spray wax for in between waxings and that stuff really shines and is so easy. Any comments about that?

Thanks!

 

@cycledrum:

I couldn't have said it better myself! Those are great, inexpensive tips that should work wonders!

 

The best car wash equipment is a Bikini car wash

 

Yeah...don't trust anything anyone says at AutoZone again

It was probably caused by your wash regimen actually.

Waxing is easy, apply your wax with a nice foam or terry applicator in thin, straight passes (never in a circle), then buff off with a high quality microfiber towel, again in straight passes never in a circle.

I'm sure its fine. In general the big difference between liquid and paste waxes is that a liquid wax has a lot of solvents and cleaners in it, where a paste wax is more of a pure wax and is layerable.

Works well as long as you don't let the car get too dirty before doing that.

 

Hope this isn't a silly question... But should sealant or wax be applied onto the black spoiler area, at the bottom of the back windshield?

Thanks for your help! This thread has been very helpful.

 

Yes--wax that part as you would the rest of the car.

 

Yep, that part is painted its just painted black.

 

Steve, thank you so much for taking the time to answer all of my questions. This whole thread and everyone's replies have been very helpful. For now I am not going to worry about the waxing since my husband and kids just bought me a full exterior detail and wax for my birthday (that's how I like to do things :cheer2 but I will be doing it myself at some point and all the advice here has been wonderful.

As for the spray wax, I've only done it after completely washing the car. I really like that stuff and it seems to make the car get less dirty in between washings. Maybe that's just my imagination though.

 

No problem!

For the detail, be sure its a competent detailer with good references. There are WAY more terrible detailers out there than even half way competent ones, and even fewer good ones. I think I have met one or two in my life I would let touch one of my cars. A bad detailer can really destroy the car...

Its not your imagination, a well waxed car will stay cleaner longer and will be easier to wash.

 

Should the straight passes be in a north south direction or an east west direction?

I always thought waxing the car was easy and now I'm having second thoughts having always used a circular motion. Can't remember if I go clockwise or counterclockwise.

 

Swirls and micro-marring I've heard are most likely due to improper washing technique. I really like to use a high quality wash mitt (sponge is fine too) that will show dirt very easily. If you see any dirt in the mitt, rinse that sucker right away. I like mitts because I flip it over to the clean side to wash a little more. They also help me feel the surface better than those $4 sponges I used in the past.

If you have one of those cheap microfiber sponges with the fingers in dark blue, how are you going to see the dirt that is picked up in it before you make more passes over your precious paint? Bet you won't, so a white mitt or sponge is better.

A 2nd bucket of 3 or 4 gallons of rinse water is good to have on hand. The Grit Guard hopefully makes a difference. If rinse water is getting too dirty, toss it out midway through washing and refill.

Lower areas get the dirtiest, so I wash them about last. I just use Meguiar's wash and wax car wash, nothing too fancy. It's how you do it that counts.

I use liquid wax, but I'm sure paste is fine too. If it says to put a thin coat of wax on, do that. You don't want to have to buff hard to get the wax off. And slathering it on thick I don't think helps.

I think Meg's 2.0 Tech Wax is pretty good and easy to find.

I'm actually scared of polish and polishing, so I don't do that. I do clay when needed before a wax which I only do about every 4 months or so, but my car stays in garage and I only drive 7k miles / year.

 

In the direction the wind goes over the car is what I've always used.

 

Front to back on the horizontal panels, up and down on the vertical panels...

The reason for this is if you do induce marring, you want it to be visible by as few angles as possible, When you wipe in a circle you create a circular "swirl", these are so ugly because you can see them from any angle, because they're a circle.

 

It's worthwhile to pull back the outer edge of the front wheel well plastic liners periodically, and clean out the grit that's likely accumulated. There are 4 push-in type fasteners and one hex-headed screw at the bottom (through the end of the rocker panel liner.

With all of those fasteners out, pry the plastic out and away from the metal rim as best you can, and run a wet cloth in between and into the lip zone. Rinse out your cloth frequently, and wash the fasteners before re-install.

There's an interface between the leading edge of the rocker panel liner and fender bodywork that accumlates grit as well: just get a cloth into the gap and "floss" the best you can.