Adams Premium Car Care Products Product Review, Part 1
Car detailed: 2002 VW New Beetle, in Double Yellow, my girlfriends daily driver.
Car Condition: Somewhat neglected, but not horrible. On a scale of 1 – 10 it comes in at about a 6.
Adam’s Products Used:
1. Adam’s Instructional DVD
2. All Purpose Cleaner
3. Car Wash
4. Synthetic Foam Wash Pad
5. Wash Bucket with Grit Guard
6. Swirl and Haze Remover.
7. Detail Spray
8. Machine Super Wax
9. In & Out Spray
10. VRT (Vinyl, Rubber and Tire Dressing) and Foam Applicators
11. Glass Cleaner
12. Premium Microfiber Polishing Cloths
13. Invisible Undercarriage Spray
Other Products Used:
1. Flex Tools XC 3401 VRG Polisher (I will do a separate review on this tool)
2. Green Foam German Polishing Pad (From Proper Auto Care)
3. Black Foam Finishing Pad (From Proper Auto Care, for applying wax)
Let me begin by saying that this process was, even for an experienced detailer like me, a learning experience. It is amazing what you can learn from the use of new products and new technology.
Adam’s DVD
I began this project by watching the Instructional DVD provided by Adam’s. This DVD is very informative about the specific applications of Adam’s products. It features 2 types of cars, one exotic and one daily driver, each with it’s own unique detailing needs. This DVD is well organized and very well presented and is a valuable reference for both the novice as well as the experienced detailer.
Ok, first things first. One of the hints on the DVD is to always do the wheels and tires first. The reason being is you want to save the wash till last so once you have water on the paint, you can complete the wash process and dry the car before any water spots begin to develop. So if you do the wheels and tires first, you can avoid any delays in getting the paint dry.
Wheels, Tires and Wheel Wells
Begin the wheels and tires, including the wheel wells, by applying Adam’s All Purpose Cleaner. The consistency of this cleaner reminded me a little bit of Simple Green, but once I started using it, I realized that it is much more powerful than Simple Green. Apply to the wheel wells first, then the tires and lastly the wheels (in this case hubcaps). Work the wheel wells with a long handled semi stiff brush and then scrub the tires. Once you move to the wheels, use either the same brush if you aren’t worried about scratching or use a boar’s hair brush. Rinse thoroughly. The difference was amazing. Even on the wheels where brake dust had “baked” on, they came out sparkling clean after only one application of the All Purpose Cleaner and a modest brushing. After the car was completely washed and waxed, I finished the tires with Adam’s VRT (Vinyl Rubber and Tire Dressing). This dressing produces a nice look to your tires. If you like glossy you may not like this as it does not produce a shiny tire. What it does do is gives you a nice matte black finish without the greasy look of gloss and without any sling off at all. The final step to the wheels and tires is to apply the Invisible Undercarriage Spray to the wheel wells. This spray literally makes the wheel wells disappear into a deep dark black. Be sure you follow the instructions on the DVD when applying this spray.
Engine Bay
Once the wheels and tires were done, I moved on to tackle the engine bay. Again, here I used the All Purpose Cleaner (make sure the engine bay is cool). A good coating of All Purpose Cleaner followed by a brushing of the dirtier surfaces followed by a good rinse produced an engine bay that looked showroom new. One hint: As stated in Adam’s DVD, always start the engine before you rinse so you can detect any problems with the rinsing of the components before it becomes a large problem. Also make sure you clean and rinse the underside of the hood. This is usually very dirty and if cleaned really makes a difference. Finish up the engine bay with an application of Adam’s In & Out Spray. This spray brings dull, faded rubber and plastic back to life and gives them that showroom sheen. I was very happy with the results under the hood but my girlfriend didn’t seem as impressed as I was. I guess women don’t get too excited about engine bays.
Wash, Polish and Wax
I began by putting my Grit Guard in the bottom of the bucket then using the Adam’s Synthetic Wash Pad, I applied a small amount of the Adam’s Car Wash to the pad and put it in the bucket and started adding my water. This Car Wash is VERY concentrated so a small amount goes a long way and produces a LOT of suds. I don’t believe I have seen a wash before where so little produced so many suds.
Starting from the top, I rinsed the car down thoroughly. I didn’t have the advantage of using Adam’s Fire Hose Nozzle so I had to work a little more at rinsing since I have low water pressure problems. Once the car was completely rinsed, I started from the top suing the Synthetic wash pad. This pad has very soft premium foam on one side that reminded me of a polishing pad. The reverse side has foam that has more scrubbing ability to get spots and bug guts and the like. I wasn’t sure I would like it at first since I am used to using sheepskin mitts. But, actually I did like it. It worked well to maintain a sudsy wash on the surface and the scrubber came in handy to get the stubborn stuff. The wash rinsed easily and did a good job getting off the stubborn spots. There were some spots where I had tar that wouldn’t come off, but a quick squirt of the All Purpose Cleaner and a little rubbing got off the tar without much effort. Following a complete wash I dried the entire car using the Jumbo Microfiber Waffle-Weave Microfiber Drying Towel. I really liked this towel. Before this I used cotton terry which worked well but always annoyed me at the lint it left behind. This towel got all of the water and left nothing behind but dry paint. A fine mist of the Adam’s detail spray while drying helped me get a uniform, spot free dry.
This paint contained a fair amount of swirls so I opted to use the more aggressive Adam’s Swirl and Haze Remover. There is also available a Fine Machine Polish which I will use on a later detail on my SLK. I attached my Velcro backing plate to the Flex polisher and mounted the Green German Paint Pad which has a moderate amount of cutting ability. Not as aggressive as a wool pad, but more than enough for this job. Again, starting on the roof then working my way around the car I polished the entire vehicle surface working on about a 2 ft square area at a time. I used the Microfiber Polishing Cloths and the Adam’s Detail Spray to remove the Swirl and Haze remover after I had finished each section. The Detail Spray made the removal of the polish much easier and helped insure that I got all of the residue, leaving nothing but pristine paint when I was finished. This polish was a nice thick consistency and was easy to work with. I had no problem removing any of the paint imperfections. I did have to clean my pad halfway though because it started caking, but this is normal and I expected to do it. When I was done I was looking at a showroom shine. Now on to the wax.
I had a choice of using the Adam’s Buttery Wax or the Machine Super Wax. I chose the Machine Super Wax since I already had my buffer out and I wanted to see if this wax met my expectations. Here I used my black pad which has no cutting ability to apply the wax. The first thing I found out is that a very little of this wax goes a long way when you are using a polisher to apply it. Using a polisher is important to get a nice, thin uniform coat of the wax. Be careful around black plastic and rubber because if you get wax on these you will have to clean it off later. Not hard to do but it’s just extra work if you aren’t careful. The wax went on very smoothly and uniformly and didn’t get gummy like I have had experiences in the past with some machine applied waxes. After giving the wax 45 minutes or so to bond and cure, I started removal using one of the Microfiber Polishing Cloths and the Adam’s Detail Spray. The wax removed very easy even though I applied it in direct sun. On a scale of 1 – 10 the effort required to get this wax off and buff to a shine was around a 3. When I was finished I was looking at the closest thing to a showroom shine that anyone could be able to achieve. It was very glossy and wet looking with a good amount of depth. Let me say here, before I forget, the Microfiber Polishing Cloths are the best cloths I have ever seen. I have avoided microfiber for paint work in the past due to inconsistent quality but these cloths are unlike anything I have ever seen. These cloths are full, thick and soft and of a quality that I have not experienced before. I think I have found my cloth of choice.
Miscellaneous Details
After the big stuff, I moved on to little things. Applying VRT to the interior vinyl, and the little interior details. The upholstery and carpet in this car needed cleaning, but I didn’t have any of the Adam’s Carpet and Upholstry cleaner to try so I will have to get back to this at a later date. But a good vacuuming and wipedown, followed by VRT made the interior jump. I cleaned the windows using Adam’s Glass Cleaner. Let me say that before this I used nothing on glass but Stoners Invisible Glass, but here again, Adam’s has made a convert of me with their Glass Cleaner. It cleans to a sparkling shine with absolutely NO residue left behind. I ended up with a 100% streak free clean on the windows. I think I will give my Stoners to my girlfriend for the household stuff!!
Final Thoughts
Having never heard of Adam’s products before their arrival at Benzworld, I was, as I tend to be, somewhat skeptical. Their product line looked impressive, but I was unsure of the quality and whether of not it was just a bunch of repackaged junk. Well, I am here to testify that my skepticism was unfounded. These products do everything they say and more. I am not easy to pry away from something once I have found products that I like, but I do like what I see here. After my next detail project on my SLK230 I think that Adam’s will have converted me to a loyal user of their products. If anyone has any questions about anything I have written here, feel free to PM me. I will be glad to answer any questions you may have.
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"The true delight is in the finding out, rather than in the knowing." - Isaac Asimov
'99 SLK230 Sport
'00 ML320
'95 BMW 525iA (RIP)
'99 Honda Passport
Buellwinkle, I will say that yes, I have been a "Zaino Zealot" but in complete honesty, I believe that I have been converted to an Adam's user. My experience so far is that I have found the Adam's line to be more complete and I am happier with the end results. I plan on doing several more cars and reviewing my experiences on those cars as well so I can have a good frame of reference across several types of vehicles.
Personally, I feel that pictures of a detailed car do not give you a true feel for the depth of the detail since you cannot really see the fine points, but here you go. The first 5 are before and the second 5 are after. The after pictures arent really that good since it started raining 5 minutes after I finished (isnt that the way it always is?)
Well, after reading the very impressive article on Adam's Car Care Products, I have ordered the the Car Wash. I cannot wait until the arrival of my order. I think as soon as I get the box, I will open it and begin washing my car. I have two Mercedes. One is a '95 and the other is an '03. The '03 is black and i'm very particular about what kinds of chemicals I apply to the paint job of that car. I think I will be very impressed with the results that Adam's will give me. I am anxiously looking foward to it.
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