I start this thread in the effort to gather some ideas on how to keep the car look as clean as possible both inside and outside. So please share your idea. What product you use, where (if you are in Vancouver) do you buy it and how much?
I have been hand washing the car since day 1. The only product I use for the exterior is car washing liquid with wax shampoo. It is used for washing the body, windows, tire, rim, bake caliper. Tire wax for the tire. Plain water for the interior. The bake caliper and back hatch window are the most difficult to clean. They will never look as clean as day one.
I keep it more or less clean. Keeping the light grey interior cloth free of water spots is a nightmare, and I often have to "blend" in these sopts with a damp cloth, so a solvent front doesn't form.
I don't put anything on tires etc, think it looks silly, and a decent wax twice a year will do the trick.
My cars probably suck if you are into concours stuff, which requires a precise Q-Tip usage. Life is too short.
These tips will make a great difference by doing a faster and better job.
- Use a microfibre wash mitt ( $ 10. at Cdn Tire - they hold lots of water and do not scratch) and put the wash soap directly on the SOAKED MITT.
- do your final rinse with an open hose with NO NOZZLE held close to the car surface - this causes the water to sheet off and makes it much easier/quicker to dry the car with your microfiber towel ( $ 10 at Cdn Tire).
Costco sell a three mitt pack including a towel for about $ 20.
What would we do without CT(Canadian Tire).
I have some tips bit I lose the effects the second I leave and drive down our dirt road.
Keep your car out of the sun as much as possible and don't park under trees when looking for that illusive shade or the birds might get you and easily burn the paint.
In Quebec, wash it when it gets difficult to find the door handles.
When I had my 'elderly' 300SEL, I used tire dressing on the hoses and plastic bits under the hood (although, not on the tires!) - there is a lot of info on the other parts of this board.
Meguiars Gold Class Clear Coat Liquid Car Wax 2x a year
Meguiars Gold Class Endurance for tires
Black Magic Wheel Polish for Alloy wheels and chrome
Interior:
Meguiars Interior Detailer quick mist and wipe to clean dust and all plastic inside
Works great
Meguiars Interior Stain Quick Out to clean carpets sides and stains
Mother Cleaner for Leather seats
Great to clean blue from my jeans
Mother Conditioner after using mother cleaner to renew leather seats
Rainshield Front windshield from outside great product no wipers needed
Windex no Fog Front and side windows from inside
Car is only hand washed since day 1 and before every washing first hand power wash to clean all major dirt and dust than hand wash and after again power wash.
Car parked in the garage since Day 1 never outside
__________________
B200 Turbo 2006
Comet Grey, CVT, Premium Package, 17" wheels10 spoke
Harman Kardon sound system, 10 Way power front seats manually adjustable steering 4 way.
GL 320 CDI 2008
Sanidine Beige, Cashmere beige leather sets, RSE, Premium Package, BI Xenon Package, Rear Climate Package, Distronic, Running board, Keyless Go
wow - this thread is fairly depressing for me. now i will feel guilt as i take my B to the car wash and watch the nasty machines spray, scrub, rinse and dry my baby...
question though - i have 300km on my b (my baby is growing up!), and have noticed that the brake dust output on the front rims is rather prodigious. is this expected just because they are new brakes, or can i reasonably expect to have to clean the front rims on a regular (daily?) basis?
The B has a front weight bias and the brake pads produce a lot of dust, so you can expect to wash the wheels about once a week - depending on the amount and style of driving you do.
If you have any opportunity to hand wash, I suggest you use it - unless you like swirl marks and scratches.
PS. To avoid swirl marks when hand washing - make sure all of your wash strokes are North to South. (Hairline scratches in a straight line are almost invisible to the eye.)
Last edited by BeeClass : 04-01-2008 at 02:33 PM.
Reason: PS
You can consider waxing the wheels to keep the brake dust down, but it doesn't last as long as when you wax the rest of the car. It does make a difference though.
I do what Bee Class does - microfibre mits (newish one for car body, older one for wheels & tires), and the sheeting action rinse (no nozzle). Most important thing IMHO is a thorough pre-rinse and work from top to bottom (seems obvious, but...)
I used to use lots of different products but I've now simplified things - the only things I am picky about is a car soap that won't strip the wax (no dishwashing soap), tire gel you can keep off the driveway (not the spray foam), Simple Green for the interior if plain water won't get it. I also use NXT Tech Wax twice a year - simple to use and does a great job.
Can't wait to get at it - I'm thinking about turning on my outside water back on this weekend and changing back to summer tires. Just asking for more snow, I know!
Canadian Tire is going to have the following items on sale starting this Saturday. Is it a good deal? Also, I read many times that newspaper combine with Stoner Invisible Glass or other window cleaning liquid together work wonders in cleaning windows. Is that true? Invisible Glass is safe on tint glass.
Meguiars Deep Crystal Car Wash 1.89L - $3.99 Reg. $8.49
Stoner Invisible Glass - $3.89 Reg. $6.49
Turtle Wax Car Cleaner (Wet'n Black, Rim Cleaner) - $4.99 Reg. $7.59-$8.99
Microfibre Wash Mitt - $5.99 Reg. $9.99
List your car detailing tips 
Linear Mode
