Took advantage of the sunshine today to polish, and then Autoglym Super Gloss Protection the car.
The question is for future washings, cold/warm water only. with sponge or cloth, or car shampoo - if so which variety ?
In the past I've used (quite) warm water with Turtlegloss shampoo (with wax), however in retrospect this seems to have stripped the existing wax off fairly quickly. I'm hoping that the Autoglym will give some long term protection and want to keep it that way - it was certainly a challenge to polish to a fine shine the entire car - big estate !
Steve
|
You can not be sure it's the shampoo that has stripped the wax off.
Where has the car been recently, do you live in an industrial area,do you live close to the sea,are there any coal burning chimneys in your neighbourhood,has there been a lot of salt spread on the roads by the local council.All these have an effect.
To prove a point I live in the countryside and use the same products as you and have no problems with the durability of the wax finish.
And I certainly would not recommend water alone!
Trust me I know how to look after cars.
|
|
And always (if you can) use a power washer prior to using the sponge!
|
Sometimes I wonder if all this polish/shampoo which is best is maybe a bit anal. I suggest it's largely a marketing exercise and I doubt there's any magic ingredient in any one brand which the other don't know about. The makers just want us to think that because Jaguar uses this brand it must somehow be better etc.
For years and years my vehicles have stood out in broiling sun up to 60 C in KSA and the Gulf, 38-40 C here right now, duststorms, tropical downpours and probably lots of acid rain from the world's 4th most polluted metropolis.
Every week or so they get a wash from Ferdie's Bikini Car wash down the street, one of whose lovely young ladies drops by and picks 'em up from the house then brings 'em back later (OK, OK, OT) and now and then he spends a day on a full detailing session, engine wash, all that.
When they go for service it's SOP they get hosed off underneath
High humidity climate, gritty lava dust, mud from the rains means they need that.
They get polished twice a year with whatever's to hand: Turtle Wax or right now Armor-Gard Paint Protector off the TV shopping channel "at low low prices". I hate polishing, so usually do the truck especially in stages. I keep 'em 2-3 years, sometimes up to 5, and they always come up gleaming like new.
I don't neglect them but I certainly don't pamper my wheels, and I've never noticed any adverse results. Maybe we should all relax a bit.
|
|
|
|
I always use plain water (hot or cold depending on ambient temp) and a yearly polish using a good quality product like Mer.
Tar and bird droppings are removed immediately with the same polish. And I keep the car garaged as much as possible.
This keeps my vehicles looking like new.
|
Time to call on Mr Maguiars, Me thinks!!
www.maguiars.co.uk
I'll try it, once I've used all my Mer.
The way I do it...
If really dirty, hose it over first.
Wash n wax,HOT bubbles (No real brand specified), but lots of foam!
Hose rinse, not keen on power washing, but lots, lots of cold water.
Synthetic leather off, or one of those flexy blades, they're great on vans, or large areas of bodywork.
And then 2 applications of Mer.
This is what Sundays were invented for!!
Mark
|
|
|
|
|
I always use Autoglym to polish my cars about twice a year. When washing I use the Autoglym car shampoo, which doesn't have too many suds, but when leathered it shines brilliantly
|
|
Autoglym may be pricey,but it works.Yesterday I AG polished and super resined my 11 yr old Saab 9000. In a supermarket car park today it looked a treat amongst cars a fraction of it's age.
|
|
|
|
