Let's Talk Cleaning...

[Digita1ninja]

As its now edging towards summer (at least in most parts of the country, Wigan seemed a bit wet though) I was wondering what people used for cleaning their car, or if they had any routines?

Personally I've been a fan of Auto Glym up untill now, but at last years JAE the guys at Celica Club sold me on Meguiar's...I'm thinking about making the switch.

My current list is:

AutoGlym Car Shampoo

Maguiars Water Magment

AutoGlym Bumper Care

AutoGlym Car Glass Polish

AutoGlym Instant Car Shine

AutoGlym tyre dressing

What you got for the summer months people?

[feldman]

For summer I never bother with wax, Autoglym Super Resin Polish is great.

Cleaning- I generally use generic shampoo's- whatever's cheapest. I don't believe these shampoo & wax combo's work. I just want something soapy to clean the muck off.

I clean it in three stages-

1) Bowl of water with a LITTLE shampoo and a sponge for the wheels and sills/door edges only.

2) Soak the car with the hose- not on a jet setting. Just let the water pour onto the roof and down. Then wash the top half with a bucket of water and shampoo and washers mitt- no sponge on the main bodywork.

3) Wash off the top, clean bucket of water, fresh shampoo, clean the mitt thoroughly then do the bottom half.

Then use water towels to dry everything. Don't use a water-blade- they can seriously knacker the paint work if you're not careful.

Autoglym SRP as above for all the body work. Autoglym Glass Polish inside and out. Turtle Wax Back To Black for the tyres and plastics.

For inside I have a small Dust-Buster Hoover that connects to the cigarette lighter. Damp cloth over everything then matte finish dash wipes. Piece of advice, don't use glossy wipes. In summer it'll blind you- the Aygo dash is mirror-like enough as it is!!! :D

Actually cleaned Hugo yesterday and he looked glorious. It's rained today though- Sod's Law!!!

In summary I'd recommend Autoglym's Resin Polish and Glass Polish (not to be confused with Fast Glass)- they're excellent. Dash wipes are good too. As for shampoo's- to me it's all just soap, I'm afraid. As long as you're not afraid to use more than one bucket of water and stick to a lambswool or synthetic mitt you'll dodge a lot of swirl marks.

[Phoenix999]

I like Feldman's advice but can only add that anyone should buy a reputable polymer polish. The new Turtlewax ICE range seems good B)

[SooZ]

i use a brillo pad and caustic soda for the bird poo

[matty_aygo]

Autoglym FTW.. I always use them..

Body Shampoo - always brings good results

Interior Shampoo - smells really nice

Super Resin Polish - cleans up small scratches nicely

Bumper Care - gets them nice and black

Glass Polish - does exactly what it says

Intensive Tar Remover - for that dirt that just wont shift.

[Wh1teLeopard]

I do a lot of show and shine contests with my Honda, and i've won a lot of my kit...

I highly recommend the Miguers wash and their wax

I hose down the Aygo

Wash it with the miguiers mit and wash (the mitt is fantastic for bug splats)

hose it off again

Use a blade to take most the water off

let it dry naturally

wax it with miguers

whilst the wax is drying do all windows with Autoglym Window polish, and the plastics inc tyre walls with the autoglym bumper care

then let it all set in nicely

then rubb it all down

I find building up the layers of wax really useful, it's a bit different for the Honda though that only comes out to go to shows so doesn't really get dirty.

I love cleaning, i find it really relaxing.

[Digita1ninja]

Yeah, I find cleaning can be a great way to chill out...till you just can't get rid of those last few marks.

What Honda have you got?

[Jan van de Wouw]

a Honda Beat, judging from his website :P

[Digita1ninja]

a Honda Beat, judging from his website :P

There's always one isn't there :P Fair cop, I didn't think to check the sig...score one for lazyness hehe

[T600]

a Honda Beat, judging from his website :P

There's always one isn't there :P Fair cop, I didn't think to check the sig...score one for lazyness hehe

But for a bonus point, spot the flaw in Jan's detective work.

[Aimee]

Body Shampoo, Interior Shampoo, Super Resin Polish, Car Glass Polish, Intensive Tar Remover, Alloy Wheel Cleaner... also use the vinyl/rubber cleaner on the dash, leather cleaner smells awesome too!

i havent got a sheepskin mit as i cant stand the feel of them... but i do wash the body first, then rinse & change sponges to do the wheels! the sponge i use for the body gets changes about once a month so theyre never too grubby!

cant fault any of the autoglym stuff 2bh!!

although not that it matters now, got outside work on tuesday to find a lovely 4" long key scratch down the passenger rear quarter :( down to the metal :( barstewards!!!!

[Digita1ninja]

a Honda Beat, judging from his website :P

There's always one isn't there :P Fair cop, I didn't think to check the sig...score one for lazyness hehe

But for a bonus point, spot the flaw in Jan's detective work.

He's actually a robot!?! :o

[T600]

He's actually a robot!?! :o

Nope

Clue:-

a Honda Beat, judging from his website

[BadBoyVTEC]

The fact that WhiteLeopard is actually a 23 year old Female.

[SJandMR2]

The fact that WhiteLeopard is actually a 23 year old Female.

:lol2: damn it you beat me, I couldnt log in quick enough

[BadBoyVTEC]

LOL, I had a sense of urgency when I saw that aswell hehehe.

[Jan van de Wouw]

Whoops, sorry Emily

[Wh1teLeopard]

Ha ha, no bother. I get used to it... no-one expects the blonde in the corner! ha ha

Back to cleaning I'm really sorry to hear about your scratch Aimee, there are some really horrible people out there.

Maybe you could speak to a local chips away, see if there's anything they can do. They did a great job on my mom's mondeo, getting all the hedge scratches out, but then they weren't down to the metal I don't think. Anyway I'd recommend asking them, paint repair technology has come on leaps and bounds over the last couple of years.

[Aimee]

hey, thanks for the advice... its also dented the panel where they dug the key in :( so bit of a bugger!

i might check out chips away just for the time being, as their repairs dont always last forever! :)

[Digita1ninja]

Whoops, sorry Emily

hehe, It wasn't that long ago I checked this thread! Appears that there was a whole flurry of activity! A Robot could have been cool too though