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hkross

New member
Ok the other day i washed my car at the powerwash station since the water out side has been turned off. And when I looked at it after it dried. There was still dirt on it so my question is how do you keep you clean cars if you cant wash it with mit and ect.
 
After using the self serve wash you should have gotten most of the heavy dirt or grime off.
I would then use a Quick Detail product and quality Microfiber towels /or 100% cotton towels to finish cleaning off the remaining grime and laying down some protection. Use plenty of towels being careful not to cause scratches or swirls.

Someone has also suggested using a product called Quick and Easy. I have never used it but it sounds good if it really works although I am skeptical. The thread is
http://www.autopia-carport.com/forum/showthread.php3?threadid=4952
 
I posted something similar already, and I hope I don't get flamed on this. The best thing I ever found in the winter time here in Detroit was to start by detailing the car as late into fal as possible and finish with two or three coats of <strong class='bbc'>Meguiar's No. 20 Polymer Sealant [/b].

Plus, after going through either the touchless car washes (and <strong class='bbc'> touchless[/b] are prefered) or the quarter car wash (how long has it been since they really were a quarter??), I go over the whole car with either Final Inspection, or......and now I know I'm going to get flamed.....one of the so-called <strong class='bbc'>waterless car wash sprays[/b]!! PLEASE...no rude comments....I've tried this through three Detroit winters in a row (and man do we use tons of salt around here) and I end up with few swirl marks to get rid of when I detail again in the springtime.

No, I don't clean the car with that stuff - I don't want to scratch the damn paint!! But what ever either <strong class='bbc'>Prolong Waterless Wash & Shine[/b] or <strong class='bbc'>Amsoil Mircle Wash[/b] use to "enhance" the shine seems to help keep water beading on the car all winter long, and the winter crud and the car washes detergents don't seem to defeat the <strong class='bbc'>Meguiar's No. 20 Polymer Sealant [/b].

Please...no flames. All I know is this has been working for me for three winters in a row. And I can't wait for spring, so I can break out the Porter Cable polisher, the <strong class='bbc'>Meguiar's No. 9, No. 7 and No. 27[/b], and detail the cars properly. :bounce
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by FLONI [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>;) you think you could go into a little more of your routine....like how is this stuff applied..etc.,...thx [/b]</blockquote>
Sometime in September or October I give our the cars the once-over with the Porter Cable polisher. I usually will use the <strong class='bbc'>Meguiar's No. 9 Swirl Remover[/b], followed by the <strong class='bbc'>Meguiars No. 7 Showcar Glaze[/b], and then the <strong class='bbc'>Meguiars No. 20 Polymer Sealant[/b] - usually two coats of the No. 20. I'll put the No. 20 with the Porter Cable, leave it on for an hour, then buff it off by hand with terry cloth or microfiber towels. Then I'll put on a second coat, and wait anouther hour to remove the dried wax. If I'm REALLY ambitious, I'll leave the first coat on overnight and then buff it off in the morning, and then put on the second coat and leave it on a couple of hours. When I follow this routine, I can only do one car a weekend (obviously).

In a previous post, someone said that the No. 20 had a cleaner in it, and that it would remove the first coat. My bottle(s) of No. 20 say nothing about a cleaner, and I'm emailing Meguiars to find out.

When I go to the self serve car wash, or use a commercial touchless car wash, regardless of which one, and how much I spend, they never really get the car completely clean. I'll go home, and in the garage, starting from the roof down, I'll spray the car with <strong class='bbc'>Meguiars Final Inspection[/b] a bit heavily, and with at least four old bath towels, wipe the car down and get it really clean. Then I'll breakout either the <strong class='bbc'>Prolong Waterless Wash & Shine[/b] or the <strong class='bbc'>Amsoil Miracle Wash[/b], and working from the roof down, one panel at a time, repeat the process with some clean towels. Then I'll use either one to clean the wheels as well. As long as the glass was first treated with Rain-X or some similar product, using either the Prolong or the Amsoil product keeps the glass cleaner and lengthens the life of the glass treatment.

In fact, even when I hand wash the cars the rest of the year, I use either of the "waterless" products to clean the glass first before even washing the cars. They are the <strong class='bbc'>only[/b] products I found that cleans all the diesel exhaust and road film crap off glass that accumulates from all the traffic jams and road construction here in the Detroit area (where we only have two seasons - winter and road construction).

The whole process sounds anal, but when I do it, I have fewer swirl marks to remove in the spring, and the No. 20 <strong class='bbc'>seems[/b] to last longer - it keeps beading water. I followed this routine to the -nth degree three years ago, when we moved to a new house, and I had no time to follow my usual spring detailing routine, and the cars were still beading water from the October application of No. 20 right up into July. And we're talking about beads the size of a dime or smaller.
 
A lot of people do not like the shine the #20 gives. It is not the deep "wet look" carnauba shine most people look for but more of a synthetic "clear plastic" look. The #20 shines like crazy it just does not give quite the "candy coated" look of Klasse or the "wet look" of a pure carnauba wax product. It is a very good product and lasts a long time. Especially on windows. For all you "bead" lovers, not the Mardi Gras type, but the water type, the #20 will cause extreme beading on your vehicle.
 
I agree with Waxman on this one.... I just put a coat of Meguiar's #20 Polysealant on both our new Lancer and my 94 Ranger. Let me say that I am proud to tout this product.... Wow! :eek: What a shine! I put it on there just for the winter protection, but I love the look of our cars. I wish I had taken pictures of the Ranger... I think the 6 year old paint looks better now than when I bought it!



I personally will have to disagree with the crowd and say that the shine is deep (IMHO) but is does have a bit of a plastic-y shine. I love it. I applied a single coat to my Ranger on Saturday and I got the biggest smile on my face seeing it parked in our parking lot last night..... shining like crazy!



It may not be the perfect choice for some on this board, and that's great, but I'm going to stick with it. Don't worry, Len-A, no one on this board is juvenile enough to flame you for your choices in products. Everyone agrees that it's all about the end result and if you're happy, that's all that matters.



keep shining....



:D
 
I cut up a little towel, go to the carwash with a 5 gallon bucket, some nice soap and some change.



I turn the machine on rinse, spray the car and with the remaining time I fill up the bucket with the soap put in when the bucket is half full.



I hand wash the car.



Then I rinse the car, the bucket and the towel.



* If your quick enough you can get the rima nd tires cleaned as well. If there is a big line behind me, I try to keep it quick, spending a half hour in a drive thru car wash doesn't go over too well with some people.
 
I use the #20, but with a wax topper. When I first appleid the wax topper, I could not BELIEVE the difference. I did a double-take when I saw how much depth the wax added to my shine.



I have had good results with the #20. I am going to switch, just to see what another product is like, but the #20 has been good so far.
 
I guess I am fortunate...we can bring our cars into the firehouse after the Chief's Office closes, nights and weekends and clean them inside the apparatus bay area.
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by FLONI [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>why dont more people use the meguiars #20(on here anyway)......which do you think is "better" the prolong or the Amsoil? [/b]</blockquote>
<strong class='bbc'>FLONI[/b] - I am also amazed by why people don't use the Meguiars #20. Personally, I think that <strong class='bbc'>waxman[/b] is onto the right reason - they want the carnuba type shie. I think that's why Meguiars tried to come up with Medallion - a waste of time product if I ever used one.

As far as which is "better" between the Prolong or the AMsoil, the best answer I have is <strong class='bbc'>"it depends"[/b]. The Prolong is less expensive and available locally at a couple of stores, but the Amsoil product seems to protect the paint better if I miss some dirt in cleaning the car (especially in trying to be as thourogh as possible on with the FI after the "touchless" wash). The Amsoil product also cuts road film and tar much better than the Prolong. It was buying products like Amsoil Miricle Wash at the so-called dealer cost that I ever became an Amsoil Dealer to begin with (some Amsoil Dealer - I buy Mobil 1 from Sam's Club cheaper, so that's what I use - lol).
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by Dude [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>I have had good results with the #20. I am going to switch, just to see what another product is like, but the #20 has been good so far. [/b]</blockquote>
I'm about the same as you Dude. I've used the #20 on my white truck for the past three years and I just switched to Klasse AIO & SG so it is too early to make a judgement on longevity.

I will say that my truck really needed the paint cleaning that the AIO on my PC provided. The SG is less forgiving of inproper applications than the #20 when it comes to wipeing it off. With what I know now if I continue using the #20 on a vehicle I'll clean the paint once a year or so with something like AIO (CA weather). I was applying the #20 about every three to four months and it seemed to hold up very well for that period of time.

I'm also now curious how well the #20 would work if I applied it with the PC. I remember reading here one time that the #20 has a very mild cleaner/abrasive in it and if that's true the PC should work better than by hand.
 
I used to use number 20 when I had the full meguiars lineup. I purchased Klasse and heard good results with Blitz so I tried that, alot of my buddies use the #20 since I won't let thier grubby fingers near my Klasse and I just haven't gotten around to getting another bottle.



Next spring I plan on charging people to have thier cars detailed and they will get specific types of products applied to thier car depending on how much they pay.
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by Short Cut [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>

I'm about the same as you Dude. I've used the #20 on my white truck for the past three years and I just switched to Klasse AIO & SG so it is too early to make a judgement on longevity.

I will say that my truck really needed the paint cleaning that the AIO on my PC provided. The SG is less forgiving of inproper applications than the #20 when it comes to wipeing it off. With what I know now if I continue using the #20 on a vehicle I'll clean the paint once a year or so with something like AIO (CA weather). I was applying the #20 about every three to four months and it seemed to hold up very well for that period of time.

I'm also now curious how well the #20 would work if I applied it with the PC. I remember reading here one time that the #20 has a very mild cleaner/abrasive in it and if that's true the PC should work better than by hand. [/b]</blockquote>
I still don't know if it's true that the Meguiars No. 20 has a cleaner in it, but I can state without reservation that the results with teh Porter Cable & the Meguiars No. 20 are fantastic. On my parents land yaght Crown Vic, they get 6 months to a year out of an application (actually two coats) of No. 20 when I use the Porter Cable, and I know for a fact they don't wash the car properly when they do it themselves, and they hit the commercial car washes once a week as soon as the temps in the Detroit area go below 50 degrees.
 
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