Your Best Car Cleaning Solution Is?

[anthonemorris]

Alright so we all have our favourite car wash products that we turn to when our fabulous ride gets dirty. We also have our secret to that almost showroom clean that has everyone wondering "how you do that soldier?"

Well I'll share my products first. I usually go for Simple Green Car Wash Concentrate and for tough stains I use a diluted Purple Blast mixture (yes it's diluted as it can ruin paint very easily). Works great as far as I can see and the results do speak for themselves. Will share my secret when I see some other posts up here of what we use to care for our rides

 

[nirtime]

Very first trick: 2 bucket wash method using the required amount of Mothers California Gold Car Wash.

Second trick: using 2 cloths to avoid scratches and contamination of paint work. One cloth for upper body panels. Second for heavy dirt areas such as half way down doors to the bottom. I use 80% Polyester - 20% Polyamide Detailer's Choice Microfiber cloths.

Third: Dry with a damp cloth while being gentle and careful and mindful of any dirt remaining.
Meguiars X2000 WW.
Fourth: Wheel wells cleaned with HS Purple Blaster concentrate and a paint brush to agitate. Requires some muscle but comes out clean!

Fifth: Once done wheel wells can be cleaned with the same car wash and cloth used to wash the rims and side steps.

Sixth: Engine is degreased with Strohl(Jectron) Magnum degreaser. A few light sprays on a wet engine with a paint brush does wonders. Then it is washed off and the engine is started while most surface water is wiped off.

Seventh: entire engine is coated with silicone spray. helps with a bit of rust protection and makes it easy to clean next wash.

Eighth: Interior is wiped with a moist, dedicated cloth from roof liner to door panels.

There are a lot more that I will share in time to come. Some of which can be seen in the Leather Care and How To Achieve Amazing Paint threads.

 

[BrotherHood]

nirtime has it on point there. Only different product I use is diluted purple blaster for the engine bay.

 

[nirtime]

nirtime has it on point there. Only different product I use is diluted purple blaster for the engine bay.

I use this too, the Strohl was on special so I bought it.

 

[anthonemorris]

alright fine, so some people have stuff on point. my little secret is how i use my two products for it all. Simple green has a dilution of 1-10 and so does purple blast. what i've done is make a gel suitable for use on paint and metal alike (with or without clearcoat) that won't strip. i use 1 part purple blast, 1.5 parts Simple green car wash concentrate and 2-3 parts water depending on how thick i want my gel to be. yes i know what you guys are thinking how can it not strip paint anymore. honestly i don't know, but it works wonders on stains, grease, brake dust etc. try it out for yourself and see

 

[nirtime]

I did try a variation of the AnthoneSpecial and I found it to work very very well! I already had some diluted Purple Blaster so I added about the same amount in simple green car wash. Turns out its the only solution I've ever used that didn't need scrubbing to take off some pretty stuck dirt and grease.

It also seemed to help with the problem of purple blaster drying off very quickly and leaving behind a white lye stain. After using the mixture I found that areas where I really sprayed it liberally looked very clean after washing off with water. Also seemed to give the paint a nice clean appearance in some areas of the engine bay.

I had not washed my engine in about 2 or 3 months so it was pretty dusty and nasty looking. Will be looking to purchase a long reach brush tomorrow to reach down in the hard to reach areas since my engine appears to be very tall with lots of small spaces in between components and harnesses.

The only secret I really have is spraying a cheap silicone spray all over the engine bay after washing. After this you can take a cloth and wipe off dirt effortlessly. Really helps to prevent dirt sticking to the paint, rubber hoses, plastics, etc...

 

[BrotherHood]

I use WD40 to spray the engine after washing. It helps remove the excess moisture, lubricates and gives the engine bay a nice shiny and clean look.

 

[anthonemorris]

I did try a variation of the AnthoneSpecial and I found it to work very very well! I already had some diluted Purple Blaster so I added about the same amount in simple green car wash. Turns out its the only solution I've ever used that didn't need scrubbing to take off some pretty stuck dirt and grease.

It also seemed to help with the problem of purple blaster drying off very quickly and leaving behind a white lye stain. After using the mixture I found that areas where I really sprayed it liberally looked very clean after washing off with water. Also seemed to give the paint a nice clean appearance in some areas of the engine bay.

I had not washed my engine in about 2 or 3 months so it was pretty dusty and nasty looking. Will be looking to purchase a long reach brush tomorrow to reach down in the hard to reach areas since my engine appears to be very tall with lots of small spaces in between components and harnesses.

The only secret I really have is spraying a cheap silicone spray all over the engine bay after washing. After this you can take a cloth and wipe off dirt effortlessly. Really helps to prevent dirt sticking to the paint, rubber hoses, plastics, etc...

well at least someone tried the mix! glad it worked out well for you. show some before and after so people can see the difference

 

[nirtime]

I'll have to get some before when I tackle the deeper areas of the engine as I still haven't gone for the brush. Maybe I will do the rear diff so I can show some results too.

 

[nirtime]

I use WD40 to spray the engine after washing. It helps remove the excess moisture, lubricates and gives the engine bay a nice shiny and clean look.

That works too. I like to think WD40 is the stronger version of Silicone Spray lol.

 

[admin]

I use WD40 to spray the engine after washing. It helps remove the excess moisture, lubricates and gives the engine bay a nice shiny and clean look.

To me WD 40 is a Temporary Detailing fix, WD40 is like a dust magnet and eventually any dust in the engine bay will stick to the Wd40 area making it harder to clean and detail i the future.

 

[nirtime]

I've never personally tried WD-40 but using Silicone Spray which I would imagine goes on and remains on the surface a bit similar actually makes it easier to wash off the dirt since it doesn't stick. As a matter of fact I generally wipe down the bay once a month and it looks like I just washed it because the dirt comes off so easily.

For engine use you can use any dressing as people have been using tire shine dressings etc... However I like to treat my rubber and keep them soft however I can.

 

[BrotherHood]

To me WD 40 is a Temporary Detailing fix, WD40 is like a dust magnet and eventually any dust in the engine bay will stick to the Wd40 area making it harder to clean and detail i the future.

Infact I do find I have this problem

 

[nirtime]

To me WD 40 is a Temporary Detailing fix, WD40 is like a dust magnet and eventually any dust in the engine bay will stick to the Wd40 area making it harder to clean and detail i the future.

Infact I do find I have this problem

Hahaha switch over to the dark side (silicone spray)