What waxes or cleaners do you use?

[bnewell]

Art ~ I agree with Gary, it would be interesting knowing what the pros are using.

What is everyone using for tires?? I have used several products but they all seem to make the tires look "TOO" wet. Any other ideas??

Thanks!!

Brian

[Art Burtt]

If car is dull or dirty use Mothers pre-wax cleaner and then use
Mothers cleaner wax or pure carnuba.Final coat of wax should be applied with a damp cloth in no more than 12"X12" squares and buffed immediately before it hazes over(sort of like spit shining shoes). I use Castrol Purple Super cleaner on interior carpet and on car mats, spray it on mats and use liberal amounts on stains. Scrub with a brush and soapy water,rinse until water runs clear,then hang mats to allow them to dry. I use the same Purple super cleaner on engine bay. Use a soft brush to scrub engine and compartment then rinse and blow dry. I use Armoral on tires, spray it on heavy, use a rag to cover entire tire and then dry it off with a clean towel,this makes tire look new without that fake shiny look. The Super cleaner removes tree sap and bug stains from paint surfaces,but flush the area with water as soon as the stain is gone. Too long of an exposure on paint can dull it. Also do not use super cleaner on aluminum engine parts unless you plan to buff them. It works real good as a tire cleaner and doesn't seem to affect aluminum wheels,probably because most are covered with a clear coat. I don't use Armoral on newer car interiors as they have a dull finish which just looks better if they are just cleaned and left dull. Older cars with shiny interiors look fine with Armorol ,but use the non-glossy type. Put it on and buff it off. Most important part of any wax job is, get all of the wax off especially in groves(use a toothbrush) Nothing looks worse than
dried wax on a car yuk! One caveat.don't use Super cleaner on
leather,use saddle soap.

[foothills gary]

Muchos gracias,Art.It appears that you have narrowed your arsenal of materials to a select few.I like that!

[REDSC400]

Originally posted by bnewell


What is everyone using for tires?? I have used several products but they all seem to make the tires look "TOO" wet. Any other ideas??

Hi Brian:

I have been using the Zaino Bros' #16 Perfect Tire Gloss.
This is a milky white licquid that you rub onto a clean tire. It is non-greasy, non-oily and does not discolor. When it dries, it leaves a nice dark satin sheen, not a wet gloss. It does not crack and supposedly is a UV sunscreen and an antistatic as well.

I have been very happy with this product. I apply it with an old white sock rolled up into a pad. After done, I put the pad into a ziplock bag and use it next time. Once a month does it for the Cobra, I do the daily drivers after each washing. Dry the tires first.

[bnewell]

Thanks Art!! I am currently using just about all of their products, from the wax to their leather care products........I'll give it a try.

Brian

[rdorman]

I pretty much use all products from Griots garage and have been pleased with them. The catch with the wax is that if it lasts three months, consider yourself fortuniate. But it does give one hell of a nice shine. On the tires I use turtle wax tire 'wax'. I put it on with a wax applicator pad. If the tires get dusty you can wipe them off and they look like new again.

The Porter Cable random obital buffer and polishes that you get from Griots do a wonderful job. My car, and of course paint, are almost twenty years old. After the first time I went over the car (covered in fine scratches) with the polishes, I was amazed at the difference.

Another word on the wax. USE SPARINGLY. This is a very high Carnuba content wax and if applied liberally you will have a good deal of build up. But as I found the excess can be easily removed with their quick shine. By the way, there is NO such thing as a 100% pure carnuba wax. Carnuba has the consistancy of some thing like a brick. While they may use nothing but Carnuba waxes in the wax, the actual Carnuba content is generally lower than about 1/3. The other 2/3's are chemical that make the carnuba usable for waxing paint. So when they say 100% pure Carnuba wax, what they mean is there is no other wax in there aside from Carnuba.

Happy car care!

Rick

[dalola]

I gotta go with the Zaino crowd. I've yet to see anything give a "better" shine. To be fair, however, I've yet to try Klasse. Also, Zaino does NOT contain silicon! Ask any painter about that.

As to the tires, I like a product from The Wax Shop, called LRV. Yields a nice, satin finish, not glossy or gookie. It's hard to find, but you can buy it direct.
~Dave

[REDSC400]

Just as an aside. At some recent (This past late summer/fall) auto shows, I did see a few folks using Liquid Glass auto polish finish with very good results. I have seen this product in the auto stores too. (Sadly it has the corvette coupe on the gold can )

Has anyone tried this finish? It supposedly has no wax or silicones and says so on the can.

Cheers..

[rdorman]

I used for the entire life of my 300ZX. It had a good shine, lasted a long time and was VERY easy to apply. The car was nearly ten years old when I sold it and people where constantly remarking on the fact that the paint looked like new. Which leads me to the question, why did I change?
Rick

[bvega]

Yes, Zaino contains silicones. Blackfire was created by Classic Motoring Accessories (properautocare.com) as a direct competition to Zaino. They use very similar formulas and as you can see from the head to head wax test sight, they performed very close in all categories. Blackfire uses a Polymer Silicone combination.

I have confirmed this with the knowledge that silicone attracts dust like crazy and you can see from that head to head wax test site that Zaino attracted dust CONSIDERABLY more than good old Carnauba. Just look at the half hood test on that site with the Mercedes ML after they went offroading. There is a pretty dramatic contrast from the carnauba and Zaino.

Im not saying take my word for it. I am just saying look at head to head, objective tests and draw your own conclusions.

I did some side work for a local fire department because they cannot use products with polymers and silicones because the 3M reflective lettering will not be able to be repaired and stick to the finish. Ask any vehicle lettering person that uses the 3M mettalic lettering. Products like Zaino, Blackfire, and some Meguiars stuff could not be used to polish out the hard water spots. So Klasse was employed and has done a great job.

This is just my experience and opinion. Nothing more

[jpk]

On the rare occasions when I've spiffed up my car, I've used Zaino and have been quited happy with it. Recently, I've been told about a product called liquid paint, and will probably try it in the near future. Has anyone used this?

thanks,

joe kennedy

[Mark Roe]

But Joe--

You won't run out of Zaino for another ten years