tptacek

I've never really put effort into keeping a car clean before, but I've recently bought a 2010 GT. Its a beautiful car and I'd like to keep it that way. I'm looking for recommendations on how to keep it clean.

-How often should I wash/wax it and is there any particular kind of wash/wax that I should use?

-The seats and some of the inside paneling are leather. I bought Armorall leather wipes for my old car. Are these enough? Anything in particular that you would recommend for leather?

-The rest of the interior is plastic and chrome finished surfaces. I have no idea how to treat these.

-The car is a cloth-top convertable. I've found all kinds of cleaners and vinyl protection coats. Is there anything specific you would recommend or will any do?

-I've also been looking at car covers (I don't have a garage). Again, is there anything specific to look for or will anything with water/UV protection that fits the car do?

Thanks in advance. Sorry if these are too basic questions.

tonto1

NEVER use armour all on leather...never spray any cleaning product directly towards the seats...spray on rag and wipe...it prevents spotting......use Maguires products, any auto zone, advance, NAPA.....mild soap and water for washing ..... your vert already has a guard in the fabric, dont add any... car cover needs to breathe...they have to have air to prevent mold....100.00 on ebay....worth it

NOLA26

+1 on never using armorall. I use a leather cleaner and conditioner. Maguires makes a good one as well as turtle wax. I wash once a week and wax about once a month. Use any good quality "CAR" wash. Invest in microfiber cloths to clean the interior, you can get them pretty cheap at places like Sams or Costco. Go to autogeek.net they have a huge ammount of info and how to videos for people serious about cleaning a car and making it look show quality clean.

2010V6Stang

Stay Away From ArmorAll please. Go to autogeek.net and read everything about exterior and interior, Use water based cleaners for interior defintely, you dont want anything with petroleum. The water based stuff doesnt shine as much (just protects) as the crappy stuff, but thats a good thing. I wash pretty much once a week even in the 35 degree winter, because I didnt buy a new car for it to be dirty lol. I usually wax everytime I wash or at least every other time.

Nuke

There are lots of products and you can find a lot of discussions in the detailing subforum. But whatever you choose, if you can't garage the car, then invest in a quality outdoor car cover. I garage my Stang and she's not my DD.Plus, she's stored over the winter for at least 3-4 months. I only wash her as needed but she gets waxed 2-3 times a year. Usually the 1st wax after coming out of storage includes clay baring.

Misbehavin

He's using ArmorAll leather wipes, not actual ArmorAll which is fine for the leather. The use of actual ArmorAll is a no no though. Keep in mind that most of the "leather" seat isn't leather, but rather vinyl. It's generally fine to get a leather protectant on vinyl and leather, but vinyl protectants are usually bad for leather. So you can treat the whole seat with the leather cleaner/conditioner but not the vinyl protectant.

FWIW, I prefer Megiuars leather protectant over other brands such as ArmorAll leather products myself. I don't care much for any wipes, but that's also personal preference. I just seems like you get much less product overall when you buy a "wipes" version of a product.

As for wax, there are plenty of good products out there. Again, I tend to lean towards Megiuars products (I've learned a long time ago Megiuars is hard to beat). I usually use a coat or two of NXT (or Megiuars 21, it's the same thing) topped with a couple coats of Megiuars #26. I usually allow 24 hours in between the NXT and the coats of #26. You just can't beat the look of the carnuba wax, although the NXT offers a longer lasting protection since it's a synthetic sealant. Hence why I top the sealant with the #26. I usually put another single coat of #26 on about every 3-4 weeks.

Twice a year I clay, and then polish with Meguiars #7, and if paint correction is needed I use #80 or #83 depending upon the situation. Obviously for these you'll need a DA polisher. The polisher will also help you in getting coats of wax on evenly and quickly.

Chrome won't really need anything in the interior. A simple wipe with a microfiber will usually suffice. A good interior protectant of your choice should be used on the plastic and rubber trim. Some people prefer a dull shine, others a deeper glossy finish. I generally use Megiuars Supreme Shine protectant. They offer a non-gloosy variant as well. In the summer, I tend to use protectant every week. With it being a vert, I try to keep the interior protected. In the winter I use it less frequently as sun is less of an issue.

I use RaggTop products for the top. You probably won't find them locally. You can get them online at AutoGeek.net. They make products that are specific for cloth vs. the vinyl-like tops. Make sure you get the appropriate type for your need.

I can't offer any real advice on this. I have a garage.

ptaylor_9849

First and foremost, you must learn proper washing techniques. Most swirls are caused by poor washing. Hand wash your car and never go through a car wash. Especially ones with spinning brushes. Next you should understand what polishing is and I'm not talking about wax. Polishing a cars finish is like abrading away the outer most surface of an apple. It's the step that makes a used car look new again. If you've ever rubbed a dirty, waxy apple on a rag and then seen how it shines then you know what I mean. Never touch or wipe your finish when the car is dirty & dry. Doing so is like rubbing it with a fine sand paper as dust is nothing more than fine dirt particles that will scratch your clear coat.
You can learn a boatload of info on this topic over at http://www.autopia.org/forum/index.php. Meanwhile here's an example of how polishing removes swirls and other paint imperfections caused by improper washing.

Art161

Use a spray detailer as needed. I prefer Meguiar's #135 and Meguiar's #9910 microfiber cloths. If you can't find these in your local auto supply store, you can order online from Meguiar's. BTW, when you clay bar, do not use the #135 as a lubricant. Meguiar's says it has too much lubricity for that purpose.

05gtdriver

I try not to use too much water/washing if possible(depending on where you live & how dirty your car truly gets) as it eats away at all that hard work claying/sealing/carnuba/glazing you've done. After getting all the contaminants off your car's surface(with claying & using a cleaner/prep wax) you need to seal it with a quality polish(synthetics last longer are are easier to apply), then a nice paste carnuba wax(not in liquid form) and then a glaze top coat(I like Meguiar's products for over the counter stuff) and Poor Boys for the fancy stuff. For the interior, you have to use cleaners that won't "bleach" the leather & surrounding trim(since you have a convertible). As others here have eluded to, you have to maintain your car constantly, you aren't gonna get it all shiny & forget about it. I find that keeping your carpeting/floormats well vacuumed keeps the interior less dusty and as stated, invest in hundreds of microfiber towels(they get funky quickly and washing them makes them useless for further use on painted surfaces IMO). Between washes(I try to keep it to once a month) a quality car duster with a detailing mist(the brand of wax you apply dictates what mist you can use). Like anything, the more attention you pay to it, the nicer looking it will stay. People still trip out that my car is four years old

MR_Q

I go to a car wash... The kind with the power wands. I spend five bucks. Then I drive it home.... which requires me driving on dusty, gravel roads... Then my car gets dirty again. Keeping my car clean is a lost cause.

For the interior (On my Camaro... Never have I cleaned my Mustang yet) I used a rag, water and a little bit of Mr. Clean, then while its still wet I quickly dry it with another rag. I used to use armorall on the dash and door panels, but I kept hearing that it was "bad" so I cut out that step. Im sure the vast majority of the hardcore car guys would stone me in town square for my car cleaning technique.