bigD1515

Hey guys! I'm LOVING my new car And since I love it so much I want to keep her clean all the time! So I want your opinions on best products to get for interior/exterior daily (or weekly) cleaning. Reason I ask this is because I don't want to get the wrong thing and mess something up! I have fabric seats so I don't need a leather seat cleaner but I do love the leather smell and I know some cleaners come in leather/new car smells. So what I would clean on a daily basis:

- Driver door interior (I have a bad habit of pushing the door open with my foot) It's like a hard plasticy material.

- Dash (including instruments and speedometers and stuff)

- Windows and mirrors, inside and out (Any special cloths??)

- Any sort of exterior wax for weekly use or whenever I want her to look sexier.

I already need to go to the car wash first. (rear end has road dirt, been playing with her a little too much and going a little too fast!)

MadStang40

Well don't ask me about windows. No matter what product and what kind of wipe I use (lintless, microfiber, paper towels, newspaper etc) I can't get the streaks out. It is the bane of my existence.

For the interior, I use Meguire's natural shine spray. Spray it down, wipe in with microfibers, works every time except on hard build ups.

For the exterior, I use Meguire's Ultimate wax. The shiniest I've got my car yet after using this wax. Also use Turtle wax molding shine for all of my black plastic panels. Again, wiping in with microfibers.

For the wheels, I use Black Magic tire shine. The stuff that comes in an aerosol can. Spray it then wipe it down with other microfibers for an even shine.

And for the tires, I use Black magic wheel cleaner. You know the process, spray the wheel inside and out liberally and wipe away with microfibers. No complaints here though I'm sure there's probably something better out there...

kzonts

Whatever you do, don't use anything that creates a shine on the dashboard. You will be blinded by the glare on sunny days.

Windows - I use Invisible glass. Apply it with cotton clothes or cloth diapers. No streaks!!!

Tires - I use Meguiars Endurance Tire Gel. Expensive, but lasts long and has a great shine.

Visit Autogeek to find some good stuff for detailing...

pdonket

There's a whole lot of different things you can use ranging from really expensive to cheap.

The most affordable option without sacrificing much quality would be IMO to go for meguiars products in any auto supply store. They have a good variety and their products are high quality and don't come at a crazy cost.

My (middle) option is using www.chemicalguys.com for nearly all of my car needs, because they sell in large quantities and have reasonable prices for IMO very premium products. The downside here is that chemical guys is less user friendly than some premium websites such as autogeek or adams. You save on your purchases but you need to know a little bit more about what exactly you want to buy, since they have tons of different products and their organization is less friendly to someone new.

For buying kits or more comprehensive and easy to figure out packages for detailing, I'd use adams polishes or autogeek. Their websites are friendlier to use and they sell high quality products, the only thing is that the products come with a price tag for the convenience.

danman0469

+Armor All cleaning wipes on the dash and door panels. NOT Armor All shiny wipes. Cleaning wipes clean of course, but they also have a protectant in them.

+Meguairs ultimate car wash, meguiars clay, meguairs nxt 2.0 wax for the exterior. I'm a fan of meguiars stuff in case you cant tell

+Like MadStang said, no matter what i try i cant get windows clean. It angers me beyond belief whenever i try to clean them.

+Meguiars Plastx for headlights and taillights.

+Black magic tire spray

+Mothers Back to Black for exterior trim and moulding. This stuff is incredible. I recommend it to everyone.

kzonts

I'll have to check out the Mothers Back to Black.

Entaille

cleaning daily is a bit much. even cleaning weekly is a bit much. the more you touch the paint, the more chance for something to go wrong. try to get a good sealant/wax coat on there so the exterior cleanings are easier to perform with less touching involved.

I can appreciate a clean car as much as everyone else, just don't go overboard I will defer to others on product suggestions

bigD1515

Thanks guys. Looks like Meguiar is a popular brand. And a lot of this stuff is less than $10. I might be able to settle for a more middle grade product like pdonket said! I'll have to check them out next but for now I'll stop by Advanced Auto and see what they got. I want to wait just a few more days since my window tint is pretty new (3-4 days but it rained yesterday). Keep the options coming guys!

bigD1515

Daily was kinda mis-used by my part. Daily would be like after days that I work (delivery guy) and that would be interior only. Exterior is only on special occasion

pdonket

I think it mostly just depends on what kind of cleaning is going on

Naturally a full detail session weekly is kind of crazy, the wax/sealant won't even have a chance to fade at all! But I tend to do full details (wash, clay, *polish if needed*, glaze, seal) on a quarterly basis, while I use a synthetic spray on detailer at least once a week. I just like to keep the dust off the paint and plus grime builds up on the exterior faster than one might think.

Also for a specific recommendation to the OP, chemical guys has a leather scent spray that I happen to like quite a bit. It doesn't last forever (couple squirts on the carpet lasts a week or so) but it takes a long time to go through all of it even if you spray it that often. They also make other scents, new car, etc. I'm curious to see what their "stripper scent" smells like though xD

If you do want to go chemical guys eventually let me know and I can give you some more specific recommendations based on what I've tried.

Side note: This talk of detailing makes me wish I wasn't stuck at college right now and could spend my afternoon in the garage detailing the car!