wash for never-detailed cars, yikes

[gnahc79]

this past weekend I did a exterior only wash/polish/wax on a black `95 accord (pics in my gallery). For the life of me I could not get the front clean using mother`s car wash, a chenille wash sponge (from cma) and OXO brush. Various tough water spots and embedded dirt/crud just stayed there.

I don`t think clay would do much good since none of the dirt would actually "lift" onto the layer of lube.



Should I have used a 50-50 alcohol/water mix? The water/vinegar mix didn`t do anything on the windows, so I doubt it would work for the front of the car. A different shampoo?

[boywonder]

Sounds like washing isn`t going to do much of anything. You might have to hit that car with a light to medium cut cleaner to get rid of all the oxidation and water mark etching.

[lalaland]

Wash again, and also give it a good clay, I`m sure there`s a bunch of stuff that will still lift out. It`s an 8 year-old car, a wash alone won`t do the trick.

[shaf]

Some stuff might be junk embedded in etched-in spots. For instance if someone`s neglected to clean of bug splatter ASAP and it`s eaten through the paint, leaving an impression and rough spot where dirt just seems to sit. Not much you can do for something like that I think.