Hmmm... I almost hate to own up to it...
While I was between jobs, I was working at CarMax doing detailing. I thought it would be pretty enjoyable, and during the interview I made quite clear I wanted to work for a place where quality was the key, not quickness (though I obviously didn't expect them to be autopian about it). They made it quite clear that they care greatly about quality. I soon found out that was a lie, and I really didn't enjoy the job much. It was commission, so I took my time (though the equipment was pretty terrible too) to do a decent job. I didn't really want to quit as it was a job. Fortunately I landed a real job pretty soon thereafter, and only worked at CarMax about 6 weeks. It was an interesting way to start using a rotary, though. They showed me how to crank it up to about 2300 and lean onto the buffer on tough spots (not moving it off that tough spot, mind you). Everyone thought I was an idiot for running it at a max of 1800, and just taking multiple passes over tough spots... But that is a whole different story...
Anyway, the whole point is that they used Ardex products. I found them pretty substandard. Their foam buffing pads seemed ok, their wash 'n wax seemed like any other cheapy car wash, though it did foam a lot (helped by the fact that people pumped a ton out of a 55 gallon drum into their buckets).
Their cut white was so unbelievably harsh I only used it once. It never broke down as far as I could tell. It left very deep scouring, though. I made the mistake of trying it by hand on a very oxidized side mirror housing, and it looked like I wiped it with gravel (it was the only cleaner CarMax bought). However, this really wasn't the appropriate product for the job, it's just that it is all CarMax purchased...
The Bead-X is like concrete in it's difficulty to remove. It did have a light cleaning ability to it, and left a decent shine. The Diamond Crystal Four was the only good product. It left a nice shine and was easy to use. But it was nothing out-of-this-world. Their Express Wax has Teflon (woo hoo!) and really doesn't leave much of a finish. Their Clay-More clay was horrible. It was pretty scratchy, yet was powerless against all the overspray the paint shop guys would invariably leave.
It's "OK" Green was actually pretty good on carpets. It reminded me a lot of APC+. I never tried it on engines, though, as they used Auto - Marine for that (which was really strong and caustic). Their ATTACK wheel cleaner was like chemistry-class acid. I think that's all that was in it...
Spot Delivery is their QD, and it smells ok. It is quite streaky considering that it really doesn't leave much slickness behind. It's a decent product, though.
Spot Remover was weird stuff that seemed pretty solventy. Almost like it could remove touch-up paint.
I think that is all I used. I was underwhelmed with it all, though I also have no idea how cheap or expensive it is. Perhaps it is very low-cost. I don't think there were any products I would allow on my car, with the possible exception of the It's "OK" Green (what a name... :rolleyes).
Hope this helps... :spot
Oh yeah, I also used some Leather Perfect, but just once. It had a smell not unlike Pinnacle. It sort of had a solvent smell to it as well, but that could just be the leather scent. It's hard to say how that worked as it wasn't my leather. But it seemed ok. I also used some blue vinyl dressing (can't remember which) that was quite silicone-filled and quite shiny.
