Comments on Product Selection

T

toml

New member
This is my first foray into the world of detailing, but I bought a new 2005 Honda Accord early January, and I'd like to keep it looking as new as possible. It's a graphite pearl color with gray cloth interior and alloy wheels, and it's kept outside 24/7 in the Boston area. Currently, I must wash my car at a do it yourself car wash (I only use the high-pressure rinse and bring my own stuff).



As I searched and read postings over the past few weeks, I've been looking for products that are durable, forgiving, and can be applied by hand. Temperature is an issue here in Boston, so products that can be used at 40F and above would be nice. For the paint, something that'll last at least 4 months with a good balance between shine and depth/wetness. No "candy coated" finish. For the tires, something that'll last at least 2 weeks with minimal slinging and a natural, matte finish (some gloss is okay). For the interior, a natural, matte finish. I'm definitely willing to try more than one product to see what works best, but I don't want to spend a lot of money in doing so.



Here's what I came up with. Based on your expertise, I'd appreciate any comments/suggestions.



Wash: NXT Car Wash or #00 applied using 2 bucket method with Chenille wash mitt (all of these I've bought). QEW looks intriguing as I could wash the car at home and just use the car wash to rinse off salt, major dirt, etc.



Clay: Griot's Garage with a mixture of Car Wash shampoo and water in a spray bottle as lube.



Paint: AIO followed by 2x of either UPP or WG. Both appear to meet my criteria, but I'm leaning towards UPP as I've read it's more durable than WG. Both appear to be easy to apply and do not stain trim.



Exterior Trim: All trim is black, non-textured hard plastic, so I'd use the same products as on the paint.



Head and tail lights: Same products as on the paint



Exterior Windows: AIO (perhaps just EO 20/20 Glass Cleaner on front windshield)



Wheels/Tires: Wash using double strength car wash mix with separate wash mitt or brush. I prefer not to use a specific wheel cleaner if possible; if not, then something acid-free like 4* Wheel Cleaner Gel. Polish and seal the wheels with same product as paint. Dress tires with either PW BnB, Z16, or AA using EO Tire Swipe.



Interior Trim, Dash, etc: 303 (16 oz. bought for $6 at Ace Hardware)



Interior Glass: EO 20/20 Glass Cleaner



MFs: 2 Excel Pacific Blue WWs for drying, a number of yellow and blue Excel Supreme towels. Perhaps a couple Ultra fines from Pakshak.



QD: Megs Quik Detailer (bought)





Any advice on a cleaner/protector for the cloth interior? Anything else I'm missing?



Two questions I still need to get answered may modify the above choices: (1) whether the head and tail lights are plastic or glass assemblies and (2) whether the inside part of the rims are clearcoated or not. The dealer said that only the front of the rim was clearcoated, but these are factory alloy wheels, so I would find that surprising.



Thanks again for any comments!!
 
I have a TSX in that color and have used both WG and 4*UPP on it. I think you'll find WG gives a bit "warmer" look and will mute the metallic a bit while you get more metallic "pop" with UPP. WG durability seems to vary some between user. Both will look good on your car. It just depends on what you like.
 
toml- Welcome to Autopia! It looks like you've done your homework well :xyxthumbs



A few "tweaks" if I may: I greatly prefer Sonus clay over Griot's (which I used for a long time). Consider Meg's #62 car wash as well as 00. Be careful with the QEW lest you mar your paint.



I think you'll really like the UPP. Make sure the car is perfectly dry as water + UPP = weird spots.



I clean interior fabrics with Griot's Interior Cleaner. I haven't used any protection on these surfaces.



The backs of many factory wheels are *not* clearcoated. Those on our Mazda MPV were painted (*very* carelessly :rolleyes: ) with light gray paint that just barely provided coverage and which immediately wore off in some spots. But you can still treat these areas the same way. I'm using AIO+ SG x 4 on the MPV wheels and it's at least retarding the deterioration of the gray paint and keeping the exposed aluminum from corroding too badly. And if nothing else, it makes the back sides easier to clean.
 
Thanks for the responses so far!



Accumulator, the dealer didn't think the rim area that's visible behind the disc brake was clearcoated ... only the front of the rim. Honda itself wasn't any help. Would this change the process in terms of cleaning the accumulated brake dust ... wash, clay, polish, and seal?



Also, what did you like about the Sonus over the Griot's clay? My choice was based largely on the reviews at autopia.org, and it seemed like the Sonus clay was really mild to the point that multiple passes had to be made over the same surface to get it clean.
 
Honestly, I'd just get some Clay Magic at Pep Boys or Autozone (or whatever your local retailer is). About $10, it is the original and IMO, the best consumer bar on the market.



Either UPP or WG will look great, Jeff is right about the minor differences in the appearance.



If you are having a serious brake dust issue, tell the dealership how unhappy you are and see if they will switch the pads to ceramic. Voila! Clean wheels even after a week!
 
Scottwax said:
If you are having a serious brake dust issue, tell the dealership how unhappy you are and see if they will switch the pads to ceramic. Voila! Clean wheels even after a week!
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Not a serious brake dust issue ... I'd just like to be able to keep the rim area behind the disk brake looking clean as the 5 spoke wheel design makes that area quite visible. Before searching this site, it wouldn't have even been something I would have thought of :)



Besides the clay and the sealant, any other comments?
 
toml said:


Besides the clay and the sealant, any other comments?
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Not really, it looks like you really did some research before starting this thread.



You may want to try other products down the road sometime, it can take some trial and error to get the look that is best for you.
 
After a few months on this site I've learned more than I ever imagined about detailing. I have every Saturday booked for a year testing combos on my own Integra.



A 'newbie' tips I picked up recently...



Make sure you DILUTE your soap well when washing (1/2 to 3/4 oz of soap per gallon of water). Concentrated solution and weekly car washes will wear out your protection much faster and durability will be more of an issue.



Hope this helps a little....
 
toml said:
the dealer didn't think the rim area that's visible behind the disc brake was clearcoated ... only the front of the rim... Would this change the process in terms of cleaning the accumulated brake dust ... wash, clay, polish, and seal?
Click to expand...



NO change at all. Treat all areas of the wheels the same but have plenty of applicators/MFs handy because any oxidation of the aluminum will quickly soil things. Lots of sealant (one that layers like KSG or UPP) would be a good idea. Plenty of bare aluminum spots on our MPV wheels but they're doing OK with this regimen.



Also, what did you like about the Sonus over the Griot's clay? My choice was based largely on the reviews at autopia.org, and it seemed like the Sonus clay was really mild to the point that multiple passes had to be made over the same surface to get it clean.
Click to expand...



The Griot's doesn't lend itself to the "soap as lube" approach very well. It tends to dissolve in the soap solution. And the last time I used Griot's clay I tried going over the car again with my Sonus. The Sonus picked up quite a bit of yellow, Griot's clay.



While the Sonus *is* pretty mild, I don't mind going over an area a little more. And IMO it's not so mild as to be ineffective. The mild nature also makes it well suited to my "spot-claying" that I do at every wash, though this is sorta the opposite end of the spectrum from what you're about to do. Still, I just like the Sonus better. Better than Mother's too, BTW, which seems awfully similar to Griot's. But as ScottWax said, you might want to check out Clay Magic if you can get it locally.
 
Thanks everyone for your response! There are a few products that I'd like to see side by side ... is it proper forum etiquette to post another thread about possibly obtaining some samples? I have an unopened MPPC bottle and never used but opened MPPP bottle that I can trade for, or I can pay for the samples. If it's more appropriate, I can post in the classifieds.
 
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