First post, much confusion...where to start?

[steelwindmachine]

I just bought a 2014 Sorento and am really excited to have a newer vehicle! I still have my previous vehicle of 12 years, a 1998 Honda Prelude (for sale :) ). With the new vehicle it reinvigorated me to assess my car cleaning regime and paraphernalia. I'm responsible for the care of the new vehicle, but also my wife's 2005 Forester and now my mother-in-law's 2009 Honda Odyssey.

To put it bluntly, I'm overwhelmed by the desire to keep the vehicles in top shape and am not even sure where to start. In the past I would wash the cars with Dawn (I've now found out that was bad) or Mr. Clean auto-dry sprayer and then infrequently clay barred (Griots or Meguires) and then used Meguire's Cleaner/Wax. I also use Novus 3-step plastic polish for lights. I've used Griots Tire Dressing for all rubber/hard plastic/vinyl. Things got busy with work and life and I started occasionally taking vehicles to the car wash (not the Sorento). I've also used Simply Green to clean engine bays and undercarriages, but am finding that that practice may be ill-conceived due to it potentially lending to accelerated corrosion. I live by the beach, so sea salt is already a potential issue.

The Sorento still seems to have a bit of wax on it, water is still beading on the paint and also has textured plastic lower trim. The interior needs a thorough cleaning.

The Forester's silver paint is rather dull and it has the textured plastic bumpers and lower side trim that has faded. The interior is somewhat worn, most severely on the front seat bolsters where the vinyl has cracked. The cloth surfaces have some light staining and spots.

The Odyssey exterior is okay, but I doubt it's ever been clayed. Has been waxed maybe once. Interior needs a thorough vacuuming and the smooth pigmented leather seats have never been properly treated, but are in good shape nonetheless.

I don't have much free time these days, so I'm contemplating having a friend of mine (professional detailer) do a full exterior detail on these vehicles in the early spring. I just don't think I can make the time to do anything near what would be necessary to make these cars look their best.

So, what I think I am looking for advice on is on methods and products that would enable me to maintain a pro detailer's work in between pro detailing cycles.

I'm also sorting out the myriad of products for interior use; it's dizzying. The Sorento in particular has so many different types of materials. Perforated pigmented leather seats, hard plastic, textured plastic, textured vinyl, clear plastic and of course the carpet.

I need simplicity where possible, but think I can devote a few hours every so often to maintain the condition.

Anyway, I did watch a bunch of the How-To videos and looked at lots of products.

[Bill1234]

Autogeek has a flow chart that would help you out a bit. Its located on their site. You probably want to look into coatings as it makes the vehicles easier to maintain

[Setec Astronomy]

Is your pro detailer friend a member here? Not to be pejorative, but I would say that most professional detailers out in the world don't work to the standards that members of this forum do.

If you are going to have him "restore" these vehicles and you are just going to be maintaining them, then you need to develop a good wash regimen and use some sort of spray wax or WOWA sealant between detailings.

[AZpolisher15]

Some of my favorites...
Duragloss 253 Tire and Rubber Dressing for tires, floor mats.
Wolfgang exterior trim sealant.
McKee's Fast Interior Detailer and Wolfgang Cockpit Trim Sealant for interior.
Aquapel for a windshield sealant.
Wolfgang Uber as a drying aid/detail spray and rinseless wash.
Griots Car Wash for a wash soap.
Blackfire glass cleaner.
PlastX for head/tail light maintenance.
Menzerna Powerlock and Duragloss 111/601 for sealants.
Blackfire Crystal Seal as a wipe on walk away (wowa) sealant.
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner for cleaning under the hood.
Colinite 845/476 for a carnauba.
Duragloss Aquawax for a spray wax.
HD Speed for an AIO.
Gold plush microfiber towels.
3D HD Towel Clean for a mf detergent.

There are plenty more great options as others will note, but this was just off the top of my head. These are the staples in my regimen, but I love experimenting too. These products are ones that I come back to time and time again. That should get you started :)

[UTdetailing]

First welcome to the forum! Congrats on the new purchase.

Second is I could not agree with Setec more about defining the standard of "Professional Detailers". I was a professional detailer and detailed 5-20 cars a day (not solo of course)in a large high volume "detail" shop. I can tell you that years later and from lurking on this forum, I was no where near the level of detailer that some on here are (5-20 cars a day should be the give away). Not sure how your friend views detailing, but depending on what your goals are for the vehicle, will dictate what "type" of detail you need/want.

Now to help with the confusion (I hope)....

If you are going to hire out for the paint correction, maintaining the work can be as difficult and time consuming or quick and easy as you want it to be. First though you should decide what level you are willing/comfortable going to. Does it stop at washing? Are you comfortable applying a spray wax/quick detailer? Or do you have the time to do the quarterly waxing/sealing? Be prepared that "maintaining" can be frustrating on daily drivers though as you will inevitably start noticing scratches, swirls and etc. If you are as "OCD" as most on here (including me) you will quickly lose a weekend working on perfection.


For interiors I have gone through so many different products, and have landed on 5 that I am comfortable with and stick to. I stick to Keeping It Simple Stupid :)

Meguiar's APC D101 Meguiar’s All Purpose Cleaner Concentrate, 1 Gallon, works on carpet, fabric, vinyl, and leather for all-over interior cleaning. (http://www.autogeek.net/mg10101.html) is perhaps the most versatile and effective product I have ever used/seen. Properly diluted it can clean everything except glass. I use it for everything. Keep in mind it will strip any previously applied dressings.

Vinyl, rubber and "non-shiny" plastics can be followed up with CarPro PERL Diluted to shine preference PERL Coat Plastic & Rubber Protectant, vinyl and rubber dressing, interior protectant (http://www.autogeek.net/perl-coat-protectant.html)

If you have leather you can use the D101 for it, and about once every other month or so condition using Meguiars Gold Class Rich Leather Spray is like a quick detailer for leather seats! Clean and protect in one step with Meguiars Gold Class Rich Leather (http://www.autogeek.net/megoclrilesp.html)

I have yet to find a glass cleaner I like better than Stoner Invisible Glass Pump Spray: Non-aerosol formula cleans automotive glass to crystal clarity! clean glass, windshield cleaner, window cleaner, (http://www.autogeek.net/glass-cleaner.html)

For "hard" or "shiny" plastics and coated wood I am a fan of Meguiars Ultimate Quik Wax, spray wax, synthetic spray wax, quick wax, meguiars quick spray wax, paint protectant, liquid wax, meguires, meguiars car (http://www.autogeek.net/meguiars-spray-wax.html). I also use it on door jambs.


The exterior is a bit more dependent on what "level" you are willing to go to. Meguiar's Ultimate Line offers everything from Compounds to Sealants, and no I don't work with/for or have any relation to Meguiars other than I love and trust their products. The only product outside of the Meg's Ultimate line that I strongly recommend is the Wolfgang Exterior Trim Sealant. It is amazing on exterior trim.

You will undoubtedly get tons of preference suggestions just as the above are mine. There is no "best" only "most preferred by me". I like the phrase that I believe Mike Phillips came up with "Find what you like and use it often".

I will also add that for both inside and out, equally as important is the tools you apply all of the above with. High quality microfiber towels and mitts dedicated to the task and product you are working with is a must in my opinion.

[steelwindmachine]

Bill, I have checked out that chart and understand it as a base-line approach to the order of operations, thank you!

Setec, my detailer friend is a member of this site. I've read through quite a number of posts, watched numerous videos and yes, I can tell that the core draw of this enterprise is for the OCD of car care. This overt level of attention to detail is one of the reasons I joined the forum. I just need to balance my OCD with what actual time I have available to try to acheive satisfactory results.

Harpolith and UTDetaling, thank you for the list and explanations. There are several products there that I'm interested in. One however that is especially intriguing that neither listed is the Klasse AIO polish and the sealant. I'm facinated by products that provide long lasting protection. To me, I need as much of that durability as possible. Finding time to detail a car from top to bottom and inside out is quite difficult. I could probably dedicate a day every couple of months to take care of intensive car cleaning, but otherwise the rest of my time is taken up with auto mechanical matainence, taking care of two households, a full time job, and other responsibilities. So, I need products and methods that hold up for the long term, are easy to use and hopefully don't cost an insane amount of money.

For instance, I have been looking into Leather Doctor's pigmented/perforated leather kit, but at $100 for stuff that I can only use on two vehicles in my whole family, it's a bit steep. So, I picked up some Mother's VXL essentially for free ($20-off $50 @ Advanced), I'll use that for now before investing in maybe a "diluted", but more "pro" leather care kit. I was thinking of maybe the Clean, Rinse, Protector B and D for ~$50 shipped was relatively reasonable. So, as you can see I need to evaluate the cost:benefit for everything.

My Advanced Auto has the Griot's Car Wash Concentrate on sale for $3.99, but I'm not sure yet if that's the best stuff for the money. I'm also considering getting a foam gun, so I'd like some proper soap that will work well with that. Thoughts?

Certainly an insight on what makes a high quality wash mitt or towels would be helpful. I always find that people like to make lots of recommendations, but I like to learn about what actually makes the product better? Does it have a higher thread count? Does it have some special molecular or ionic structure that enables it to perform better? Is it less harsh on the surface it's being applied to? Etc., etc...

And, since I didn't mention it, none of the cars in my family live in a garage. They're expose to the elements of suburban NJ by the beach 24/7.

[Setec Astronomy]

I have asked before why Klasse seems to be a magnet for new members. Klasse is a good product, and back a long time ago when there weren't so many great products, it was right there at the top of the list that a 'Geek would choose, but today I don't think it is, mostly because it can be a bit finicky if over-applied, which is a typical new-user problem.

I'd grab that Griot's wash for $3.99.

Back to your detailer friend, it's not necessary that he be a member or familiar with this site. As Mike Phillips has noted, and I'm kind of paraphrasing here, there are (pro) detailers who keep up with products, technique and knowledge, and those that live in their little bubble and do things the way they were taught (usually by someone who was doing it the way he was taught, and so on).

If you go back to the pre-internet era, the only way you really improved on your knowledge and skills would be if a guy like Mike Phillips stopped into your shop and gave you some info/training on how to use his products. And you might pick up some good stuff, or you might not, or you might forget what he showed you and go back to your old ways, until the next time he or someone else came around...in a year or two.

Today, you could spend a week on this site, play around a little, and pick up more knowledge than you would have in a LIFETIME back in the day.

So I'm just saying that you need to evaluate your friend, and see if he's a guy who uses a rotary with a wool pad that he puts face down on the concrete floor between panels, or whether he is up to date on best practices for the industry. Mike Phillips has also been instrumental in finally bringing together an organization to certify detailers, so there is no question of their capabilities (IDA).

[steelwindmachine]

Setec, I updated my post after you had read it, but yes, my guy is a member here. We go back quite a ways. I used to work on his Buick Grand National and hang out at racing events 10+ years ago.

I will grab the Griots Car Wash stuff on my lunch break :)

I totally understand what you're saying. I've gone through similar experiences with other enthusiast groups I'm a part of. My friend just messaged me and said, "...much like other hobbies the latest and greatest are always hyped up. I always say use what you're comfortable with and get the results with. I've seen top notch guys get show results with cheap Meguairs stuff and some get crap results with expensive stuff..."

[Setec Astronomy]

My friend just messaged me and said, "...much like other hobbies the latest and greatest are always hyped up. I always say use what you're comfortable with and get the results with. I've seen top notch guys get show results with cheap Meguirs stuff and some get crap results with expensive stuff..."

Well, you always have that, as far as someone experienced getting good results with mediocre products, and someone inexperienced using the best products and still not getting good results. I just wanted to make sure you weren't going to get your cars buffed with a dirty wool pad that's been face down on the floor, and when the cars came out all hologrammed "hey, I polished them".

As far as the "latest and greatest", sure, this business, like many other consumer products, is driven by hype and hyperbole and "what's new", but in the 12+ years I have been on detailing forums, that "latest and greatest" has included revolutionary products and techniques like rinseless washing, coatings, trim restorers/sealants, SMAT polishes, WOWA sealants, spray waxes/sealants (that work), etc.

[Kamakaz1961]

You will learn quite a bit on this site. All I say is welcome to AGO!

[steelwindmachine]

Setec, I'll be talking with my friend this week about his process, etc. I appreciate your concern and certainly if I see anything like him cleaning pads on pavement, I'll not be taking my cars anywhere near him. He knows how intense I am about things be done properly. I did a bunch of electrical work on his car and he saw first hand how fastidious I am.

I picked up the Griots Car Wash stuff, two bottles for $3.99 each. :)

Yes, am looking forward to learning. I might not be able to do all the same level stuff people do on here, but being aware and applying what I can, when I can and can afford certainly isn't a bad thing.

[Setec Astronomy]

I know there's a few members down in your area, and a few more of us a little further away, your other option is a spring detailing day and get a bunch of 'Geeks to help you with your fleet!

[UTdetailing]

If you are that pressed for time it may be worth checking around or seeing what your friend would charge for maintenance washing. I have always said that doing your own detailing is not necessarily the most economical decision. Most of us do our own because we love doing it, not because it is necessarily cheaper. I can't tell you how many times I have spent hundreds of dollars on products and equipment knowing I could have got my vehicle done professionally for less.


Sent from my iPhone using Autogeekonline mobile app (http://r.tapatalk.com/byo?rid=87407)

[steelwindmachine]

Setec, I'm definitely interested in connecting with fellow locals and certainly would love to know when and where a spring detailing day might happen.

UT, yeah, I'm under no delusion that doing my own detailing is necessarily cheaper. I don't mind investing in stuff if I'm actually going to use it. For the time being I just need to find a balance and am willing to pay someone to bring my vehicles up to snuff and then I can evaluate to what extent I'll be able to maintain them going forward.

[Setec Astronomy]

Setec, I'm definitely interested in connecting with fellow locals and certainly would love to know when and where a spring detailing day might happen.

I was suggesting you might invite members to your house to help you out. I realize there might be some hesitation with a number of people you don't know coming to your house and working on your cars that you might be a bit OCD about.

These kind of things have occurred...I just of course can't find any threads right now.