After reading the OCD cleaning thread on here I realized I was behind the times on the car care front. Up until yesterday I was using Turtle Wax Shampoo and Wax, a sponge and a chamois leather. I was never disappointed with the results but with the arrival of the new (to me) FL2, I thought I would try something different. After reading the posts on here and numerous other reviews I bought the following:



Kent Microfibre Noodle Wash Mitt (1.59)
Kent Microfibre Towel Pack (2.99)
Meguiars Gold Class Car Wash (14.99)
Autoglym High Definition Car Wax (32.95)
Poorboys World Wheel Sealant (13.95)

I appreciate the last three don't sound like budget products but they will last ages so in the long run are.

Mitt vs Sponge
Mitt wins hands down for me. I didn't have any "missed bits" and the mitt used a lot less water to wash the car. It also did a good job of removing dried on insects. The colour is a little garish but other than that I can't fault it.

Turtle Wax Shampoo vs Meguiars.
Meguiars for me. It has a much richer lather, lifts the dirt easily and leaves very little residue. The dirty water beaded off the surface whilst I was washing which suggests the wax layer beneath the dirt remained untouched.

Chamois Leather vs Microfibre Towel
Microfibre towel by a country mile! I used one towel to remove the majority of the surface water and a further three to competely dry the car. The glass was left crystal clear (even the sunroof) and the paintwork streak free. Although these do a perfectly good job, the pack I bought are about the size of a flannel so in time I may invest in some bigger ones.

Turtle Wax Car Wax vs Autoglym HD Wax
Both products produce a good finish in my view (I am no expert though). I was a little sceptical about the Autoglym before I bought it partly because of the naff name! It is easy to apply and remove though and the depth of shine is impressive-even on Stornoway Grey. It takes a fairly long time to dry and cure (about 30 mins for me so don't use if showers are forecast) but produces very little powdery residue when you clean it off. Long term reviews (by others) have suggested it lasts well so for that reason Autoglym wins it.

The final results:








It doesn't look out of place in front of the neighbours place either!!

I know what you mean about Stornoway being hard to get a good shine,i've found Megs 16 after a couple of coats shines very well,it isn't expensive either.

I know I bang on about this stuff, like a child wanting a puppy, get some Werkstat Acrylic Jett sealer, believe me it will shine

http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/we...ducts.html

Will have to back Taz up on the Werkstat products, so much easier and quicker to apply and does not seem to attract dust like standard polish does.

And speaking from very recent experiance the Werkstat Jett and Gloss seems to stand up to a heavy dose of TFR  p****d off with a Digital Keyboard Warrior

I wish I'd of seen your review before I bought the autoglym. The only item I have struggled to find on the budget front is a decent wheel cleaning brush for the back of the wheels (one you can use without removing the wheels). The one I bought is excellent at getting in the crevices but useless for everything else. Any suggestions?

Taz directed me to Werkstat products only used the jett sealer to date... Nice and quick to use and gives a nice shine

Click image to enlarge

agreed that brush has limited use, sometimes a toilet brush (new) works well. depends on wheel design really. At work
At home

"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

Labradorslave wrote:

... back of the wheels ... Any suggestions?

Get some winter tyres. Then you have the wheels off twice a year anyway and can do the job properly then.

Of course, it's not the cheapest solution if you just want to clean the wheels...

As CG says, cheap and cheerful bog brush for arches.

One of these for wheels - http://www.autobritedirect.co.uk/index.php...brush.html

I can vouch for the fact it works well and doesn't scratch. (Pics to prove!!)

I use a lot of Autobrite products.......and a hell of a lot of other makes!!

Worth a nosey around the site, there is a discount code on detailing world.co.uk for 10%

J 2013 FL2 - Black Edition Auto
2013 FL2 - Black Edition Manual GONE!
Founder of the 'Microscopic LR Spoiler Badge Club'
Destroyer of chrome rears.....

I'm needing to get a wheel brush, the alloys I've got are a pig to clean. 21MY Defender 90 S 3.0 D200

I thought they might be J
Think you might need a four finger brush to save a bit more time  BETTER looking half of the famous Twinlanders
The wanna be other half - http://www.freel2.com/forum/member-carriec.html

If I just stop using the brakes they will be fine.  21MY Defender 90 S 3.0 D200

Flintstone brakes is what you need  BETTER looking half of the famous Twinlanders
The wanna be other half - http://www.freel2.com/forum/member-carriec.html

I use these for maintenance cleaning the wheels

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/wheels-and-t..._1037.html

Small ones good for the grill too Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

I got a kents jumbo m/f for drying, it's great, better than a chammy cloth. I'm going to get some meguiars tyre black, then was looking at turtle wax tar remover and turtle wax back to black then I was looking at some wax. My idea was to get budget stuff to start with just to learn how to detail. Black MY2013 SD4 GS Auto, Wood Company Armrest, Freel2 sticker.
Gone MY2010 Freelander 2 Manual TD4.e S, Alaska White.