To Do.... or not To Do...

[craigIS]

questionable myths about detailing cars. if there is anyone who can answer these, it would be appreciated. thanks in adcance.

1. should you use furnature polish as a wax on your car?

2. is it actually bad to use dish soap to wash your car?

3. should you use dash board protectants?

4. is it safe to use tire shinning products?

[AceOfSpades]

Originally Posted by crossfire291

questionable myths about detailing cars. if there is anyone who can answer these, it would be appreciated. thanks in adcance.

1. should you use furnature polish as a wax on your car?

2. is it actually bad to use dish soap to wash your car?

3. should you use dash board protectants?

4. is it safe to use tire shinning products?

i'll answer them to the best of my knowledge.

1/ I don't know if it is safe to use a furniture polish, but it sounds pretty stupid to me. For less that $50 you can get a really good quality wax/sealant that is safe and is designed to provide maximum protection of the type of environment your car is supposed to be in.

2/ i think i read somewhere that it was bad to use dish soap as the chemicals are pretty harsh against your car. Again, there are good and cheap car wash soap available for your car. they provide additional lubrification among many other advantages. Plus the Meguiars gold class smells really good

3/ i use dash board protectants. i'm not really sure if there is any drawbacks but after around 1 year of a full blown use, i don't have any cracks or anything like that. From my personal experiance, it made my interior look soo nice and clean

4/ yes if used correctly. No it is not safe if you coat the WHOLE tire with tireshine. Pick your tire shine carefully, because when some dry up, they have a browning effect

did i pass?...i'm not a professional, don't blame me if anything happens following what i said lol

[zackman17]

Originally Posted by AceOfSpades

i'll answer them to the best of my knowledge.

1/ I don't know if it is safe to use a furniture polish, but it sounds pretty stupid to me. For less that $50 you can get a really good quality wax/sealant that is safe and is designed to provide maximum protection of the type of environment your car is supposed to be in.

2/ i think i read somewhere that it was bad to use dish soap as the chemicals are pretty harsh against your car. Again, there are good and cheap car wash soap available for your car. they provide additional lubrification among many other advantages. Plus the Meguiars gold class smells really good

3/ i use dash board protectants. i'm not really sure if there is any drawbacks but after around 1 year of a full blown use, i don't have any cracks or anything like that. From my personal experiance, it made my interior look soo nice and clean

4/ yes if used correctly. No it is not safe if you coat the WHOLE tire with tireshine. Pick your tire shine carefully, because when some dry up, they have a browning effect

did i pass?...i'm not a professional, don't blame me if anything happens following what i said lol

you didn't do too bad. here are my answers.


1/ I would strongly reccomend that you do not use furniture polish as it is not an automotive product and it could have long term damaging effects on your clearcoat. if your looking for a good wax and you have a black car for 25dollars get a bottle of meguiars gold class 2 coats and a give it a buff you wont believe the results.

2/ meguiars goldclass FTW as ace said it is a very good car soap. dish soap basically strips all the wax off the car i would not use dish soap.

3/ dashboard products are fine they help clean your dash and protect it from fading. armorall protectant will protect your dash/plastic and vynal objects from harmfull ultra violet rays.

4/ tire shine is ok to use like ace said all you want to apply it to is the sidewalls not the whole tire. now on that note there are different types of tire shine tireshine in a can that you spray on. and it also comes as a gel. i am not a fan of the gel because if the gel gets stuck in in groves in the tire when you drive it spits it all over your freshly detailed car. most tire shines turn brown. they are made with a petroleum jelly. any spray one would suffice. to clean your brown tires and your dirty rims you can pick up a 4l bottle of super clean it is a degreaser (purple bottle) about 10 dollars at wallmart. it is in the automotive section. you mix it with water the mixing ratios are on the back of the bottle you can mix it 1part cleaner to 2 parts water to clean your rims and tires (mix it less if you are applying on painted rims. you can mix a small ammount with water to remove bug guts off of bumpers.

if you have any other questions about products just post the q's

[lvan]

Is there a wax or some liquid to put on wiper arms to make them shiney?
The same goes for black steel floors on E30. I wanna spay something on the black paint under the doors....

[Gamite]

Dish soap should only be used if you want to completely strip the wax in order to start with a fresh coat.

[sam1]

I know for sure that the chemicals in the dish water are not good for the color and shie of your car....