One of my good friends works at an locally owned automotive specialty store, has a 2001 Ford F-150 Lariat (bright red) and keeps his truck immaculate. Of course, he is giving me advice on varoius add-ons and products for my new KR. In particular, he recommended the following:

- California Duster; a long dust broom made especially for cars; use when the vehicle is dry to keep dust off of the exterior body
- The Wax Shop's LRV (Leather/Rubber/Vinyl) Protectant for the dash and inside door
- The Wax Shop's Super Glaze HD Kit; after washing the exterior, rub this glaze onto the truck for a great sheen finish

Just curious to know what you KR owners are using to keep your trucks looking good. I've seen reference to "Leather CPR" on another thread, and plan on locating that product to try on my KR interior leather seats.

Thanks in advance.

 

Wax... use whatever suits you. There are a lot of great products out there. I've never been a real fan of any of the Wax Shoppe products but, if you like them, that's all that matters...

For the leather, there are TONS of threads here beyond the Leather CPR thread dealing directly with conditioning. Leather CPR to Lexol to Fiebings to Meguiar's to King Ranch Saddle Shop to Leather Master to Eagle Ottowa.... well, you get the picture...

 

Thanks for the suggestions RP.

YesterdaY (Saturday) I spent close to EIGHT hours pampering my truck. Wash, wax, etc, and I didn't even get to the inside until today! Needless to say, I cannot do this every weekend, or else I won't have time for anything else

The products that I did use are as follows:

- Super Glaze HD from the Wax Shop. I applied this over the entire body after carefully washing with a chamois and water. After application and some time to sit, I gently buffed it out with a large towel and later with a microfiber cloth. The exterior was so slick, not even a fly could land on it

- Leather/Vinyl/Rubber from the Wax Shop. I applied this onto my dash and vinyl interior. Can't say I noticed any big difference in the looks of the dash and interior, but it's protected.

- Never Dull. I picked this up at AutoZone. It's a small silver can with wads and wads of fabric (cotton?) that is soaked with an oily substance. I rubbed the chrome step rails and aluminum wheels with this stuff, then came back with a clean polish cloth. This stuff really made the chrome and aluminum shine.

- Leather CPR. I picked this stuff up Friday afternoon at a local Ranch store. Applied it today to the front leather seats, steering wheel and captain's arm rest. All I can say is that my leather drinks this stuff. I applied liberaly, let sit for 10 minutes as directions suggested, then came back to rub off any excess; only, there was no excess. Gotta do the back seats next.

That's pretty much my experience this weekend. The Ranch is looking great!

 

A couple of observations/suggestions based on what you've typed:

Loose the chamois. Just a suggestion here... the reason is that, while it sucks up water very well, it offers very little to no nap for any grit or grime to become entrained in the material. This, in my opinion, is CRITICAL because of the potential to swirl and scratch by picking up a single grain of sand or just a bit of grit.

Most prefer to utilize a 100% lambs wool mitt or a 100% cotton mitt / sponge. Technique is also important in minimizing your paint problems -- simple things like starting at the top and working to the bottom and not using the same mitt that you use on your wheels anywhere else on your paint can make a difference. I also HIGHLY recommend a two-bucket wash.

Probably not the best product to use on your wheels. Here's why... your wheels have a clear coating on them that is designed to sacrifice itself to protect your wheels... think of this clear coating on your factory wheels as the clear coating on the painted body panels. It's there to protect.

That being said, using a wadding product like Never Dull or any other aluminum/metal polish probably isn't the best choice of products. Rather than using this stuff, treat your wheels like a painted surface and wax them in the same manner that you do your paint... because of the heat that your brakes will build, I'd suggest using a synthetic product on your wheels like Zaino or NXT.


--RP--

 

RockPick, traveling gritty substances in the chamois is something I hadn't thought of, and you're 100% correct. I'll certainly take that under advisement.


Good idea. I would guess that it's still safe to continue to use Never Dull on the chrome step bars, but I'll look into the products that you recommended for the wheels.

Thanks again.

 

What about Zaino products for the paint? I've always been a fan of them.
www.zainobros.com

 

While it could happen with absolutely ANY type of drying 'utensil' be it a towel, blade, or other... it's certainly something that I think about when I'm drying a vehicle -- be it a client's or my own.

There are some SUPERIOR drying towels on the market... then, like anything else, there are some lesser quality ones. A good medium that I use on my own vehicles is the Water Magnet drying towel from Meguiar's. While it's not the absolute best, it's a very nice towel for the money and does a very good job. You can pick them up cheap at www.autodetailingsolutions.com or at your local Pep Boys which typically stocks them.


I don't think you'll have a problem on the step bars but, to be totally honest, I haven't investigated step bars from a clear coat standpoint. Again though, I think you're okay.

BTW, I did get your email and I'm very sorry for not getting back in touch with you. Things have been chaotic with work/life and I'm behind on getting back with people. Sorry bud...

 

I really need to get around to ordering a BUNCH of stuff. .

 

This seems like it could cause scratching but I have no idea if it would or not. I am interested to hear if others have used something like this or if there are any negative side effects of it. My truck is still very clean except for a light coat of dust over it. I want to know if this can be done a day or two after I wash it again to keep the dust off.

 

Some will swear that it does... others will swear that it won't.

I'm somewhere in-between those two categories. I own one. I use one. But, I only use it when it is VERY light dust... and I mean very light. I've never noticed any adverse effects because I think I used it correctly to this point.

Now, if the truck has been sitting outside for 2 days, is an inch deep in dust, and dew has helped 'set' the dust to the paint -- absolutely not.

The ones who swear that it's a bad idea have a good point IMO... the notion of taking a dry material and dragging it across your paint -- well, you see where the problem could come up.

RP

 

I had a Black 02 Sierra Denali and I used used Zaino Bros on it. But it was a long process. I found that I couldn't tell the difference between multiple coats of Zaino Z2/Z5 and just one coat of Meguirs NXT.

Also using the clay bar, while a time consuming process, makes a helluva difference. After you strip the existing wax with Dawn or similar detergent, use the clay bar before applying the new wax. I couldn't believe the difference the first time I used it. Although being that I was using it on a black truck, the visible difference was pretty obvious. But the biggest difference was how smooth the truck was.

I'm probably gonna clay my new truck this weekend and apply NXT.

 

Visually, I concur with you. I don't see much of a difference between Z and NXT either.

From the standpoint of longevity though, Zaino will win that battle. Most of us who frequent this forum know that the key to ANY product line is to stay on top of your vehicle and not let it get away from you and you'll be in good shape. For that reason, and because I've never let any vehicle I've owned 'get away' from me, I prefer to go with a more simplistic application of NXT or something similar that I can do in a one or two step process rather than several steps with the Z system.

Again, Z is fine stuff... not my favorite but very respected... I just prefer another product... or two.

RP

 

I use a California Duster on my truck ONLY to remove dust that has built-up on the paint while it has been sitting in storage in my garage.

Since my truck is a toy, and not a daily driver, I often find myself parking it immediately after I've washed it, and it may be several weeks again before I take it out on another drive. Even though it is just sitting in my garage, it will usually get a modest build-up of dust. The careful (very minimal pressure applied to the surface of the paint -- basically just the weight of the fronds themselves) use of the Duster seems perfect for removing this type of contamination.

However, as soon as I drive it again, and get any kind of road grime on the surface of the paint, I stop using the Duster and just deal with the truck the way it is until it's time to wash the vehicle again.