Since I see pics of the cleanest trucks on the net posted here I thought I would ask. What is the best car wash to use? I have tried Meguiars Gold Class and PS21. But there has to be something that works better. The PS21 is good but I think it is too expensive.

 

Fadex.
Basically all a car wash has to do is remove the oils picked up from the road and other cars and float away the dirt, and I think most liquid car washes do that.
What are you looking for in a car wash that the Meguiar's and PS21 aren't giving you?

 

The Meguiars seems to lose it's suds after just a few minutes and never regains them. The PS21 is great except for the $9.00 for a 12oz bottle price.

 

I use Turtle Wax's Zip Wax, it's cheap like 3.97 for 64oz and does a decent job for me. At that price if I loose my sudsing action I just add more soap. I always use my Absorber drying towel so I never worry about water spots.

 

$9.00?? Ouch, for that price I would hope that it would come with a teenager to wash the truck.
Believe it or not the lack of suds doesn't really make a whole lot of difference in how well it's cleaning. If you really don't like the Meguiar's you should try other brands until you find one you're confortable with; I've used it before and it worked ok.
If I can give you two bits of advice:
Stick with the liquid soaps, the powders don't always dissolve completely in cold water and may scratch the paint.
Don't be tempted to use TOO MUCH soap in an effort to get more suds, you'll just end up stripping the wax off you're paint faster than you want to.

 

Indyfan,

Suds are very important! They are what helps "float" the dirt away when your washing your truck! Without suds you just have your washmit and dirt! Ouch. LOL They also mentioned this on Crank and Chrome! I get to watch it on my Weekend job! he he That and Trucks, Hotrod TV, Horse power TV, Ect.

Fadex

I also use Meguires car wash. I'll have to send what type it is when I get home. I bought mine at Wal-mart and it always has suds from begining to end and I even have hard water! My Zip wax lasted maybe a body panel and it was useless. I myself don;t mind paying extra for car wash if it does what I want! IT even comes sented to it smells nice. :P

 

I like Hawaiian Shine Car Wash Soap. Cleans without scratching or removing the wax. Rinses off easily and adds to my L's shine. The label states (paraphrasing) that it was developed in Hawaii with their salt air damage in mind. Not worried about that in middle ga., but it can't hurt.

Check coatsproducts.com

Dan

 

Although I love meguiars, I've been using this stuff by eagle one called "wet" car wash that foams like a mad dog. It really cleans well and doesn't seem to hurt the wax. I think foaming is critical in keeping those swirl marks off your truck, it helps "float" the dirt away as someone else said. Also, use two buckets to wash, one for soap and one for rinse. I soap/scrub in one bucket, then rinse in the other, then pop the mit once or twice to shake off any dirt that may have collected, then back to the soap bucket....it really makes a difference in the long run.

Joe

 

I'd have to agree with Lightninrod. I use the Hawaian wash too. Suds up well and is very concentrated so it goes a long way. Get on http://www.coatsproducts.com/ and order a gallon of wash (about $10), a gallon of Cherry wet wax (about $23, great wax), and a gallon of Miracle Mist detailer (about $22, great after wash shine enhancer). You can't beat their price and their products work very well. Many guys on this site use the wax, that's what turned me on to it. I don't sell this stuff, just use it and am very happy with it.

 

I use the cheapest one,or whatever's on the shelf the closest. Every one of them seems to work fine. I guess I haven't thought much about it. None of them keep suds unless you use three times more than they say to,,,,98

 

I too have been unimpressed with the Meguiar's. I use a pink gel that comes in a squeeze bottle. Before this I used a blue liquid which I beleive was made by raindance.

While I have been washing my cars for years by hand, I must admit I don't use the two backet method. Clarify do you use the spnge to rinse? Seems I can never get all of the soap out of the sponge so that rinsing with this sponge and a second bucket of water would be counterproductive. I think I will try this next time. Just before selling my last car I did use some 3 step system put out by Meguiar's... The first step was excellent at removing some pretty serious scratching and fading from a trunk lid. The other two steps (sealer and carnuba wax) were pretty unimpressive. i think I will try your suggestions as to waxes and shine enhancers. Any problem with wax buildup after coniued uses?
Patrick

 

I really don't know what the 2 bucket method is. I use a pressure washer and a bucket. Works great for me. Great for cleaning the tires, wheel wells, ect.

 

The "two bucket" method is meant to keep any dirt or other particles you washed off the vehicle from going back into your soapy water and possibly scratching the paint. I believe you dip the sponge in the soap, wash a section, then rinse the sponge in clean water before dipping it back in the soap.
I must say I've never done it so I don't know if it makes much of a difference, but if it makes you feel better ... why not.

 

Hey All,

Just food for thought. I had a detail business for a few years, before Uncle Sam relocated me in MS.

Remember one thing... A real Chamois, or man-made Chamois is good for drying, and water spots.

Bad Thing Tho'... It strips your wax, when ever you use it.
My advice, or $.02 worth is this: Use a soft terry cloth towel for
your weekly wash job's. When waxing, use the Chamois...

Also, watch out for Car Wash soap, like the Turtle Wax stuff. If it has a wax enhancer in it, be careful. If it dries on the truck, it will leave spots. If this happens, use a Polish/Wax, something like WET: POLISH/WAX.

Have Fun, and keep the rides Shining...

R1968

 

I've always had good luck with Blue Coral Wash/Wax. I buy it at Walmart in a 100oz jug for less than $3. Now on my vehicles that I use Zaino on, I use the Zaino Car wash. It's expensive, but it works to enhance the Zaino that's on the car. I plan to use Zaino on my truck therefore I'll use Zaino car wash.

Steve