I washed my car and garage door today, and used the last of my Meguiars Gold Class car wash soap. I'm happy with it, before I order another bottle, I figured I'd see if there was a newer/better product I should try.

I normally wash with the two bucket method using a wash mitt, followed by a chamois for drying, and then Lucas Slick Mist spray wax applied with a microfiber towel. So no need for soaps formulated for something like a pressure washer or foam cannon. And I'm also not one of those super-anal detailers who spends hours poring over his car with a clay bar every week, so I don't need an ultra-premium 14-part cleaning regimen. I'm okay with decently good results with mild-to-moderate effort (as evidenced by my use of a spray wax, which is the lazy route.)

I'm a bit wary of the various Wash + Wax combo soaps, since I had poor results when I tried one of them years ago, although they very likely have improved.

I have a buddy who swears by the Chemical Guys soaps, but I don't have any experience with those.

What do you guys like?

I like the Meguiars gold myself. Maybe get a few ounces off of your buddy and try the chemical guys soap and compare it.

Also a Meguiars Gold user here.
I've converted some of the interior supplies to Chem Guys but haven't tried their soap.

Meguiars Ultimate car soap. Fellow detailer for fun.

Chemical guys with a soap cannon.

I like the Gold Car Shampoo also.

quote:

Originally posted by mcrimm:
Chemical guys with a soap cannon.

Which soap? Seems like they offer about 10 different types.

I use Chemical Guys CWS_107 Extreme Body Wash and Synthetic Wax Car Wash Shampoo.

Sounds like you’re using a spray wax wipe down every time too as do I.

You should consider a water deionizing filter. It makes a HUGE difference. After done washing I hook that up and do another good rinse, no spots.
I always thought it was overkill until I got one.

The spray wax isn’t really just lazy. After I get a really solid cleaning and sealing done, hitting it with spray wax every time and extends the time to do that again by an incredible amount.

I've been using Lusso for weekly washings. Gentle, slick, and smells great.

I just bought this Uber wash you add it to your wash soap to improve drying and I'd doubled as a quick detailer concentrate. If the reviews are correct, it should be a good addition for car maintenance and much cheaper than buying detailer spray by the bottle.

I have become a bit of a Chemical Guys fanboy. The stuff works good.
HoneyDew Snow Foam
Extreme Bodywash & Wax (Grape)
Tough Mudder
Is my current arsenal though I have not used the tough mudder yet just bought it the other day.
I use the power washer to give a good rinse and loosen things up, then use the foam cannon let her soak a touch, then use microfiber mits to give it a nice rub down, then light power wash rinse.
Works great for light frequent washes. The extreme body wash water beads quite nicely for a while.
Just did the Expedition this evening.

Dawn dishwashing soap.

No kidding. I've been using Zaino car care products for years. Decades, in fact.

One review site said that after winning the top product award five years straight, they were disqualifying Zaino products from further comparisons.

Zaino doesn't recommend using their car wash (Z-7). Instead, they recommend using Dawn dishwashing soap to start with, to remove all the dirt, grime, debris and road filth from your auto, saying "use Liquid Dawn(hand dish washing liquid) as a car wash. It has a high alkaline content which cuts right thru carnauba wax, paraffin, silicone oils, etc. This will get your paint finish squeeky [sic] clean and wax free."

Then, start applying the Zaino car care products. Last year, I spent about four hours one afternoon going from top to bottom on my Mercedes E350C4. Wash, clay bar, re-wash (this time with Z-7), polish, detail, etc. Here is their full page of instructions, with recommendations for products for specific purposes (anti-swirl, and so on).

Yes, it's labor-intensive, but I only have to do it once a year. Afterwards, all I need is a bucket of warm water, a soft sponge and a chamois once a week for an hour or less and my car has a showroom shine!

Hold on, now... Dawn is fine if you want to strip your car and put a whole new base coat of wax on. But it's a bad choice for a weekly or semi-weekly car wash soap, unless you're the type of OCD who likes starting from square one and seriously re-waxing your car each and every time. And who has time for that?

And just wiping down your car with just water is introducing unnecessary scratches and swirls. Especially bad for a dark colored car like mine. You really need some sort of buffer to loosen, lift, and trap the dirt particles so your sponge or whatever isn't dragging the coarse contaminants across your vehicle's wax and clear coat as you wipe. Hence the soap.

quote:

Originally posted by fpuhan:
Dawn dishwashing soap.

Instead, they recommend using Dawn dishwashing soap to start with, to remove all the dirt, grime, debris and road filth from your auto, saying "use Liquid Dawn(hand dish washing liquid) as a car wash.

Dawn is great if you want to get down to the bare paint. For cars that have been waxed or ceramic treated this is not a good idea for regular washes. Any of the washes that advertise PH balanced are probably a good choice. There are many. I like Chemical Guys Mr. Pink. Inexpensive, cleans well and doesn't strip wax or ceramic coating.

Speaking of ceramic coating, I recently tried Meguiar's Hybrid Ceramic Wax with good results. Very inexpensive as those things go and it is sooo easy to apply. Spray on, rinse off and dry your car.

Yeah... Not surprising that the wax company is telling folks to wash their cars with Dawn. Just means those folks will have to buy and reapply 20x as much wax! Profit!

I was alternating between Chemical Guys Citrus Wash and Gloss and Meguiar's Ultimate Wash and Wax but ran out of both. I just bought a bottle of HydroSilex Silica Soap since I have HydroSilex Recharge as my "wax".

If it doesn't rain tomorrow, I will try the Silica Soap.

Another Chemical Guys user here. I use the honeydew in my foam cannon and use honeydew in the bucket that has soap in it as well. I like it and it’s really not terribly expensive either.

quote:

Originally posted by fpuhan:
Dawn dish washing soap.

Never use Dawn on a vehicle. That used to be an approach used by some to strip everything off the paint prior to correction and re-coating, but Dawn is so brutal on the rubber and plastic that no one who does detailing professionally would ever do or recommend it anymore. Wanna remove everything from the paint surface to re-coat?
Use a mixture of 50/50 distilled water and IPA in a spray bottle and mist it on the paint only. Spray on wipe off with a couple good microfiber clothes. Done.

As for car wash, Meg's Gold Class is hard to beat. High quality, available virtually everywhere, and low cost. Just make sure to change the soap in your bucket a couple times as you wash to always insure you have as few contaminants as possible in your bucket. Using a Grit Guard in the bottom of your wash bucket is also highly recommended.

I use dawn to strip the old stuff off then apply Rejex. I do this twice a year. For the in between washes, Meguiars is fine

quote:

Originally posted by Georgeair:


You should consider a water deionizing filter.

I wasn't aware of those, sounds like a good idea.
Rather than slog through Amazon listings, info or recommendations?