I'm going to start detailing my car myself and looking around for brands to use on my Acura TSX. Meguiars has a package for their NXT product line for exterior, interior, and tire care. Should I get that or is there better products out there for detailing the exterior, interior, and tire?

 

Well, I guess you could say im somewhat new to owning a car, but...


I use meguiars everything...

Meguiars car wash...
Meguiars wheel cleaner/shiner
NZXT Wax
Wheel Cleaner


I do use some other product names, but only when I cant find meguiars.

 

You don't need Meguiar's everything. They are not the best, but they are good when compared to other over-the-counter products. But I've found their NXT car wash very good. Their NXT quick detailer is supposedly good, but I haven't used that. Interior detailing, I prefer 303 aerospace protectant. I also use their NXT wax, but it's not the best. It's just easy to put on and off that you can even do it with every car wash if you wanted.

 

check out my thread....

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...7&page=1&pp=25

 

very true, its not the best, but IMO the easiest

 

But easy (and cheap) does not always get the results that you want. It took me a while before I started getting obsessed with wanting my car to look better. Easy was fine for awhile, but as the car got older, I found that I wanted it to continue to look new. It has always looked good, but it is even better now that I have become obsessed and take the route that involves more work.

Detailing is becoming my crack!! but I am not detailing my crack, the PC would HURT!!

 

Check this thread about products. I think most of your quality products cannot be purchased OTC other than Megs and Mothers. If you're content with the results then by all means, continue to use them. The products you hear about in these threads are usually ordered via online or by phone and not available OTC. Check the Wash and Wax forum for more info on detailing and two other sources are Autopia and Better Car Care.

 

Where can i get the Meguiars NXT wash for washing? I looked all over my local stores for it over the weekend when i picked up a bag full goodies to wash my car with. However, i never came across the wash. So i just settled for the Soft Wash Gel by Meguiars.

Hardrock32tls... when you made the comment as far as better products that you now use, what products are you referring to?

 

I believe hardrock uses Four Star and Poorboys. Check this thread for his take on the products he uses.

 

You get what you pay for, is very true these days. Meguiars makes some great products, available at a consumer level. If you want extrordinary results, you have to have extrordinary products. Poorboys, Optimum, Clearkote, and Fourstar and Blackfire fit that bill......Another good tip is the know how to use these products. Results are only as good as your patients an learning ability. take Hardrock for example, hes hooked now, and becoming borderline obsessive like some of the rest of us !!

 

Found a place here in Denver to buy 4 Star OTC.. a detailers store. Went buy today to pick up a couple of things, and they have a New Elise sitting in the showroom.... sweet little car for under 50K.


As Hawhyen51 said, I am using 4Star UPP (Ultimate Paint Protection) as my sealant. I am using PoorBoys SSR polishes and 4Star UGE (Ultimate Gloss Enhancer). I actually like that it does take some work to do the job right. It was not too long ago, probably less than a month ago that I was in here asking some very simular questions that others are asking and I am by NO means an expert, I read up on the different products from reviews, and what people had to say, and I used my BS detector to weed out the ones that I could tell that did not really know what they were talking about and listened to ones that were giving sound advise. I knew that I wanted to stay away from Carnuba's because of the durability factor and that I live in a climate that can be in the 90's one day and that night it can fall below zero. (No bullshit, it does happen) So anyway, I wanted something durable, reasonably priced professional grade products. I PM'd and spoke with Exceldetail who has really impressed me with his knowledge of the products out there, and the processes used to obtain the best possible shine, that has durability. He gave me his recommendations for what I was looking into getting, I took some of them, passed on others (which I am now thinking about going back and adding to my arsenal). Some preach carnubas, some preach Klasse, Some preach Zaino, I picked 4 Star. BlackFire is another one that would fit nicely into my personal system. I thought seriously about Zaino, but the process to apply it did not appeal to me, sounded overly labor intensive for the comparable results. Now understand, I am one that would rather fix swirls and repair scratchs than simply hide them, which led me away from certain products and led me to the ones that I am using. If you want to get serious about your detailing, you can not forget the Porter Cable, I saw it discribed someplace as if you had a well conditioned athlete doing your polishing, but that athlete was on steroids with a case of 'roid rage. hehehe A normal person could never begin to obtain the level of polishing that you can get with a PC.

Easier is not always better, OTC stuff is made for the guy that once every couple of months decides its time to do a little something for his car. Professional grade products are for the guy that wants to have a car that stands out, the one that looks like it just rolled off the showroom floor or better. As Excel said, you get what you pay for, and a lot of times, if you pay a little more, the returns are a lot higher.

Excel... I beg your pardon... I am NOT a border line obsessive...... I am a FULL Blown, 110% obessive, and rapidly on my way to developing a case of OCD .... AND DAMN proud of it!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Forgot to say this, Learn what the products do, this was my big hurdle and big complaint with OTC products. A polish does not protect, it cleans, removes or diminshes Swirls (some fill rather than remove). A wax or sealant PRIMARY job is to protect, followed closely by enhancing the apperance of the paint.

Learn the proper process.... things like NOT using Dawn to wash.... learn how and why to use clay.... This forum is great for learning all of this.... sometimes it is too much and will make your head but the info is there, just have to weed out the ones that are pulling BS out of thier ass and the ones that know what they are talking about....

 

Also, the best shine comes not from the best wax, but from the best cleaning and surface preparation before applying the wax.