Car shampoo

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Car shampoo

Post by Pieta »

Hi all,

Too lazy to use the search function. What car wash shampoo will you guys recommend that wont break the bank? Been using Meguiars Soft Wash gel but in all honesty don't find it very effective very difficult to remove any dirt. Been looking at the following,

Meguiars NXT
Meguiars Wash & Wax
Meguiars Deep Crystal

Problem is first 2 are like over R300, a little steep, but also want something that doesn't strip off wax. The wash & Wax looks good, but I don't have a lot of experience other than the Meguiars stuff.

Thanks in advance, :hi:
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by Deranged_9n3 »

I have been using Sonax Car Wash Shampoo for a couple of years now. From builders it's R100/L and IMO a very decent product
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by Pieta »

Deranged_9n3 wrote:I have been using Sonax Car Wash Shampoo for a couple of years now. From builders it's R100/L and IMO a very decent product
Thank you kibd sir. Will go and get some.
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Post by Hoosier Daddy »

Pieta wrote:
Deranged_9n3 wrote:I have been using Sonax Car Wash Shampoo for a couple of years now. From builders it's R100/L and IMO a very decent product
Thank you kibd sir. Will go and get some.
I'll second the Sonax. Really enjoyed it. Have used Meguiars Gold, Car Chem Luxury and some other stuff but the Sonax was great
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by chucker02 »

In my little experience the Megz gold attracts alot of dust, dont know if I was doing something wrong but the car's body itself would become very static and dust would just cling to it. I see the same thing with Megz soft wash so please advise me if its user error or does anyone else experience this aswell?
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by Pieta »

Holy ****.

Got some of the Sonax shampoo and I am properly impressed. (Gold one)

I took a trip to Ermelo from Pretoria on Wednesday and car was littered with bugs on the front and washed tonight with the Sonax. Didn't even take alot of effort to get off. Usually with the softwash your arms would've gotten a good workout.
chucker02 wrote:In my little experience the Megz gold attracts alot of dust, dont know if I was doing something wrong but the car's body itself would become very static and dust would just cling to it. I see the same thing with Megz soft wash so please advise me if its user error or does anyone else experience this aswell?
Go get some Sonax (Builders Warehouse stocks). I was a die hard fan of Meguiars but the Softwash seems to be lacking and I couldn't warrant buying Megz NXT or the Wash and wax at over R300 for 1.4L. Properly impressed with the Sonax.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by lawrence »

Carchem Luxury Shampoo is also a really great shampoo.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by Hoosier Daddy »

lawrence wrote:Carchem Luxury Shampoo is also a really great shampoo.
Find that it attracts bugs much more easily
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by lawrence »

Hoosier Daddy wrote:
lawrence wrote:Carchem Luxury Shampoo is also a really great shampoo.
Find that it attracts bugs much more easily
:lol: WUT
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Post by Unobeat »

Pieta wrote:Holy ****.

Got some of the Sonax shampoo and I am properly impressed. (Gold one)

I took a trip to Ermelo from Pretoria on Wednesday and car was littered with bugs on the front and washed tonight with the Sonax. Didn't even take alot of effort to get off. Usually with the softwash your arms would've gotten a good workout.

Go get some Sonax (Builders Warehouse stocks). I was a die hard fan of Meguiars but the Softwash seems to be lacking and I couldn't warrant buying Megz NXT or the Wash and wax at over R300 for 1.4L. Properly impressed with the Sonax.

After reading this, i am going to get some Sonax.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by jippo »

chucker02 wrote:In my little experience the Megz gold attracts alot of dust, dont know if I was doing something wrong but the car's body itself would become very static and dust would just cling to it. I see the same thing with Megz soft wash so please advise me if its user error or does anyone else experience this aswell?
I found the opposite when I used gold class. My car looked clean for longer
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by Kyle »

I use Dodo Juice born to be mild, awesome product... Foams up nicely and a little goes a LONG way.

Cleaning ability is epic, in terms of different products attracting dust... not too sure about that one hey, that depends on the quality of your paint really.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by lawrence »

Thought you guys would appreciate this... its quite an in depth review of a host of various car shampoos looking at things like:

Slickness
Suds (and how long they last)
Cleaning Power (This will be simply marked as a score unless there is a reason to comment on it)
Economy (in use, i.e. how much do I need to use per wash?)
Cost (when Economy is taken into account)

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/s ... p?t=363239

Its well worth the read.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by chucker02 »

jippo wrote:
chucker02 wrote:In my little experience the Megz gold attracts alot of dust, dont know if I was doing something wrong but the car's body itself would become very static and dust would just cling to it. I see the same thing with Megz soft wash so please advise me if its user error or does anyone else experience this aswell?
I found the opposite when I used gold class. My car looked clean for longer
Well then I dont know jippo :lol: maybe I am just being silly. Will try the sonax shampoo then
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by lawrence »

chucker02 wrote:
jippo wrote:
chucker02 wrote:In my little experience the Megz gold attracts alot of dust, dont know if I was doing something wrong but the car's body itself would become very static and dust would just cling to it. I see the same thing with Megz soft wash so please advise me if its user error or does anyone else experience this aswell?
I found the opposite when I used gold class. My car looked clean for longer
Well then I dont know jippo :lol: maybe I am just being silly. Will try the sonax shampoo then
If you want to understand what is going on with dust attraction to your paint, read this article written by Mike Phillips

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/hot ... paint.html
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Post by Kyle »

lawrence wrote:Thought you guys would appreciate this... its quite an in depth review of a host of various car shampoos looking at things like:

Slickness
Suds (and how long they last)
Cleaning Power (This will be simply marked as a score unless there is a reason to comment on it)
Economy (in use, i.e. how much do I need to use per wash?)
Cost (when Economy is taken into account)

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/s ... p?t=363239

Its well worth the read.
Thanks bud, awesome read....

How is the luxury charchem compared to the tailor made?

Also, it largely depends on personal preference, once you kinda know what to look our for.

Personally I'd put the Lather above the G Wash... For me, the G wash is far less slick than the Lather. Also Lather produces better 'Quality" suds that last longer.

Really depends on the user, if you look at the scoring between dodo and charchem :

Charchem:

Scores
Slickness ********* 9/10
Suds ********* 9/10
Cleaning ********* 10/10
Economy ********* 9/10
Cost ******** 9/10

Overall: 46/50

Dodo:

Scores
Slickness ********* 9/10
Suds ********** 10/10
Cleaning ********* 9/10
Economy ****** 7/10
Cost ***** 5/10

Overall: 40/50

It makes sense that the Dodo has less cleaning ability since it is a "Mild" cleaning product meant for cars with good protection, we could also debate the fact that stronger cleaning means shorter lifetime of protection (?)

For me it scores where it counts (Slickness and Suds), and if someone isn't afraid to spend a little more then why not.

I actually wish we got all those brands locally though :cry:
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by jippo »

chucker02 wrote:
jippo wrote:
chucker02 wrote:In my little experience the Megz gold attracts alot of dust, dont know if I was doing something wrong but the car's body itself would become very static and dust would just cling to it. I see the same thing with Megz soft wash so please advise me if its user error or does anyone else experience this aswell?
I found the opposite when I used gold class. My car looked clean for longer
Well then I dont know jippo :lol: maybe I am just being silly. Will try the sonax shampoo then
Maybe I was less lazy and did a better job of washing my car when I used Megz :lol:
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by chucker02 »

jippo wrote:
chucker02 wrote:
jippo wrote:
chucker02 wrote:In my little experience the Megz gold attracts alot of dust, dont know if I was doing something wrong but the car's body itself would become very static and dust would just cling to it. I see the same thing with Megz soft wash so please advise me if its user error or does anyone else experience this aswell?
I found the opposite when I used gold class. My car looked clean for longer
Well then I dont know jippo :lol: maybe I am just being silly. Will try the sonax shampoo then
Maybe I was less lazy and did a better job of washing my car when I used Megz :lol:
Not arguing there! :fear:
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Post by lawrence »

Yeah look as with most things detailing, people's personal preferences come into play whenever you are rating a product, so reviews of these sorts are never going to be 100% scientific, but at least give a fairly accurate view.

The sooner people realize there is no 'right product', only a product that is 'right for you' the better.... to a large degree it is the outcome in detailing that matters.... not how you get there.... if the paint is perfectly polished, it makes no difference if you used a Flex or Rupes machine to do the work, nor does it make a difference if you used Menzerna or Scholls or Meguiars or any other abrasive technology... its the perfectly polished paint that counts.

Every product or tool has its own pros and cons and it is up to each user to determine what weight they give to each attribute and how this factor's into their overall decision to use the product.

Even when it comes to a simple thing like shampoo you have to look at things like:

Slickness - is there sufficient lubrication to allow the mitt to 'slide' over the paint
Cleaning power - The ability of the shampoo to release dirt from the paint
Rinsing ability - how easy does it rinse off
Cost per application - some are more concentrated than others, making the cost per bottle an unfair comparison
Scent - all of us prefer 'nice' smelling things [but 'nice' is defined differently for each of us]
Availability - how easily can you replace if you want more
Does it have any gloss enhancers or is it a pure shampoo
Are there water softeners in the shampoo (Megs gold class has) - these will help increase suds and reduce water spotting [may be important for those with hard water]

As Mike Phillips always says, find something you like, and use it often.
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Post by Kyle »

lawrence wrote:Yeah look as with most things detailing, people's personal preferences come into play whenever you are rating a product, so reviews of these sorts are never going to be 100% scientific, but at least give a fairly accurate view.

The sooner people realize there is no 'right product', only a product that is 'right for you' the better.... to a large degree it is the outcome in detailing that matters.... not how you get there.... if the paint is perfectly polished, it makes no difference if you used a Flex or Rupes machine to do the work, nor does it make a difference if you used Menzerna or Scholls or Meguiars or any other abrasive technology... its the perfectly polished paint that counts.

Every product or tool has its own pros and cons and it is up to each user to determine what weight they give to each attribute and how this factor's into their overall decision to use the product.

Even when it comes to a simple thing like shampoo you have to look at things like:

Slickness - is there sufficient lubrication to allow the mitt to 'slide' over the paint
Cleaning power - The ability of the shampoo to release dirt from the paint
Rinsing ability - how easy does it rinse off
Cost per application - some are more concentrated than others, making the cost per bottle an unfair comparison
Scent - all of us prefer 'nice' smelling things [but 'nice' is defined differently for each of us]
Availability - how easily can you replace if you want more
Does it have any gloss enhancers or is it a pure shampoo
Are there water softeners in the shampoo (Megs gold class has) - these will help increase suds and reduce water spotting [may be important for those with hard water]

As Mike Phillips always says, find something you like, and use it often.
I agree largely, what may be my favourite product might be hated by you.... And I also agree with what you've said in the past... Those of us who have been fortunate enough to try a variety of products have a responsibility to give unbiased advice to those who require it.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by Shivvy »

Washing techniques are also a large attribute to the finished product. Pre soaking your car with a foaming agent as well as using traffic film remover can immensly help with removing the dirt. the less you are touching your car the less likely you are to introduce swirls and abrasions into your paint work. just some food for thought.
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Post by Pieta »

Look I am lacking a bit in respect to all the different products. I mostly used Meguiars products due to the fact that I knew it. I only recently started washing with the 2 bucket method but will never wash differently again.

Surely the guys that does detailing on a more serious level is the type of advice I asked for.

To my limited knowledge I must say that the Sonax did good for me but I am open to try others as well.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by amstel18 »

I've used the Sonax wash before, and was very pleasantly surprised.

Must be one of the better "off the shelf" type of products.

But I'm with lawrence. Carchem Luxury shampoo is amazeballs and smells bloody delicious.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by lawrence »

I must be honest - I've never tried the Sonax shampoo but it seems to be getting some good reviews so I'll probably pick up a bottle to play with soon.
Pieta wrote:Look I am lacking a bit in respect to all the different products. I mostly used Meguiars products due to the fact that I knew it. I only recently started washing with the 2 bucket method but will never wash differently again.

Surely the guys that does detailing on a more serious level is the type of advice I asked for.

To my limited knowledge I must say that the Sonax did good for me but I am open to try others as well.
Firstly, its really great to see another person adopting better washing techniques - this makes me happy :grin: The introduction of the 2nd bucket into your wash routine to allow you to rinse out your wash mitt every so often, reduces the potential for scratching, and it is the multitude of scratches that ultimately lead to dull paint so if you wash/dry poorly, you are making your car less shiny, not more.

To my mind, using quality wash mitts and drying towels in combination with 2 buckets and grit guards is way more important than the shampoo you use - I am not for 1 minute suggestion you use some cheap and nasty industrial crap that the car washes use, or some poor quality cheap shampoo - but mostly, as long as the shampoo is PH balanced (so its not overly stripping your protection back off) and offers decent lubricity and cleaning power, then the choice of which to use will be based purely on personal preference.

As you can see from earlier posts, there are so many attributes to each shampoo that as already said, there isn't a right or wrong answer.... just find a shampoo that cleans well enough for you, at a price point that is good for you, and that you enjoy using. On the one hand, the journey of exploring many different products is a fun one but it can get expensive quickly, so you need to balance the exploring of new products, with using an existing product that you know works for you.
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Re: Car shampoo

Post by Pieta »

lawrence wrote:I must be honest - I've never tried the Sonax shampoo but it seems to be getting some good reviews so I'll probably pick up a bottle to play with soon.
Pieta wrote:Look I am lacking a bit in respect to all the different products. I mostly used Meguiars products due to the fact that I knew it. I only recently started washing with the 2 bucket method but will never wash differently again.

Surely the guys that does detailing on a more serious level is the type of advice I asked for.

To my limited knowledge I must say that the Sonax did good for me but I am open to try others as well.
Firstly, its really great to see another person adopting better washing techniques - this makes me happy :grin: The introduction of the 2nd bucket into your wash routine to allow you to rinse out your wash mitt every so often, reduces the potential for scratching, and it is the multitude of scratches that ultimately lead to dull paint so if you wash/dry poorly, you are making your car less shiny, not more.

To my mind, using quality wash mitts and drying towels in combination with 2 buckets and grit guards is way more important than the shampoo you use - I am not for 1 minute suggestion you use some cheap and nasty industrial crap that the car washes use, or some poor quality cheap shampoo - but mostly, as long as the shampoo is PH balanced (so its not overly stripping your protection back off) and offers decent lubricity and cleaning power, then the choice of which to use will be based purely on personal preference.

As you can see from earlier posts, there are so many attributes to each shampoo that as already said, there isn't a right or wrong answer.... just find a shampoo that cleans well enough for you, at a price point that is good for you, and that you enjoy using. On the one hand, the journey of exploring many different products is a fun one but it can get expensive quickly, so you need to balance the exploring of new products, with using an existing product that you know works for you.
I rinse my mitt out after every panel, and halfway through the wash I empty the rinse bucket and refill it with clean water.

Look I am by no means close to the level you guys are on, but I am trying to learn as far as that is concerned.
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