Anyone tried this stuff?

I bought some from Halfords and used it today on my car (which hadn't been washed for a couple of months :oops: )

It's brilliant - the sponge glides across the paintwork and the dirt just wipes off. Its not cheap (about twice the price of Halfords own) but it is well worth the extra.

Oh, and it smells nice too - sort of coconutty I think.

Can't recommend it highly enough

How much is the Zymol shampoo? I havent seen it in my local Halfords yet , is it new in? I had assumed that Zymol was mega expensive stuff that obsessive American Ferarri owners and the like used before a concours competition and wasnt availible in the shops , i might have to give it a go! Do they have any of the waxes or polishes from the Zymol range on sale?

How much is the Zymol shampoo? I havent seen it in my local Halfords yet , is it new in? I had assumed that Zymol was mega expensive stuff that obsessive American Ferarri owners and the like used before a concours competition and wasnt availible in the shops , i might have to give it a go! Do they have any of the waxes or polishes from the Zymol range on sale?[/quote:0b718c867e]

It cost

Agnes Varda has and preferred Mothers California Gold Car Wash:

http://www.epinions.com/content_47366573700

Meanwhile over on SEATCupra.net, where money is apparently no object...

http://www.seatcupra.net/reviews.php?descrip=Zymol

Zymol is pretty good another good one Swissol. Both are expensive.

I wash mine once per week, coat of polish every 3-4 weeks, which with Zymol would get expensive. I use either the Zymol or autoglym shampoo, and then autoglym polish, then a coat of gloss gaurd over the top of that. Every spring I use the citrus cleanser, then a clay bar, followed by washing it and 2 coats of zymol polish, from then on its the weekly wash and monthly polish. :mrgreen: The first proper clean of the year takes about 5-6 hours! :shock: :shock: :shock:

To many this may seem excessive, but please bear in mind my mileage. I do approx 5,000 miles per month so in terms of road grime I'm doing 3-4 months of an average person's motoring per month :(

Oh, and I only use a sponge for the bumpers now. For the bodywork I use a cotton mit (looks like shag pile. Lifts the dirt off much better and doesn't hold bits like the sponge so is better for the paintwork.

2 other things I've found. The first is the autoglym aquablade (other makes are available, its just that I got it really cheap) which is great for drying the car without streaks and is really quick to use. The other is the autoglym wheel brush. I've had mine for just over 2 years now and its still like new. Hasn't lost any bristles, hasn't deformed. Got it for free from a friend who does car valeting - he bought 2 as he thought they wear out, he's still using the original one!

:mrgreen:

Oh my, is there no end to the drivel I'm posting this morning? :mrgreen:

Another tip: after you have cleaned your wheels, put a light coat of wax on them. Either something like pure canuba wax, bees wax etc. Do not polish it off. When you next come to clean the wheels just pressure wash or a light rub down and hey presto - clean wheels with no brake dust!

In Germany car washes offer a hot underbody wash during winter which gets rid of salt, and enables you to wash a car in freezing conditions too. I regularly spray the undersides of my cars - including wheel arches where crud accumulates - to get rid of salt and mud. Something I haven't tried, but could with a self-priming jet wash, is to put the water inlet hose into a bucket of warm or even hot soapy water to give my cars that warm, fuzzy feeling underneath. Thinks :scratch: Its warm enough to try that right now...

At my old house i had a mixer tap arrangement that i used to fit to my pressure washer, with carefull adjustment i washed my car with nice warm not too hot water, used to shift the grime a lot easier as well.

wax the wheels eh? will have to try that one. I hate brake dust

The hot underbody wash worked! I filled a 5 gallon container (the middle size plastic Trug from Lakeland Plastics) with reasonably hot water, added a good squirt of Fairy Liquid, and used a short piece of garden hose as the syphon tube between the container and jet wash (Karcher 470). Loads of suds, loads of fun, and the cleanest car underside and drive in the street.

Thinks :scratch: With prudent use of a garden insecticide, I could rid the neighbourhood of aphids in a couple of minutes using the same method.

Must go and power wash the dog... :shock:

Putting wax on alloys is definately a good tip. A work mate of mine shows classic Fords ( :shock: ) and he swears by it.