stuff to clean the interior,engine bay etc

[procta]

Right lads, I have my 1st car show coming up at gaydon, and I want to give the interior of the metro a good clean, what do you lads use to bring your interiors up nice and clean? I know a bit of boot polish for the dash works a treat.
Also what is the best stuff for the engine bay? as I am putting the car in for best modded to.
last but not least the best wax for the exterior?
I have some replacement wheel trims to swop over too.

[Piggy]

boot polish I dont like for a dash, too shiny. Decent matt/satin dash wet tissues work well.

Engine bay, I find BBQ cleaner cheap n effective.

Then back to black or proper silicone restorer for pipes/wires/plastics

[Iceman299]

Astonish engine degreaser was recommended to me. Was very impressed with the results, costs a couple of quid and easily does a few engine cleans

[Toms306]

Nattys paste wax for the exterior. Decent polish before that though.

Interior I don't use anything special, just any old spray polish after anti-bac wipes.

Engine jetwash and degreaser. Once dry I tend to give the plastics a wipe with the spray polish lol.

[1616six]

boot polish I dont like for a dash, too shiny. Decent matt/satin dash wet tissues work well.

Engine bay, I find BBQ cleaner cheap n effective.

Then back to black or proper silicone restorer for pipes/wires/plastics

Wow. You clearly take pride in your car!

Fairy liquid & a yellow sponge? Brillo pad for stubborn bits?



Dashboard: Auto Finesse Spritz
Engine bay: Bilt Hamber Surfex to clean it, Carpro Perl to dress it.
Wax: There are countless options. Are you wanting a hard wax or a liquid wax? I'm swaying towards liquid wax as it's easier to apply and remove. The Nattys Tom mentioned is an OK basic entry level wax, won't cause miracles but will do the job. Don't forget you need to polish it before waxing. Wax is a sealant.. No point at all in waxing an unpolished car as you're not protecting anything. So many people confuse waxing and polishing as the same thing. Even something like Auto Glym super resin polish works perfectly well.


This is all very budget related. Are you wanting it to look OK temporarily and just spend a few quid at Halfords, or are you open to sending a bit more on half decent stuff? Bilt Hamber do some great products.

[Piggy]

Yeah I take a general pride in a clean car.

Can't be bothered with spending all my spare cash and time at the weekends cleaning it though, rather make it go faster.

[adam b]

Can't be bothered with spending all my spare cash and time at the weekends cleaning it though, rather make it go faster.

+1

[RetroPug]

There is a point in waxing an unpolished car: it stays cleaner for longer, still looks better than unwaxed, and dirt can still be rinsed off.

However, polishing will make it look better.

[adam b]

I can assure you that cleaning and polishing my 306 will make it look considerably worse. The dirty, matt, just-raped look helps it considerably

[highwayman306]

There is a point in waxing an unpolished car: it stays cleaner for longer, still looks better than unwaxed, and dirt can still be rinsed off.

However, polishing will make it look better.

Yeah, polishing is the better stage for waxing but just washing it in fairy and drying throughly then waxing the panels can help with the next clean...just jet washes the dirt off

I use Simoniz Diamond hard wax outside and anti-bac spray with pledge for interior

Spray aerosol glass and mirror cleaner (that burns your nostrils) and foam upholstery cleaner


All told around £10 for the lot and loads of time and care applying it


I would definitely use steam cleaning rather than jet washing the engine bay...call me a pussy but that seems risky forcing water around the engine, and aerosol degreaser for dirty metal parts. Silicon spray for the rubber and plastic bits looks nice too

[1616six]

There is a point in waxing an unpolished car: it stays cleaner for longer, still looks better than unwaxed, and dirt can still be rinsed off.

However, polishing will make it look better.

Yeah, polishing is the better stage for waxing but just washing it in fairy and drying throughly then waxing the panels can help with the next clean...just jet washes the dirt off

I use Simoniz Diamond hard wax outside and anti-bac spray with pledge for interior

Spray aerosol glass and mirror cleaner (that burns your nostrils) and foam upholstery cleaner


All told around £10 for the lot and loads of time and care applying it


I would definitely use steam cleaning rather than jet washing the engine bay...call me a pussy but that seems risky forcing water around the engine, and aerosol degreaser for dirty metal parts. Silicon spray for the rubber and plastic bits looks nice too

I hope you're joking about using Fairy? It's just about the worst thing you could possibly use to wash the car.

[highwayman306]

I don't use it neat! Just a small amount for a lather. Its good for cutting through the grease and for 'hands that wash dishes'

Bring wheels up nice too...but i do have some TFR for that

[Paul_13]

Doesn't fairy f*ck the paint? Or is that pub talk like a lot of information on this forum

[1616six]

It's terrible for paint. It's a degreaser, it will strip any polish or wax off the car. Has been known to eat through clear coat/laquer. You'd be better off using plain water.

[Toms306]

Might as well just use a bit of brake fluid for the good the fairy is doing... Also, if its the 'softer' fairy that's supposed to look after your hands, it's a terrible degreaser in the kitchen, can't imagine it's any good for the car.

That said, these are old cars, the finish has usually already been ruined by previous owners and you won't get it back without a proper cut/mop so no point wasting expensive products on a poor finish imo. (Can of worms maybe... ).

[highwayman306]

Fairy and a couple of handfuls of sand in a bucket, cuts right through the muck, exfoliate for the win...

Seriously though, I wash my car myself twice a year if I can be bothered, maybe 4 times in auto carwash a year...again if I can be bothered. I doubt the amount of fairy I use and the frequency I use it is going to impact the paint that much.

A lad I know washes his car in TFR, high alkaline degreaser, all over. It shines alright and he rinses, dries and waxes...all gravy ...I don't trust that stuff on paintwork though personally

[Toms306]

Difference is TFR is designed for paintwork...

The auto car wash is doing more damage than the fairy in your case though.

[1616six]

A car enthusiast who spends money on their beloved pride & joy then washes it twice a year with fairy, stripping any protection it had.

I really don't understand people who claim to be 'into' cars but take no care or pride in making it look nice.

[Toms306]

Why? Some people like show and shine...others like mental power but don't care about a battered shell for track... Don't see an issue there myself.

[1616six]

Back on topic anyway.

Procta, here's a car I did today..

Before: 





After:








I'm all for budget cleaning, I only use budget and mid range products. I did the mini with budget almost as a test to post here Procta.

I used a £3 garden pump sprayer
£1 all purpose cleaner from Lidl
A detailing brush
AutoGlym bumper and trim dressing.

It's not perfect but it shows you what can be done.

[Toms306]

Need eye stickers under that bonnet...

[procta]

Back on topic anyway.

Procta, here's a car I did today..

Before: 





After:








I'm all for budget cleaning, I only use budget and mid range products. I did the mini with budget almost as a test to post here Procta.

I used a £3 garden pump sprayer
£1 all purpose cleaner from Lidl
A detailing brush
AutoGlym bumper and trim dressing.

It's not perfect but it shows you what can be done.

thanks JJ I will look into those for the car,
just want to make it look decent for the 25th birthday, As my car will be on show for the time line.
what would you say for blue dash? I thought about a bit of blue shoe polish, just to help the colour a bit and remove some nasty scuffs.

[highwayman306]

Car enthusiast Getting a bit personal there JJ

Back off topic, fairy cuts the old wax off and as far as I could see procta wanted a show shine. So starting from a fresh would be the best way? Fairy has been used on cars across the board, granted its for the kitchen and not for the car, it helps cut back the grime but as long as you rinse the shit (fairy) off it's a canvas to start the clean from. ONLY ON MY CAR

Jet wash, wash, rinse, dry, polish then wax.

Im sorry if I have offended anyone mentioning fairy...just replace the fairy with car shampoo. Each to their own, my paintwork is fine save from the dinks and scratches. Shines nice and very minimal lacquer peal (diablo) that was already there when I bought the car 5 years ago.

On topic, JJ your car looks awesome very nice. Please don't shoot! xxx

[procta]

what do lads use on your carpets? as I will have to give mine a f*ck off clean as well as the seats,

[Niall]

Mer interior cleaning foam. Seems to clean up really soiled carpets really well

[MrBigMac]

Astonish engine degreaser was recommended to me. Was very impressed with the results, costs a couple of quid and easily does a few engine cleans

i second that stuff, its 99p here in my local £ shop

[Deangatt]

I've used wheel acid diluted and sprayed over the engine bay then power hosed off works well

[1616six]

I've used wheel acid diluted and sprayed over the engine bay then power hosed off works well

I'd be very careful as it's likely to discolour any plastics, I managed to turn my HDI engine cover almost white back in the day by using an acidic cleaner.