The first drying aid I've used that was marketed as one was Bowden's After Glow. But then I remembered that I used both the Duragloss and Autoglym Aqua Waxes, which are not sold as drying aids, but wax as you dry products. From what I remember, they didn't help with drying, but saved time, two jobs at once, After Glow does seem to help with water absorbency, and feels slick.
I do remember when the whole push away from chamois to waffle weave was happening, but I was never sold on them. They were never as good as drying as the chamois I used. In fact, many many years ago an auto magazine did a test of chamois, it was Which Car from memory, and the Oates Enka-fill that I use came equal first with the Meguiar's one. I still have 3 of them, the oldest is over 20 years old, and is only used for door jams and lower plastics. The "good" one is about 10 years old, and has never touched the ground or a dirty car.
Currently if I'm not using a drying aid or Wet Wax, I use the Gyeon Silk Drying Towel. It's absorbency is as good as my chamois, but it's probably safer on the paint. I only ever use the chamois on the FJ now anyway, the Qashqai's paint seems much softer.
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