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delta one

delta one

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Hey Guys,

I'm new here. To be honest, new to taking care of my car the right way. Until now I've had used cars, throughout college I never really knew how to take care of them properly. I would go to local car-washes and clean my car, then after I got an SUV and a lot less free time I would run it through laser-washes. I noticed I hadn't been taking the best care of my last car when I saw swirls in the paint.

Recently I got a new Honda Pilot. My beautiful wife was generous enough to get me a membership at our local WashTub. Well, the membership ran out. Now I'm going to start maintaining my car the right way, but I have no idea where to start. Looking around online, everyone claims to have the best product. I don't want to get suckered, so I looked until I found this place.

Along with that, I realized I don't even know the best way to clean an SUV like the Honda Pilot. I will need something to reach the top to scrub it well, but I don't know what is good for the paint and what is bad for it. I see a bunch of "flow-thru" brushes on extension poles, but don't know how to choose one (or if I'm not even supposed to be using it).

Basically, the last time I washed my car by hand regularly it was a 93 Honda Accord that I could reach over the top of it no problem without having to stretch. When it comes to good car-care I'm uneducated and inexperienced. I'm just admitting it. But now I need help. Any pushes in the right direction are greatly appreciated.

I'm looking to buy a few things soon, but I have a toddler and not a lot of money to spend, so I'm not looking to get top of the line. At least not all at once. I want to get a bunch of essentials so that I can maintain properly, and then collect the high-quality stuff later. If anyone wants to link me to some good affordable products and/or threads that can guide me I would be extremely grateful!

Here is the new car
EsF6QUi.jpg

SZaTJ9B.jpg
 
Welcome to autogeek to reach the roof area you will want a boars hair brush its safe on the paint just soak it in warm water for 30 mins before useing though..happy detailing
 
Welcome to AGO.

Here is the basic info you need: http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...-detail-your-brand-new-car-mike-phillips.html

While everyone has their own favorites, great results can be had many different ways, even with over-the-counter products you find at big box stores. So you can definitely keep your Pilot looking great without spending a ton of money. It's only when you become obsessed with detailing that you start spending more and more money because you always want to try the next-best-thing. LOL.

I'd say the basics you need are:

Two buckets w/ grit guards
Two or three wash mitts
Shampoo
Waterless wash solution
Wheel and tire cleaner
Wheel brushes
Iron-X
Clay or clay substitute
Polish and wax, or all-in-one product
Glass cleaner
Tire dressing
Vacuum
Interior/exterior cleaner/dressing for plastics and vinyls
Cleaner/conditioner if there is leather seating
Foam applicators for dressings, polishes, and waxes
A few different types of microfiber towels for drying, polishing, glass, etc.
A folding platform (for reaching the top of the SUV)
 
Wow you guys are quick with the advice! All day long I had been wanting to check in on this but today was crazy at work!

Also, a heads up, I commute about 70 miles a day (35 each way), so bugs are another issue I need to battle. And do any of you guys also recommend something to prevent getting chips on my front end?

I'm not interested in a bra, but I've seen some clear sort of decals I think? Do those work well? If so do any of you recommend any particular brands?

jamesboyy said:
Welcome to autogeek to reach the roof area you will want a boars hair brush its safe on the paint just soak it in warm water for 30 mins before useing though..happy detailing
Click to expand...

Thanks! I think that was one of the first things I noticed when I looked at the store here. I will have to invest in one of those!

trekkeruss said:
Welcome to AGO.

Here is the basic info you need: http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...-detail-your-brand-new-car-mike-phillips.html

While everyone has their own favorites, great results can be had many different ways, even with over-the-counter products you find at big box stores. So you can definitely keep your Pilot looking great without spending a ton of money. It's only when you become obsessed with detailing that you start spending more and more money because you always want to try the next-best-thing. LOL.

I'd say the basics you need are:

Two buckets w/ grit guards
Two or three wash mitts
Shampoo
Waterless wash solution
Wheel and tire cleaner
Wheel brushes
Iron-X
Clay or clay substitute
Polish and wax, or all-in-one product
Glass cleaner
Tire dressing
Vacuum
Interior/exterior cleaner/dressing for plastics and vinyls
Cleaner/conditioner if there is leather seating
Foam applicators for dressings, polishes, and waxes
A few different types of microfiber towels for drying, polishing, glass, etc.
A folding platform (for reaching the top of the SUV)
Click to expand...

That is a lot of good advice! Do you recommend any particular brands on some of these? Like I feel I'd probably sound a bit amateur telling you I have ArmorAll and Invisible Glass as my "go-to" products in my garage. Also I've been thinking about getting a shop-vac to use for my car, but when you say vacuum are you talking about one of those small ones to keep in my car that plugs into a cigarette lighter?

I'd really like to hear what your favorite brands are for some of these products, especially things like the towels and other products that I might not consider I've bought a terrible but popular brand of.

Thanks again, you guys! This place is pretty awesome! I'm gonna go through some of the links and "how-to's" here for a while, so I'll be on for a couple more hours.
 


This is the Gorilla/Werner platform. This is your new best friend. You really get much more use out of this than a boars hair brush, in my opinion. Sure, you can wash the top of an SUV with a boars hair brush, but can you clay, compound, polish, seal, wax, etc. the roof with a boars hair brush? You can with (among other things) the platform.

Plus I use it around the house for tons of things.

Home Depot had it for $17 on Black friday, but I think they're like 30-100 depending on the brand and features, etc that you choose.
 
delta one said:
Wow you guys are quick with the advice! All day long I had been wanting to check in on this but today was crazy at work!

Also, a heads up, I commute about 70 miles a day (35 each way), so bugs are another issue I need to battle. And do any of you guys also recommend something to prevent getting chips on my front end?

I'm not interested in a bra, but I've seen some clear sort of decals I think? Do those work well? If so do any of you recommend any particular brands?



Thanks! I think that was one of the first things I noticed when I looked at the store here. I will have to invest in one of those!



That is a lot of good advice! Do you recommend any particular brands on some of these? Like I feel I'd probably sound a bit amateur telling you I have ArmorAll and Invisible Glass as my "go-to" products in my garage. Also I've been thinking about getting a shop-vac to use for my car, but when you say vacuum are you talking about one of those small ones to keep in my car that plugs into a cigarette lighter?

I'd really like to hear what your favorite brands are for some of these products, especially things like the towels and other products that I might not consider I've bought a terrible but popular brand of.

Thanks again, you guys! This place is pretty awesome! I'm gonna go through some of the links and "how-to's" here for a while, so I'll be on for a couple more hours.
Click to expand...

Invisible Glass is fine for cleaning glass in my opinion, but I wanted to comment on the vacuum. Shop vac is what you're looking for.

When I first started, I tried to go cheap on some stuff. So, I got a cheap vacuum. ($29 shop vac at lowes) and then ended up getting the larger 5 or 6 HP rigid later. That happened on a few purchases, and that renders the first "cheaper" item useless, and thus more expensive!
 
cshamilton said:
When I first started, I tried to go cheap on some stuff. So, I got a cheap vacuum. ($29 shop vac at lowes) and then ended up getting the larger 5 or 6 HP rigid later. That happened on a few purchases, and that renders the first "cheaper" item useless, and thus more expensive!
Click to expand...

Thanks for both of those replies! I hadn't thought at all about that type of ladder, but I'm all over it now! Hopefully I find a good deal and don't have to wait until Black Friday! I also think I'm in agreement about the shop-vac. I don't want to spend a ton of money, but I don't want trying to save money turning into spending a ton of money either! So I'll make sure to try to invest properly.

This one is listed as a top seller on Amazon, what are your thoughts on this one?
Vacmaster VBV1210 Detachable Blower Wet/Dry Vacuum, 12 Gallon, 5 Peak HP - Shop Wet Dry Vacuums - Amazon.com
 
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