What about Mother's products?

[VISITOR]

mothers has some great products.. their fx tire shine/spray wax and microfiber towels are all excellent...

 

[Twister]

I like mothers products I've used them for years. I think some of the lack of talk is due to marketing. But their products work well and are reasonably priced.

 

[Bunky]

I use the Mother's Reflections Spray Wax. It gives extra depth to a black car. I love the way it looks. The only problem that I have with it, is that it's very picky about how it's applied. You have to work on one panel at a time and use two towels. You have to buff it out with a dry towel or it leaves nasty streaks. It's alot of work for something that doesn't last that long. I get almost as good a look from some QD's that I have for much less effort.

Mothers had two versions of the spray. The earliest was spray, spread, allow to haze and the current version is spray and wipe. The earlier version is a bit thicker.

Do you have the earlier version? The instructions on the label mention allow to haze.

 

[ravenjred]

Hi,
I am new to this forum and this is my first post. I just bought a 2011 black Ford Explorer and I have read alot of threads. I am really confused about which wax to use, if any at all. I put Xzilon on my car when I got it home. It is a paint sealant. Can or should it be waxed on top of? I want to keep that showroom shine and gloss, but I don't know what to use. Any suggestions would be helpful.
Thank you,
Ed

 

[forrest@mothers]

mwoolfso - you're in luck living on LI since we have a retailer who stocks virtually every consumer product we make - Aid Auto Stores. Pep stocks far more than most others do as well.

I'm perplexed by the comments that seem to indicate we don't want to sell more products to customers. That's not the case at all. I'll gladly sell additional items to any retailer I can. But, they only have so much shelf space and I can't afford to buy it all to get exposure.

Thankfully we have e-tailers like AutoGeek who do stock every item we make. I consider Max a real friend. When I was on vacation last week and saw his number pop up on my phone I answered it (much to my wife's dismay) because that's what friends do.

Mothers is the largest print advertiser of any appearance company. We run thousands of television commercials including events like the Indy 500. We run the detail shops at Barrett Jackson.

But even with all of that, it's not enough.

It's tough getting retail placement. But I'm trying.

We make about 50 consumer chemical products. Our average brick retailer stocks about 12.

Even after 20 years I still have my work cut out for me. I'm confident you'll see more items in stores in 2012, based on the line reviews we've had with the major retailers so far.

Of course, there's always Max to ship you whatever you need.

 

[JSMet]

Welcome to the forum,
I personally use and have a high regard for Mother's products; I think that the clay bar kit they sell is as good as any other sold for the price.

 

[yakky]

Forrest,

My biggest frustration (well besides back to black) is that I can't count on finding your excellent products on shelves. The clay is a hit right out of the park, and I can count on finding that, and the excellent cleaner wax just about anywhere. The other stuff, its a total crapshoot. Thankfully Amazon carries most of the products I really like as at times, ordering just one from Autogeek doesn't make sense, but with supersaver shipping or amazon prime, it does.

 

[truckbutt]

Mothers had two versions of the spray. The earliest was spray, spread, allow to haze and the current version is spray and wipe. The earlier version is a bit thicker.

Do you have the earlier version? The instructions on the label mention allow to haze.

I'm using the newer version. No drying/hazing required.

 

[truckbutt]

Hi,
I am new to this forum and this is my first post. I just bought a 2011 black Ford Explorer and I have read alot of threads. I am really confused about which wax to use, if any at all. I put Xzilon on my car when I got it home. It is a paint sealant. Can or should it be waxed on top of? I want to keep that showroom shine and gloss, but I don't know what to use. Any suggestions would be helpful.
Thank you,
Ed

Welcome to the forum. Many people, myself included, will put a layer of a good carnauba wax over a sealant to get a slick wax look and to extend the life of the sealant. Which one you choose is a matter of personal preference. Everyone has their favorite. I like the look of Meguiars Gold Class Carnauba Plus. It adds depth and wetness to a black car. It needs to be redone every few weeks.

 

[Jimmie]

For a long time I used Mother's clay; pre wax cleaner; glaze; carnuba paste (those products come in a three step kit). It made my cars look great. I gravitated to Mother's because of Chip ("OverHaulin"). To this day when guys ask for my recommendation because they have to buy locally now rather than order from AG I have them get that 3 Step System.

 

[Midnight Blue]

Forrest from Mothers hit the nail on the head. The challenge from the makers of fine car care products for the consumer like Mothers, Meguairs,
Turtle Wax, etc. is to fight for every inch of shelf space available at the auto supply stores, the Walmart's, Target's, and other retail outlets that sell auto supplies.

With each manufacturer producing a laundry list of products and more and more competition entering the market, it is impossible for any store to carry all of the products available to the market.

The advent of E-Commerce has changed the landscape and allowed the manufacturers themselves to sell directly to the public and to have their products available through other internet marketing sites like Autogeek and Amazon for example.

Mother's does a fine job of marketing their products as they are on TV and in the print media, primarily in auto related magazines.

I'm sure that they also participate in major car shows and swap meets around the country too. Anyplace where you can promote your product is good for the company.

Midnight Blue

 

[michael13]

My opinion is that Mothers has "some" products that I can get good results with.

Two of my favorites right now, are their Mothers PowerBall Metal Kit, and the power metal scratch removing polish.

I used that combination to clean up a set of uncoated aluminum rims, that someone had tried to clean using a scotch-brite pad.

After about an hour of work, the rims looked amazing.
I was impressed.

 

[BobbyG]

Forrest from Mothers hit the nail on the head. The challenge from the makers of fine car care products for the consumer like Mothers, Meguiar's, Turtle Wax, etc. is to fight for every inch of shelf space available at the auto supply stores, the Walmart's, Target's, and other retail outlets that sell auto supplies.

This appear to be the single most logical reason for many of the apparent absence or lack of available product on store shelves. The cost of competition can become quite high when competing with shelf space and this is a balance between sales and profits.

We've become accustomed to seeing the entire product line from every manufacturer online. The reality is these are only pictures of what they offer so we naturally assume that these will be available in every store but they probably won't be.

 

[DLB]

Off the top of my head there are three Mother's products that are really standout's that I know I use consistently -

1. Mother's Billet Metal Polish
My favorite metal polish, and truly outstanding on Billet itself.

2. Mother's Detail Brush set
May be a small item - but IMO these are the brushes that I will not be without. If you haven't tried them, add a set on your next order - for $4 you can't go wrong.

3. Mother's California Gold Carnauba Wax
With all the boutique waxes out there, this is a much overlooked wax. But, search the forum for it and you will find generally favorable results. Plus, with the amount of wax in one of those tins, you will only buy one in your lifetime most likely.

I also like the California Gold wash.

Mother's definitely makes their share of good products. But generally speaking the crowd that posts on detailing boards is quite a bit different from the crowd that just shops at local stores for their car care items. That is a reason I think you don't see them discussed that much.

DLB

 

[mwoolfso]

mwoolfso - you're in luck living on LI since we have a retailer who stocks virtually every consumer product we make - Aid Auto Stores. Pep stocks far more than most others do as well.

I'm perplexed by the comments that seem to indicate we don't want to sell more products to customers. That's not the case at all. I'll gladly sell additional items to any retailer I can. But, they only have so much shelf space and I can't afford to buy it all to get exposure.

Thankfully we have e-tailers like AutoGeek who do stock every item we make. I consider Max a real friend. When I was on vacation last week and saw his number pop up on my phone I answered it (much to my wife's dismay) because that's what friends do.

Mothers is the largest print advertiser of any appearance company. We run thousands of television commercials including events like the Indy 500. We run the detail shops at Barrett Jackson.

But even with all of that, it's not enough.

It's tough getting retail placement. But I'm trying.

We make about 50 consumer chemical products. Our average brick retailer stocks about 12.

Even after 20 years I still have my work cut out for me. I'm confident you'll see more items in stores in 2012, based on the line reviews we've had with the major retailers so far.

Of course, there's always Max to ship you whatever you need.

Forrest, thanks for the response. There is a nice shop near me called One Stop Auto. They pretty much carry most (if not all) of the product groups. Aid, Auto Barn, Advance Auto, etc.... they all seem to carry a subset; like you mentioned. I use California Gold and FX/Synwax products. I am very happy with them.

 

[forrest@mothers]

There is a nice shop near me called One Stop Auto.

Jim's a good guy. You must be near the Wantaugh store. If you get our further in Suffolks County, the Aid Stores (headquartered in Patchogue) have the biggest selection on he island.

 

[Hoytman]

Just to show how much I like Mothers products here is a photo. Some new, and some 10 years old (those bottles froze and aren't shown...don't know if it's still good or not). Of course, we all like to try different products, so there's some other brand name stuff as well.

We have Advanced auto, Autozone, O'Riley's, and KOI autoparts (Savage). I've tried, thru every store to get hold of some Pure Carnuba Paste Wax and no one can seem to order it. AG carries it, but that's not the point. KOI (Savage paint supply) in Hamilton, Ohio carries a few OTC products as well as the Professional line, but they tell me they cannot order the paste wax. They had the liquid, and I bought it along with steps 1-2, but they've told me several times they can't get it. Perhaps it's because of having to order a certain amount, idk.

Also, I picked up a chart for the professional line, but I've never found one to compare products in that line to the OTC products. This would be a big help.

Nothing smells as good as Mothers IMO. I've always used the otc products by hand, but can't wait to try it with a DA.

I did have a can of cleaner paste wax go bad. The inside of the can rusted away before I could use it all. I never store the applicator inside either. Don't know what caused it. Wish they'd put a screw on lid on that stuff. It's heck on finger nails to get open. I went ahead and bought new can of cleaner wax past. I forgot it was on top on the frigerator, up and to the left in this photo. Hate I left it out though.

Mothers Showtime is awesome to use, and smells fabulous during use. It's easy to use to.

I couldn't tell you how many bottles of cleaner wax I've used in the past, along with the wash soap.

My uncle builds street rods, and sells them. Mothers is all he uses, and he's had at least one truck in the center of Truckin' magazine.

 

[Twister]

I had a nice PM with Forest and he sent me a list of all the items stores in my area carry. While I haven't seen them all I do k ow some stores carry more than others. It's all about what the stores can sell. I know the Pep Boys near by carries more products than any other auto parts store in the area and I will go there when I need something special.

Forrest also told me that there will be a booth at the Ft. Worth Goodguys car show so I hope to see their booth when I go

 

[Prophizee]

Hey gentlemen great topic. I have used many of the mothers products, and never been disappointed. There reflection series is great. I love the reflection cleaner wax and top coat. It leaves a beautiful shine and the paint feels smooth. I use there cleaner wAx all the time on my daily diver. Actually I just used it to wax my car today. There fx foam tire cleaner is great as well. Last but no least the reflection tire spray is better then optima IMO. It last long and has no sling. It leaves a great matte finish. There reflection qd is great as well. I have never had problem with it streaking. Two thumbs up on mothers.

 

[Prophizee]

Here is a pic of my dd after the wax it's an artistic pic please don't laugh lol. And another one I took a few weeks ago when I drove down to Jamestown Va.. FYI i live in central jersey.
Have great night gentlemen