Car wash shampoo

[crankedup2]

May have mentioned this before, but worth another mention perhaps. My Late FiL used to wash his
Talbot Horizon every week without fail. He used Fairy washing up liquid suggesting I do the same with my car, he managed to not only take off the paint finish over a number of years but also exposed the bare metal in places

[cayman-black]

Rubbish. I have washed my cars with washing up liquid for years , the paint on my cars is perfect and when i have sold them everyone has commented how good they are.
I suppose the secret is that i also wax them very often.

[mike9009]

Washing up liquid has a high salt content, so unless you rinse extremely well it is not great. Salt is great for squeaky clean dishes but not so great for unprotected metal.

My mki MR2 was washed with Fairy back in the day. It did look okay, but corroded the entire front cross member out where the washing up liquid would sit after a wash and I could not rinse it properly. Only noticed when the brackets holding the indicators became loose through rust. I owned the car for seven years......

I know mr2s are not renowned for their rust protection but mine corroded in some odd places - which I could only put down to Fairy.

[320d is all you need]

There is theory regarding salt in washing up liquid affecting the paint durability.

The problem is that the Fairy liquid is very "aggressive" so removes a lot of the waxes and protection already built up on your paint.


So you usually end up in a situation where you wash all of your wax protection off.


To be honest I see no reason to use washing up liquid, when there are lots of quality shampoos available which do not strip your existing protection.

Think of it like using a JCB to dig a 1ft hole when a shovel would suffice.

Basically you shouldn't be using it regularly, only perhaps as a "strip wash" prior to claying, polishing and re-protecting.

[xcesx]

This is a blast from the past.
My dad used washing up liquid and the good old chamois leather.

I tend to stick to Meguiar’s these days for the shampoo.

[evojam]

I also use washing up liquid with a cap full of white spirit for the authentic Delorean look.

[ShampooEfficient]

320d is all you need said:

.

Think of it like using a JCB to dig a 1ft hole when a shovel would suffice.

Steady now, this is PH. If not a JCB it ought to be dynamite...

[Escort3500]

evojam said:

I also use washing up liquid with a cap full of white spirit for the authentic Delorean look.

[swisstoni]

crankedup2 said:

May have mentioned this before, but worth another mention perhaps. My Late FiL used to wash his
Talbot Horizon every week without fail. He used Fairy washing up liquid suggesting I do the same with my car, he managed to not only take off the paint finish over a number of years but also exposed the bare metal in places

Sounds like he may have treated it to a bit of T Cut fairly regularly too.

[LuS1fer]

When I bought Zaino car wax from the US, they tell you to strip off all old wax using washing-up liquid. It is also high in salt so won't do your car much good though compared to salted roads, it's a negligible contribution. As the wax I use is very expensive, I'm never going to use washing-up liquid and I don't want to strip wax or sealant off the wheels.

When I was young, in the 70s and 80s, we always used washing-up liquid because we didn't know any better and cars rusted like hell, anyway.

Now I use Autoglym shampoo conditioner which always rates highly in tests. Also, think about it, even a cheap PH neutral shampoo will last you 6 months, probably more so washing-up liquid is a false economy.

Edited by LuS1fer on Saturday 1st May 14:24

[hilly10]

The best shampoo I have used of late is Williams Racing off Ebay 5ltr was £11 del fantastic value for money really thick soap suds

Edited by hilly10 on Saturday 1st May 14:49

[tr7v8]

Don't wash cars very often but when I do I use BiltHamber Autobathe. Highly concentrated, you use a teaspoon in a bucket. Works very well.

[trickywoo]

Years ago before matt car paint was a thing I saw a newish white fiesta with this strange chalky finish. Wondered what happened to it until one day I saw the owner giving it good clean with a bottle of jiff.

It’s surprising how often i see someone washing their car using a brush from a dustpan and brush set.

Edited by trickywoo on Saturday 1st May 21:03