Mt Fit is CBP----I'd like to hear about your favorite QDs, microfibers, waxes, etc. I'm especially interested in which microfibers are less likely to mar the black paint.

 

I bought some of these and were happy with them Mango Breeze Microfiber Towel, mango buffing towel, microfiber towel, detailing towel

For wax and everything else it really is all about the prep work. By prep work I mean: Wash with a quality car wash soap I think Meguiars Gold Class does a good enough job and it is inexpensive, use the two bucket method preferably with Grit Guards where you fill one with water and the other with suds. The logic behind this is that after you use a wash mitt or towel, there is dirt on it (obviously) and you want it off the mitt and you want to make sure you don't pick it up again when rinsing it out as you would if you were just using one bucket. So by using two buckets and grit guards it helps keep the dirt away from the mitt and off the car. The next step is time consuming and very overlooked but I think it makes the biggest difference: clay barring. Buy the smooth surface kit from Meguiars for $20 and follow the instructions on the box. Clay basically picks up what was left behind from the wash because these contaminants were bonded to the paint. You can then wax with whatever you like or you can optionally use a polish I use Meguiars Deep Crystal Polish then wax. To dry you don't want to use towels because any time you touch your paint you risk getting swirls so you can either use the flooding method where you take the attachment off the hose and just flood the roof of the car with water and it helps dry it faster. Another method is using a leaf blower. My word of advice is not to get too crazy about it because there are millions of products out there claiming to be better than the other and you can easily spend thousands on trying to get the best shine. I myself went crazy and have at least $500 in wash/wax/polish products alone!

 

Thanks! I'm curious about how the car would dry without water spots when using the flooding method....

 

Sorry I wasn't very clear in my post, flooding method requires some drying with microfiber towels but it reduces the amount of water on the car. Your goal is to touch the paint the least amount of times possible while still getting good protection and a great shine. No matter what you do, you will instill some scratches because you have to touch the car in order to wash it as high pressure water alone isn't enough. To further reduce marks, you can buy a foam gun Autogeek Quart Foamaster Foam Gun FREE BONUS and use this to presoak the vehicle with suds if you will and then use a wash mitt to wipe it around. The logic behind this is that the foam helps encapsulate the dirt and when you wipe it off the paint it isn't dragged across it. You will still need to use the two bucket wash method. This is optional but it does work! Plus your neighbors will do this when they see you blasting your car with foam. My parting words of advice in this post are don't cheap out on things. What I mean by that is don't use crappy towels where you get 20 for $5 to wash your car because they're not quality and they will scratch your paint. Can you use them for other things like the wheels, engine compartment, interior? Absolutely! But don't use it on your paint. Also, don't use rags or old t shirts, they have residue detergent on them and are not nearly soft enough to touch the delicate paint (especially ours!). But also, don't go nuts! Do you need $100 wax? Definitely not I mean this car is not a rare show car it's usually a daily driver so thats not necessary. I like Meguiars products they are inexpensive, accessible, and work well.

 

I'm going splurge on a foam gun soon----and a new hose that isn't cheap plastic!

 

the Absorber & foam applicator pads for polishes/waxes, and a terry towel to remove (ikea or target) work well for me