Shiny Happy Cars

I am as far from an influencer as one can be.  Any product mentioned here is actually in my garage and used regularly.  I'm not receiving compensation  for mentioning any products or including their links.  

Pollen season is winding down where I live, which means “fun” car season is here.  I tend to bring my cars out later than most, but I also tend to drive them until the last minute in the fall.  I put them away clean and over inflate their tires a bit to help prevent flat spots.  Since I make a major effort to keep my batteries charged all winter, it doesn't take a lot of effort to take them out of hibernation each spring.  After I few laps around the block to stretch a car's legs, it’s time to give it a deep it cleaning and waxing.  There’s a hundred ways to skin this cat, but here’s how I like to do it.

After a good wash with soap to get rid of any dust that settled on the paint over the winter, I’ll break out the clay.  If a car is incredibly dirty, I’ll use clay bar after washing.  Mother’s Clay Bar kit has given me the best bang to buck ratio over the years, but I consider it heavy artillery.  If things are under control, I love to use Mother’s Speed Clay 2.0 to get a car ready for waxing.  If you can wash a car with a sponge, you’ll have no issues getting the deep clean your car craves with Speed Clay.  All you need is a clean bucket of soap and water along with a wet, freshly washed car.

For my daily drivers, I skip over carnauba wax in favor of synthetic waxes.  They last longer and honestly, you’re not friends with anyone who can spot the difference between the two.  For my fun cars, wax is the area where I splurge and I’m always glad I do.  Dodo Juice has been my go-to choice for years now.  Their hard and soft color charged waxes are some of the best I’ve ever used.  Period.  My M3's and iX's old paint looks deep and rich.  They're so hydrophobic, it's rare either car needs more than a rinse with a hose and a quick blow dry from a leaf blower all summer.

My M3 loves the one-two punch of Dodo Juice’s Diamond White and Light Fantastic.  It keeps it’s single stage, Alpine White paint looking like it was just color corrected.  Seriously.  My 325iX gets Dodo Juice’s Banana Armour followed up with a coat of Orange Crush.  Though they’re not red colored waxes, they're for warm colors and they really help even out its unevenly faded paint.  I’m sure a color correction would cure the fade, but the car is starting to show signs of patina car nuts love.  So I'm reluctant to do anything drastic to it.

My process is so simple, it hurts.  I lay down a good coat of Dodo Juice's hard wax and let it dry for about 30 minutes.  After a good hand buff with a microfiber towel, I follow up with a coat of Dodo Juice's soft wax and buff again.  The hard wax protects while the soft wax does the heavy lifting when it comes to shine.  Any it sure shines.

As far as interiors go, I rarely need to clean them.  Half the time, I drive them barefoot!  Not because I'm a clean freak, but because I love the feel of the pedals on my feet as I row my own gears.  The beauty of old cars like e30's is that the seats come out easily, allowing you to vacuum and scrub carpet that has never been cleaned.  Do it once and you're good for a few decades.  I condition leather and vinyl upholstery once or twice a year, and that's honestly all I ever need.  Same goes for interior plastic and trim.

Now go clean your car and go for a drive.  I'll see you out on the road.