Detailing
We all know that taking care of our vehicles is an important part of ownership. For vehicles that draw attention like the Challenger this is especially important in the area of detailing. However, I’d prefer to drive my Challenger than spend all weekend trying to clean it. This led me to search for high quality car detailing products that were easy to use.
I tried most products available at auto stores and they were “OK”, but they all had draw backs such as not removing many swirl marks, leaving residue, or being difficult to remove. I also wanted to go a step further than just hand waxing and get into machine polishing. Most products at local auto stores aren’t designed to work with machines, nor did they have the proper applicators, etc.
Through word of mouth I heard about a company that had some of the best car care products available and those that tried them really went on and on about how well they worked. Being a car nut I was curious and decided to order a few things to see how good they really were. I’m much more anal than most so I didn’t have my hopes up.
I popped on to www.griotsgarage.com and looked over their product offerings. I was overwhelmed by all the stuff I had to choose from so I decided to call in to their customer service to see what they suggested for my application as well as “test” out their customer service. Customer service is extremely important to me if I’m spending my hard earned cash on someone’s products. The representative answered all of my questions and made great suggestions to get me started based on my application and budget. Best of all everything came with a 100% money back guarantee.
I started off with some of their polishing compounds and buffer pads for a daily driver that really needed some help. I’d purchased the car used and the finish had been neglected and was in rough shape. I followed their guide using the paint cleaning clay, machine polishes, and paint sealant, and when I finished the vehicle looked almost new. Most swirl marks and scratches were gone, and the paint finish went from feeling dull and chalky to silky smooth. The products worked better than advertised and were extremely easy to use, leaving no residue or dust all over the vehicle. You can use these products by hand, but I decided to go all in and use an orbital buffer which greatly increases the effectiveness. After just one good detailing, all of the products and orbital buffer paid for themselves.
Most detailing products I’ve used had a strong petroleum scent to them which wasn’t that pleasant to endure. I’m happy to say Griot’s must add a light scent to their products as they smell really nice. The scent is very light, but noticeable and a welcome change from the petroleum odor I’ve been accustomed to. I make mention of this because it’s that level of attention to detail that really impresses me.
Top all of this off with impeccable customer service and I’m hooked on Griot’s Garage products and won’t use anything else on my vehicles. If you haven’t tried Griot’s Garage products I highly encourage you to do so. Be warned, once you try them you’ll become spoiled and will refuse to use anything else.
With all that said, I’ll give you some pointers to get you started to get the most out of your detailing time and money. This series of articles will explain how I detail my vehicle and which products I use. I’ve broken this “How To” into three parts:
If you want to take a deeper dive into vehicle detailing take a look at the Griot’s Garage Detailing Hand Book. Those guys are more anal than I am, and that’s really saying something.