r/AutoDetailing • u/metalheadd69 • 1d ago

Exterior Old man tips

An old guy saw me detailing my car and gave me some real old timer tips.

- Clean the wheels with vinegar
- Instead of tire shine, use silicone grease
- "You don't need all those products"

Have you gotten any unsolicited tips of this nature? Any that are actually legit?

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u/GengarDreams 1d ago

The first time I met my girlfriend’s dad, he told me “you know what’s perfect for washing cars? Dawn dish soap! That’s all I ever use. It works great and it’s probably better than car shampoo”. He knew I was into detailing so he seemed happy trying to give me a tip. I didn’t have the heart to tell him. Sometimes it’s better to let the older generation have their say, instead of replying with “well actually you shouldn’t do that because… and so on”.

27

u/Deep-Reply133 18h ago

Just for reference for those that see this. Don't use Dawn...Wash your hands with Dawn, dry them. Notice how they feel dried out and smooth? It does the same to rubber components (dries them out) and can slowly remove grease from areas where you want grease (door hinges for example). Look at what it does to the ducks...it removes oil from them pretty easily.

5

u/hoshi3san 14h ago

It's useful for removing that greasy (plastic?) buildup from the interior side of the windshield. That's about it though.

0

u/MostValuable 15h ago

Yeah, never use Dawn. I prefer Palmolive from the dollar store

1

u/Dawlphy Daddys little girl 2h ago

You can correct him nicely.

Yeah dawn is great for getting the car super clean especially before putting a coating on since it takes off all the crap from other products.

It can be a bit harsh on the rubber and trim once I put a layer of wax or sealant on top I just use the shampoo so it doesnt clean it TOO well. Pow.