Top 5 Worst Things to Use on Your Car

September 14, 2022

As our great summer weather begins to change, we hope all of you were able to get the most out of your vehicles this season, and enjoy them during the best time of year.

Today September 14th marks the 5th Birthday for Stellar Finish, and we are excited to have had you all along for the ride! Many vehicles and clients later, we are beyond humbled by the support you have shown us when it comes to keeping your rides looking their best. Here's to you, as we couldn't have come this far without you!

For this quarter's newsletter, we will be focusing on the Top 5 Worst Things you can use on your vehicle when it comes to caring for it. Read along and we hope that this helps you care for your car in the best way!

Top 5 Things To Use On Your Car

#1 - The California Car Duster

These seemingly harmless dusters look super soft and perfect for removing all that dust that has settled on the surfaces of the car. However, don't be fooled by their false marketing claim that they're "scratch free."

These are terrible for trapping dirt and grit at their tips, and dragging it around the paint, causing swirls and moderate scratches with little effort. Because they aren't able to be properly cleaned, and usually live in the dirty trunk of most cars, they continue to build up dirt in the fibres and only get worse.

Solution

Use a soft microfiber cloth and detail spray to lightly wipe your car instead. This safely lifts dirt rather than wiping it all over without a lubricant. This isn't a replacement for washing your car when it's dirty, but is great for very light dust and fingerprints.

#2 - The Car Wash Brush

While usually marketed as "scratch free" or "super soft, gentle bristles", these notorious tools are nothing but bad news for your paint. These brushes are commonplace in every garage and car wash station. While great for scrubbing your deck, they are terribly abrasive on your delicate car paint.

The stiff bristles drag dirt across the surface, rather than trapping it deep in a wash mitt fibre, thus creating substantial, uniform brush marks and scratches all over the car. Each year, we repair tens of thousands of dollars worth of brush mark damage on cars that could have been safely washed instead with other methods.

While they may be easier to use due to their handle, the should be left alone. Dealerships are usually the most notorious for using them as they have large volumes of cars to clean, and this makes it quick for them.

Solution

Use a soft microfiber wash mitt and 2 bucket method to hand wash your car. As we have preached and demonstrated many times before, this is the ultimate and safest way to clean your ride and minimize damage to the paint!

#3 - The Automatic Car Wash

Looks can be deceiving! While easy, time efficient and stress free, automatic car washes are very bad for your car's finish.

Much like the brush is bad for the paint already, imagine a giant spinning roll of sandpaper abrading your car from all sides while you sip your coffee and listen to the radio in the dry, quiet safety of it's interior. Little do you know that you've added thousands of dollars worth of damage to your car, for only a few bucks!

Whenever we drive past the Gorge Rd. car wash and it's lined up down the street, we get shivers. The spinning roller type washes are extremely aggressive for obvious reasons. And, their close cousin, the "Touchless car wash" is just as bad.

While no roller is used, the caustic, high alkaline soaps and chemicals used in these wash tunnels will begin to damage your paint and delicate plastics and metal trim in a short time, if used repeatedly. And, the ultra high pressure jets of water and dryer air have been known to damage and rip off pieces of cars and paint without you even knowing.

They also do not remove 100% of the dirt, leaving you with a less than satisfactory clean overall. Having done tests, we can assure you that your paint will even get scratches from a touchless wash. Trust us.

Solution

Again, use a soft microfiber wash mitt and 2 bucket method to hand wash your car. Yes, it takes longer and is another chore. But, you'll be looking after your expensive investment with the best products for it, and it will continue to look great for years! We even sell full wash kits so you don't have to think about what is OK to use. Pick one up and you're good to go!

#4 - Armor All

It's been around for decades. It lurks in the dusty shelves of your garage. It smells good, and the label has you fooled.

ArmorAll is not your friend though. While protective dressings are great to use when necessary, the brand and chemical composition is very important. ArmorAll brand protectants are generally silicone based, and therefore make the surface very shiny and slick. This might be what you're after, but we advise you against it.

Interior dressings, for example, should be dry to the touch after, not be slippery, and maintain a semi factory matte appearance. ArmorAll will always appear wet, will attract dust and dirt like a magnet, will degrade your plastics, haze your windows, and be slippery and dangerous if applied to the wrong surface.

Solution

Use a higher quality trim and panel dressing that is water based! These will give you a better look, feel and overall experience than cheap silicone based dressings. And, when it comes time to clean and reapply, they come off easy and with no residue or fuss. We are always happy to recommend what will work best for you.

#5 - Silicone Tire Dressing

Much like cheap interior sprays and dressings, silicone tire dressings are one of the biggest pains we deal with each day here.

Personally, we like the look of satin black tires. Not the "see yourself in the mirror" type glossy tire dressings. These look cheap, will fling off, and also turn sticky and brown over time.

They can usually be found in aerosol cans, and therefore will over spray onto your wheel, fender, paint and brakes when applied. That's bad, mmmkaay. And silicone is very hard to remove compared to other types. So, that being the case, most will just continue to layer more and more on top.

We have actually scraped off a 1/2' thick layer of this before with a putty knife on a clients tires. So, let's do it better.

Solution

Use a high quality water based tire dressing that's made to keep your tire and rubber looking black and clean, not shiny and brown like dirty motor oil. Applying it with a foam block or brush will get it where it needs to go, and nowhere else. And, when its run it's course, they come clean with water and a light degreaser or wheel cleaner, and you're ready for a fresh application, not another caked on layer.