For a new ride I will be following this schedule
Microfiber duster every week or two.
QD with a microfiber towel for water spots / bird poop etc. again once every 2 weeks.
Car wash once 2 months - I have a MEguiars kit that has the car wash shampoo and mit.
On Waxing : I plan on doing it after 6 months or so - is claying a necessity - reckon claying would take a lot of time? Could i clay the most obvious panels and avoid the roof? Also for a new car can you go a year without waxing?
I am ok to follow the above and maybe in a year or so send it for a full detail job. Is that recommended?
How is the interior QD? I have Touring with cloth seats and what should be a good upholstery cleaner? I have a very old one that wasn't used much - thinking of throwing it away.
Edit: I have a dark blue one - should have mentioned that.
To re-iterate I am a little puzzled on the usage of Wax - Frequency of Waxing, good do's and don'ts.
Right now biggest concern is to keep water marks off and keep windows clean - Mcg's QD should do the work for water marks, any recommendations for windows?
Alright, first of all be careful using a microfiber duster on the car unless the car is recently cleaned. Rubbing a dry surface, even with a microfiber duster, can lead to micro marring the paint. I would skip that step and just do a quick detailer for in between washes. Save the duster for the day after the wash or something when there is very little dirt and dust on the car. In two weeks the car will pick up quite a bit of dirt.
A proper wash every two months? It's you car but I would change that to every two weeks or at the very least once a month with QD in between. If you can see the dirt on the car it will need a wash not just quick detailer. If a water supply isn't near by consider getting a rinseless wash like optimum No rinse (ONR) or a waterless wash like Ultima waterless wash+ concentrate or Mequairs Ultimate wash and wax.
As to whether or not claying is needed, there is a simple test for that. After washing the car, grab a little baggie, like a sandwich bag and place you hand inside. Using your finger run it over the hood, if it feels grabby that means you have bonded contaminants that a clay bar should be able to remove. You do NOT want to skip the roof of the car when claying. Most contaminants fall on the horizontal surfaces like the hood and roof. Be sure to use an ample amount of clay lube (QD) when claying, turning and kneading the clay after every panel. When I clay it take about 15-20 min to do the whole car, it's just rubbing the clay all over the surface.
As far as waxing goes, the frequency you need to wax depends on what type of wax you're using. You said you have the meguairs car care kit. There are a few different kits from meguairs, which one do you have? Is it the gold class car kit or the ultimate line of products. The gold class waxes are natural Carnauba waxes and will only last about 2-3 months at best. The ultimate kit should include Meguairs Ultimate Liquid wax which is technically a polymer sealant as it has no natural carnauba wax in it. It's a great product and can last about 6 months. It's also safe to apply to the black trim of the car without staining or leaving behind white residue. I really like that product and use it often. If you are using the Ultimate liquid wax, thin is in. Apply it in a thin even coat. It may be hard to see where it actually is applied until it starts to haze a bit.. A good way to know if you still have enough product on your waxing pad is to touch it to your window, if product transfers evenly to the window you still have enough product to use on the paint. Typically 3-4 pea sized drops is enough to do one panel or about half the hood or roof. Let the product set up until it hazes and passes the finger swipe test. When you swipe your finger does it remove the product or smear it? If it smears, wait longer, if not remove with a soft microfiber towel. Two thin coats is better then one heavy coat.
A really good product is Optimum No rinse, it can be diluted to different ratios for different needs, works great as a QD and clay bar lube that will remove and encapsulate hard water minerals that leave water marks. It's also a great wash solution for no rinse washings.
As far as windows go, Stoner invisible glass is about the best window cleaner out there. Does a great job of remove most of the grime and is streak free. For really dirty windows you can spray with Invisible glass and then use #0000 steel wool to clean the glass. It has to be #0000 the finest steel wool there is as anything courser can scratch. If there is a really stubborn spot a razor blade scrapper can be used just be sure to use plenty of cleaner spray as a lubricant so you don't scratch the glass.
I follow up cleaning my windows with a treatment of aquapel, also sold under the trico view name, it's the same product. It works similar to rain-x but it's not silicone based so it lasts much longer 6-8 months is what I've been getting out of it.
The interior QD is a decent product and good for quick wipe downs. I believe it also has a bit of UV protection so that's a good thing. A better product for the interior trim is either Megs Natural shine protectant or 303 aerospace protectant. Both of those have much higher concentrations of UV protectors and leave a nice low sheen natural looking shine. I would use the quick detailer for in between touch ups.
For interior cleaning on any and all surface including seats, and carpets. Any decent All purpose cleaner (APC) will do the trick. I'm talking about simple green of 409, i'm talking care specific APC like Meguairs D101 or Mothers APC. Depending on the dilution ratio they can be used for various cleaning tasks. 4:1 is good for the engine bay, tires and wheel weels, 10:1 is great for steering wheel, seats, dash.
hope that helps
