Getting rid of excess car polish.

[Guest HessLakeGuy]

Two of my cars were owned by people that did not know how to properly wax/polish a vehicle.

What I mean by that is that one owner managed to get some polish on the sunroof gasket/seal and it still has some left on it (despite my efforts to gently clean it off).

Also, one of my cars had lots of polish on one of the wheels, including in the BUICK script. What a pain that stuff can be to completely remove.

Anyway, Is there something on the market that SAFELY gets this stuff off once and for all and leaves no residue?

Tom

[Guest Corvanti]

dish detergent (Dawn, etc.) would be the mildest way to remove wax. use a soft nylon brush - a toothbrush for crevices.

when removing caked up wax on painted surfaces and wheels, i usually use "drug store" 70% isopropyl alcohol to remove wax & dirt.

i just finished cleaning/detailing a neighbor's BMW Z3 black cloth convertible top with "Purple Power" and a nylon brush i had on hand. it had old wax, mold & mildew. it took a lot of rinsing, but it came out looking great. on a vinyl top, i'd try the detergent first...

for the sunroof gasket, i'd go with the alcohol, then treat it with with Permatex "Dielectric Tune-Up Grease". let it set for a few hours or overnight then remove the excess. also helps with weatherstripping...

hope this helps!

Edited July 9, 2013 by Corvanti
add'l info (see edit history)

[NCReatta]

I've been happy with my experience with that as seen on TV "Wipe New" product. Seems to do the job nicely on a lot of things.

[Guest HessLakeGuy]

Thanks.

if it doesn't rain tomorrow morning I will give those ideas a try.

Tom

[Vincent Vega]

Second on the Dawn wash. I use cheap wood paint brushes for cleaning too. They get in cracks/crevices nicely. I will cut the bristles down to about 3/4 inch for mure scrubbing power.