I bought this car used back in July and didn't get to do my usual detail routine as quickly as I would have liked thanks to my home renovation project. This was particularly annoying to me because I had the grille painted body color and it takes a lot of abuse from road debri, so I really wanted to get some sealer and wax on it. Finally, last Saturday, I was able to squeeze in a detail session before the weather turns too cold here. A friend of mine suggested Surf City Garage products. I'm usually pretty leary of using anything other than Meguiar's, but I was out of almost everything, so off to the store I went. I bought Beyond Clay liquid claybar, Nano Seal, Nano Glaze, Barrier Reef carnuba wax, Beyond Steel wheel cleaner, Beyond Black tire dressing, Pacific Blue soap, and Clearly Better glass cleaner. First of all, all of these products have an awesome scent. I know that isn't a priority when choosing a great wax or dressing, but the soap and liquid claybar smelled amazing. Speaking of the liquid claybar, I was having my doubts. I've always used Meguiar's claybars, but I could really see the benefit of the liquid claybar and it was quite effective. Prior to beginning the detail, I shaved the badges off of the trunk and there was a considerable amount of rail dust imbedded in the paint after I removed all of the tape. I could feel it with my fingernail, but it wouldn't budge until I hit it with the liquid claybar. It disappeared like magic and left no traces behind. This, by far, was the most impressive product that I used. On the opposite end of the spectrum was the wheel cleaner and tire dressing. Both of these products failed miserably. The wheel cleaner left behind a blue powdery residue and required multiple rinses. The tire dressing didn't seem to have any effect on the tires at all. They didn't look to be any deeper black, they had absolutely no shine, which I realize some people desire. I, myself, like a slight sheen, but nothing too tacky. The sealer, glaze, and wax produced a nice shine that is sometimes hard to achieve on a silver car. Overall, I would probably pass on the majority of SCG products, with the exception of the liquid claybar and maybe the glass cleaner. The results were good, but the number of steps in order to achieve them and the application process was a little labor intensive compared to some other products on the market. These products are also relatively expensive when compared to Meguiar's, Mother's, Optimum, etc.
I was only able to capture what the car looks like in person in the one picture below of the rear 1/4 panel and trunk area. The rest of the pictures don't do it justice. These pictures were taken the day after the detail and the car had been driven 100 miles or so.
For good measure, here is a picture of my 14lb cat, Bear, in a Scrabble box lid.
I was only able to capture what the car looks like in person in the one picture below of the rear 1/4 panel and trunk area. The rest of the pictures don't do it justice. These pictures were taken the day after the detail and the car had been driven 100 miles or so.
For good measure, here is a picture of my 14lb cat, Bear, in a Scrabble box lid.
