[D_o_S]

Ok, I thought I was going to write this elsewhere, but since you posted, I might as well take advantage...

So, 4 years ago I came to the detailing scene. Having read some articles online, I figured I need those "boutique" brands everybody was talking about... I'm in Europe, so at the gas station, you can get Turtle Wax, Sonax, and then other local brands. I figured that just wouldn't cut it, so I had to have Meguiar's, Nattys, and whatever.

So I started off by using Natty's white on my car, sealed beforehand with Poorboy's EX-P. I used Meg's QD and Meg's window cleaner. I got meg's microfiber cloths and meg's gold class shampoo. For the interior, I used Autoglym Interior Shampoo. I thought it was all really good and nice, and I was mostly fueled to go for these brands based on the fact that "anything you can get at the gas station must be bad", at least that was the attitude of most local detailers, and unfortunately still is.

Time went on and I didn't want to hear anything about Turtlewax or Sonax or whatever. Then, one day I was reading E90 post and I read about the Sonax Xtreme Full effect wheel cleaner, how splendid it was, and guess what - the local gas station had it - so I picked some up. It worked awesome, and to date is the best wheel cleaner that I have ever used (I have used Wurth Intensive Wheel cleaner, which I feel is rebranded P21s, and that just sucks compared to the Sonax).

So time went on, and the local Halford's branch was closing down, they had "buy 1 item, get the second one free", so I got the Sonax Xtreme Wax... and lo and behold, it beaded much better than the Nattys... when people say Natty's has tight beads, I just laugh...

So, I was becoming fonder of Sonax. I then tried their polish and wax 2, their window cleaner, and again was impressed - by ease of use, as well as performance/looks. And, so, slowly but surely, I became a Sonax guy.

Today, 4 years later, I am almost exclusively Sonax. Why? Because it just works. I don't need to read 100000 reviews of a product just to see if it's a hit or miss - whatever I buy from Sonax just works, and the results, in my opinion, are much better than these bespoke brands. Why? Look - give Sonax a try and see for yourself. I will just say so much as to the fact that Sonax is like an engineering company, and being German, it just seems to do what it's meant to very well and with utmost precision. These american companies, to me, seem like "home brew". Can your homebrew guy produce a quality nano-based coating? I wouldn't be so sure. Wax, of course, is all "natural", so homebrew might work there...

Come to think of it, the only product I am using today that is not sonax is Gtechniq glass coating, since Sonax doesn't offer it.

I really liked autoglym interior shampoo, and that has been a mainstay in my detailing equipment, because it was easy to use, and could be used on anything. However, it became increasingly difficult to get, and when I was about to pick up my batch 1 month ago, the seller only had 1 autoglym interior shampoo, which I gave to a friend… I asked him what he would recommend, and he suggested ValetPro interior APC. So, ok, I thought, I’ll give it a try, especially since he said “Autoglym sucks in general”. Well, I diluted it and used it on the interior, and even though it claims it’s matte, wow, it was reflections galore… I mean not as bad as Armorall gloss, but much worse than Autoglym. Since autoglym IS became so hard to find, I thought screw it – I’ll go for Sonax. What was keeping me away was the fact that it could not be used on everything, i.e. it was plastic only, upholstery needed a different cleaner. I got the sonax matte dash cleaner today, and it is the MOST MATTE of any cleaner I have tried. It makes ValetPro look like a mirror.

So that’s another reason why I’m all out sonax – it’s much easier to get, and much cheaper too. I can get the the glass cleaner for like $10, meg’s costs $18. Shampoo is $10, meg’s is $25… you do the math.

So, that’s why, whatever I need, I go sonax. I have stopped reading internet forums – it’s a waste of time, and obviously it’s pro-boutique, which I don’t care about. It’s like the way it is with cars – some guys like American, I couldn’t drive a Mustang, cause, like Jeremy said, the performance is there, but at the end of a 1000 mile journey, you feel like a bag of skin. Same with detailing supplies. If you like Chemical Guys, ValetPro, Meg’s or whatever, then good for you. The only thing I recommend you do is try Sonax, and maybe you won’t look back…