So many, many products

[CharlesW]

Maybe it's just me, but the great number of products in the Meguiar's line that seem to perform very nearly the same functions keeps me from using a lot of their stuff.
I use and like the original APC+ and am switching to the newer APC. Now they have added a "new" APC+. When I made my original choice, I seem to remember quite a few different degreasers, APC, APC+, carpet cleaners, vinyl cleaners. It was somewhat confusing to decide which to buy. Quick detailers were numerous. Car washes the same thing. When you look at the consumer line, the detailer line and the professional line, the more or less duplication is pretty wide spread. SMRs, #9 or #82 for instance. I used #9, but only because it was available in 16 oz. and the #82 wasn't. Glaze, #7 or #81. I used #7 and didn't like it. Rather than try #81, I quit using a glaze. The same thing is happening with the swirl removers. I have gotten away from both #9 and #82 and just use #80 and follow it with a wax or use a paint cleaner and follow it with a sealant.
When I was recently trying to decide on a leather cleaner/conditioner combination, I finally gave up and went with a competitors product since I had only one choice of cleaner and one choice of conditioner.
How do you guys decide what to use?

[Murr1525]

Re: So many, many products

The large number of products does disturb some people, but at the same time, the subtle variations are what make them so useful. You don't just have 1 product that you have to make do everything.

I just match what I am doing to the product as far as cleaners, polishes, etc.

Different waxes are there because some people like synthetics, some like carnuba. And then some apply by hand ,and some by machine.

Different dressings and such are there because different tires/vinyl react different to the same dressing, so have to have a few in order to get the gloss, or lack thereof, that different people like.

Not sure what made the leather so difficult for you, there is a one step cleaner/conditioner, and then a two step cleaner and conditioner. And then the buy in bulk Detailer line cleaner.

[CharlesW]

Re: So many, many products

Not sure what made the leather so difficult for you, there is a one step cleaner/conditioner, and then a two step cleaner and conditioner. And then the buy in bulk Detailer line cleaner.

In the Consumer Line:
1. GC Wipes
2. GC Foam cleaner/conditioner
3. GC Spray cleaner/conditioner
4. GC Cleaner/conditioner
5. GC Aloe cleaner
6. GC Aloe conditioner
7. Quik Interior detailer (Not really listed as a leather cleaner/conditioner, but is in the leather care section of the store.
And as you mentioned, the Detailer line Leather Cleaner & conditioner.
So, it narrows down to 6, 7, or 8 product choices depending on how you want to categorize them.
Obviously, Meguiar's feels the products differ or they wouldn't have them. My problem was simply that I have no way of knowing what the specific benefit of any of those choices would be.

[jezroj]

Re: So many, many products

I honestly had/have the same problem, but after spending some time on the forum and attending a class I have become a little more familiar with the differences. What I would like to see is some sort of "spread sheet"/comparison chart showing the products by category and then rating them as mild, spicy and hot or something like that. I was looking at the line of soaps, shampoos, wash whatever you want to call them and it was like . What are the real differences, do we assume that the most expensive is the best, does Meguiar's expect us to buy everyone and try them all? Which one do we buy first and do we stop looking at the others if the one we bought worked well???? You are right, very confusing and that is why many years ago I stayed away from Meguiar's products. I now have a little more time and am trying to educate myself more about the differences, but when you go to the store and see all the selections and duplications you just reach for the nicest package and the one that seems to be less confusing.

[imacarnut]

Re: So many, many products

at first i was confused with all the different megs pro line products, but after understanding/reading all the different uses/purpose each one carried, it made more sense and alot of them are dilutable which gives you more for your $...

[Deaner5]

Re: So many, many products

I think the choices are part of what makes detailing fun. I've stuck to the consumer line but trying NXT vs. Gold Class is fun or even NXT wash vs. GC wash. The ever changing aspect of this keeps me interested and detailing away, sometimes with new stuff and sometimes with old reliable favorites.

[buda]

Re: So many, many products

The plethora of detail chemical products offered by most chemical companies has a very simple explanation!!!

Detailers are creatures of habit and do not like to change. When they get a good result from a product they continue to use it for years.

Therefore, when a company comes up with a new and better formulation of a product if they want to keep the past customers' business they have to keep making and selling the older products.

Now the problem comes in when a new customer comes into the picture and they try to decide which product to buy they are confused.

Now in some cases there are differences. For example if a person is looking for a high shine dressing vs a satin finish they would choose a formulation that has more silicone in it. Whereas if they were using the dressing on the interiors they might choose a satin finish dressing.

We make dressing which is high shine for use on tires, trim, engines and interior vinyl and leather. To eliminate the high shine on the interior we wipe it on and then wipe it off leaving a satin finish. On the tires and engines we spray it on and leave it dry to a high shine.

See the point? What you should do in my opinion is find out which is the newest formulation in the line of similiar sounding products and choose that one as it is probably the best, at least from the chemist's point of view.

Hope that helps explain the problem you face.

Regards
Bud Abraham

[Murr1525]

Re: So many, many products

I see what might have got you, all the different ways of applying some products. However, the same product can come in several forms, like liquid or paste wax.

The Gold Class Cleaner/Conditioner comes in liquid, spray, foam, and cloth wipes.

Some tire shines come in gel, foam, spray...

Glass cleaner in liquid and foam.

For the most part, it comes down to personal preference on what you like to use. However, different methods do have some unique things...

With cleaning leather/cloth, the spray and wipes will tend to be a bit milder of a cleaner, since you wont be able to apply quite as much product.

Now a foam glass cleaner wont run quite as much as a liquid cleaner, so it depends what you like to work with.

The tire shines really just come down to preference, I like the sprays, other people find foams easier. The gels wont spray around, so you can control them better if that is a problem for you.

[gorin002]

Re: So many, many products

i bought 1 products saw other bought other etc
i also like formula1wax
i mix a bit with megs and formula1wax products
but when you new you try evrything after a while you decide for your self
what best for you

[Mike Phillips]

Re: So many, many products

Good discussion here, great questions and buda summed things up pretty nicely, we'll pass the link to this thread on to Marketing.

[yakky]

Re: So many, many products

I like the variety of choices and the knowledge that they all work together. If I don't like something about a particular product, I can try another in the same field by Meguiars and sleep well in knowing it was a well developed product.

People have different tastes. For example, tire dressings. Some like the new tire look, some like a deep, dark black, others like extreme shine. One product will not meet everyones needs.

What I would like to see is a uniformed grading system for cleaning action, abrasive level and level of finish (think MSDS type codes on the back). This could be a rather small graphic on the back of the bottles, it would not confuse the average joe, they would probably think its some packaging marking. For those of us that do care, it would be a great tool.

[gb387]

Re: So many, many products

There are lots of good points here.... to be honest if I hadn't stumbled on to MOL when it went live a couple years ago not sure I would be using the products that I have now.

There is a great selection of products and you can really 'fine tune' your car care to your personal preference you can't do that with most other product manufactures out there. Like mentioned above it can be a little overwhelming to the 'new guy' to get the right combination. As an example, the Deep Crystal System is great a great place to start and very easy to understand but when I started using it sometime ago I didn't realize you could change to another wax giving you a different look that one might prefer or change the polish and so on.

[jezroj]

Re: So many, many products

Hopefully this is not off the subject, but can you please educate me here, I am familiar with;
Clear Coat Body Scrub (I believe now discontinued)
DC-1
M80
M83
ScratchX

I believe all of the above are recommended for removing swirls and scratches, but not sure what other products will also help with this.

Can you list for me in order of least aggressive to most aggressive all the Meg products recommended for removing Swirls and scratches and any differences if important to note

[gorin002]

Re: So many, many products

stil for sale at meguirseurope site
Clear Coat Body Scr

[mh68]

Re: So many, many products

There are lots of good points here.... to be honest if I hadn't stumbled on to MOL when it went live a couple years ago not sure I would be using the products that I have now.

There is a great selection of products and you can really 'fine tune' your car care to your personal preference you can't do that with most other product manufactures out there. Like mentioned above it can be a little overwhelming to the 'new guy' to get the right combination. As an example, the Deep Crystal System is great a great place to start and very easy to understand but when I started using it sometime ago I didn't realize you could change to another wax giving you a different look that one might prefer or change the polish and so on.

I agree. I happened to come across MOL this year and I can say that I wouldn't be using near the MEGs products that I am now if I hadn't found it. This is my 2nd yr as an "on the side" detailer and I've learned a LOT about different techniques and products. I've gone from using just the consumer line to using mostly NXT paste and products from the professional and detailers line. When I first started looking at all the Megs products I was overwhelmed. I didn't realize there were so many. But researching, asking questions on this forum and trying out different products has really "honed" my detailing. I've been very happy with the products I've chosen and still want to try some others. It's also made my customers extremely happy with their cars, they never knew their vehicles could look so good and find that they look forward to getting them detailed.

Mike