Stepping up from #40

[KAdams4458]

Folks, I just picked up a used '00 Chrysler Sebring convertible about a week ago, and so far I'm very pleased with most aspects of the car. Not being clean is my biggest gripe, and that's what this post is about.

The interior looks pretty decent from a distance, and honestly, the dealer did a fair job of knocking the grime out of it before they sold it to me, but it really needs some attention. I noticed that the two-tone interior showed some grime in the texture of the camel parts, so I figured it had an equal amount of dirt driven in to the agate surfaces as well. Boy was I wrong, they clearly gave the lighter areas a better scrubbing than the darker areas in an effort to cut there investment.

I just finished wiping down a little less than half of the driver side door panel with #40, an old toothbrush, and a single towel. Take a look at this towel, and you'll probably think what I do. - I need to step up to a more aggressive cleaner.



So, what do you think? Should I order up a gallon of #39 for the plastic and vinyl in this car? Something else? If I keep going at it with #40, I'll end up using two gallons of the stuff.

[Murr1525]

Re: Stepping up from #40

I would go with a jug of APC or APC+, then re-do the #40. Maybe mix it a bit stronger than 10:1 for you situation.

#39 is also an option, but really, the APCs are just so handy for everything, I'd go with one of them first. Just order a spray bottle as well.

[KAdams4458]

Re: Stepping up from #40

That's probably a good suggestion, especially in light of the fact that they don't seem to sell #39 in anything but a 16 oz. spray bottle. (Sure would be nice to get it by the bucket, as I now have two cars in desperate need of scrubbing. My new one and my wife's car that has never seen a real cleaning in years.)

Thanks, Murr1525. I'll try to drop by a shop soon and see if I can order up some of APC. Now, I really have to ask, as I've been out of the game for a while... What the heck is APC+? I haven't owned a car worth detailing in years, so forgive my ignorance. I haven't kept up with the latest and greatest products.

[Murr1525]

Re: Stepping up from #40

APC is of course the regular All-Purpose Cleaner.

APC+ is a low-foaming version that can be used with carpet cleaning equipment, and also has a de-greaser in it.

Both can be used by hand of course, just dont bother with the foaming head sprayer for APC+.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Stepping up from #40

We have a 05 sebring. On the interior I used the apc 2 applications. Then wentover everything with the 339. Then we applied the #40. It came out great(imho). Now its just regular maintenace. It may sound like overkill, all the cleaning, but the results are great. Buying used I did not mind spending extra time on these steps. As I was not sure what the previous owner, and the dealer used on the interior.
Enjoy your Sebring.

[southpactire]

Re: Stepping up from #40

I recently detailed a farm truck for resale that hadn't been cleaned much in it's 8 year life. On the interior surfaces I used APC+. Initially I started with 10:1, but I had much better results with 4:1..expecially where the dog rubbed up against the plastic interior panels. It really did a good job of deep cleaning the textured interior panels.

[yalerd]

Re: Stepping up from #40

I would go with APC+, one product for multiple purposes, you can use #40 or #39 that they are incredible products, I have them both and always delivery incredible results cleaning the trim, you just see the grim coming out but I would still pick APC+ for your situation.

[Jeepster04]

Re: Stepping up from #40

Another vote for APC+. Ive used it to clean interior panels in my Jeep along with leather seats and its a great product. You can buy it by the sample(make sure to get an extra bottle to dilute it in) or by the gallon at Autodetailingsolutions.com. Excellent website to order meguiars products from and the owner is also a great guy.

[Joe's detailing]

Re: Stepping up from #40

Any all purpose cleaner will suit you well..
Meguiar's
Simple green
fabuloso
fantastik
409
Follow up with #40

[KAdams4458]

Re: Stepping up from #40

Wanted to give a little update and some closure to the thread.

I wanted to avoid buying any more products than I already had, so I hit the plastic and vinyl surfaces up with a 1:10 ratio of Simple Green and water, using a toothbrush and a nailbrush to really work the grit out of the grain. I worked small areas at a time, and rinsed each area well with clean water before moving on to the next spot. I don't like using Simple Green on interior plastics often, since it can really turn things milky if you use too strong of a solution, or leave it on for too long. In this case, no harm was done, and I allowed the Simple green solution to only contact any part of the car for perhaps a maximum of 30 seconds. It really knocked the dirt out of the car extremely well.

The leather seats were rather dirty as well, and to be honest, my tried and true Lexol wasn't touching the layer of sweat stains on the surface of them. I broke down, and resolved to either get them clean, or destroy them while trying. I purchased a few packs of Magic Erasers to use on the leather surfaces, and they certainly did the trick. What dirt they didn't remove was broken down well enough for the Lexol to finish off completely.

I am content with the interior until the Spring arrives, and I have a chance to pull the seats and shampoo the carpet. Now I will focus on slowly bringing the exterior to a suitable condition.

Thank you all for the suggestions! I look forward to trying out some APC+ in the future.

[asim_296]

Re: Stepping up from #40

I just wonder if M40 must be diluted before use?? I'm scared of using it it seems agressive.

[Lydia]

Re: Stepping up from #40

#40 does not need to be diluted before use. It is a great cleaner/conditioner, but it is not aggressive. If you are worried about it being too aggressive, make sure to use a microfiber towel and not a terry towel. Terry is more aggressive than microfiber.

[Sandstone]

Re: Stepping up from #40

40 is pretty mild as far as chemicals go. A bit stronger than QID but not as strong as APC+ at 10:1. Smells great too with a chemical/new car smell.

[SHYNEMAN123]

Re: Stepping up from #40

I was shocked with this result, I tried APC 10:1 and 5:1 with little improvement and the best result was Westley's bleche-white and finished with # 40