Car Valeting by Auto Shine UK

I received some Pre production samples today from Dodo Juice which was pleasant surprise and was really nice to see a big company looking after the little guys.

The next bit is a long read but I found many tips and pointers in each section that I went through, so I’m just pretty much just putting in what Dodo Juice have told me about recent developments.

The Word from Dodo Juice

Almost as soon as we had introduced our waxes, people asked us about a quick detail spray. Earlier this year, we had produced what I referred to as ‘Dodo Milk’, a very thick carnauba solution with high solids content.
However, although some initial testing showed it to be a match for many quick detailers, it couldn’t match the performance of spray sealants when it came to water repellence or durability.

Over the coming months, we looked at the Quick Detailer market in more detail, and came to the conclusion that there were four distinct areas of application:

Light Cleansing
Protection
Drying
Claying

We realised that many people were using one Quick Detailer, like Meguiars Last Touch, for many of these applications. Unfortunately, products are rarely as versatile as you think, and we realised that we could tweak the products to make them more suitable to each individual task.

Clay Lube

We have therefore developed a separate clay lube that performs extremely well at a very economical cost (dilutes 10:1 rather than Last Touch at 1:1). We don’t believe in using plain water (even if you can with most clays) because the clay lube can have cleaning agents in to increase the effectiveness of the clay and lubrication is critical so it is best to have as much of it as possible (although some clays may include products that react with water to give it some lubricity, the effect is likely to be less than with a dedicated ‘external lube).

Drying Aid

WE also developed a separate Drying Aid. This is because people like to use a QD (Quick Detailer) to help prevent marring and swirl marks during the drying process (water droplets and dry towels are hardly lubricious, and any remaining sediment or dirt could be rubbed into the paintwork during a contact process). So our ‘Drying Detailer’ is designed to decrease the surface tension of sitting water, increasing its surface area and thus allowing easier drying or evaporation with less chance of ‘spotting’ or water marks. We alsotweaked it to include an agent that inhibits the effects of limescale, making water marks less noticeable than they would otherwise be (although it may not prevent them fully, nor will it prevent dirt or other sediment forming water marks). The detailer is also lubricious to help prevent marring caused by any remaining dirt particles. The side effect of this product is that its hydrophilic nature means it kills the beading provided by our waxes, which is a shame at best and something that could be mistaken for premature failure of the wax at worst. The reality is that the wax layer is still going strong beneath the layer of QD, but we needed something that would bring the beading back this leads us onto…

Protection Detailer

This was the trickiest product to get right, because the carnauba solids content in normal Quick Detailers is about 3-4 per cent, about a tenth of what is in a paste wax. So the protection is going to be about a tenth as well. Our first three prototypes were natural-based and performed well for what they were – our trial against Field Glaze with the third prototype showed identical or better performance, for example. But the market had moved on and people were using spray sealant products like Zaino Z8 as ‘Quick Detail’ sprays. Swissvax Nano and Meguiars Ultimate Quick Detailer are also in this class. The performance on bare paint from a spray sealant is far superior to that of a carnauba Quick Detailer. We therefore decided to do a pure ‘high performance’ Quick Detailer, but this would naturally be more expensive than a standard QD and the solvent content of these products often makes them unsuitable for use with clay bars as well (hence the need for a separate clay lube).

The alternative would have been for us to introduce a natural carnauba Quick Detailer that would have done an OK job, and been cheaper than Field Glaze, but it would have been wiped out by Zaino Z8 in comparison tests.
Even if we explain that chalk and cheese are being compared, people will assume we are trying to justify poorer performance. So if you cant beat them, join them…

Light Cleansing

Any light solvent solution will have cleaning capabilities and be able to remove the dust and finger marks that Quick Detailers are typically used to eradicate. Therefore, our Drying and Protection Quick Detailers will be efficient at light cleansing duties, with the Drying Quick Detailer being the most suitable. For deeper soiling, a dedicated cleanser like Lime Prime or Lime Prime Lite would be recommended.

Ok so where finally on to the important information about the directions of use and information about the 2 products that Dodo Juice sent me.

Dodo Juice Samples Red Mist & Lilac Dryer

Red Quick Detailer – Red Mist

This is our spray sealant ultra high performance ‘protection detailer’. It has a volatile solvent in it to carry the polymer sealant, so it does smell more alcoholic than normal… Unfortunately you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs and there are reasons why sealants and hybrid waxes like Collinite don’t smell quite as attractive as more natural waxes.

Dodo Juice - Red Quick Detailer - Red Mist

Red Mist
Dodo Juice Red Mist is a high performance protection Quick Detailer, designed to fortify wax already applied to the car – or protect bare paintwork if time is limited.
Containing sophisticated synthetic ingredients, it boasts superior shine, protection and durability compared to normal Quick Detail sprays.

Use
Ensure that paintwork is clean and dry. Shake bottle before use, then spray Red Mist onto panel and buff off with a soft, clean microfibre cloth, folding regularly.
Do not apply more Red Mist until previous traces have been buffed and smearing has disappeared.

Lilac Quick Detailer – Time To DryOur drying aid ‘Drying Detailer’. Not much to report here, apart from the fact that’s its able to be used as a general high-shine Quick Detailer. It kills beading though, so we didn’t want to use it as our benchmark QD.

Dodo Juice Lilac Quick Detailer Time To Dry

Time To Dry
Dodo Juice Time To Dry is a dedicated drying aid, designed to reduce the chances of marring during the drying process where rinse water and a dry microfibre are being used against the surface of the paint. By introducing lubrication, ay remaining dirt or sediment is less likely to marr the surface.

Time To Dry also contains ingredients to minimise water spots, by reducing limescale deposits and breaking up water beads. In addition, this bead busting behaviour increases the surface area of sitting water, making it easier to soak up with a microfibre.

Note:
This product can be used as a general ‘non beading’ high shine quick detail spray, as well as a dedicated drying aid.

Use
Ensure the car has been washed thoroughly. Spray Time To Dry onto wet panels and then soak up water with a soft and clean microfibre. Dabbing is preferable to wiping fold towel regularly and when dry, buff to a shine.