sandman

0000 steel wool on the windows, not the tint or mirrors.

tambil68

Maquires also has a paint cleaner, works VERY well for removing surface problems like water spots... The clay bar works best for embedded problems, like after you use the cleaner if you feel any imperfections on the surface, then clay bar those areas... I also used a clay bar to remove paint overspray, and the marks from when my wife drove through a toll gate.

Go to Maquires site , they have a lot of information and short instructional vids.

Gravel Gertie

Vinegar in water helps cut the lime from water spots. I like using it on my windows. Washing in the shade helps too. When I wash the Jeep, I keep re wetting the areas I have finished not allowing them to dry as I continue to wash around the Jeep. Then I use a squeegee to quickly dry the windows before they spot and even use it to pull large amounts of water off the surface of the Jeep before using the chamois. That way I don't have to keep wringing out the chamois. Also, I have an old fashion wash machine wringer that I run the chamois through the rollers for speed and ease of getting the water out of it as I use it. (The kind that has 2 rollers and a crank type handle) Works great!

HBC

Can you use diluted vinegar on paint? I know it works great on windows, but I didn't know it was safe for paint. I love your idea of the old washing machine.

HBC

My problem is that it is so hot and windy here that it quickly dries the painted surfaces. I don't have a good shady area to wash it. It dries almost instantly.

RedneckJeep

I know it looks corny and gimmicky, but I use that Mr. Clean car wash thing. It has filters in it that filters out hard water minerals. Like you, I live in a rural area with HARD water. The thing ain't a gimmick. It WORKS. Of course, you have to replace the filters periodically, but it works. You don't even have to hand dry it.

HBC

Thanks a million!! You may have just saved me a major problem...

Lorrel

Yea. Alot of people don't realize how good a claybar works, and how much embeded contaminints are on the vehicle from the beginning.
I remember how great our black JK looked back in 2006 when we first got it. One day I had just finished washing it in the driveway, and was about to wax when a guy walking by stopped and started talking about how bad it looked, and before I waxed it I should get all the contaminints off the finish. I was shocked, as I thought it looked great. He went on and told me to get a good claybar a clay it before I coated it. Found out he was the owner of a detail shop, and that he had a contract with the local Mercedes/BMW dealer to detail new cars just prior to the owners picking them up. Also said he does the detailing for the new ones they put in the showroom. Told me he had some time later if I would go get a good claybar, he'd come back and show me how to do it right, if a had some beer on hand.
Let the JK sit, and drove the XJ over for a claybar kit. He recommended for hand detailing in the driveway either a Mothers, or Meguiares kit, as they were not that expensive and did a pretty good job. Let the JK sit, drove the XJ and picked up a Meguiares kit that consisted of a claybar and a small bottle of quick detail as the lubricant, and cost less than $20.00 He got back and we went to work. WOW!!!
Took about 45 minites, that was with the beer and bullshitting, and I could tell the difference right away. I could not believe the stuff that came off the finish, and the JK was only about 2 weeks old. The finish was so smooth I just cant explain it, and it looked like the finish was about 2 feet deep. and that was before the wax. The wife came out and couldn't believe how shiny it looked. She loved it.
I had a can of good carnauba wax, but he told me that although caranuba was very good for shine, it was very soft, and contained no properties that would protect against UV, and would most likely be gone in about 2 weeks if it rained at all. Told me to get a good synthetic polymere coating on first. Then if I wanted I could use the caranuba wax over it. I had some NXT 2.0 that I had been using on the XJ, and he said that would be fine. I put an application of NXT on while he drank a beer, and was amased how easy the NXT came off. It didn't come off as easy when I had done the XJ, but then the XJ was older and had never been clayed.
I was happy with the end result, and never did get around to putting on the caranuba that day. Winter came and went, with the JK being parked in the driveway, and driven everyday by the wife. The first nice day, I went to the local Hydraspary for a good wash and dry. Once home I broke out the claybar and the quick detail and went to work. Then a coat of NXT. Later that day a coat of Meguiars caranuba. Yhe JK looked better than the day we picked it up, and I'll add the shine lasted all summer, with nothing more than washings, dryings, and spraying on the quick detail then a buffing with good microfibre cloth.
The JK is now a bit over 2 years old, and here in SE Pa with the winter ice and snow, salted roads, acid rain, pollin, factory dust, the JK looks better than the day we picked it up.
Sorry for babbling on, but wanted to share a good way to keep the JK great looking. To sum it up, what has worked for me is; A good claybar and lubricant, a good microfibre cloth, a good coat of synthetic wax/protectant and another good microfibre cloth, and if you feel the need, a good caranuba wax and another good microfibre cloth.

GreytSilly

I'm a Mr. Clean Car Wash user too and I swear by it. Once you get the spots cleaned up, just rinse the Jeep with the Mr. Clean whenever you wash it. I don't use the Mr. Clean soap either, I just use Zymol car wash in a bucket of water and use the Mr. Clean unit as a final rinse. No spots even when it drys in the sun. I love that thing, my Jeep is black and I never get spots.

Gravel Gertie

You can probably pick up an old wringer at a flea market. Doesn't matter the condition of the rollers as long as it works and is clean. I don't know if diluted vinegar water will harm the paint.............I kind of doubt it. I usually pour a little into a bucket of water. There are sites on the internet that might tell you if it is ok. I rarely use it as I keep the vehicle wet until I'm ready to wipe it dry. However, on a rare occasion the windows spot before I get them dry and that is when I use the vinegar water. I don't pay to much mind to spots that rarely form on the body as I wax the Jeep often enough that I remove them then. (2 or 3 times a summer to make washing it easier). I found the Mr. Clean system on sale but it is winter here so I plan to try it in the Spring.