CarPlan Screen Cleaner

Part of any thorough car cleaning is making sure the glass is left clean and clear. If you use Sat Navs you can find unsightly rings and fingerprints appearing on this inside of the window and you park under trees or near buildings sap and bird lime will need removing before it becomes ingrained.

The product I use the most for cleaning my car windows is CarPlan Screen Cleaner. CarPlan Screen Cleaner is an affordable product only costing around £3.00 and certainly lasts a fair few washes. It's slightly blue in colour but wipes off clear and can be used both on the inside and outside of the car which is a bonus.

To use CarPlan Screen Cleaner you simply need to spray it onto the glass surface, wipe it over the glass with a microfibre towel and they dry it off to a clear shine with an additional microfibre (I like the Kent microfibre towels). CarPlan Screen Cleaner brings the glass up to a fantastic clearness and on top if its cleaning properties helps the glass mist less, which is particularly helpful in the winter months.

Another important factor that I take into consideration is how it reacts to other parts of the car's body work, I have seen some screen wash products that say they can harm the rubber seals or any overspray onto bodywork should be washed off immediately. With CarPlan Screen Cleaner you can rest assured that your paint work will be safe and glass will remain both clean and clear.

The product is well worth buying and it removes any wax or other chemicals that have found their way to the glass very well. CarPlan Screen Cleaner is available from most stores.

Carplan Tyre Shine Foam Review

Well if you’ve been reading my reviews you’ll know I’ve recently added a set of AEZ Raver alloy wheels to my car and some new Achilles ATR Sport 17 inch tyres. Well it’s been raining a bit here recently and as a result my new tyres have started to look a bit tired.

I guess what I mean by tired is that they're no longer the brand new glossy black they were and instead have an almost brown tint to them. Well after a quick look at the products available I was eventually swayed towards Carplan Tyre Shine Foam. My decision was based on 2 main deciders, the first was the price at around £2.50 a can its great value and the second was that I’ve used and trust Carplan products.

The foam is straight forward enough to use. Shake the can; hold it about 4 inches away from the tyre and spray. You only coat the outside tyre wall profile and be careful not to spray it onto the tread, as I guess it could make the grip slippery. Leave the foam on the tyre for about 10 minutes, then wipe of with an old microfibre cloth, or rag.

The results are I’m pleased to say new looking tyres and they stay new looking for quite a while too. Another benefit of using the Carplan Tyre Shine Foam is that it helps keep the tyre wall in good condition, helping to prevent the tyre cracking.

There are other tyre shine products available that I will try and review at some point, but for now the Carplan Tyre Shine Foam works just fine for me.

Meguiar's How To Video

Ok today I was browsing YouTube and came across this video that really shows the difference between paintwork that's been treated to a clay bar and wax vs paint that hasn't. Now I haven’t used that many of Meguiar's products, but their reputation is excellent and I believe a similar result can be attained with different brands. Anyway I hope you enjoy the video.

AEZ Raver Alloy Wheels Review

Well as my last post focussed around the Achilles ATR Sport Tyres I thought it would be a good idea to review some alloy wheels, in particular the AEZ Raver Alloy Wheel, from AEZ.

Now AEZ aren’t the biggest name in alloys, which to some extent is a surprise, a quick look over their website shows a handsome range of designs and they look to be as at home on Euro built cars as they are on Jap style cars.

Now before I purchased the AEZ Raver alloys I did a great deal of looking round at wheels and the different alloy wheel styles. I decided that as my car isn't overly modified I’d go for a style that was simple and looked close to the standard wheels, albeit a little better looking and 17 inch as opposed to the factory filled 16's.

Another factor was I didn't want split spoke alloys as they can be very difficult to clean and I came across this video which shows they have a nano tec coating that helps repel dirt and grime, certainly a selling factor to me (see embedded youtube video).

I ordered the AEZ Raver alloys from a popular UK based alloy wheel retailer and they came complete with the Achilles ATR Sport Tyres fitted for around £500.

My first impression of the AEZ Raver alloy wheels was very good; the silver of the wheel was striking without looking cheap or overly bright and once they where no heavier than the 16’s I’d taken off (not that I could tell anyway, although perhaps an accurate weighing is in order).

I would recommend these alloy wheels to anyone who is looking for a simple yet good looking well made alloy wheel, although how they will look on your car is of course a matter of taste.

Achilles ATR Sport Tyres Review

I recently was faced with the prospect of getting new tyres for my Toyota and decided to upgrade my alloys from 16's to 17's at the same time. I decided to purchase a set of AEZ Ravers (review coming soon) and after doing a little research decided to get Achilles ATR Sport Tyres. Now Achilles ATR Sport Tyres are fairly unknown in terms of brand compared to the big names and I was initially attracted to them for their price tag. I don't do any track work and although I drive in a spirited manner, I don't drive excessively fast. For this reason I was happy to consider a budget tyre (every one is different and how they perform on your car depends on your driving style).

They arrived already fitted to the wheel and I paid around £55 per corner. My first impressions were very good. The Achilles ATR Sport Tyres have a substantial grooved surface and the blade design on the edges looked promising in terms of grip through bends and corners.

I'm happy to say that the Achilles ATR Sport Tyres have not disappointed. I have driven in wet, hot and dry conditions and they have proved to be excellent, giving me confidence to accelerate round corners and they didn't make the car feel twitchy even in heavy rain. I haven't used the Achilles ATR Sport Tyres in snow or frosty conditions yet so I will add to this post when winter arrives.

For the price I believe them to be excellent value for money and should I need new tyres in the future due to normal wear and tear I would purchase them again.

Turbozilla Air Freshener Review

This is just a quick review of an air freshener I picked up recently. The more you read my car detailing blogs the more you'll learn that my favourite cars are from the land of the rising sun, yes indeed I’m talking about Japan. I frequently check out Touge automotives website  as they have a great selection of car inspired T-Shirts and accessories and the one that caught my attention was a Turbozilla Air Freshener for a very affordable £1.50 (+ £1 postage). The air freshener smells nice and citrusy and isn't over powering like some other air fresheners I've had. It's quite large though, albeit it doesn't annoy me and I rarely notice it.

If you’re into Jap cars and like novelty character designs then this is a great buy. If not, well check out their website anyway as they've got loads of cool stuff.

Carplan Demon Shine Review

Well in a previous post I discussed the merits of using a car shampoo and today's review of Carplan Demon Shine follows on nicely from that. Now I would like to stress at this point that Carplan Demon Shine isn't a wax and doesn't offer the same level of protection in my opinion, what it does do though is provide an excellent wax like shine to your paint work with very little effort.

Once you’ve washed and dried your car, you then liberally spray the Carplan Demon Shine over the paint work, buffing it off with a micro fibre towel. You can use the product on a wet car but I find using it on dry paint work gives a better result. Carplan Demon Shine comes in two varieties and I prefer to use the pump spray, although the demon shine available in a large bottle is mixed with water and poured over the car which some people may find easier.

This product is excellent if you're in a rush or if you've recently waxed your car and are just giving it an intermediate clean. It does seem to bead water as well, so perhaps there is a level of protection, certainly better to use it than no product at all.

Normally priced around the £5.00 mark it's a good value product and does last a long time.