I just recently waxed my car and waxed my windows as well. For some reason I thought that I was supposed to do this. I couldn’t see a damn thing when the sun shined on my winsheild! It’s worn down a bit, but it’s still kind of annoying.
Do any of you wax your windows? Are you supposed to?
Also, I waxed over a few bugs that I simply could not wash off. Are those bugs there to stay?
I use polish on my windows, although wax is also okay. It’s great in a rain storm. Don’t even need the windshield wipers. Water just beads right off.
JZ
Go to a car parts store.
Buy a bottle of glass stripper & clean the window.
Buy a bottle of Rain X. The stuff is great. They also have Fog X for the inside of your windows.
I’ll second that RainX is great. Let me make a suggestion though. If you follow the directions it says to apply…apply again…wipe off with cloth or paper towel (or something like that) at the end instead of using a dry cloth, just get a bottle of windex and wash your window(s) like you normally would with windex. RainX tends to leave a haze on the windows and this helps alot. Don’t worry you won’t take the RainX off.
I do this. Works good.
DON’T USE WINDEX ON CAR WINDOWS! Windex can cause serious damage to coatings put on the windows, and if used on tint can damage that as well.
PLEASE, make sure the glass cleaner you use is car window safe! Car windows are not like ordinary house windows.
Cite? I’ve never heard this claim. I’ve always used regular glass cleaner on my car’s windows (I did just this afternoon), and I’ve never had any problems.
BTW, I won’t consider a link to a maker of a supposedly auto-glass-safe window cleaner to be a valid cite. I want an auto maker or another automotive expert with no axe to grind.
Ditto. I’ve used Windex for years.
I wonder if he means don’t use Windex on the aftermarket tint?
Windex is bad for tinted windows, and tint goes on the inside. So, don’t use Windex on the INSIDE of your car windows if they’re tinted.
RE: FogX - I tried that crap once, and it fogged up WAY worse than before. I love RainX though, I barely ever use the wipers.
~from the ancient heloise’s helpful hint files~
You can get the anti-fog benefits promised by FogX much cheaper by using good ol’ Barbasol. Cheap white shaving foam, not gel, rubbed on then wiped clean, will keep car windows from fogging in the winter, also works on bathroom mirrors.
My driver’s ed teacher taught us this one and I never forgot it.
A Google search has a lot of websites on removing aftermarket tint with Windex and not cleaning it with Windex, but nothing about Windex damaging a plain car window.
I don’t have a link on-hand, all I have is the word of the Ford Dealership when my parents bought an Expedition back in '98. They were told that the exterior of the windows were coated with something that would be stripped off by cleaners such as Windex. He also said such damages would not be covered under the warranty, because it would be caused by negligent action (or something to that effect).
Perhaps it isn’t all cars; and perhaps the Ford Dealer was wrong/mistaken. I never wanted to try and find out and risk my parents’ wrath.
I used rain-x and it worked great the 1st time, ok the 2nd and horible the 3rd and 4th. it took a while for it to wear off, and I helped it along with gasoline. The problems were a haze and the water wasn’t beading that good anymore. Never again.
Wax on the windshield is a bad idea (too much glare, as you found out), though it works nicely on the sides and back to keep the glass clean and clear. You can get the bugs off the glass with a single edge razor blade. On the paint, get a bug and tar remover, then re-wax. Actually, that stuff should get the wax off your windshield too, check the label.
I’ve never heard of the windex thing either…
I never remember glare being a problem, and I’ve always polished or waxed my windshields. Do some of the older windshields with lots of scratches and chips help contribute to this?
JZ
I use any old light oil instead of $$$ Rain-X. E.g., vinyl protector spray. The trick is to use a tiny amount. One spray in the vicinity of a paper towel. Maybe adds up to 2-3 drops per winshield.
I use any old light oil instead of $$$ Rain-X. E.g., vinyl protector spray. The trick is to use a tiny amount. One spray in the vicinity of a paper towel. Maybe adds up to 2-3 drops per winshield.
Hmmmm… cool idea. After my Rain-X runs out, I’ll try it.
As if I go through so much rain beading protectant in L.A.
Oh, a car dealership said so. Well, they are such bastions of honesty. :rolleyes: Sounds like BS to me. Did the dealer offer to sell your parents a Window Cleaning Fuid package for a couple of hundred bucks, when they also discussed the fabric protectant and extended warranty?
It is bad to use Windex, or any product containing ammonia, on plexiglass windshields, like on a boat or motorcycle. They will fog the plexiglass.
" Water just beads right off."
I don’t wax mine & water beads off. But I keep my wipers clean too.
To get rid of fog you can use shaving cream. Try it on your bathroom mirror, it works, its a bit of work to get it off, but it should be fine according to the PBS guy.