richy

Here in Canada, the province of Quebec mandates by law to use winter tires (notice I did not say "snow" tires...airkby is right..it has everything to do with temp and not snow) from Oct to April (I think that's the timetable..it's during the winter regardless). The insurance companies lobbied for that.

Congrats man..keep the shiny side up!

Shane, I'm not looking to argue and can admit that I don't know everything, but, I was always under the impression that water based had more to do with VOC compliance than anything. I have been using them on my own cars for over 10 years with no issues. I did, however, consult a PHD chemist who works for Duragloss and this was his response to me: Rich Some solvent based tire dressings are just fine because they use a solvents that evaporate completely but some of them use mineral oil as an extender and these will be bad for the rubber. I always advise people to be careful and keep a close eye on the tires and make sure they do not start to show those real fine crack lines that will get worse over time. Our 281 and our aerosol 265 contain no any mineral oils and will actually add the life of the tires. These are proven facts that people have reported back to us over a 10 year period. Thanks so much Rich. I hope this helps out. God Bless my friend. Jerry I highly respect his very, very educated opinion. So, I guess it comes down to some may be hazardous to the rubber and some may not. Cheers, Rich

I have an 11 MKX on order. Mine is one of those "conquest" sales Lincoln is hoping to get. I come out of an 04 FX35. It has been an amazing vehicle and I will miss it, no question. But, I wanted a change and another FX just didn't seem to fit the bill. The SRX is underpowered and did not have the tech gadgets that I love. Here's the list of features that the MKX had that filled the bill for me: 1) Powerful engine (305 hp) 2) 6 speed or greater trans 3) AWD 4) Heated and Cooled seats 5) Heated wheel 6) Rear DVD system 7) Nav system 8) Killer stereo 9) HID lights 10) 20" or greater chrome wheels My FX had the tech pkg with LASER guided cruise, keyless ignition, rear DVD, backup camera, and Nav system. The new one had to have these and more. The MKX I've ordered has the Nav, Blind spot system (not annoying like Infiniti's is), RADAR cruise and chrome 20" wheels. There is not one thing that it does not have. I did not need a trailer tow pkg, so that wasn't ordered. If it's anywhere near as trouble-free as my FX has been, Ford has a winner here.

If you want to protect your paint against bird poo, use Collinite 845 IW. It's a very, very strong wax, especially good for Winter protection too.

If you really want to learn about detailing and looking after your ride in general, join a detailing forum. I am a moderator on Live2Detail and have been on DetailingBliss since its inception as well as being active on Autogeekonline and Autopia and Truth in Detailing and Detail World. The info is tremendous and newbies are always welcome. There are instructional videos for using Random Orbital polishers as well as Rotary (what I use) and a ton of useful info!

I have to disagree with you on the solvent based tire dressings. I have used Megs Endurance, DP High Gloss gel, and Opti Bond and I find they last like crazy and give an awesome appearance. My customers love the appearance the tires have when they get the vehicle back.

I'll suggest a product that is incredible. It's called Optimum No Rinse, or ONR for short. It is available in both US and Canada at different retailers. It's easy to use although the procedure is quite different from an ordinary wash. It is great if the car is not too dirty. You mix it up with water and do one section at a time, starting at the top and working down and then dry with a mf. Amazing stuff. I can give you some links to advice using it as well as where to buy it if you are interested.

I absolutely concur with Canuck's advice here. I have a funeral home as a client and they were using those and it really buggered their paint. On my advice, they no longer use them. Even if you don't want to go the blower route, get yourself some waffle weave drying mf's or go to Target and get their yellow drying towel. The name escapes me right now but it's in an orange cardboard holder. They are very good and very soft.

Thank you. Very cool with the similarities between us. I did not mod mine but spent a truckload of hours polishing it. I sold it to my neighbour for good coin and used it as a trade through on the new sale. I bought it with employee pricing, A plan, Ford financing discount and Cosco discount. I got an amazing deal. My payment is substantially less than it was for the FX. I, too, had some misgivings about going Domestic after so many years of trouble-free driving. I hope it's a wise choice. Whereabouts are you located? Were you on any FX forums? I was on FXorg with the same username.

Meguiars Endurance gel is pretty good for OTC.

I am new to this forum but not to detailing. I have been doing it for close to 30 years. I use a lot of Duragloss products which are reasonably priced and can be purchased in the US at Carquest I believe or through a couple of large detailing boutique stores like Autogeek or directly from Duragloss. They have a trim dressing that is great at repelling water and making the trim look nice and dark. Autogeek probably has a whole page devoted to trim dressings. There are a lot to choose from.

I use a 2 cycle leaf blower and it does a great job. It blows 200 mph so it really gets water out of stubborn spots.

I've got an 11 MKX on order. I ordered it Sept 30 (the last day of the sale) and I'm being told it's being built the first week of November. They build them just a few hours away from me. Mine has the 20" wheels which affected the build date due to allotment. It's a go now though. I am excited to get it.

Wow. Sorry to hear that. I have an 11 MKX on order. I pray I will have no problems with it. I had a 2004 FX35 that was problem free for almost 7 years.

Hello, my name is Rich. I have been driving a 2004 Infiniti FX35 since new for the last 6 1/2 years. I have ordered a 2011 MKX with all the options except the trailer tow in black/black. I am looking very forward to getting it. I have read the manuals online so I think I'm ready for all the techie stuff (which is what attracted me to it in the 1st place). I also detail cars on the side and am going to be putting a nano glass coating on the paint. Hopefully I'll pick up some good info from this site. If anyone has any detailing questions, I'd be happy to help. I'm a moderator at a detailing forum.