Following on from some of my recent posts about maintaining my Ceramic Coating application, another product that I picked up shortly after applying the coating was CarPro reset. I have heard many great things about this shampoo and it comes highly rated on most detailing sites and forums, and some claim it to be one of the best shampoos available to buy.

Up until now, I was using Auto Wash by Bilt Hamber and I found it exceptional in terms of cleaning ability and value for money. CarPro Reset had big boots to fill and I was looking forward to comparing it to the Bilt Hamber offering.

One of the reasons I chose reset as my next shampoo is down to CarPro recommending it for maintaining their CQuartz coatings. As I was already maintaining the coating using products such as CarPro Elixir and Reload, it made sense for me to also incorporate their shampoo to maximise performance and prolong the effectiveness of the coating.

What is CarPro Reset?

According to the guys at CarPro :

“CarPro Reset was formulated as the perfect partner to nanotechnology based sealants and coatings, with cleaning properties tailored to their unique needs. Utilizing Intelligent pH Surfactants, Reset breaks down road grime and traffic films with the power of an alkaline cleaner, whilst being as gentle on the surface as a pH-neutral shampoo. (PH 7)

Afterwards Reset quickly rinses free from the surface, leaving behind no soap residues or interfering silicones, restoring the beading and dirt releasing properties (The ‘Hydrophobic Effect’) of the surface to help maintain its protection”

One of the main selling points for me is that this shampoo contains absolutely no additive waxes, additional Si02 protection or gloss enhancers added to the formula. This shampoo has one purpose and that is to remove any dirt and grime effectively in a manner that is safe for existing protection on the paintwork.

It also boasts extreme slickness which is always a plus when it comes to shampoo, as this reduces the drag of a wash mitt on the paintwork and could help prevent inflicting swirls and scratches in the finish.

Another thing that a lot of people may not realise is that reset can also be used as snow foam in a foam lance!

Needless to say, I was excited to try the product out and see what kind of results I could get on my Audi TT.

CarPro Reset – How to Use 

As with most other shampoo’s on the market,Carpro reset is fairly straightforward to use. As always,I recommend using a two bucket wash method & grit guard for maximum safety when washing your car.

Step 1.

Fill a wash bucket with 3 to 4 gallons of water and add approximately 1oz of CarPro Reset to the water. I always use warm water when washing my car,I’m not sure it really makes a difference but I feel that it does.

I noticed that reset had some nice suds and foaming when mixed with the water. Suds are not important when it comes to cleaning as slickness is more important but visually it is nice to have them.

Another thing I noticed is that it smelled awesome! One of the best smelling shampoo’s I have used to date.

Step 2.

Before coming into contact with the car’s paintwork you should always pre-rinse vehicle with free-flowing water to remove loose debris. ( Or if it is really dirty you should do a snow foam pre-wash). In this case, my car was not exceptionally dirty so I just used water directly from the hose to rinse the car.

Once you have done a pre-rinse you can move on to the next step.

Step 3.

Using a good quality wash mitt work your way from the top of the vehicle down, rinsing the mitt periodically in a second bucket filled with clean water. The wash mitt I am using here is another CarPro product called Merino Wool wash mitt and it is excellent.

As you can see from the picture below the shampoo has great slickness and some suds which made for easy cleaning. 

 

Step 4.

Rinse the vehicle as normal. ( If it is a sunny day or temperatures are high you may need to rinse one panel at a time as you wish to ensure the shampoo does not dry out on the surface of the paintwork)

Step 5.

Dry the car using a microfiber towel or dryer and admire your results.

CarPro Reset – Can It be used With Foam Cannon

As I mentioned previously, you can also use CarPro Reset in a Foam Cannon as a substitute for a dedicated snow foam solution. As far as dilution ratios go you should play around with them for the best results.

I would avoid going too strong with the dilution as it is an intense cleaning shampoo, and using it at high strength at both at the foaming stage and at the washing stage is probably a little overkill.

CarPro Reset – Will It Strip Wax?

As CarPro reset is primarily aimed towards people who have coatings on their vehicle, there are some questions on whether it is harmful or degrading to other types of protection available such as typical carnauba based waxes.

There is no doubt that reset has very strong cleaning abilities which would lead me to think that it may reduce the lifespan of wax applied to a car. Although it is PH neutral, I would probably opt for a more gentle shampoo if I had a wax applied to my car.

It is not going to “Strip” the wax off a car per se and should be fine to use at normal concentrations. The trouble will arise if you use too high of a concentration of the product, you may unintentionally affect your protection.

CarPro Reset – Review and Final thoughts

As expected CarPro reset lived up to the hype and did exactly what it said it would do – deliver strong cleaning power with high lubrication which resulted in improved performance and water behaviour from the existing ceramic coating on the car.

I find it quite hard to find any negatives about the product. I don’t know what else it could have done better.

+Suds – Good!
+Lubricity – Good!
+Cleaning ability – Good!
+Dilution ratio – Good!
+Scent – Good!
+Ease of Rinsing – Good!

Some may argue it is not the cheapest shampoo to buy, but I’m of the opinion that due to the high dilution ratio – it actually works out at pretty good value considering the type of cleaning performance that it provides.

This stuff is a home run for me and I can’t see myself moving to another shampoo while I still have the Cquartz coating on my car. 

Here is an after picture of the car ( nothing else applied to the paint only washed and dried )

CarPro Reset – Where to Buy?

If you want to try CarPro Reset – please consider purchasing it through my Amazon Link HERE

This helps me keep this blog up and running at no extra cost to you.

Have you tried this product already? If so please let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Until Next time,
Happy Detailing!

About the Author – Darren O Hara

Darren is the founder of the DriveDetailed blog and is a keen detailing enthusiast living in the rainy south of Ireland. When he is not cleaning his car he is always researching ways he can improve his techniques and enjoys testing out out new products.

Darren currently drives an Audi TTRS and is a big fan of performance cars.

You can follow Darren on Instagram @darrenoharacork

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