SONAX AutoShampoo Konzentrat car shampoo 5l

SONAX AutoShampoo Konzentrat washes without lifting the wax layer

What is SONAX AutoShampoo Konzentrat? A pH skin-neutral hand-wash concentrate that pulls dirt off paint, glass, rubber and plastic without stripping an existing wax or sealant layer. Not for decontaminating before a fresh seal, and not a solvent for baked-on tar or bug splatter.

SONAX AutoShampoo Konzentrat is a highly concentrated hand-wash shampoo from SONAX, built on especially gentle, pH skin-neutral surfactants. These surfactants wrap around dirt particles and lift them off the paint instead of rubbing them across it, and they leave the protection underneath alone. An existing wax or sealant layer stays intact while road film, dust and loose grime rinse away. Phosphate-free.

This is exactly where a caring shampoo parts ways with a harsh all-purpose cleaner. An alkaline cleaner cuts through dirt faster, but it takes a bit of your wax or ceramic layer with it every single time. The pH-neutral concentrate works deliberately milder and lets the protection underneath stand. You don't see the difference after the first wash, but after the tenth, when water still beads on the bonnet instead of sheeting off flat.

• One shampoo for five surfaces. Lifts dirt off paint, rubber, plastic, vinyl and glass and leaves the wax or sealant layer underneath untouched. You don't need a second product for trim, windows or bumpers — you wash the whole car from one bucket of foam.
• About 50 ml to 10 litres, and that's it. A bucket wash needs roughly 50 millilitres of concentrate. That makes the 2-litre bottle good for around 40 hand washes, the 5-litre canister for about 100. For foam lances and pressure washers you dilute 1:3 to 1:5 instead.
• Phosphate-free and pressure-washer ready. The concentrate is formulated without phosphates and explicitly cleared for pressure washers and foam units too. One product covers both the bucket wash and the pre-wash foam, instead of two different bottles sitting on the shelf.

Detailing1's tip from the shop: The most common mistake is letting the foam dry on, especially in the sun or on a bonnet that's still warm right after a drive. If the shampoo dries on, you're left with surfactant and lime streaks that you then have to polish off the hard way. Wash in the shade, work panel by panel from top to bottom, and rinse each section before it dries off. What we see day-to-day: above 25 °C, go for two smaller passes rather than one big panel that dries out in the sun.

About 50 ml to ten litres, don't let it dry on

Foam up about 50 ml of SONAX AutoShampoo Konzentrat in 10 litres of warm water, wash top to bottom with a soft sponge, and don't let the foam dry on.

The heavy grit gets rinsed off with water first, and that's not an optional step — it's your scratch protection. Loose sand and grit act like sandpaper under the sponge, and if you go at it dry, you rub fine wash marks into the clear coat. Use warm water, it cuts through grease and road film noticeably better than cold, and work the two-bucket method if you can: one bucket of foam, one with clean water to rinse the sponge. You'll find matching sponges, wash buckets and drying towels in the wash accessories.

For a foam lance or pressure washer, you pre-dilute the concentrate 1:3 to 1:5 into the container and follow the equipment maker's guidance. Whether it's a bucket or a lance, finish by rinsing with plenty of clean water and chamois it off quickly while the surface is still wet.

The drying stage is where you decide whether the wash really comes out spot-free. If the rinse water sits too long, dissolved minerals dry on as water spots, especially with hard tap water. Pull the water off quickly with a clean drying towel, ideally flat rather than with pressure, so no leftover grit drags across the paint. The beading on the final rinse also tells you, in passing, that your sealant has survived the wash.

pH-neutral means gentle, not decontaminating

The pH-neutral concentrate keeps your existing protection but neither builds it up nor strips it down. For prepping paint before a fresh seal, it's the wrong tool.

The very property that makes the shampoo so useful day-to-day is also its limit. If you want to fully strip the paint before a new coating, you need a degreasing prep shampoo or a degreaser that deliberately takes the old wax residue back off. A pH-neutral shampoo leaves it standing on purpose. And it's no solvent either: baked-on tar, fallout or a dried-on bug crust need a dedicated remover product first. What we see day-to-day, a shampoo alone rarely cuts it for a bug-plastered front end.

It helps to sort things by the job, because there isn't one right shampoo — there are three types for three jobs.

For regular upkeep, the neutral concentrate is the all-rounder. If you want to refresh gloss and protection at every wash, you reach for a sealant shampoo from the paint sealing range. Two ground rules stay either way: don't use it on hot surfaces and never let it dry on, or you get streaks. And the canister belongs in frost-free storage — once it's frozen through, the surfactant structure changes.

Whether the protection still holds is easiest to check by the beading. As long as water runs off in round beads after the wash, the sealant is still there. If it sheets off flat instead, the protection has worn thin. The neutral shampoo hasn't worn it away then — it has only made the natural ageing visible. That's exactly the moment for a refresh, not for a harsher shampoo.

For anyone who wants their protection to last for weeks

AutoShampoo Konzentrat pays off for anyone who washes regularly by hand and wants to keep their wax or ceramic layer going for weeks.

It's less suited to someone who's about to seal fresh and has to clean the paint bare first — they're better served by a decontaminating prep product. And anyone with no protection on the paint who's mainly after maximum gloss per wash gets a more visible result from a sealant shampoo. For the honest, weekly upkeep wash of a well-kept car, though, the neutral concentrate is the obvious pick, and it pairs with every other bottle from the car shampoo range.

In practice that means: a wash with the neutral concentrate once a week or every two weeks keeps paint and protection in balance, without overworking the sealant. Only once water no longer beads after the wash is it time to refresh the protection with a spray sealant — not before. That way you cleanly separate cleaning from preserving, instead of forcing both into one aggressive combo product.

With the pack sizes, frequency makes the call. The 2-litre bottle with a screw cap is good for around 40 washes on one vehicle and is the easy way in. The 5-litre canister with a pour spout pays off from the second car on, or in weekly heavy use — about 100 washes per canister, simply decanted into a dosing bottle. Both are formulated phosphate-free.

Anyone who looks after several vehicles or washes for a club or fleet does best with the 5-litre canister. At around 50 ml per bucket, the cost per wash stays in the low cents, and you dose the concentrate exactly, instead of a ready-mixed wash solution taking up room in the canister. Decanted once into a small dosing bottle, the next bucket wash is set up in seconds.

The point the back label won't tell you: a pH-neutral shampoo is the cheapest way to extend your sealant's life. Every wash with a harsh all-purpose or gloss shampoo costs you a bit of durability. With the protection-friendly concentrate you get around 40 washes out of a 2-litre bottle without using up the protection underneath. In the end the pricier sealant outlasts the shampoo that cares for it.

Applying SONAX Car Shampoo Concentrate

Pre-rinse, lather, rinse off

First, rinse the vehicle with clear water so that loose sand and grit do not act as an abrasive under the sponge. Then, lather approximately 50 ml of concentrate in 10 liters of warm water — warm water dissolves grease and road film noticeably better than cold.

Wash from top to bottom and it is best to use the two-bucket method: one bucket with suds, one with clear water for rinsing the sponge. Never let the suds dry; rinse each section while it is still wet.

For a foam lance or pressure washer, dilute 1:3 to 1:5 beforehand and follow the equipment manufacturer's instructions. Finally, rinse thoroughly with clear water and chamois dry quickly.

Notes: Do not use on hot surfaces or in direct sunlight, otherwise the shampoo will dry and leave streaks. The concentrate preserves an existing wax or sealant layer but does not strip the paint — it is the wrong product for preparation before a new sealant application. Store frost-free between 5 and 30 °C; once frozen, the surfactant structure changes.