Best American-Made Car Care & Detailing Products

WeatherTech, founded in 1989, makes its floor liners, cargo liners, TechLiner truck bed liners and CupFone phone mounts on its campus in Bolingbrook, Illinois. The same campus turns out home products such as the IndoorMat entryway mat, the ComfortMat anti-fatigue mat and pet feeding systems. The company says its products are made in the USA and puts the US-made share of its line at over 95 percent, so check the listing on any accessory outside the core liners and mats.

Custom-fit liners are cut for a specific make, model, year and often trim or seating layout. Enter the exact vehicle when you order, because a liner for a two-row SUV won't fit the three-row version of the same model. A raised outer lip holds snowmelt and mud, which matters most where roads are salted in winter.

Clean liners with mild soap and water and let them dry before putting them back. Don't use tire shine or silicone dressings on them, because those make the surface slippery under your feet. The All-Purpose Mat and TechLiner are worth a look for pickup owners who haul tools or gear that would scratch the bed.

Stoner Car Care has been family owned since 1942 and is now in its third generation, making car care products in Quarryville, Pennsylvania. It says its in-house R&D team formulates every product. Its best-known product is Invisible Glass, which Stoner created. The line also includes More Shine tire finish, Tarminator tar, sap and asphalt remover, Speed Bead quick detailer and a complete detailing kit.

The made-in-USA claim covers Stoner's own chemicals. Its store also sells microfiber towels, brushes, wiper blades, sprayers and air fresheners, and those pages don't say where they are made.

Clean glass in the shade, because cleaner dries too fast on hot glass and leaves streaks. Use two towels, one to wipe and one to buff dry. Wipe the inside horizontally and the outside vertically, so you can tell which side a streak is on. Use an ammonia-free glass cleaner on tinted windows. Tarminator works best on fresh tar and sap; let it sit briefly, wipe, and then wash the area so the solvent doesn't stay on the paint.

The paint-care brands in this guide say less about where they make things than WeatherTech or Stoner do, so read the bottle.

Meguiar's was founded in 1901, is headquartered in Irvine, California, and is owned by 3M. Its own site doesn't say where its products are made, and few of its listings print an origin line. Its range covers Gold Class Carnauba Plus liquid and paste wax, Ultimate Liquid Wax, Cleaner Wax, Ultimate Compound and the Smooth Surface Clay Kit.

Simoniz USA, founded in 1911 and based in Bolton, Connecticut, makes professional car care chemicals. The retail Simoniz waxes and polishes sold in stores are made under license by another company, so the brand name alone doesn't tell you who made a given bottle. The Sure Shine Auto Detailer, Ceramic Hybrid Wax Spray Coating and Nu Shine Car Polish are the products to check.

Wolfgang Concours Series, founded in 1997, is a line of paint sealants, glazes and polishes sold by Wolfgang Car Care in Stuart, Florida. Most of its listings print no origin line. Surf City Garage, founded in 2007, sells detail sprays, waxes and wheel cleaners from Huntington Beach, California, and its website doesn't say where the products are made.

Choosing a product type matters more than the brand. A carnauba wax gives a warm gloss but wears off in weeks. A synthetic paint sealant, such as Wolfgang's Deep Gloss Paint Sealant, lasts months. Spray sealants and detailers are quick top-ups between full coats. A cleaner wax combines a light abrasive with wax for older paint in one step. A compound cuts deeper than a polish and should be the last resort for scratches and oxidation, not a routine step.

AMSOIL, founded in 1972 and family owned, is headquartered in Superior, Wisconsin. It says it formulates, blends and packages its synthetic lubricants in the United States, even though it could save money manufacturing elsewhere. Its international site adds that the oils are made in the USA using global components, so some base stocks and additives come from abroad, as they do across the industry. The range includes Signature Series and OE synthetic motor oils and Severe Gear gear lube.

Royal Purple, founded in 1986, makes its lubricants at its own plant in Porter, Texas, north of Houston. That covers its HPS synthetic motor oils and its gear and transmission fluids such as Synchromax. Royal Purple has been owned since 2012 by Calumet, a specialty refiner in Indianapolis. It doesn't say whether additives such as Max-Clean fuel system cleaner are also blended in Porter.

Lucas Oil was founded by Forrest and Charlotte Lucas, who started by selling additives to trucking fleets. It lists one manufacturing facility, at 3199 Harrison Way NW in Corydon, Indiana, with headquarters in Indianapolis. That plant makes its Heavy Duty Oil Stabilizer, fuel treatments, Upper Cylinder Lube, power steering stop leak and hydraulic oil booster. Lucas doesn't tie each product to a plant on its product pages, and it describes none of its products as imported.

Pick oil by the owner's manual, not the brand. Match the viscosity, such as 0W-20 or 5W-30, and the specification or carmaker approval the manual lists. Follow the manual's change interval or the car's oil-life monitor while the car is under warranty. For gear oil, match the GL rating the manual calls for, because some manual transmissions need a GL-4 fluid rather than a differential's GL-5. Treat stop-leak and stabilizer products as stopgaps for an older engine or pump, not as a repair.

Wash in the shade with the paint cool. Do the wheels first with a separate bucket and brush, so brake dust doesn't end up on the paint. Use a car shampoo rather than dish soap, which strips wax. The two-bucket method keeps grit off the paint: one bucket of soapy water, one of clean rinse water for the mitt, rinsing the mitt after each panel and working from the roof down. Dry with a clean microfiber towel before water spots form.

If the paint feels rough after washing, run a clay bar over it with plenty of lubricant, as in the Meguiar's Smooth Surface Clay Kit. Claying lifts bonded grit that washing leaves behind, and it is the step most people skip.

Correct only what needs it. Light swirls usually come out with a polish. Deeper scratches and oxidation need a compound, which removes more clear coat. Work a small section at a time and wipe off before it dries hard.

Then protect the paint with wax or sealant, thin coats only, and buff off the haze with a fresh towel. Finish with glass and tires last, so tire dressing doesn't get flung onto clean paint. When water stops beading on the hood, it is time for another coat.