Ok, Ive never really cared how good my car looked until now, last car was a 96 maxima. But now i do. I havent started using zaino yet, but i will. So far ive got a coat of Meguieres Gold Class. And now i need some help on just a simple car wash. I washed it last night with Blue Coral Car Wash and then used a chami to dry it, but that still left water spots. I had to buff those out with another cotton towel. And it still doesnt look that good.

Whats the best way to wash the car? Hands down.

Thanks.

 

I feel your pain bro, like you I also have a Black/Black. After you wax a few times the water spots won't be a problem.. as much. It's the swirl marks that will cause problems, it seems like no matter what I do I can't get ride of them on my Black Cls

 

hughesne,

I think if you have water spots after drying with a chamois, it sounds like you are leaving the water on the car and therfore enabling it to evaporate and leaving the spots. You must continue drying the car with the chamois (you must continually ring it out the water) until there is almost no water left on the car.

 

You also need to make sure you are washing it in complete shade after letting it cool down. The car should be cool to the touch.

 

All these tips are helpful, but getting some water spots on the car is a fact of life like swirlies.

What are you supposed to do when it is raining as you are driving to work?
And then the sun comes out at noon and BAKES your car all day.

No way to avoid THAT situation unless you run home a quick wash/dry it.

Shawn S

 

Thanks for all the tips, i wish i could wax it everyday, that would be the solution. I need to buy me a little old man to live in my garage and continually wax it.

 

I gave up on chamois a long time ago, it just took too damn long. The best thing I've found is to simply use an old bath towel, which I do. I use a white, 100% cotten (a must, so it doesn't fall apart and stick to the car) bath towel, and can dry the entire car using that one towel. When I'm done, I throw it in the dryer and hang it back up. About once a month I wash it.

Waterspots are horrible. One thing I do is I contiunously spray the car down so it doesn't begin to evaporate while I am drying one section. This way, waterspots do not form. I also dry the windows first, because those are the most noticeable, especially when driving.

 

I live and die by the chamois....but having a Silver car really helps in avoiding the dreaded water spot!!!

 

One more thing...dry the flat spots of the car first...such as the hood, trunk and roof. Those are the most exposed to the sun and air currents, and will dry the quickest.

You CAN remove waterspots on the car by using Windex and water, in a 4:1 oz. ratio (4 ounces of water to one ounce of Windex). It's safe on the clearcoat, but because it's alkaline, it'll chew through your wax, so use it sparingly.

 

make sure u packed the leafblower in the trunk and get crackin during lunch

 

Do any of you guys use a leaf blower to get the water out the cracks of the car so when you drive the water wont come through??

But for a tip wash your car with another person or two so you can dry the water off before the sun makes water spots. Its hard w/ a black car cause the god damn sun attracts to it soo much.

 

Don't forget to use the 2 bucket method of washing your car. One bucket has your car wash and the other has plain water. After washing a panel, thoroughly rinse your wash mitt (or whatever your using) in the rinse bucket. This will remove any crap that is on your mitt from the washing. This will minimize the possiblity of getting swirls on your clearcoat from the dirt on your mitt.

 

I dry the ENTIRE car with a leaf blower after washing.

Shawn S

 

I use the California Water Blade for the majority of drying and a 100% cotton white towel for touch ups.

I wash my car in my driveway under the shade of a tree and spend the time praying that I don't get sapped or shitted upon (hasn't happened yet - am crossing fingers).

Zaino is nice on the Nighthawk Black - you can really see the sparkle of the little blue flecks within the black!

 

California Water Blade..... IMO, a must have.....

 

California blade

and

rinse with Evian water.... j/k

 

A chamois is this best thing that I have come across for drying. Always keep a good coat of wax.

But, the best way, that I find, to rid a vehicle of water spots and swirl marks, is to not buy dark colored vehicles!

Serious, I think a black car is fine as hell. But, you just can't keep the damn thing clean.

juice

 

Well, yea Shawn, I would expect you to run home to perform a quick wash/dry and follow up with Zaino

 

Hmmm... perhaps a small set of 'bots that crawl out of Shawn’s trunk with distilled water, Zaino car wash, model plane sized leaf blowers, and Z6 programming.


Now, that's a "sharper image"!

 

There is a website www.carcareonline.com that has some great articles including one on how to properly wash a car. I never knew washing a car could be so complicated until I read this. Some great info on polishes and waxes. I currently use 100% cotton towels to dry my car.



2001 Red CLS

 

yeah i use my Zaino towels:

1. wash and dry the towels clean before drying the car
2. apply Zaino
3. stick wet towels in drier while Zaino is drying

easy method...very efficient and quick!!

5 towels MORE than enough!!

 

Well, I really hate to say this but my best advice is to not have a dark colored car.

Having owned 2 black cars before my gold CLS, I can definitely feel everyone's pain with the water spots and the "swirlies".

I do have to say, that lighter colors are so much better--but hey--I think we all knew going into the purchase--that dark colors show every water spot, every bit of dirt and every imperfection.

I've even seen brand new black Lexus seadans being delivered to customers full of swirlies.

Unless you're super anal or have a lot of time to do everything the right way (like waiting for the car to cool off or for that matter even have a garage.....etc).

Good luck!

 

Cali water blade, and then absorber work great for drying and when you want the professional dry nothing beats a leaf blower. If you look in the detailing section i had a post about bad water spots and i was told to get the 3m swirl remover for dark cars and it worked real well on swirls and water spots.