chasingthecool

is it ok to take it to the car wash where you put 75cents in and you manual wash with the brush?

what about the car wash place where they drive it through there wash and they wax it for you for like 30 dollars


or is washing in your backyard the best way to go

DynamicJ32

Hand washing your own car is the best way.

The $30 quick wax is a waste of money.

If you use the coin wash, don't ever use the brush. People usually drop it. Rocks and other dirt are usually trapped in the brush and will scratch your paint. Also, be careful with those power washers, they can make paint chips/ enlarge existing paint chips if you spray too close to the paint.

chasingthecool

can you recommend me any good places to buy car wash equipment

mikedog4

iTrader: (1)

do your own. car washes suck, but the touchless ones are ok now and then as long as they have a dryer and your car is not black. anyway, i get my stuff from http://www.autogeek.net

chasingthecool

what are touchless car washes?

VQPower37

they are washes that dont use brushes, just high water pressure to clean the car ... this is usually good in the middle of winter when your car is covered with salt, and you wanna get all that jank off ur paint

mikedog4

iTrader: (1)

high pressure automatic wash followed by blow drying.

mani

But even with those Touchfree car washes you never know what's the quality of soap they use.

Nothing beats a Self-Hand car wash !

Jesstzn

The touchless us a pretty harsh soap and will remove your wax .. so beware.

VQPower37

yea but handwashing in below 0 temperatures is near impossible, so this is the next best thing, rather than leaving salt all over ur car

Jesstzn

In reality salt does no harm below zero .. in needs moisture .. also the best option is to find a wand wash place and just use the rinse water and go over the car a couple times ... this will remove the heavy grit and also the majority of the salt / chemicals and not scratch the paint.

DynamicJ32

I just suffer in the winter with bristle car washes and do a nice clay bar/wax as soon as it gets warmer.

Jesstzn

You must have a light colored car.

rlerman

ONRWS, the only way to hand wash your car in the winter!

exceldetail

08A-SPEC

iTrader: (3)

I prefer the brush on my paint. I scrub it on the ground for about a minute to make sure the brush is clean before I let it touch my paint.

DynamicJ32

WDP.

It really doesn't matter if you properly detail your car. Surface scratches aren't impossible to get rid of, just take some time and the right tools.

CU2MIKE

Opti-Clean wipe down 2 - 3 days is the best way to clean your car during the winter! (My car is garaged so wiping down with Opti-Clean every 2 to 3 days is good for me)
ONR is the next best thing lol.

PortlandRL

True but you only have so much CC to take off.

My car is absolutely FILTHY right now from all the leaf sludge being kicked up from the roads. During this time of year, I don't wash my car so it looks good...I just wash it so it gets clean for a while. I have a window on Tuesday; hopefully it stays open.

exceldetail

True dat too!

MurkyRiversTL

Those places use recycled water. Better off doing the rinseless car wash. CU2Mike showed me and its super fast and doesnt harm your paint.

chasingthecool

whats ONRWS

CU2MIKE

Optimum No Rinse Wash & Shine, or just short for ONRWS/ONR

Jesstzn

^^^ works very well, I have used a few bottles.

renedcruz

iTrader: (8)

Sorry for the semi thread jack but my question has to do with what you guys are talking about..... Ok I'm seeing some answers here but I'm still not 100% on certain things.... I live in NYC and there's no way I'm washing my car by hand when it gets below 35 degrees(which is really soon).... What can I do to wash my car in the winter besides a car wash? I park my car on my driveway but I don't have a garage. What are my options?

Jesstzn

Well if your not going to wash by hand and not going to a car wash ... options are a detailer.

I won't recommend those express hand wash places because I have seen to many cars come back swirled.

renedcruz

iTrader: (8)

Well I like washing my car at least once a week or every two weeks and taking my car to a detailer every time I want to wash it sounds expensive..... I think I'm kinda in a bind here

CU2MIKE

Optimum Opti-Clean, and wipe it down as often as possible.
Opti-Clean is a "waterless" wash, does not require water of any kind (Other than to dilute if you get the 32oz or a gallon jug). Optimum said it does not scratch paint, but I'm not real confident in wiping a really dirty car down without scratching it, so I wipe my own car down with it every 2 to 3 days.

CU2MIKE

Oh, and make sure you have plenty of good quality microfiber towels on hand, you'll go through a lot of them when you are using Opti-Clean. Change out towels as they get dirty.

CU2MIKE

Oh, as far as weather is concerned, wear warm clothes that doesn't have any metals in it (so you dont accidentally lean on your car and scratch it), and get some nitrile gloves so your hands don't get too cold

renedcruz

iTrader: (8)

Thanks for the info.... I'll be using ORNWS this winter. I'm getting my car detailed this week before the snow and cold weather come in and I refuse to take my car to the car wash anymore for the rest of my life!! Good to know there are better alternatives....

vinnier6

iTrader: (1)

what good is a clay bar and wax going to do after all the damage inflicted on the clearcoat from the carwash...

a serious machine polish detail is the only thing that is going to fix the mess left behind from that...

exceldetail

I dare to imagine it!

ionojimbo

i dont have a garage or even a driveway to do my own washes. my plan of action is bring my own QD (+other random assortment of prodeucts) and since there is no self dryer there, i bring one of those super absorbant towels and it works well for me. i use the touchless carwash and put some soap and use their triple foam guns and then just spray it down. As i dry with the towel it picks up a good amount of dirt also off my car. Then i just use the QD and the clay bar. Once winter is over i plan to get a full detail.

gotta work with what ive got.

Jesstzn

First off drying a dirty car is really chancing swirling and even scratching. Your better off not to dry it at all.

I'm not understanding the QD and clay bar use at the car wash .. really doesn't accomplish anything constructive at that point.

b.ike

About the coin-operated pressure washers. Think it's good enough to give the car a blast every other week with just water to clear the salt and grime? I mean I live in an area where winter is actually "cold". And this is the only real option. Touchless washes use tons of chemicals and the ones that "touch" will leave swirls....

Right now the thermometer is rocking -20C some days which is basically -4F. By January, every year the temperature drops to at least -30C (-22F). There's absolutely no way to self wash at home.

And doing the wand pressure spray will probably cause the doors and trunks to freeze up, unless you dry all around the doors afterwards...

Jesstzn

Thats all I do ... BUT... when its below freezing I don't do anything a) things freeze like you say b) chemicals are inert without active water and below freezing the water isn't active.

TheChamp531

iTrader: (3)

I have a unlimited plan with a Car Wash that does a touch-free car wash (machine-wise) and they use microfiber-mitts to clean the car off along with microfiber towels. I do see some swirls after months of using them (I clean the car everyday when I have the unlimited plan), but now that just means I get to detail my car.