If you don't have the time to kick back and spend a good hour or two washing your car and you're too paranoid about machine washers. Here's a short read on a fast way to wash your car.

Take your car to your local DIY pressure washing station. Most places don't allow buckets, so find a place that does. Put your dollar in the machine, fill your bucket and rinse down your car with pressure washer (to remove all dirt that may damage your clearcoat and leave nasty wash patterns) after bucket is full. I use Turtle Wax Soap (with shine enhancers) and one of those synthetic wash cloths that are really soft on your car so it leaves no scratches (be sure to rinse out particles before your wash). Then I give my car a good handwash, I wash from top to bottom and twice over the front. Then drop another dollar in the machine and wash off the soap, then give it a coat of "spot free rinse". Dry off your car with a blade and/or a microfiber cloth. And Voila you have a brand spanking shiny TSX for less than 30 min of your time and 2 dollars at the wash station. On waxing days (every 6-8 weeks) I use Meguiar's HI-TECH Yellow Wax, amazing stuff, easy on - easy off.

I started doing this since time became an issue in college. Since I wash my car weekly I try to get the most efficient wash. I've been doing this for a good 4 months so far and I don't see any damage on the finish of my car. Everyone gives me comments on how prestine my car looks everytime I wash it, and people don't know why I wash it sometimes when they think it looks clean enough.

I'll post pictures tomorrow after I wash my car from my road trip.

 

I use good ol' garden hose & saved the trip down to the pressure-wash station and some $.

>> Then I give my car a good handwash, I wash from top to bottom and twice over the front.

funny I do the same thing plus waterblading....never takes me less than 90 minutes

 

The good old garden hose is what I've been doing all my life, for my car and my parents cars. But unfortunately in college that's not available on my apartment complex. But the pressure washer does definately reduce the amount of work you have to put into your washing.

 

I can hand wash, dry, dress my tires and vaccuum my car in under an hour. I think going to the pressure washing station would actually take longer. If it takes too long for you, do it more often, you'll get more efficient.

 

I do a full hand wash, rims, dry, dressing tires, and using an air compressor to get out all water in about 25-30 min.