Touch Free Car Washes

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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 01:53 PM
  #1  
sporting's Avatar
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Touch Free Car Washes

Anyone ever try it? What's your opinion on it? I was thinking of trying one out near my city. But it seems kinda expensive.

Touch Free
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 01:56 PM
  #2  
PimpCL23's Avatar
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From: Los Angeles / Highland Park
whats the difference between that and a regular drive thru???
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 01:56 PM
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rza49311's Avatar
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meh, good for a spot wash, won't ever clean as good as using a mitt.
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 01:56 PM
  #4  
Bearcat94's Avatar
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From: N35°03'16.75", W 080°51'0.9"
Try the "Wash & Wax" or "Car Talk" sub-forums.

This forum would be more interested in touch free fapping.
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 01:57 PM
  #5  
vas25tl's Avatar
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It's not as good as actually washing your car but still washes off most of the crap. But you won't have surface scratches!
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 01:58 PM
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v6cord2k5's Avatar
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Are you going to Vegas?
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 01:58 PM
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stogie1020's Avatar
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Best left for the Wash And Wax sub forum, but generally they are almost as bad as the ones with the huge rollers that slap your car. They need to use fairly caustic chemicals to attempt to clean your car without touching it. Also, they don't do a very good job.
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 02:00 PM
  #8  
pebe's Avatar
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From: Queens, NY
Meh, if you had a brand new car or your car was recently re-painted, I'd say go for it if the price is good and you want to keep your paint fresh looking. Otherwise, any old brushless carwash will do. Or just do it yourself.
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 02:14 PM
  #9  
'06 Arctic's Avatar
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From: Pittsburgh, PA
Originally Posted by stogie1020
Best left for the Wash And Wax sub forum, but generally they are almost as bad as the ones with the huge rollers that slap your car. They need to use fairly caustic chemicals to attempt to clean your car without touching it. Also, they don't do a very good job.
Stogie is correct, the "cleansers" they use are various acids and may not do damage to your car, but can strip the wax/sealant from your car. Buy this and do it yourself.

https://acurazine.com/forums/wash-wax-23/optimum-no-rinse-wash-shine-376335/
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 02:33 PM
  #10  
Moog-Type-S's Avatar
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From: Southern California
Wash by hand FTW
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 02:39 PM
  #11  
andrew070489's Avatar
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From: elkins park, pa
i go to the self wash.. $5 total and i have all the time i want they have tons of waxes and foams all kinds of stuff to clean your car.
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 04:43 PM
  #12  
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if i had access to a touchless wash, i would use it right after the ice panic that happens here and they throw the chemicals down on the road...i would use it to rinse down my under side and then when i got a chance i would do my normal wash...just make sure there is no touching at the end with dirty towels....
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Old Jan 13, 2009 | 10:38 PM
  #13  
timb24's Avatar
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good during the winter time when I cant wash myself. The chemicals they use in the touchless washes pretty much strip your car of all the wax. Once all the salt/sand is off the roads then I re-wax & re-seal to protect the paint again.
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Old Jan 21, 2009 | 09:00 AM
  #14  
Suh-C's Avatar
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From: Chicagoland
They are great if you live up north and you need to get the salt off of your car periodically during the winter. That is the only time I use an automatic car wash.
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Old Jan 22, 2009 | 01:48 PM
  #15  
TheMegalodon's Avatar
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From: Edmonton, AB
When it's cold out here (below 0) in the winter and my car is filthy the ONLY way I can clean it is to go to one of the many touchless washes. I normally bring both my wash mitts and some clean terry towels with me. I simply spray everything down with the soap (including undercarriage and wheel wells which is essential). Once I have all of the real crud off my car I do my best to gently run my SS mitt along the top half of my car front to back while spraying it off (the mitt) with the pressure washer. Then I do the same with my MF mitt on the lower portions. It's the only way to actually wash my car, and I have to make sure I get all the shit from behind my door trim out. Once I've actually cleaned everything, I'll take out my MF and terry towels and dry everything off so it doesn't all freeze on.

I'm not sure if I'm actually causing any damage to my paint. If someone wants to chime in feel free. Unfortunately when I bought my car it was already full of light swirls and micro-marring. I figure having my car clean is better for the paint than leaving a layer of dirt, sand (we don't use salt here), and other shit on it.

Come summer I do a normal proper hand wash, but I really need to get into detailing my car properly. I've had a shop do it once, but it seems far too expensive to have that done than do it myself. Only problem is I have no real knowledge of proper polishing techniques and the necessary materials. I'm looking at excel's stuff and thinking about ordering some if he can ship to me.

I would love to be able to properly get rid of all the swirls and what not on my clear coat. To have the sun hit my car and not make it look gross (to me at least, the average person doesn't notice like I do) would be fantastic. Great forum btw.
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Old Jan 22, 2009 | 03:11 PM
  #16  
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From: Philadelphia, PA
I just went to one with a few days of sunny weather ahead to get all the salt and dirt off including the undercarriage. Some of the tree sap is still on the car so I just took a cloth and tried to rub it off as best as I could. Too cold right now to do a full hand wash and wax. This is a good alternative for the winter.
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Old Jan 22, 2009 | 03:55 PM
  #17  
GearDriven's Avatar
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From: NY
It depends on the place. Some use pretty good chemicals (Stoner's), some use some pretty bad ones. It'd be better to get one, especially with a good underbody wash, than leave the salt on your car. Hand washing is great. If it is really cold out, the only other good option is to use a bucket of warm water and an insulated rubber glove to ONR the car...
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