What's the coldest you've washed your car?
 

I didn't see a thread like this in here so I'm posting one up. What's the coldest temperature you've washed your car in?

We are driving down the road a bit for Thanksgiving dinner in the wife's car and I can't stand for it to be dirty when I drive it. I'm waiting for it to hit just above freezing before I get started b/c I don't want pipe freezing issues (can't even believe I'm saying this in SC in November).

This will likely be the coldest I've washed a car before. I think I've washed my motorcycle in 36 degree weather once.

26-28, I don't remember why I did, but I remember there being ice on some parts of the car

When I had our last house built, I had them put a drain in the garage floor and a sink with a hot water tap in the garage. I could wash my car all winter long.

Now they changed the building codes and you can't have a drain in your garage. I guess people were dumping all kinds of illegal crap down their garage drains.

Just wash it is methanol or sea water and you won't have to worry about the temperature (unless it gets really cold). If it does get super cold, you can wash your car with liquid ammonia or mercury (those have super low freezing temperatures).

Oh, and to answer your question, maybe 30° F or so.

Umm probably like in the low 50's or something. It was raining, but I was washing the car inside the garage. lol

I've sprayed down my vehicles many times in below freezing temperatures … especially after highway driving after salt, sand and gravel have been heaped on the roads.

Washed mine yesterday here in Nor Cal in 19 degree weather, i was in direct sunlight, and had driven the car about 20 miles prior. so the car was warm, the sun kept everything from freezing, except my hands and feet. turned out well. only did it cuz there was a fundraiser event the next day I was going to.

33-34F if sunny. if cloudy or in the shade, 34-35F. otherwise i tend to slip on ice.

i wear rubber gloves though which is required...

The coldest... about 58°. I actually had to wear long pants and shoes. Damn bitter cold Florida winters. :p

between 10f-20f... soap and foam freezes on the car before you can rinse it off. you don't get a chance to dry the car because the water will freeze on the paint. as you can imagine, results are not great but gets the salt/dirt off.

I washed it at about 3 degrees. This was a touchless wash in a heated bay.

Some of you guys are crazy lol

That's the kind of accusation a crazy person would make ...

Is it bad to wash cold or something?

If you like staying warm, yes. lol Maybe I am just a typical Californian. Anything below 50 degrees or so you wont catch me washing my car!

I'd love to have a heated garage with drains in the floor so I could wash anytime in any weather.


Sent from my Lumia 1020 using Tapatalk

I thought this was hand wash only... Sitting in the car while the washing is happening doesn't count frost! :D

I typically try to not wash my cars below freezing. Since this is my first season with a car worth babying, I was way late in giving the Z a 'final' wash before winter. I typically don't otherwise wash below freezing just because, well, water freezes.

I would think about it, though, it I really needed to get the salt and dirt off, and I drove over to a heated touchless wash on a sunny day or day when I can park the car back in the garage again.

I never really thought about just spraying the car down manually without soap. Makes sense, really.

Some of my aversion is because my DD/previous car was not garaged.

My Z is still covered in snow as we speak. I have only had the dealer wash it, and for $6 they do a great job.

Hand wash?

Yes. They get about 8 guys on it and it is done in a couple minutes.

I would never let the dealer wash my car! Especially now with the wrap, which is probably more durable than Nissan's awful paint

Below 0.
In my garage....heated...drained...insulated. Only have done it once, but was for a full detail. Really no need to wash in winter since it doesn't move out of the garage.

Jealous








Sent from my Lumia 1020 using Tapatalk

I usually prevent my dealer from PDIing a car when I buy from them.

They didn't take me seriously this time when I said "don't touch it." I have already made one pass with polish on my and still have more to go to correct the surface scratches from when it was on the lot.








Sent from my Lumia 1020 using Tapatalk

I used to live in Buffalo and had no garage so I would take my old car to a pull in wash it yourself garage in about 0 degree temps with only some heat lamps to make sure the water didnt freeze on the paint while I washed it. The only struggle was not slipping on the snow which built up in the garage while washing the car:) It actually brings back some fond memories meeting other insane people who would wash and detail in that place, in that weather

That's not in Fahrenheit, is it? Lol

my car has never been washed. lol

Sadly, it is. or -17.777 C

Actually washed mine today, probably around 37-38. Wouldn't have been so bad if the water was not so cold... and didn't have any gloves.

Washed mine in the mid 30s. Didn't dry it off at the car wash and it froze on the drive home.

I hate it when you wash and then the dew point happens. You just can't dry the damn car!

Probably low 40s for me. I love using Optimum No Rinse with warm/hot water to keep the hands from freezing.

A wise friend of mine once said, "just because it's cold doesn't mean it's less dirty." I always wash it when it's dirty :tup:

I used the bay this weekend and by the time I got back home, my doors and froze closed :icon17:

Oh ****? How about Windows? Did you try rolling them down?

It's 37 degrees right now at my house and I'm headed out to wash my car. Not too bad. I always use hot water from my garage sink. Wish I had the heated garage and floor drain thing. I've got a fridge out there too so with heat and a drain I'd never have to leave.