Z through car washes

bflosabre91 · 01-17-2012, 10:11 AM

i would rather wait and hand wash my car than risk taking it to an auto wash.

Jeffblue · 01-17-2012, 10:12 AM

just fill some buckets with hot water and wash in your driveway. Put on a winter hat.

either kind of car wash is bad IMO. Touchless uses harsher chemicals to eat through dirt without having to actually rub it away, and conventional car washes are abrasive and swirl up your paint.

the harsh chemicals used to clean off your car in a touchless wash are probably worse for your paint than the road salt and dirt they are supposed to remove and cause more damage than actually just letting them sit there until you can hand wash it.

AdobePhil · 01-17-2012, 10:22 AM

I use to use a touchless without guide rails. There are no rags in the car wash, just high pressure hoses and I've never experienced even so much as a scratch on my clear coat.

Only problem I have now is that I can't use it due to the under carriage wash and my injen intakes.

mantella87 · 01-17-2012, 10:26 AM

I've only taken my Z through a touch-less once. And that was because there was fresh bird **** on it and thus was declared a state of emergency. When I wash my car I like to be very thorough and clean inside the hatches/engine bay/wheels. A touch-less is risky and only gets MOST of the exterior surfaces clean, it is a waste of money compared to hand washing.

kenchan · 01-17-2012, 11:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeffblue

just fill some buckets with hot water and wash in your driveway. Put on a winter hat and watch wife and kids slip and fall afterwards.

either kind of car wash is bad IMO. Touchless uses harsher chemicals to eat through dirt without having to actually rub it away, and conventional car washes are abrasive and swirl up your paint.

the harsh chemicals used to clean off your car in a touchless wash are probably worse for your paint than the road salt and dirt they are supposed to remove and cause more damage than actually just letting them sit there until you can hand wash it.

fixed!

for me, i dont just take it to any auto-wash. it's one of the better ones in my area that do a fairly good job cleaning the car and do under-carriage washing that dont damage the car other than some minor swirlage. in the winter it's more about preservation of the chassis and its components than its paint.

this is one of the main reasons why i dont drive my Z in the winter cause i can't wash salt off of it completely. yah, you can bucket wash at those silly booths but hey, you got salt again on the way home.

Jeffblue · 01-17-2012, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kenchan

fixed!

for me, i dont just take it to any auto-wash. it's one of the better ones in my area that do a fairly good job cleaning the car and do under-carriage washing that dont damage the car other than some minor swirlage. in the winter it's more about preservation of the chassis and its components than its paint.

this is one of the main reasons why i dont drive my Z in the winter cause i can't wash salt off of it completely. yah, you can bucket wash at those silly booths but hey, you got salt again on the way home.

oh yea, i forgot, i usually spread out some deicing salt once i'm done, and usually only wash it on days in which the weather is above freezing

kenchan · 01-17-2012, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeffblue

oh yea, i forgot, i usually spread out some deicing salt once i'm done, and usually only wash it on days in which the weather is above freezing

hahaha.

alcheng · 01-17-2012, 10:28 AM

I am curious nobody mention coin wash, you drive into the space, inset coin, spray your car, rub it with their brush or your own sponge, rinse it and dry it. Then drive it.

Simple and easy, this is what I do in Winter.

mantella87 · 01-17-2012, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alcheng

I am curious nobody mention coin wash, you drive into the space, inset coin, spray your car, rub it with their brush or your own sponge, rinse it and dry it. Then drive it.

Simple and easy, this is what I do in Winter.

That's all I use. I live in an apartment complex. No hose/enough space to wash my car if I wanted to. I have a garage at least though.

Vaughanabe13 · 05-23-2013, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alcheng

I am curious nobody mention coin wash, you drive into the space, inset coin, spray your car, rub it with their brush or your own sponge, rinse it and dry it. Then drive it.

Simple and easy, this is what I do in Winter.

That's what I do, except I don't use their nasty sponges or brushes - that's just begging to get swirls all over your car. Dirt gets trapped in those things.

This is what I do. I've got it down to a science.
1. Bring a big bag full of microfibers and a wash bucket with a dirt catcher in the bottom.
2. Insert $5 and use the high pressure soap wash to take off as many bugs and debris as I can. Get the whole car soaked. Then before the time runs out, I fill up my bucket with the soap water, so that I don't have to keep inserting $$.
3. Wash the whole car by hand with the microfibers and get all of the dirt loosened up. This is the most time consuming step.
4. Put in another $5 and use the high pressure rinse to blast away all the soap and dirt.
5. Use a low pressure spot-free rinse to lightly coat the car before time runs out.
6. Use the remaining half of the microfibers to hand dry the car.
7. Open up the doors and hatch and clean all of the interior panels, which should already be somewhat wet.
8. Use a second bag to discard all of the wet and dirty microfibers for washing later.
9. Dump out the soap water in the bucket, pack up everything and drive away spotless.

starview · 05-23-2013, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vaughanabe13

That's what I do, except I don't use their nasty sponges or brushes - that's just begging to get swirls all over your car. Dirt gets trapped in those things.

This is what I do. I've got it down to a science.
1. Bring a big bag full of microfibers and a wash bucket with a dirt catcher in the bottom.
2. Insert $5 and use the high pressure soap wash to take off as many bugs and debris as I can. Get the whole car soaked. Then before the time runs out, I fill up my bucket with the soap water, so that I don't have to keep inserting $$.

I'm in an apartment also and try to bucket wash at the coin operated self wash. I only use their normal water though - I use my own cash wash soap.

I do have a problem though - how do you fill your bucket? The sprayers on the ones near me are so strong that they just blast the water out of the bucket when trying to fill lol.

Vaughanabe13 · 05-24-2013, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by starview

I'm in an apartment also and try to bucket wash at the coin operated self wash. I only use their normal water though - I use my own cash wash soap.

I do have a problem though - how do you fill your bucket? The sprayers on the ones near me are so strong that they just blast the water out of the bucket when trying to fill lol.

Yes I've had that problem. Basically I pull on the handle just barely enough to get the stream going, but not a full blast. It's hard but with a little practice you can get a less powerful stream coming out. Then I aim along the side of the bucket so that the water swirls around rather than bouncing straight up, and I alternate from side to side to prevent the swirling water from going over the edge as it fills. Then once there is a few inches of standing water I will put the nozzle under the water surface and go full blast to fill it up the rest of the way.

Also, it's pretty much unavoidable that you will get splashed a little bit in this process so I usually wear gym shorts and a t-shirt, or something I don't mind getting wet/soapy. You could do it sans splashes if you went really slow, but I always get impatient because time is running out on the sprayer.

ElVee · 05-23-2013, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vaughanabe13

That's what I do, except I don't use their nasty sponges or brushes - that's just begging to get swirls all over your car. Dirt gets trapped in those things.

This is what I do. I've got it down to a science.
1. Bring a big bag full of microfibers and a wash bucket with a dirt catcher in the bottom.
2. Insert $5 and use the high pressure soap wash to take off as many bugs and debris as I can. Get the whole car soaked. Then before the time runs out, I fill up my bucket with the soap water, so that I don't have to keep inserting $$.
3. Wash the whole car by hand with the microfibers and get all of the dirt loosened up. This is the most time consuming step.
4. Put in another $5 and use the high pressure rinse to blast away all the soap and dirt.
5. Use a low pressure spot-free rinse to lightly coat the car before time runs out.
6. Use the remaining half of the microfibers to hand dry the car.
7. Open up the doors and hatch and clean all of the interior panels, which should already be somewhat wet.
8. Use a second bag to discard all of the wet and dirty microfibers for washing later.
9. Dump out the soap water in the bucket, pack up everything and drive away spotless.

This is pretty much exactly what I'm honing towards. Thank you! The first time I went I did a terrible job, mostly because I took one look at the plastic brush (that no doubt hits the ground with every other user) and said no way. I'm washing my car every weekend (rain or shine, whether I need it or not) until I get a good routine the ends up with me being satisfied. After that, try out some clay and sealant and start being proactive.

Vaughanabe13 · 05-24-2013, 08:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElVee

This is pretty much exactly what I'm honing towards. Thank you! The first time I went I did a terrible job, mostly because I took one look at the plastic brush (that no doubt hits the ground with every other user) and said no way. I'm washing my car every weekend (rain or shine, whether I need it or not) until I get a good routine the ends up with me being satisfied. After that, try out some clay and sealant and start being proactive.

My wash routine isn't the only thing I do, I also have a clay bar and random orbital with various polishes and waxes. But I don't do that every week or anything.

gbrettin · 01-17-2012, 06:03 PM

Short answer: Yes you can take it through the car wash.

---

I use the touchless carwash 2-3 times a week on my Z. It flushes out the salt off. I love hand washing my car but I'm just not going to do it when it is 0-30 degrees out.

Last year I took my car through an autowash many times, nearly everyday. The Z developed light swirls that could be seen at certain angles in light. I was driving my car 110mi per day so I needed to do it. I've accepted the fact the my car will not be show room quality. However, my car looks VERY good for a DD. ... Just not perfect though.

Early spring through late fall I scrub my car by hand like it used a bad word talking back to me.

01-17-2012, 10:11 AM	#1 (permalink)
bflosabre91 Base Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: na Posts: 114 Drives: car Rep Power: 16	i would rather wait and hand wash my car than risk taking it to an auto wash. __________________ Zzzzzzzzz

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01-17-2012, 10:12 AM	#2 (permalink)
Jeffblue A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: NY Age: 38 Posts: 9,192 Drives: Z32TT & 335xi Coupe Rep Power: 39	just fill some buckets with hot water and wash in your driveway. Put on a winter hat. either kind of car wash is bad IMO. Touchless uses harsher chemicals to eat through dirt without having to actually rub it away, and conventional car washes are abrasive and swirl up your paint. the harsh chemicals used to clean off your car in a touchless wash are probably worse for your paint than the road salt and dirt they are supposed to remove and cause more damage than actually just letting them sit there until you can hand wash it.

01-17-2012, 10:22 AM	#3 (permalink)
AdobePhil Base Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Palm Harbor FL Posts: 211 Drives: 2010 370z Sport Trim Rep Power: 16	I use to use a touchless without guide rails. There are no rags in the car wash, just high pressure hoses and I've never experienced even so much as a scratch on my clear coat. Only problem I have now is that I can't use it due to the under carriage wash and my injen intakes.

01-17-2012, 10:26 AM	#4 (permalink)
mantella87 Track Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 590 Drives: 2011 Z34 MT Rep Power: 17	I've only taken my Z through a touch-less once. And that was because there was fresh bird **** on it and thus was declared a state of emergency. When I wash my car I like to be very thorough and clean inside the hatches/engine bay/wheels. A touch-less is risky and only gets MOST of the exterior surfaces clean, it is a waste of money compared to hand washing.

01-17-2012, 10:28 AM	#8 (permalink)
alcheng A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Toronto Posts: 28,894 Drives: 2011 ZR PW w/Clutch Rep Power: 418355	I am curious nobody mention coin wash, you drive into the space, inset coin, spray your car, rub it with their brush or your own sponge, rinse it and dry it. Then drive it. Simple and easy, this is what I do in Winter.

01-17-2012, 06:03 PM	#15 (permalink)
gbrettin A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Portage, MI Posts: 2,304 Drives: Tricycle Rep Power: 589452	Short answer: Yes you can take it through the car wash. --- I use the touchless carwash 2-3 times a week on my Z. It flushes out the salt off. I love hand washing my car but I'm just not going to do it when it is 0-30 degrees out. Last year I took my car through an autowash many times, nearly everyday. The Z developed light swirls that could be seen at certain angles in light. I was driving my car 110mi per day so I needed to do it. I've accepted the fact the my car will not be show room quality. However, my car looks VERY good for a DD. ... Just not perfect though. Early spring through late fall I scrub my car by hand like it used a bad word talking back to me.