mgordon18

I just got back from running my car through the local touchless car wash. Lo and behold, the stars have retained their place in the firmament!

I must say that I did bring my own microfiber towels so my 4 year old and I could dry the car ourselves. But The Monster looks great. Bring on Winter!

Dadio

Save yourself the trip to the car wash ad get a pressure washer. Then you wash the car witohut aving to get it all dirty again on the way home.

Bob Rouleau

Touchless car wash often uses recycled water ....

jhbrennan

And forget the pressure washer...it will put water where you never want it to go.

Mumbles

I used to frequently wash my Honda vehicles in the local Esso Touchless Car Wash. Cleans the underside, applies the wax in multiple candy colours, then a final heavy rinse to wash it all off.
One day the wash came to the final stage when the high pressure wash arm broke and swung against my Honda bumper and caused damage.
The garage covered the repairs. I continue to wash the Hondas there but not the Porsche.

Mumbles

I have a small Honda gas power washer purchased from Costco. Works great with minimum water usage.

mgordon18

Boy I sure hope that's a joke! Why drive the car at all!

As I said, the stars are still in their alignment. The car is fine with no discernable swirls. Sorry to hear about all of your unfortunate mishaps, but so far so good...

San Rensho

And they also use very harsh chemicals that will completely strip the wax within one washing.

Hand washing weekly with a good car wash with wax is the way to go.

Marine Blue

I use touchless on my DD's and I haven't noticed any issues or damage to the cars. I agree that the chemicals they use to dissolve the dirt/grease on the paint will also strip off the wax.

There are two things I do to insure the cars look as good as they can.

1. Always use a wash that has a final spot free rinse (insures no spots or streaks on the paint which will cause permanent damage).

2. I always take the time to dry the car after the wash. The key to drying is to use very plush microfibers which will help pull any remaining dirt from the surface of the paint. This is very important as a touchless wash will not completely clean the paint. When drying the car I will firs spray the surface with a spray wax which adds lubricity and also adds some protection.

By doing the above the paint will stay in good shape through the winter and I will perform a full detail in the spring to include clay, mild polishing (as needed) and wax.

Washing by hand at home is definitely better but unleastic IMHO. Between dealing with freezing water on the driveway and paint, trying to keep your hands from freezing and getting all the necessary washing tools in/out of the house would be an all day event and not great results.

PHX 911

[QUOTE=San Rensho;10096566]And they also use very harsh chemicals that will completely strip the wax within one washing.


This^^^^
Recycled dirty water, harsh detergents, and "spot free rinse" which is a surfactant mixed with water - fine for my DD, that I don't give a **** about....not for the Porsche.
The Porsche gets Wolfgangs car shampoo with 2 buckets/grit guard in 1 of them. Zaino Z5 (dark car) and Zaino's Show Car Detail Spray. I use a paint sealant on my wheels so they clean up easily. Leatherique on leather surfaces, 303 on plastic stuff. And on and on...

Marine Blue

[quote=PHX 911;10096641]Not sure how adding a surfactant would insure a spot free rinse. The better car washes will typically filter or treat the final rinse water similar to what you would purchase in a home setup which is some type of resin. You'll notice that these rinses are typically low pressure and very quick due to the high cost.

Again not all touchless washes do this and one that is poorly maintained will also be useless as these final rinses aren't really spot free.

Having said all that I agree that my Porsche is never run through one of these and to be honest I rarely wash my Spyder. It is wiped down after every drive and never needs a wash. But if my Porsche was my DD and I needed to clean it during the winter this is what I would do. Assume that any car driven on salted roads will not stay perfect.

PHX 911

[QUOTE=Marine Blue;10096686][quote=PHX 911;10096641]

Not sure how adding a surfactant would insure a spot free rinse. The better car washes will typically filter or treat the final rinse water similar to what you would purchase in a home setup which is some type of resin.

The surfactant reduces surface tension, and makes it easier for water to blow off when the car goes through whatever drying apparatus is there. Don't blow the car off, and see how "spot free" the rinse is.

Marine Blue

[quote=PHX 911;10096865][QUOTE=Marine Blue;10096686]As you have noted, it is very important to pay attention to the quality of the car wash and the results.

The touchless wash I use won't completely blow off the water and a few drops are always left behind. When my wife cleans the car she won't bother to dry it and we have never had any residual spots or damage.

Having said that, I have also experienced touchless washes which were downright awful and have left nasty water spots and no protection.

mgordon18

Alright, ya bastids... you all spooked me enough with the wax stripping comments that I went out to the garage last night and applied a coat of quick wax. At least there's some extra protection now, if indeed the wax was stripped by the wash.

Either way, though, the car looks great. Clean and slick.

Thanks for the replies.

82_930

All car washes use recycled water. They all also filter the water that they recycle so I really don't think that it matters too much.