AudiOn19s

I sometimes feel bad I don't participate in the detailing section more here on Rennlist, too occupied in the GT3 and track section most of the time :-) Here is a write-up I did for a couple of local boards and thought you guys would like to see it too.

Winter is the time of year that our vehicles see the most neglect. Cold temps make it very difficult to properly wash a vehicle without doing damages to it.

Here is a method that allows you to properly wash your vehicle minimizing any possibility of marring or swirling of the paint in the process. You could even use this method in warm weather if you live in an apartment and don't have access to a good location to wash your vehicle. As long as you're attentive to details this is a completely effective and safe washing method.

What you'll need:
- 2x 5 gallon buckets
- Hoseless Wash solution ( Optimum No-Rinse is the industry standard and my personal choice)
- Wash Mit - Best to use either very long **** lambs wool or a porus sponge (sponge is my choice here because of dirt release properties)
- Spray Bottle for pre-soak
- Microfiber drying towels (2 is good, 3 is better)
- Microfiber detailing towels (few is good)

A couple of notes before we begin. This method can be use for a fairly dirty car, however if there is ALOT of really heavy dirt on the car it's a good idea to stop at the quarter car wash and use the pressure washer only to spray off some of the bigger stuff. DON'T EVER TOUCH THE BRUSHES at the quarter car wash, never ever, never never never ever touch those brushes.

If you've got a garage that will help with your warmth and comfort while washing but this can just as easily be done outside. Careful if the ground is below freezing as it will get slippery.

Dirty Car:



Fill both buckets of water with 2-3 gallons of warm water. Doesn't have to be warm but it's winter remember, this is for your comfort. One of these buckets will be your rinse bucket, one of them will contain your wash solution. For your wash solution add the appropriate amount of no-rinse solution into the water. For optimum I use one cap full of solution per gallon of water.



Also fill your spray bottle with warm water and add no-rinse solution to spray bottle too. I use a stronger dilution for the spray bottle than the wash water. I use one cap full of solution for my spray bottle.


Soak your wash medium in the rinse bucket and aggitate to make sure it's good and clean and contains no frozen particles.

Pre-soak the portion of the car you wish to wash. Cold air is usually pretty dry so be prepared for it to evaporate quickly. You don't want to pre-soak the whole car at once just a small working area. You should use a standard top down approach to washing the car. For ease of demonstration I'm starting on the hood for this example.


After Pre-soak solution has had a short time to set dip your wash medium in your wash solution bucket, wring out some of the water but not all. Take one swipe across your working area. Do not rub back and forth to scrub, just one swipe with low to medium pressure is all you need.


Flip the wash medium to the other side and make a pass on another dirty section. At this point your wash medium is dirty on both sides and needs to be cleaned.


Place in the water only rinse bucket, aggitate to break the dirt loose and then wring out. Now dip back into the wash solution bucket and repeat the process above.

AudiOn19s

Once you have the section you are working on clean from single passes you can now come back for a second go with your clean wash medium to clean up any residual dirt that is left behind. (you can now wash back and forth over this area on your second pass as you won't be picking up much additional dirt at this time).

Next grab your trusty waffle weave drying towel and dry the area using caution to not pick up dirt from the areas of the car that are still dirty. It's cold so the water will be a little streaky. I genearlly use one drying towel as primary and one smaller detailing towel as secondary drying source. At some point both towels will become saturated enough that you're going to need backup's to make it through the job.





**Check your drying towels to make sure they are not picking up any dirt. You don't want to be rubbing that all over the car**

Repeat the above process working the whole car from top to bottom.



Depending on how dirty your car is the water in your rinse bucket will need to be replaced with clean water during the wash. I generally dump that water at least once per car, twice in this instance as my car was pretty dirty


Once all of the paint is done you can move onto wheels, tires, etc.


Process is no different here, pre-soak, wash, dry. I like using microfiber gloves and a small detailing brush for wheels. EVeryone seems to have a preference for what they like the best I'd say stick with what works for you.

AudiOn19s

Once all of this is complete I like to use this opportunity to go back over the car with a small detailing towel and a quick detailer / spray wax to clean up any last little streaking that may still remain as well as add a boost in protection.


Finally, no wash is complete without some tire sauce.


Finished Pictures: Not looking too bad for a >200k mile black car that's used as a work truck these days.




The first time you give this a go it might take you the better part of an hour to complete, once you get the process down you can easily do it in about half that time.

Andy

Marine Blue

Thank you Andy, I have never attempted a no rinse wash before and I never had seen it demonstrated. This is helpful and definitely a good way to keep the DD's clean during the winter.

No HTwo O

Nice write-up, Andy, but I prefer this methode for the winter:

AudiOn19s

I had to pull the car cover off of the GT3 to move it outside so I could shoot these pictures. Would have moved the M3 but I forgot to hook up the battery tender and it's dead right now

DJF1

Nice write up! Thanks!

No HTwo O

Andy, a true enthusiast would have hand rolled the GT3 in and out of the garage, not started it, silly.

DreamCarrera

Awesome write-up and info. Thanks for sharing Andy...

TOGWT

An ONR wash is definetly the way to wash a paint surface in winter, you'll be amazed.

An ONR wash used in tandem with Optimum Instant Detailer & Gloss Enhancer, Finish Kare 425 or Ultima Detail Spray for a ‘just waxed’ look

DreamCarrera

Andy, have you noticed any marring/scratching on the black car using this method. Given the black paint it should be easy to detect any scratching from this wash method.

Also, would you/have you used this method on your Pcar? I'm so tempted to wash my Pcar with the ONR but I can't seem to pull the trigger. My paint is in very good condition and I worry the ONR will harm it.

TOGWT

The science behind this cleaning process is pretty simple. When sprayed on a dirty surface; surfactants break down the soil by releasing its surface tension or bond with the surface, encapsulating the soil particles in the media used, and the polymers provide surface lubrication to enable safe (marring free) residue removal using a minimum amount of water. A micro fibre towel is then used to wipe away the dirt. A second dry microfiber towel is used to help polish away any remaining formula and buff the surface to a clean, streak-free shine.

No rinse contains polymers that are soy based and there is no silicone whatsoever in this product. In fact you can paint right over it which would be impossible if it had any silicones. This unique product contains substantive polymers which bond to the paint and protect it during the wash. Therefore, ONR offers better protection and lubricity than a conventional car wash, leaving a sleek finish behind afterwards.

AudiOn19s

My Audi has >200k miles and hasn't seen a buffer in probably 3 years. That said the paint isn't show quality like I used to keep it but It's not marred or scratched up either. Certainly none of the current damage has come from the hoseless wash technique.

I do wash the GT3 this way most of the time in the summer, it works particularly well for that car since it never sees rain or inclimate weather and isn't ever really "dirty". Every 3rd or 4th wash however I do still break out the hose so that I can really focus on the insides barrels of the wheels, wheel wells, etc. I will admit that those tought to get to and really dirty areas are a little more difficult to properly get clean when working with the no rinse solution.

Andy

DreamCarrera

Thanks for the feedback...

DreamCarrera

Thanks for the info.

I must say that you are the first person/source I've heard claim that the ONR method is actually safer than the conventional wash method. Interesting...