Car washes

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4244 posts

Uber Geek

#1731094 6-Mar-2017 16:33

mclean:

timmmay: I water blasted my new Nissan with the proper car wash attachment recently. It took a long time and the clean was poor. Next time I did a quick wash with a car washing brush, did a heaps better job. I think you just need contact to get it clean.

Agree, and careful with the blaster - cleaned the badges off my wife's BMW!

watch this weeks top Gear to see what a blaster can do

Common sense is not as common as you think.

MikeB4

18435 posts

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#1731100 6-Mar-2017 16:56

We use a Karcher car wash model withe the Karcher soap. Does a great job and does the under car especially on the SUV and UTE. No risk of stretching the clear coat that any of the brushes can do. The small Skoda takes no time.

We occasionally use a garden sprinkler and drive the UTE and the SUV over it if they have been in mud or sand then water blast.

Rikkitic

Awrrr
18660 posts

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#1731102 6-Mar-2017 17:03

What a lot of hassle keeping those expensive delicate machines damage-free. Maybe they should just be left in garages. I'm sure glad I have a cheap old thing that scours up real nice with steel wool. It runs well, too.

Plesse igmore amd axxept applogies in adbance fir anu typos

MikeB4

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#1731104 6-Mar-2017 17:07

When spending over $60,000 per vehicle it's not a chore to keep them looking good.

MikeAqua

7785 posts

Uber Geek

#1731105 6-Mar-2017 17:08

I use CRC vortex - the wash+wax version. Great product. Just apply in shade, avoid directly soaping the windows, don't let it dry and rinse off thoroughly. No need to chamois dry. < 10 minute job, most of which is hosing.

I don't go crazy with it and get about 30 washes out of a bottle.

A little general tip for car cleaning is to rinse well in the shade before you start. This cools the metal down, which means no drying of soap/water before you get to it.

Mike

WyleECoyoteNZ

1049 posts

Uber Geek

#1731108 6-Mar-2017 17:18

On the extreme end of the scale, you could pay someone to detail it.

Here's a link to a video of a vehicle being detailed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CK_heJ7oKl8

or this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYPDs2ls0NY

MikeB4

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#1731110 6-Mar-2017 17:26

WyleECoyoteNZ:
On the extreme end of the scale, you could pay someone to detail it.

Here's a link to a video of a vehicle being detailed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CK_heJ7oKl8

or this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYPDs2ls0NY

We put our cars in annually to get a thorough groom, ts awesome

Sharesies

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

mdav056

607 posts

Ultimate Geek

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#1731115 6-Mar-2017 17:39

School fundraising carwashes, $10, great job! But I have been shocked to see the insides of some of the cars we have washed -- most of it should go straight to the transfer station.

gml

alasta

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#1732142 6-Mar-2017 20:34

It's impractical for me to wash my car at home because I can't reach it with a hose, so until recently I had been using the touch free wash at the nearby Caltex. It wasn't that effective, but I liked the fact that it had an underbody wash as you drive in. In comparison I hated the BP one across the road because it has rails that risk scratching your alloy wheels if you're not perfectly straight when driving in or out.

In the last few weeks a DIY facility has been installed nearby and I much prefer it to the automatic washes so I will use that going forward.

Rikkitic

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#1732185 6-Mar-2017 23:43

This is not how you should do it:

http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/te-manu-korihi/325981/'gem-like'-lake-used-as-car-wash

Plesse igmore amd axxept applogies in adbance fir anu typos

dickytim

2514 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user

#1732197 7-Mar-2017 06:22

When I cared enough it would be softwash (never dish liquid) sponge and water followed by a chamois.

Now what ever soaping agent, sponge and water.

I too have found touchless useless and a rip off and the the ones with the spinning wheel of doom tends to scratch quite badly, while also missing a lot of area!

I have seen people at the self service car wash with their own sponge and bucket, this would be a close second option to doing it at home.

Goosey

2831 posts

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#1732207 7-Mar-2017 07:52

tchart:

I use a touchless and then hand wash myself when i can. Our local Caltex has a good touchless one that does a reasonable job if you pay for the most expensive wash but at $14 (or was it $16) its not cheap. If they dont foam the car it doesnt do much to move the grime and dust. They do also have a bucket and broom at the entrance so I give the wheels a brush before entering the car wash - I also clean the windscreen at the pump before I go into the car wash. Usually pretty happy with the result.

Unless im super duper desperate, I would never use the wash brush at the pump. I witnessed for many years people using these to brush mud off their cars, tyres and scrubbing off the petrol they spilt on their cars. Use at your own risk.

MikeAqua

7785 posts

Uber Geek

#1732311 7-Mar-2017 09:51

Generally car wash brushes have nylon bristles. Generally those bristles are quite capable of scratched the clear coat on your paint. I use a microfibre sponge. It takes of everything with minimal pressure and is very soft.

On Saturday I cleaned and rinsed the Pajero, Lancer, Mazda 3 and March in under an hour.

All nice and shiny.

Mike

networkn

Networkn
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#1732321 7-Mar-2017 10:08

MikeAqua:

Generally car wash brushes have nylon bristles. Generally those bristles are quite capable of scratched the clear coat on your paint. I use a microfibre sponge. It takes of everything with minimal pressure and is very soft.

On Saturday I cleaned and rinsed the Pajero, Lancer, Mazda 3 and March in under an hour.

All nice and shiny.

Feel free to come around and do mine, happy to give you the $11 or $16 I normally pay.

alasta

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#1732354 7-Mar-2017 10:37

networkn:

Feel free to come around and do mine, happy to give you the $11 or $16 I normally pay.

I will happily come and wash your BMW for you, however I may need to take it for a drive afterwards just to make sure it's really clean. ;)

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