What’s your wash and dry process?

[Stuweeks]

I love getting the Jeep dirty and leaving her dirty, but when it’s time to wash, how particular are you? I’ve always washed by hand with a bucket and soap, then dried with a chamois.

Recently I’ve seen the chemical guys products used with a pressure washer, then drying with a leaf blower type device. The process looks simple, clean, and touchless.

Does anyone have any great methods to get the new JL spotless? Is it worth buying a smal electric pressure washer?

Thanks!

Sponsored

 

[TXRubicon]

I use a Pressure Washer + Foam Cannon (just replaced my old on with the Chemical Guys TORQ one). Usually let the vehicle soak for a couple of minutes to loosen any dirt and grime than use a soft pressure tip to hose it all off. I'll either then respray it with foam and use a mitt to wash the surfaces again and use several waffle towels to dry it off. Leaf blower (or any concentrated air source like a shop vac in reverse) to blow out the water from the nooks and crannies and touch it up with another clean waffle towel.

For all the black bits on a Wrangler, Aerospace 303 spray works really well to clean and protect from UV rays. Always have a bottle of that around.

No matter what they might say there is no such thing as a touchless wash that does the job as effectively as a gentle car cleansing shampoo and a mitt.

 

[Redneck_Jedi]

Every month or two...

1) Foam canon, with pressure washer rinse to remove sand and grit. (If I'm feeling lazy that day, I'll go through a cheap touchless carwash just for this step)
2) Two Bucket wash method, with grit guards (One with soapy water for the wash, the other with water to rinse the mitt before re-soaping). Washing the top and sides first, leaving the lowest body panels and wheels for last.
3) Dry with microfiber waffle towels
4) 303 On the plastics, including headlights
5) Quick spray down with Optimum spray wax
6) About every 8-10 months, a coat of Collinite 476 Paste wax


If it gets dirty again between the hand washes, I will just run it through a touchless wash. I agree 100% with TXRubicon, Touchless are nowhere as good as a hand wash, but they are fine between washes. Just don't rely on them, as the detergents can strip the wax off the paint.

 

[Nate]

Wash with soap and warm water, towel dry and then apply a light Gold Bond powder dusting to the critical areas while avoiding the “O” ring.

 

[Billy]

Wash with soap and warm water, towel dry and then apply a light Gold Bond powder dusting to the critical areas while avoiding the “O” ring.

:cwl::cwl::cwl:

 

[Cwu21]

My process is pretty simple.

Exterior:
I start by rinsing the car off. I fill up my two buckets one clean water bucket and one soap bucket. Then I will foam the car using my foam cannon. I will let the foam sit for 2-3 minutes.

Then I have a plush wash mitt that I will wash the entire vehicle after a few passes with my mitt I dunk in the clean water bucket and then back into the soap bucket for more soap.

Once done I will rinse all soap off, I generally pull off the nozzle and let the water run over it allowing the water to bead up nicely.

For drying I only use microfiber towels. I have several that I only use for drying.

For wheels I spray my wheel tire spray scrub thoroughly and move on to the next wheel. Once they are all done I will then go and rinse them off. I generally do my wheels first to avoid over spray on my dry car.

Interior:
For my all weather Mats I take out soap them up scrub them with a brush and rinse off. For our Honda I just vacuumed the carpet mats as well as the entire floor.

For my seats I have chemical guys leather conditioner that I really like. I lightly put some on and Applicator and massage into the leather. I really like this product keeps my leather looking great and doesn’t leave a greasy feel.

I also use the chemical guys interior silk shine for the dash and doors.

For all my interior I use separate microfiber towels or applicators for the dash and for the seats

So far I like chemical guys product right now I’m using Honey dew wash for my exterior wash and that might be one that I change out. I have heard good things about their citrus soap so that might be a change I do soon.

 

[jeppesen.io]

Touch-less car wash *shrugs*

 

[bilash31]

My process is pretty simple.

lol buddy. I stopped reading right here. No way IMO all that text that follows equates to simple! Haha

 

[JimKrrk]

Rain then sun.

 

[Troybilt]

I have a white JK in Ohio. Every spring I have to clay bar all the rail dust off and put on a fresh waxing. Then for the rest of the year I wash by hand and in between washes use Mothers California Gold Instant Detailer

 

[DanW]

Mostly, I hand wash with a microfiber mitt, MacGuire's or Turtle Wax car wash soap, and then blow dry with a leaf blower, followed by an Absorber. I then 2 or 3 times a year use Turtle Wax Ice on the paint, decals, headlights, marker lights, and tail lights. My 10 year old JK's paint and decals all still look new after this same process. In the winter, when too cold or nasty to hand wash, I run through a local touchless carwash with underbody wash. NEVER do I use a touch car wash. My dark Steel Blue paint has no swirls, at all, and looks showroom new.

 

[RonH]

Mostly, I hand wash with a microfiber mitt, MacGuire's or Turtle Wax car wash soap, and then blow dry with a leaf blower, followed by an Absorber.

This. Best use of a Stihl blower there ever was. If you've got a decent coat of wax on, the water will run off, you'll get the water out of all the nooks and crannies and it won't continually drip on you. Take a microfiber or chamois and hit the areas that are still damp. EZPZ.

 

[Idaho_7]

If it's full of mud, the shop pressure washer comes out to, "detail it". Other than that the local car wash gets to see once every three months.

 

[HawkRubicon]

I love getting the Jeep dirty and leaving her dirty, but when it’s time to wash, how particular are you? I’ve always washed by hand with a bucket and soap, then dried with a chamois.

Recently I’ve seen the chemical guys products used with a pressure washer, then drying with a leaf blower type device. The process looks simple, clean, and touchless.

Does anyone have any great methods to get the new JL spotless? Is it worth buying a smal electric pressure washer?

Thanks!

Don't get the little blue blower, it is horrible. Ok for a bike maybe.

 

[ParkerS12]

I love getting my Jeep dirty, but I also have ocd. So as soon as I’m back from the trails she gets the show car treatment.

Sponsored