What’s your wash and dry process?

[Jehovasfitness]

Drive thru car wash....dry by driving home. Done.

terrible for the paint unless it's a brushless system and/or you don't care about your car's paint

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[offcamber]

terrible for the paint unless it's a brushless system and/or you don't care about your car's paint

Paints only purpose is to keep the rust off the metal. It's a Jeep, if I see a Jeep and it doesn't have brush marks and scratches on it, I know the owner is a pussy...

 

[Jehovasfitness]

Paints only purpose is to keep the rust off the metal. It's a Jeep, if I see a Jeep and it doesn't have brush marks and scratches on it, I know the owner is a pussy...

Stand back everyone. We found the tough guy over here

 

[cbrenthus]

My method for my vehicles over the last 10 years:

Spray wheels with a safe wheel spray
Then spray vehicle with water/zip wax using a nozzle that mixes the soap into the water
Wash using 2 bucket method, top to bottom
Rinse well, and using the shower setting on the nozzle try to rinse the water off (sounds weird, but it works)
Spray with Turtle Wax ICE, then dry.
If it's the first wash, or it's been awhile, I'll do another coat of ICE.

If it's a first wash I clay bar as well, before the ICE.

I've tried all kinds of products and I think there is no reason to spend lots of money on them. And I'm OCD about my vehicles, and get complemented on how clean they are all the time

 

[dudemind]

Still trying to find the best method for undercarriage. I've tried the sprinkler tricks, sliding under w/ snorkel/mask/sprayer, etc, but results are decent at best.

Below this is what I do for the shiny side of things. I was hesitant to do this when the vehicle was completely caked with mud (the kind that leaves a fine dust that can't be sprayed off without a pressure washer), but it worked just fine without any scratches.

Use a hand sprayer nozzle on a standard garden hose to spray down the car, trying as best as possible to get into crevices.

5-gallon bucket filled with a few ounces Optimum No Rinse (with or without wax, I've found there's little difference but use the wax-added version for some peace of mind) and water.

Throw a microfiber towel in there, swirl it around, use it to wipe off a painted section of the car. Be sure to get a bit of surrounding sections as well, and keep using a clean part of the towel to the extend possible.

Use a fresh microfiber towel to get the section dry (but don't go into surrounding sections, to avoid grabbing fresh dirt. This is why you wiped further than needed in the previous step, to give some room to maneuver drying towel without picking up dirt).

Throw the drying towel you just used into the bucket, then use it as the wiping towel for the next section, again making sure to extend into surrounding sections. Repeat these steps until painted sections are clean.

Take the used towels (or fresh ones if you care that much about these parts) and use them again for the non-painted parts of the car (wheels, hard top, fenders, bumpers, etc). Use a fresh towel to dry all of these.

Sometimes I do one last quick wash/dry pass over the entire car with fresh towels.

Take some rubbing compound, polish, wax, and fresh towels to buff out any scratches/brush marks you find.

Use a plastic/rubber parts cleaner and a fresh towel to wipe down unpainted parts and interior (if not unfinished leather leather). I use 303's "aerospace" protectant spray for everything, including floor mats, seals, etc.

If you care about tire sidewalls (I stopped caring about them, but still wash the wheels), spray some tire foam.

Take a barely-damp microfiber towel and wipe down all windows and mirrors. No spray needed (in fact, I've found that window cleaners generally make things worse/hazier/streakier/splotchier versus a towel alone, especially if you're at all in warm areas or in direct sunlight). I used to use barely-damp newspapers for this step and had absolutely zero problems on a couple decade's worth of cars (that's a dozen or so of various makes), but both of my side-view mirrors on the JL were horribly scratched up from doing this. "Softest" mirror elements ever? I don't know, but it's annoying.

 

[drummerchick]

2 bucket method with grit guards. Water here is really hard, so I have to wash and dry in sections to avoid spotting. Top, hood/front, sides, rear. I use a water blade to squeegee the flat parts and then a waffle towel for nooks and crannies. JetSeal twice a year and 303 detailing spray in between. 303 tire gel, Black Magic foaming all wheel cleaner. Aerospace 303 on all black plastic and rubber seals. Invisible glass for windows.

 

[zazou1]

The first wash was done with a bucket (w/grit guard) of Zymol car wash and a wool mitt. After recovering from the heat stroke, I ordered a Boar's hair brush and a foam gun. Much easier! The Badger Hair brush is a life saver. I have also treated it with a clay bar and BlackFire paint sealant.

 

[bilcol81]

When it rains I park it outside.

 

[Gdub]

Foam cannon, washmit, pressure wash off, dry with a microfiber and a air hose.

 

[HamiltonGuy]

Some technique and product tips for anyone interested in some spring cleaning. What product do you find most helpful when cleaning your vehicle? https://youtu.be/Qh05CrpRDcM

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