[dinosaur1]

Which is safer over time?

Touchless is great and is less time consuming. I can always take it home to spray wax or wax afterwards....

Hand washing is also great, but is more time consuming and could scratch the paint.

 

[DangerMouse]

Touchless what?

Towels?
Faucets?
Trash cans?

Take what home? You got me all confused and it's not even 9:00 yet!
I'm usually not this confused until at least noon!

DM

 

[dinosaur1]

Touchless what?

Towels?
Faucets?
Trash cans?

Take what home? You got me all confused and it's not even 9:00 yet!
I'm usually not this confused until at least noon!

DM

Touchless car wash

 

[DangerMouse]

Since this is a DIY site, I guess I'd have to vote for hand wash! :laughing:

Better price too.....

DM

 

[dinosaur1]

Since this is a DIY site, I guess I'd have to vote for hand wash! :laughing:

Better price too.....

DM

what about wasting water?

 

[DangerMouse]

Hand washing with a bucket of soapy water and rinsing with a hose would likely use much less water than a car washing service.
If it's a rare or 'loved' car, most owners will prefer to wash it themselves too.

DM

 

[dinosaur1]

Hand washing with a bucket of soapy water and rinsing with a hose would likely use much less water than a car washing service.
If it's a rare or 'loved' car, most owners will prefer to wash it themselves too.

DM

nope just 2 Toyota's.

 

[jarheadoo7]

touchless is good for a quickie.. but it will never remove the grime and oxidation that develops on paint like a good quality car soap and clean mit does..

sure you can develop scratches from washing your car by hand...but most people have the sense not to use a mit with stones embedded in it...

 

[dinosaur1]

touchless is good for a quickie.. but it will never remove the grime and oxidation that develops on paint like a good quality car soap and clean mit does..

sure you can develop scratches from washing your car by hand...but most people have the sense not to use a mit with stones embedded in it...

I understand that part. But oxidation can't happen if you wax consistently. Touchless or not.

 

[mustangmike3789]

I understand that part. But oxidation can't happen if you wax consistently. Touchless or not.

why not? ever heard of intercoat faiures do to rust(iron oxide).

 

[dinosaur1]

why not? ever heard of intercoat faiures do to rust(iron oxide).

Hasn'thappened with the 5 cars I have owned so far.....

 

[Marty1Mc]

You have a higher chance scratching your paint with a touchless car wash than by using a bucket. Why? Because on the trip home from the carwash, lots of dust will hit the paint. You will then proceed to grind it into the paint as you wax. Some colors it isn't as visible. But with a high shine black paint, it will become very noticeable.

I bucket wash my cars that I want to protect the paint. Like my red 300zx that I spent a couple hundred hours painting, color sanding and buffing. My son will only bucket wash his high gloss black Supra as well. For my wife's camry and my daily driver, my truck, and the van, I will use a car wash if I want to.

 

[dinosaur1]

You have a higher chance scratching your paint with a touchless car wash than by using a bucket. Why? Because on the trip home from the carwash, lots of dust will hit the paint. You will then proceed to grind it into the paint as you wax. Some colors it isn't as visible. But with a high shine black paint, it will become very noticeable.

I bucket wash my cars that I want to protect the paint. Like my red 300zx that I spent a couple hundred hours painting, color sanding and buffing. My son will only bucket wash his high gloss black Supra as well. For my wife's camry and my daily driver, my truck, and the van, I will use a car wash if I want to.

Since my Higlander is my daily driver it looks brand new mainly because I baby the thing. My issue is that when I have time to wash my suv its too sunny and hot so the last thing I want to do is wash it in the sun.....

 

[Bill7]

Car wash guy here...

But then again, I wash my '91 4Runner only once a year. Even if it doesn't need it!

 

[mustangmike3789]

Hasn'thappened with the 5 cars I have owned so far.....

What color paint is on your rags when you are done waxing

 

[dinosaur1]

What color paint is on your rags when you are done waxing

Microfiber rags used. A bit of dirt, nothing major.

 

[hyunelan2]

I understand that part. But oxidation can't happen if you wax consistently. Touchless or not.

There is oxidation on the paint the day you bring it home from the dealer. Claybar a brand-new car and you'll be able to tell how bad "brand new" paint is already.

Applying wax over a touchless-car-wash job is only going to seal grime into the paint. You want a nice deep cleaning before you put on wax. The spray-on, wipe-off stuff does little for protection. It may give you some shine and make water bead up, but it's not going to do much for paint longevity.

A touchless wash is fine for between washes, or in the winter to blast some of the salt off the car, but the car is not going to be "clean." Waxing without having a good deep clean is only going to smear around particles with your rag that can/will scratch the paint.

 

[dinosaur1]

There is oxidation on the paint the day you bring it home from the dealer. Claybar a brand-new car and you'll be able to tell how bad "brand new" paint is already.

Applying wax over a touchless-car-wash job is only going to seal grime into the paint. You want a nice deep cleaning before you put on wax. The spray-on, wipe-off stuff does little for protection. It may give you some shine and make water bead up, but it's not going to do much for paint longevity.

A touchless wash is fine for between washes, or in the winter to blast some of the salt off the car, but the car is not going to be "clean." Waxing without having a good deep clean is only going to smear around particles with your rag that can/will scratch the paint.

I hear you. But not washing it at all is even worse.

 

[polarzak]

I hear you. But not washing it at all is even worse.

I never wash my car in the winter. It is black, but with a wonderful white coating of road salt all winter long. I was told many years ago by a GM rep that washing a car in the winter (where salt is used) is one of the worst things one can do. Dry salt is not corrosive, and when you wash it, you send salt water deep into the seams. Salt water is very corrosive.

All that said, I have a four year old black GM. It is in showroom condition. It is clayed spring and fall a year, polished and waxed regularly in the summer.
I would never take it to a touchless. Use the two bucket method when you wash, with a good car soap, and a real sheep skin wash mitt. Start at top, be gentle and you will never get a swirl or scratch. Washing your own car by hand is like making woopie with a beautiful woman.

 

[AllanJ]

The best way to minimize scratching is to first do a gentle hand wash, changing the cloth frequently. This is to get rid of most of the coarse dust and dirt.

Then you need to do another wash to get off the oxidation.

Gee I wish there was a wax or coating that lasted more than a week.

What do you mean by claying? Buffing? Buffing takes off paint. After a finite number of times you wear right throuhg the paint and the undercoat becomes visible here and there particularly on convex corners.