It's the winter season, so it's hard to hand wash my car. Was wondering if the drive-in Touch Less Car Wash stations were ok for the car's paint.

Or do you guys still handwash in the winter.

 

I would not go near a car wash unless they have a bay where they hand wash it themselves. I am never letting mine go through a car wash. In a few days I am going to hand wash it and get a good coat of wax on it.

 

even if they hand wash they use those crappy wash mits and brushes that scratch the paint. Its a loose loose situation so just wash it yourself when the weather is ok and check out the detailing forum for advice on that.

 

I have a 2K2 and I've taken mine through the TOUCHLESS car washes in Colorado during the winters and haven't had a problem. In fact, the undercarriage wash has been pretty good, as they us sand and Mag Chloride (I think thats what it is) in the snow. So far no issues using the car wash though. I may not be a "picky" as others here, but I do like to keep the car clean, as much as possible. However, I'm not as fanatical as I was when I was a bit younger! (Just my $.02)

 

I think touchlees carwashes are worthless. They never have cleaned the last bit of film off of any of my cars. I live in CO too and the only thing I would go through a touchless for would be the under carriage clean.

Now some of the gas stations are using carwashes with rubber spinners, those things worked great on my mini van and my 2003 Focus.

I have been relunctant to take my 2005SE through any kind of automatic car though.

 

If you notice, mm7759, the majority of "respondees" in this thread have black MAXs...you, on the other hand, have a "white" (so-to-speak) MAX. I, too, once owned a white MAX back in the day, and, yes, I use to take it through a brushless auto car wash as well during the winter, because I knew I could get away w/ it. Unfortunately, you CAN NOT take a black car to the car wash and expect not to see swirls and spiderwebs in the scratched paint when it comes out. Black cars show everything! White (or lighter) cars hide these imperfections well...

So to answer your question, jkjk15...NO!!! DO NOT take your car to an automated car wash if you value your paint job ... ... and seeing that you ALSO have a black MAX, it would behoove you to read and heed our warnings! Wash it yourself w/ the softest fabrics you can find (preferrably 100% cotton), and keep up on the wax...

HAPPY MAX'N!!!

 

Wow Hofb, I didn't realize that black paint was so touchy when it came to carwashing. I choose Silver because I know black shows all the dirt.

My wife has a black 2002 Mustang GT she washes frequently. Sometimes at the touchless and sometimes at a carwash bay with the brush and wand.

Question: once you get those swirls and spiderwebs in the black paint, how do you fix it. Way back in the day waxing a car was simple, now with all the clear coats and who knows what other kind of special paint I get a little nervous with the idea of "waxing" a new car.

Did someone say there was a detailing thread? I would love to read it.

 

If you scroll down the main forum page, you will find the Detail section under Maintenance.

 

I have not taken any vehicle through a wash that actually 'touches' the car for over ten years. But I have taken my (non-black) Maximas through 'touchless' washes for over a decade with no problems whatsoever.

I accept that, being touchless, these washes do not get the car really clean. But, if I carefully do every third or fourth wash by hand, the 'touchless' washes take off most of the dirt, leaving the car looking lots better than it would with no wash.

At my age (don't even ask), there is no way I would be out in windy forty degree weather, washing my car. And there is no way I would take my Maxima to a regular ('touch-type') carwash, no matter how filthy it was. So I am one who feels the 'touchless' carwash is a real blessing.

 

According to his profile jkjk15 lives in Toronto Canada. Washing by hand is great in the winter in Arizona, but pretty well impossible in Toronto at tempearatures well below freezing in the winter.

I've gone through touchless car washes for years in the winter because there are very few other options that you can use on a regular basis in the winter. Cars are always dirty up here in the winter anyways, so i'm not going to worry about a residual film on my car after going through the touchless wash. But in the summer I'm a fanatic when it comes to detailing my cars.

It gets polished and waxed several times in the spring and washed by hand with tender loving care from May to October when it matters the most.

Bob

 

I hook up my garden hose to my laundry sink faucet, turn on the hot water, and wash away. This works quite well down to about 20 degrees Fahrenheit, and it helps if the car is receiving direct sunlight. Two problems: sometimes the water freezes before I can dry it off, so I do one panel (wash, then dry) at a time. Second problem: I have to carefully dry off the door edges (including the rubber seals) as well as the door opening in the car's body, because otherwise, the door can freeze shut. (If it does, simply run warm water around its edges until you can open the door again.) The hot water is also great for wheelwells and general underbody desalting. I have never had a problem using hot water, but the temperature can be adjusted to your preference. However, take care not to slip and fall while you are washing your baby, because the water will eventually freeze on your driveway.

 

http://forums.maxima.org/forumdisplay.php?f=69

 

so how often should u wash your car in the winter?

 

I try not to let salt or large accumulations of wet dirt linger for more than a day or two, if possible. Even if just to wash it clean and not dry it, in order to get the salt/wet dirt off. Apart from that, it depends on the weather, the weather forecast, etc. Since I try not to drive on salted roads, I probably wash my car about every two weeks, on the average.

 

I took a trip from OR to AZ last October. Front of car covered with bugs and the rest of the car had water spots all over it from dust and dew in the mornings. It looked awful and was driving me nuts. lol My brother took me to a touchless car wash and it did a good job (not perfect, but pretty darned good). I had a good coat of wax on it before I left. I wouldn't do this on a regular basis, but a few times during the winter probably wouldn't hurt IMO. To me having a good coat of wax on it is the key.
BTW that was the first time my car went through a car wash and I would never use a car wash uses brushes or cloth.

 

It's hard for me to wash in the winter as well. However, there is a do it yourself place right around the corner from me and on the days that your hands won't freeze, I take a run over there. They have the pressure washers so it helps especially with the wheel wells and undercarriage (what I can bend down and angle the nozzle to). BTW..my Max is maroon and can get FILTHY during winter.

 

In a nutshell, to remove swirls and spiderwebs, you would have to use a polish in order to remove them. The severity of the swirling determines how abrasive of a polish you'd need to use. It also is determined by the results you are desiring.

I often make the analogy that detailing is like modding. You have to try or do different things in order to get the results you desire.

In your case, I'd probably use something like Meguiar's DACP, 1Z Paint Polish, or the Menzerna twins (Intensive and Final Polish).

 

actually i read a study done by harvard that hand wasjing actually puts more scratches on your car than agood touchless place...personally i have about 7 coats of wax on my and get all my cars wheeled in the spring(looks brand new)i will find the study and post it