Fast-C5

Good Afternoon All,

I just thought I'd share with ya'll how I wash my Vette. I recieved these detailed instuctions from a local professional car detailer when I had my Lightning. Its very ****, but it works very well. Also I use an electric leaf blower after I dry the car off to get all the water outta the crevices that will leak out as soon as I pull outta the driveway. I hope ya'll can use these!


--1 Only use sheepskin wash mitt - the softest, plushest and longest haired one (or 2) you can find.

--2 Use a "good" purpose made car washing soap, never a cheapie. Bubbles doesn't mean it is good; high lubricity does mean it is good. Lots of surficants is good as well. Blue Dawn is designed to clean heavy cooked on grease on dishes, pots and pans, not for automobile paint, so use the appropriate product for the job.

LUBRICITY means the soap and water solution is very slippery and this helps in the washing process to remove the loosened dirt off the paint.

SURFICANTS help to decouple the dirt from the paint.

--3 Use the "2 bucket wash" - every time wash mitt comes off the vehicle, rinse like in a washing machine in a bucket of clear water, then back into the car wash solution, then back on the paint.

--4 Wash from cleanest to dirtiest (usually top down). Try to wash a panel or two, then rinse the whole car. This will stop the soap from drying and help stop water spots from forming. Keep the whole vehicle wet all the time while washing. When you are done washing panels and rinsing, then take your nozzle off the hose, turn the pressure down a little and give the entire vehicle a "flooding rinse", starting a the top and working down the sides. Try to avoid letting the hose water hit the paint hard as this splashes water all over the place. Rather, let the water coming out of the hose be almost parallel to the paint.

You will be amazed just how much more water can be removed by the flood rinse as the surface tension of the big sheet of water will help to pull the entire wather sheet off the paint.

--5 Wash wheels with something other than your paint mitt - brake dust can be fatal to your paint. It should be soft, as well as terry towel and t-shirt material can stratch. Most wheel are clearcoated and some are chrome or bard metal. Just about anything will scratch 'em too.

--6 NEVER PUT TERRY TOWEL ANYWHERE NEAR YOUR PAINT - IT WILL SCRATCH.

--7 Buy some (2) waffle weave microfiber drying towels 24" x 36" or there abouts. Walmart ones are OK, but there are better ones on the internet.

--8 Buy at minimum 12 microfiber towels for applying and removing product. Walmart ones are OK, but there are better ones on the internet.

Just a reminder - NOTHING will stop your paint from getting marred - except perhaps keeping your ride in a plastic bubble and never taking it out. Using the proper wash method and MF towels, will help to minimize marring only.

Then you want to be able to drive it on the street, right? So now it is exposed to all manner of contaminants and damage. Do what YOU can to stop marring your paint as there is enough OUT THERE to trash it out.

sailohio

I like that. Thanks for sharing it with us. I have never used the two bucket method but I will from no on.

Humanoid 2.0

I say you covered all the basics, I would just add try to avoid washing in direct sunlight.

Fast-C5

Good point added, That detail is in my next post I just added "Reducing Waterspots"

shurite44

The only thing I would add is blue dawn is useful for stripping wax off the vehicle. I think I am going to start using the two bucket method.

Cajun99

No offense...but there is a CAR CARE forum here.

Car washing methods are like opinions and a***oles....everybody's got one...usually.

Vetteman Jack

Thanks for the info. That method certainly makes sense.

Z0SLIK

I agree!! Thanks for the info!!

Red C6 Z06

You have some of the same policies/procedures that I do, but I have never heard that terry cloth will scratch paint. How can cotton scratch paint?

MyVetteDream

Terry cloth is woven in a way to have a certain amount of abrasiveness ... leaving spider webs.

That's why micro fiber has blown up, the "tentacles" aren't as abrasive.

robsvette

my neighbors look at me like im a mental every time i use my leaf blower to dry mine.

Fast-C5

I do apologize for the inconvenience of posting this in the forum, I did look for a car care forum briefly and did not see one so I posted this here, and it does not seem like anyone else has a problem with my good bit of info.
Thanks for the heads up...

Fast-C5

I'm glad everyone seems to find this thread useful, I too think the two bucket wash is a good idea. And terry cloth is your enemy!
Thanks for the kudos!

Humanoid 2.0

The car care forum is here: http://forums.corvetteforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=10

vetred

I do use a similer system however,... I only wash on saturdays, with one white sock and one blue sock,.... unless its sunday, then I wear one green and one blue sock on occasion i must wash mid-week then its three white socks and a blue plastic baggie on my head

Snake Eater

From another Houstonian thanks for the info. Lot of good tips that you dont really think about. You know what they say, its the little things that matter.

Fast-C5

Thanks, I found the forum titled "Car Care PRODUCTS", if a moderator wants to move this in the corect location please do so...

Sean