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Well, I may be in the minority here, but in my case, the car never gets more than a little dusty, so I go years without the car getting wet...my choice is Adams detail spray & their micro fiber towel...good to go!!
At the risk of looking stupid(er)...... I have Chadwick's TP arriving tomorrow. Very excited to use it. My (stupid) question for those in the know..... would I also use it on my wheels? While dusting my car yesterday, using my California duster, I noticed my wheels were VERY dusty. Combination of brake dust and "dirt" dust.
Careful with that California Duster. I know a detail person who says they scratch.
I wash my corvette with regular shampoo and water 2 bucket method maybe twice a year at most. While it is a garage queen I hate using water and only do it before my two major details of the year. My go to product for rinseless wash for all my vehicles is optimum no rinse and shine using the Gary Dean method. Now I religiously apple paint sealant and top it with a spray on wax/sealant at least once a month but the optimum no rinse leaves such a good shine I rarely tell the difference from the topping spray. I am extremely **** about the paint on all my vehicles and always am scared of scratching but the amount of polymers in these rinseless products now in my opinion makes them more slippery than traditional soaps. Remember it's not the water but the shampoo products you use that provide the real lubricancy and dirt release to prevent scratching of the car.
Here's a shot after the optimum no rinse. (also known as ONR)
LOL.... yes, and I've been caught in it, in snowstorms at near 10,000ft. 3 times in Colorado, and once in the Yellowstone on Dunraven Pass. I, and my C5 survived....
It's a daily driver, with over 600 RWHP, and sometimes sh-t happens.... as you know.
I wash mine including underneath the middle/engine and rear end...and even the engine compartment....everytime I wash the car. I use a 120 MPH electric blower to remove 99% of the water from everywhere.
Then a coat of Zaino on every inch of the car, except the interior.
I don't know about anyone else, but I cringe at the idea of rubbing anything on my paint without having first running TONS of clean water over it to at least rinse off the standing dust etc. I also use an in-line filter to remove all the minerals and other crap that is in Chicago water.
It's not designed for a filthy car. It's got enough lubricants in it that will help remove surface dust and light dirt without letting it dig in to the paint. This is where the waffle cloth comes in too. It helps "scoop" the dirt off the car in to the waffles instead of just pushing it around. You're supposed to use a clean section of the cloth for every panel on the car you do.
At least that's the directions with the Adam's waterless wash that I use.
They also have a "rinseless" wash that's the same chemical...you just dilute it in a big bucket of water. With that you use a different towel but you wash the car more like a regular car wash. You just rinse out the towel a lot and then you towel dry the car. The product eliminates spots and streaks.
I use the waterless wash pretty much whenever I take the vette out before I put the cover back on. I'm not worried about corrosion from water on a mostly composite car...but it's just a pain in the *** to wash and dry all the time. It take me like 10-15 minutes to clean the whole car with that stuff.
I'm a big fan of both methods and it all depends on the reality of a harsh environment. My car got caught in this while I was at the hospital waiting for my third Grand Kid to be born. No good smelling car wash in a bottle could touch the mess on and in my car. And weeks after the fine grit was seen everywhere.
No water to clean my 'vettes, I use Adams waterless wash, detail spray and some times Meguiars, and yes Meguiars is great to use as a clay bar lubricant. The least amount of exposure to water is the better for your Corvette.
My neighbor told me about using a teaspoon of very fine play sand in a bucket with warm water and don dish detergent. I've used it on the C4 with good results.
You're kidding, right? Sand (no matter how fine it is) and paint don't mix. You're just asking for trouble...and don (I'm assuming you mean "Dawn") dish detergent is about, if not THE worst detergent you can use on automotive paint. It's way too harsh...if you're washing your car with a hose and a bucket-o-suds, the only detergents you should be using are those made for automotive paints...
Just bought two bottles of the meguiars waterless I will leave some comments on it here after I use it today. One thing I will need to do is get some different color mf towels because I will not use the same ones on my paint that touch my wheels.
I wash my corvette with regular shampoo and water 2 bucket method maybe twice a year at most. While it is a garage queen I hate using water and only do it before my two major details of the year. My go to product for rinseless wash for all my vehicles is optimum no rinse and shine using the Gary Dean method. Now I religiously apple paint sealant and top it with a spray on wax/sealant at least once a month but the optimum no rinse leaves such a good shine I rarely tell the difference from the topping spray. I am extremely **** about the paint on all my vehicles and always am scared of scratching but the amount of polymers in these rinseless products now in my opinion makes them more slippery than traditional soaps. Remember it's not the water but the shampoo products you use that provide the real lubricancy and dirt release to prevent scratching of the car.
Here's a shot after the optimum no rinse. (also known as ONR)
Whatever you're doing, keep doing it! Your car is fricken gorgeous!
This is what I use. Seems to work well.
