Drive Thru Car Wash, your thoughts?
01-27-2011, 06:49 PM
#22
Instructor
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This is the way to go. The new generation of brushless is very high tech with laser measurement. They take credit cards and offer an a la carte menu. Do a search and find one of these.
A true touchless will work fine.
No "conveyor belt" but a drive thru on flat concrete with no touch spray arms that travel over and around the car. At many gas stations, $5.00 usual with 8 or more gallons of gas for a good wash and blow dry. Take towels to get the last of the water off the body and the glass and to touch up the wheels. It's a great fast wash.
No "conveyor belt" but a drive thru on flat concrete with no touch spray arms that travel over and around the car. At many gas stations, $5.00 usual with 8 or more gallons of gas for a good wash and blow dry. Take towels to get the last of the water off the body and the glass and to touch up the wheels. It's a great fast wash.
01-27-2011, 06:52 PM
#23
Race Director
If it's a touchless there is nothing wrong with it in my book. Dontq let all these hand washers scare you, they just seem to have allot of extra time on their hands
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01-27-2011, 07:03 PM
#24
Le Mans Master
I would just suggest that you use a touchless system with no tire rails. I'd also suggest that you check even a touchless system out first to make sure the water & detergent used are clean and won't etch paint. I was given a voucher at a Chevy dealer to use their touchless system and when I was done there was a scummy glaze and was really POed about how dirty the water was.
Last edited by vettedoogie; 01-27-2011 at 07:07 PM.
01-27-2011, 07:10 PM
#25
Le Mans Master
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St. Jude Donor '06-'07-'08-'09-'10-'11-12-'13-'14-'15-'16
I've never seen tire rails lower than the splitter in those big car washes.
I usually go to a hand wash place because I'm lazy. But when I want to Rejex the Vette I'll hand wash her real good.
I usually go to a hand wash place because I'm lazy. But when I want to Rejex the Vette I'll hand wash her real good.
01-27-2011, 07:16 PM
#26
That would be my recommendation in your situation. In the old days we called them "quarter car washes" because it took a quarter for 5 minutes of fairly high pressure water. Now I think it's probably a dollar and a quarter. Take your own bucket, wheel and tire brushes, towels, etc. and do it like you would do it at home.Last edited by BLD.70DRIVERMPG-RET.; 01-27-2011 at 07:22 PM.
01-27-2011, 07:22 PM
#27
Le Mans Master
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its the soap yall......the soap.....touchless or not.. that stuff will take the hair off a rhino!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
never ever never ever
and pause and reflect: you have dirt on your car.... you pull through a wash system that uses extremely high pressure to blast the dirt against the clear coat.............
can you say: s w i r l s ?
never ever never ever
and pause and reflect: you have dirt on your car.... you pull through a wash system that uses extremely high pressure to blast the dirt against the clear coat.............
can you say: s w i r l s ?
Last edited by wolfdogs; 01-27-2011 at 07:25 PM.
01-27-2011, 07:23 PM
#28
Former Vendor
As offered in the car care section of the forum, there are now several waterless and rinseless wash products that are extremely effective. Some are simply sprays in which you spritz, allow to sit, and then buff off. (think more than quick detailer). The second is a rinseless product and only requires one bucket of water. These save time, money, precious water, and eliminate marring when used properly.
(DP, Ultima, Optimum, Griots)
(DP, Ultima, Optimum, Griots)
01-27-2011, 07:50 PM
#30
Safety Car
its the soap yall......the soap.....touchless or not.. that stuff will take the hair off a rhino!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
never ever never ever
and pause and reflect: you have dirt on your car.... you pull through a wash system that uses extremely high pressure to blast the dirt against the clear coat.............
can you say: s w i r l s ?
never ever never ever
and pause and reflect: you have dirt on your car.... you pull through a wash system that uses extremely high pressure to blast the dirt against the clear coat.............
can you say: s w i r l s ?
01-27-2011, 07:51 PM
#31
If you judge the car too dirty to come clean with one pass through the touchless wash, first wash it down in one of the high-pressure bays before running it through the touchless. When it's clean, dry it with 2 Absorbers synthetic chamois: 1) for the top of the car down to just above the rocker panels and 2) for the rocker panels, wheel wells and wheels. Run the 2 Absorbers in through the washing machine between carwashes.
Been following this routine for the last 3 new Corvettes I've owned and my paint has always stayed flawless. Remember, NEVER trust a "hand-wash".
If you can afford to buy a Corvette then you can afford to take it to a proper touchless carwash instead of pretending you can do as good a job yourself!
01-27-2011, 07:57 PM
#32
Racer
If it's my daily driver and plan on upgrading every few years......I would bing it through a car wash!! It's driven daily in all weather elements....wash as often as possible......what's a car wash gonna do worse..... than say, driving 300 miles a week on the roads?
If it's my baby in the garage and I have another DD....no way!
Hope that helps?
If it's my baby in the garage and I have another DD....no way!
Hope that helps?
Last edited by Daredevil95; 01-27-2011 at 08:00 PM.
01-27-2011, 07:59 PM
#33
Burning Brakes
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A true touchless will work fine.
No "conveyor belt" but a drive thru on flat concrete with no touch spray arms that travel over and around the car. At many gas stations, $5.00 usual with 8 or more gallons of gas for a good wash and blow dry. Take towels to get the last of the water off the body and the glass and to touch up the wheels. It's a great fast wash.
No "conveyor belt" but a drive thru on flat concrete with no touch spray arms that travel over and around the car. At many gas stations, $5.00 usual with 8 or more gallons of gas for a good wash and blow dry. Take towels to get the last of the water off the body and the glass and to touch up the wheels. It's a great fast wash.
Do it all the time with my DD'ers. I don't do the C6, but that's because I have a house where I can hand wash it. But if you can meet the above criteria, no problem. 
01-27-2011, 08:32 PM
#34
Wow, very interesting. This came out in March of 2010 and it is the first time I've seen it here on the Forum. One of the main rules of product engineering is that every part should perform it's intended function regardless of exposure to every condition to which the part might reasonably be expected to be exposed, especially parts which if they fail may cause serious consequences. Brushless car washes, wheel cleaners, engine cleaners and underbody cleaners are certainly things that should have been considered before using fiberglass springs. Now we find out fourteen years after their introduction that these springs can be damaged by these commonly used products. This is sheer engineering incompetance and negligence on the part of General Motors. It would be very interesting to know what corrective steps have been taken by GM to (1) inform owners of 1997 through 2011 Corvettes of this potential failure mode, (2) revise the 2011 Corvette owners manual to warn owners of the possible detrimental effects of such chemicals on the springs, (3) coating or encapsulating the springs on current production vehicles to prevent such chemical attack, such as coating them with an epoxy paint.
01-27-2011, 08:56 PM
#35
Safety Car
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Well apparently whatever they are coated with is not doing the job of preventing the chemical attack that is causing spring failures according to GM's own service bulletin. I would be interested in any further information you or anyone else has regarding these failures, the coating you say is on the springs, or anything else.
01-27-2011, 11:41 PM
#37
Well apparently whatever they are coated with is not doing the job of preventing the chemical attack that is causing spring failures according to GM's own service bulletin. I would be interested in any further information you or anyone else has regarding these failures, the coating you say is on the springs, or anything else.
01-27-2011, 11:53 PM
#38
Le Mans Master
That would be my recommendation in your situation. In the old days we called them "quarter car washes" because it took a quarter for 5 minutes of fairly high pressure water. Now I think it's probably a dollar and a quarter. Take your own bucket, wheel and tire brushes, towels, etc. and do it like you would do it at home.For the underside, a pressure wash is the best. Besides, I think the track on most drive -thru washes is too narrow for the tires on a Vette, and the ground clearance is too low, I wouldn't recommend doing a drive-thru in a Corvette, it can only end badly.
01-28-2011, 12:23 AM
#40
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I wash my vette 3 to 4 times a week at the wash. i own 2 carwashs both have in bay automatics soft touch and touchless and i use which ever one i want to test. find a wash that has the new style closed cell foam brushes u will be find. Mash the gas