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All In One Car Cleaner
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l008com
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Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Stoneham, MA, USA
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Aug 12, 2010, 01:17 AM
 
I asked this question on a car forum, and they didn't like it. Apparently my affection for my car doesn't meet their strict standards for obsession. But whatever the case, the deal is this: I'll wash my car sometimes. But that's all I'll do. I don't dry, I don't 'clay', i don't polish, I don't wax. For one thing, I have far better shit to do. Second, in my opinion there's so little to gain above washing, for all that extra work. The exception may be if you have a black car, but I don't. Soooo I used dawn to wash my car, and all the wax turned black and washed away. Oops. So given that I'm only willing to wash my car, what's the best stuff to use? How can I get the most bang for my buck, and by buck I mean elbow grease. And please don't try to convince me that polishing and waxing is so worth it, and you only have to do it every few months. Because I promise you, it ain't happening.
     
PB2K
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Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Netherlands
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Aug 12, 2010, 05:00 AM
 
I spend 1€ a month on cleaning my car in the DIY carwash. All it takes is a brush and a hose.
{Animated sigs are not allowed.}
     
imitchellg5
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Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Colorado
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Aug 12, 2010, 09:17 AM
 
I use this for washing, and this for "waxing." I know you don't want to wax, but unless your car is in really bad shape (which it may be, having used dish soap to wash it), this spray-on stuff really adds some shine and literally takes 2 minutes longer. Just spray on and wipe off. When I worked at Audi, we'd spray it on new cars for delivery.
     
ghporter
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Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: San Antonio TX USA
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Aug 12, 2010, 09:25 AM
 
I typically have my car washed at a "wash by hand" facility-they clean the interior including the glass, they run it through a carwash machine but then do a lot of hand touchups, then they dry it and wax it. It's something like $30 for this full treatment, but the car looks great for quite a while afterward (and it's time for me to get it done again).

But when I wash the car at home, I'm more interested in getting something off of it than in babying the finish-usually it's after visiting someplace near construction or road work. So I use Dawn dish soap (cuts grease and oil like a hot knife through butter), I rinse it twice, then I dry it fairly well. I have to dry it because of the calcium content in the water here; if I didn't, it would build up and make the finish look cloudy or muddy. For drying I have a bunch of bath towels that are nice and soft but not "nice enough" for human use.

For what it's worth, Dawn does NOT hurt the grass-because I wash the car on the lawn to "recover" all the water I use.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
imitchellg5
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Location: Colorado
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Aug 12, 2010, 10:25 AM
 
Rarg. Don't use dish soap at all...
     
Gankdawg
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Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Pacific Northwest
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Aug 12, 2010, 02:14 PM
 
I've had good luck with Rejex: RejeX: Nothing Sticks but the Shine!
     
Laminar
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
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Aug 12, 2010, 02:19 PM
 
I use raw eggs.
     
imitchellg5
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Location: Colorado
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Aug 12, 2010, 02:31 PM
 
You're doing it wrong. The raw eggs aren't supposed to go on YOUR car, they are supposed to go on the car of somebody you don't like.
     
Sealobo
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Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: The Intertube
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Aug 12, 2010, 04:08 PM
 
I have a BMW. I just wait for the rain.

I clean my iphone4 a lot though.
     
dav
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Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: sic semper tyrannis
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Aug 12, 2010, 05:06 PM
 
i use a meguiars car wash - suds well, non acidic, won't strip any applied wax. i would think any popular branded "car wash" would work fine.
one post closer to five stars
     
bstone
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Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Boston, MA
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Aug 12, 2010, 06:48 PM
 
I let the rain wash my car and the sun to dry it.
Emergency Medicine & Urgent Care.
     
downinflames68
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Join Date: Jun 2009
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Aug 12, 2010, 06:59 PM
 
80 grit sandpaper works awesome.
     
Laminar
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?
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Aug 12, 2010, 07:24 PM
 
Really gets the bugs off.
     
   
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