Car Washing...what are your tips and tricks

[Neurio]

That's what I figured, but that's what my installer recommended, so I bought it. Just bought 2 more to try out:
McKee's 37 MK37-492 Matte Finish Cleaner & Protectant (Waterless Wash & Clear Sealant for Matte & Satin Paint & Wraps), 22 fl. oz, Black https://a.co/d/3xTWrAm

Dr. Beasley's Matte Waterless Wash - 12 oz., High Lubricity Formula, Made for All Matte Finishes, Readily Biodegradable https://a.co/d/9ujee4f

Anyone have any experience with these or any others they'd recommend?

I did my 2nd waterless wash and tried out both these products. They seemed to work equally well, keeping the matte finish without adding the shine like the previous product I used (see post 113 for full details of what I used). I will say that the Dr Beasley's smelled a bit like cheap cologne, so I think I'll stick with the McKee's 37 in future orders, assuming they hold up equally well in the coming week. The McKee's is a bit cheaper too, which is nice. I still used the old wash product on my wheels and shiny trim, so now the car looks like I just picked it up from my PPF installation.

 

[hellolucid]

i just did my first wash and the most annoying part is getting the water out that gets stuck inside of the tire wheel cap. i drove my car around the block hoping that it drains away but it doesn't. i thought about using a leaf blower but my neighbors wouldn't be very happy to wake up to leaf blower noise on a Saturday morning.

 

[Coltonw011]

i just did my first wash and the most annoying part is getting the water out that gets stuck inside of the tire wheel cap. i drove my car around the block hoping that it drains away but it doesn't. i thought about using a leaf blower but my neighbors wouldn't be very happy to wake up to leaf blower noise on a Saturday morning.

Don’t look at the trunk then, it holds an extreme amount of water after a wash. I just have to leave it open for a very long time to drain it all.

 

[Bunnylebowski]

Don’t look at the trunk then, it holds an extreme amount of water after a wash. I just have to leave it open for a very long time to drain it all.

Yeah my trick after I dry the car with drying towels and leaf blower out the hiding water, which still won’t get all the water out but helps, is to then open the trunk/frunk and put microfiber towels on the front and rear panels where all the excess water drips to catch the drips. The biggest struggle I have is the water spots that get on the nose/trunk silver chrome trim, anybody got any good suggestions to get those off? I’m not gonna go off the deep end and get a water deionizer, but many of those areas are super prone to water spotting even if you dry it immediately.

 

[Coltonw011]

Yeah my trick after I dry the car with drying towels and leaf blower out the hiding water, which still won’t get all the water out but helps, is to then open the trunk/frunk and put microfiber towels on the front and rear panels where all the excess water drips to catch the drips. The biggest struggle I have is the water spots that get on the nose/trunk silver chrome trim, anybody got any good suggestions to get those off? I’m not gonna go off the deep end and get a water deionizer, but many of those areas are super prone to water spotting even if you dry it immediately.

Yeaaa since I own a water filtration company I just use DI resin so it doesn’t matter if I leave water on it or not, just noticed the trunk holds enough water to refill a camel.
There are a bunch of water spot removing products out there. I recommend looking at “the obsessed garage,” if you haven’t already. He is the most OCD individual out there and sells all the products on his website.

 

[Steveinarizona]

Serious question as someone who has always been too lazy to wash my cars...what is the purpose of the soap? I'm sure a stupid question but with water and hand drying, what does the soap actually do?

soap is a surfactant and helps release the dirt so the water can wash it away.

 

[Bunnylebowski]

Yeaaa since I own a water filtration company I just use DI resin so it doesn’t matter if I leave water on it or not, just noticed the trunk holds enough water to refill a camel.
There are a bunch of water spot removing products out there. I recommend looking at “the obsessed garage,” if you haven’t already. He is the most OCD individual out there and sells all the products on his website.

Thanks! This guy is hard core. Yeah filtration would be best to prevent it, but I’ll try some of the other preventative measures first. Drying it ASAP doesn’t seem to help with the spotting on the chrome trim around the trunk as the gap above which holds the rear light assembly accumulates drips from all over the trunk, even if I blast it with the leaf blower. Maybe I’ll just pre-emptively apply spot remover on it immediately after driving then wipe that clean.

Have you used the waterless wash they have on obsessed garage? Might be a good winter option for me since it gets cold here in New England and also the roads are trashed in the winter.

 

[hydbob]

Thanks! This guy is hard core. Yeah filtration would be best to prevent it, but I’ll try some of the other preventative measures first. Drying it ASAP doesn’t seem to help with the spotting on the chrome trim around the trunk as the gap above which holds the rear light assembly accumulates drips from all over the trunk, even if I blast it with the leaf blower. Maybe I’ll just pre-emptively apply spot remover on it immediately after driving then wipe that clean.

Have you used the waterless wash they have on obsessed garage? Might be a good winter option for me since it gets cold here in New England and also the roads are trashed in the winter.

After I rinse, I just open the trunk and let it drain, seems to get 90% of the water out by the time I get to the trunk area.

 

[dawktah LucidGT]

I washed again and opened both trunk let them drain and dried them as best as I could. Closed them and did a light rinse over the car again and dried. The amount of dripping from the trunks was far less than my previous wash. I also followed up with the Aero Cosmetics waterless worked very well. I like that product.

 

[DaveyBoyGT]

Don’t look at the trunk then, it holds an extreme amount of water after a wash. I just have to leave it open for a very long time to drain it all.

Although I do not yet have a Lucid, nor have I even seen a Lucid live, how does wash water manage to get into the trunk? Is it a design flaw? All my cars have a rubber gasket/seal around the trunk opening that seals up against the trunk lid when it is closed. Doesn't a Lucid have a similar design?

 

[dawktah LucidGT]

Although I do not yet have a Lucid, nor have I even seen a Lucid live, how does wash water manage to get into the trunk? Is it a design flaw? All my cars have a rubber gasket/seal around the trunk opening that seals up against the trunk lid when it is closed. Doesn't a Lucid have a similar design?

It not "in the trunk" its around the opening. Trunk is dry.

 

[DaveyBoyGT]

It not "in the trunk" its around the opening. Trunk is dry.

OK, got it. Then the water sits and accumulates on the panels around the trunk opening? Aren't the panels sloped to drain the water off the panels? Maybe a picture from someone would help.

 

[hydbob]

OK, got it. Then the water sits and accumulates on the panels around the trunk opening? Aren't the panels sloped to drain the water off the panels? Maybe a picture from someone would help.

It's more like water gets into the deck lid and it's from the gap in the taillight. Normal rain won't get the water into that groove the way a hose does.

 

[DaveyBoyGT]

It's more like water gets into the deck lid and it's from the gap in the taillight. Normal rain won't get the water into that groove the way a hose does.

Still sounds like a design flaw to me. Owners of a $154,000 auto should not have to deal with something like this.

 

[dawktah LucidGT]

Still sounds like a design flaw to me. Owners of a $154,000 auto should not have to deal with something like this.

Hardly, we are just talking about drips...

 

[DaveyBoyGT]

Hardly, we are just talking about drips...

Really? When commenters on this thread use words like "drain" and "wipe" and "extreme amounts of water", and "long time to drain", that does not sound like just drips.

 

[dawktah LucidGT]

Really? When commenters on this thread use words like "drain" and "wipe" and "extreme amounts of water", and "long time to drain", that does not sound like just drips.

I will let them speak to their choice of words but its more of an issue of just having water run on car after you just finished drying it. Decades ago when washing cars I never paid this much attention to it. LOL Now people are using leaf blowers, I won't be doing that.

 

[hydbob]

Really? When commenters on this thread use words like "drain" and "wipe" and "extreme amounts of water", and "long time to drain", that does not sound like just drips.

There is quite a bit of water that gets into the deck lid when washing. This is due to the light bar going across the middle of the trunk lid. There are gaps where water intrudes due to you forcing water into that gap while washing. Everyone's washing technique differs so you could get some with very little water and other with a lot. After rinsing, it is important to open the trunk and frunk first to let the water drain out of cracks that are horizontal when closed. This is standard practice for all cars and I've never had a car that didn't need the trunk opened to drain some water after washing. Only difference to me now is that I have to open the frunk also whereas before I didn't.

 

[DaveyBoyGT]

There is quite a bit of water that gets into the deck lid when washing. This is due to the light bar going across the middle of the trunk lid. There are gaps where water intrudes due to you forcing water into that gap while washing. Everyone's washing technique differs so you could get some with very little water and other with a lot. After rinsing, it is important to open the trunk and frunk first to let the water drain out of cracks that are horizontal when closed. This is standard practice for all cars and I've never had a car that didn't need the trunk opened to drain some water after washing. Only difference to me now is that I have to open the frunk also whereas before I didn't.

Thanks for the explanation. When I get my GT I then will decide whether this is a significant issue or not.

 

[hydbob]

Thanks for the explanation. When I get my GT I then will decide whether this is a significant issue or not.

It's more of an annoyance the first time you wash the car then afterwards you know better.