Car Wash Leased Vehicle?

So what’s the verdict with car washing leased cars? Some only hand wash, some don’t care. Do you wax your leased vehicle (s)?

I don’t own my cars, so I don’t really care what kind of wash they get. The dealers wash them every year when they do maintenance. Coincidentally, that was this week for the Jag.

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I don’t own it but I want it to look good. I double check when the car was produced before going through the automatic carwash - we have a Costco carwash here and it does a pretty good job for $8. At least once a year I have a full detail in/out, and a couple times a year mini-detail (car wash place that cleans in/out and does hand wax). It definitely gets more TLC in months 6-30 and near the end it’s just keeping it clean enough until it’s grounded.

A Costco car wash? I’m not sure if I’ve ever heard of a more beautiful thing in my life. Only a Wawa car wash could top that

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Hopefully more washes than once a year?:sunglasses:

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What does this mean? Maybe I’m missing something.

Yea, I second the Costco car wash thing. Nice! But if it’s anything like the gas stations, around here there is a 5 to 20 minute wait. $8.00 great deal, I just paid $19 plus $3 tip.

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I enjoy a convenient hand wash and sweep/dust/window cleaning at work parking lot for $20 plus a tip. No waiting at all, just park and toss the dude my keys and after a long day of quality analyzing, she’s clean.

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yeah i drive out of my way to use it. imagine the best gas station car wash you ever had, with all the options, one price $8 can pay in store or at kiosk as you drive up. does the job

Correction: you own it for 2-3 years. Wash it if you want to wash it. It’s all about whether you want a dirty vehicle. I personally prefer touch-less washes. Even though lease companies don’t care about swirls in the paint, I do. Would never use a car wash.

I’m not sure why, but it is a very limited regional thing at the moment. Would beat the pants off most of my local options.

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My past 6 vehicles never saw a wash while in my possession. :smile:

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You can’t run a car through a car wash that was built on a Tuesday, Thursday or 2nd Friday of the month, silly! Everyone knows that!

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Should’ve read the FAQs. My :bat:

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I was just thinking about this today. Can’t be bothered with washing it myself and there are no decent hand wash options below $35. So I had a subscription to the local auto car wash for $30/mo. Until now, the strategy worked because I had light colored vehicles (bunch of whites, grey), but now I’m in a bit of a pickle with this carbon black. Even Mediterranean blue didn’t really show bad swirls but CB is just very very dark. I just now that it’ll be paint swirl city the first time I run it through. Luckily I have a reprieve of a few days as it’s gonna rain tomorrow. What to do what to do…

I only hand wash when the weather permits. If it doesn’t, touchless car washes only. Contact car washes are scratch and swirl mark machines.

But I used to do professional detailing and I have about 60 different products in my garage so I’m not exactly the right person to answer this.

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Whether or not I’m giving it back in a few years, I want a car that looks as perfect as possible. That means hand washes, buffing, polishing/compounding, 2 bucket washes, coats of sealant and wax, etc.

Of course, it’s probably easier to not care, but to me its both a hobby and a service to one’s car.

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Do you wash a rental car? :joy: I hand wash mine allot because I’m cheap, but in the winter I’ll take it to the car wash, and I opt for the cheap wash. Never get the undercarriage wash, uh because it’s a lease! I also don’t feel bad when I drive it like I stole it. I’m also the guy that when the oil needs changing close to lease end, I just reset the oil life timer.

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Did anyone ever try the Mr. Clean Auto Wash system? It’s been discontinued for years, but I LOVED that thing. Even to this date refills for it go for a fortune on the secondary market, even though they are most likely long since expired. It used a special gun that hooked up to your hose, and had different pressure settings, as well as a soap dispenser and a special filter cartridge like a brita pitcher that let you do a spotless rinse from a hose. I wish they would bring it back. A store had them on clearance years ago for pennies on the dollar and I bought a couple, not knowing that I’d never see them again.

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Recommendations for 3-4 must-have products for hand washing?

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