How do you wash your car?

Jeez some of you people are brutal to your leases lol. I like to drive a clean car plus I am also a professional detailer so I guess I might just be a little OCD. I ceramic coated my Accord Sport the day it came off the lot and I wash my car bi-weekly with a foam canon and 2-bucket wash. I also perform a yearly Iron-x treatment to keep the surface as smooth as possible (you shouldn’t use clay bars with ceramic coating).

I guess whoever buys my car when I turn it in will be a happy customer :slight_smile:

@Ben_Shafer So you don’t clay bar at all? Iron x will take care of contaminants in the same way?

Iron-x will take care of Iron particles and minor fall out as long as you keep up with washing. If you wash the car routinely you shouldn’t need to clay bar with a good ceramic coating (I use Gtechniq CSL + EXO). What it won’t take car of is tar build up or overspray but after 2 years my paint is still baby soft.

Clay bars are technically abrasive and will lessen the time the coating lasts. A company called “22PLE” just came out with a coating safe clay bar this year but I have yet try it. It does look promising though as its a very soft clay bar.

I treat both my cars (leased and financed) the same way - about 2-3 car washes a year :slightly_smiling_face:

Rinse with garden hose. Dry with leaf blower. Waterless/rinseless wash in pump sprayer. Wipe down with microfiber.

If car is not too dirty, rinseless wash with 4-5 micro fibers, maybe only use about 32 oz of water.

Apply sealant 2-3 times a year

Sorry to necro thread but thought it made more sense than a new thread on the same topic:

Has anyone had issues with getting excess w+t charges for swirl marks? All the automatic car washes near me use brushes and I’m not about to bust out a foam cannon and buckets for a car I drive through mud and snow everyday.

I’d highly recommend these few products:
All from Chemical Guys(Leading brand)
-Butter wet wax
-Hydro speed ceramic spray quick detailed, will make car feel like butter and look it too!
-all interior cleaner
-Diablo wheel gel for cleaning tires /rims **
-Clay bar car with clay lumber, takes the roughness away.
-hydro suds for a wash soap
-wollymamoth dry towel, which is super helpful

Try to find either an automatic touchless wash or hand wash. But unless the swirl marks are through the clear coat/paint, it would be normal wear and tear. If you are really paranoid, get the car polished a few weeks before turn in. A basic one step polish should remove 50%-75% of swirl marks.

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They’re all expensive, maybe slightly overpriced, but they’re amazing

I’m not worried about it… I’m worried about the inspector being worried about it.

Thanks for confirming that it will probably be normal w+t.