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Are Car Washes At Petrol Stations Safe?


benchan
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Hi,

I'm thinking of using one of those car wash things at a petrol station - are they safe? Can they possible do damage to the paint work?

Ben

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Personally, I wont let my Corolla within 100 yards off these..

Damage to our corsa over 3 years thanks to these things

* Ariel snapped in half

* Cracked side mirrors (twice)

* Scratched alloy

* Plastic trimmings loose around the car where the brushes have caught and pulled on them.

And before anyone starts Corsa bashing, its a great little car with a solid build! :ph34r:

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Hi,

I'm thinking of using one of those car wash things at a petrol station - are they safe? Can they possible do damage to the paint work?

Ben

No............Certainly not. I was involved in a long thread here relating to a similar question, wash it by hand, its safer.........and cheaper. Kingo :thumbsup:

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No - got to get out your sponge and bucket

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I'm thinking of using one of those car wash things at a petrol station -

Think again... Long & Hard :thumbsup:

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In the days when I had a lease car I used to use them a lot. Never had any actual damage like a deep scratch or anything broken off the car, but that's probably just luck. However, even if you're lucky in that respect then you can still guarantee that your paint will be covered in tiny scratches which will get worse and worse over time. These can be repaired, but personally I wouldn't risk it. I'd rather drive a dirty car than use one of those machines on any of my own cars.

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You might think using a carwash is ok but when you look at the paintwork close enough you'll see lots of swirl marks caused by the brushes. Horrible!

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Benchan

I found this on the 107 website, I hope it helps

1) NEVER EVER EVER use a sponge for cleaning - you want a wash mitt.

The swirls that you see in a cars paintwork, normally in artifitial or sunlight, are caused by grit and man made fibres in a 99p halfrauds sponge.

2) DON'T use fairy liquid or a dishwasing soap - it contains sodium (salt) and will encourage corrosion - use a car shampoo.

3) For further cleaning, including drying, use microfibre towels, these are available in TESCO's for about a quid and again will reduce the 'swirl' marks that always seem to appear over time.

1. apply wheel cleaner ( more for alloys really)

2. rinse wheels and wet whole car

3. tar and bug remover lower quarter

4. rinse

5. wash with shampoo

6. rinse

7. claybar

8. rinse

9. dry

10. apply paint cleaner

11. remove

12. apply polish

13. remove

14. apply wax

15. remove

16. clean glass

17. clean non painted trim

18. add tyre treatment

Rasitlin

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I found this as well

Hints & Tips

One of the best things you can do to maintain the quality of your motors appearance is regular washing, removing loose dirt and road film from the top of your motors paint finish. The type of Cloth, Mitt, Blade, Shampoos etc you use to wash and dry your motor is of vital importance in this process as is the care of these materials.

- Use a wash tool that can hold a lot of soapy water - this is again important for lubrication, preventing dirt from scratching your paint.

- Use a tool that has a lot of fine fibres and can pick up and hold dirt particles more effectively - again removing them from the surface of the paint to prevent scratching.

- Use a tool that can be cleaned easily to remove the particle it has picked up.

However regular washing, if not done with the right tools can also damage your paint surface and its appearance. Even the mildest of soaps can remove the protection from your paint and detergents can dull the finish even faster. Therefore:

- Use a high-quality motor wash shampoo. A good shampoo will provide lubrication to help prevent scratching and uses conditioners to help maintain the shine of your paintwork.

- Do not use general household washing liquids.

Washing & Drying Tips

Use two buckets - one with shampoo and one with just clean water to regularly rinse your wash tools during the washing process.

Wash tyres and wheels first - do not use the same water for washing the paintwork after. Throw it away and rinse the bucket out before filling again for the paintwork.

Also use a separate wash tool than the ones you will use for the paintwork.

Wash your vehicle when it is cool and where possible wash in the shade to prevent water evaporating too quickly and causing water spots.

First wet the surface of your vehicle with a good spray of water to loosen surface dirt. For bikes avoid the use of a pressure washer or strong hose spray.

Apply lots of soapy water with a tool with lots of fine fibres to draw up the dirt. Sponges tend to drag the dirt along the surface increasing the risk of the dirt scratching.

Wash from the top of the motor down in straight lines, not a circular motion. For bikes start with the tank and windshield (where relevant). Rinse each section as you go to avoid chances of soapy films remaining on your paintwork.

Give the motor a final rinse with the hose - do not use spray attachment as you want the water to sheet off the motor taking any last particles and residues with it.

Dry motor using your chosen tool, i.e. as a Chamois, microfibre Cloth or Hydra Blade, again working in straight lines from the top down. Don’t forget to check for grit on every pass. Leaf blowers or the compressed air cans used in cleaning computers are good tools for bikes.

Give your tyres and wheels a final dry - again try to avoid using the same drying cloth you would use on the paintwork.

Regular washing is important to maintaining your motors appearance as is using and looking after your quality wash and drying tools. After washing and drying your motor always wash your tools and store them in a dry, dirt free place.

Remember when washing microfibre Cloths do NOT use bleach or fabric softener/conditioner as it will tend to fill the spaces within the fibres and reduce its effectiveness

Raistlin

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The Aygo is so small can be hand washed in about 10 minutes.

Anyone who goes through an 18 stage process to clean a car has too much time on their hands!

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Just get the paintwork sealed, costs a bit, but no more waxing etc for a few years.

Ideal for people like me who only wash the cars when the nagging gets unbearable

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Just get the paintwork sealed, costs a bit, but no more waxing etc for a few years.

Ideal for people like me who only wash the cars when the nagging gets unbearable

What product or company did you use ?

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Used SmartCar based in Bilston. They put some sealent from http://sutherbys.co.uk/.

For the Corolla i got a deal as i was getting the Corsa valet'd as well. Cost i think about £135, thats for the protection, scotch guard on seats and a 4 year guarantee.

I don't know how good it is, but 1st impressions are good and the valet company has been around for 10years+ and has a good reputation.

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Hi,

I'm thinking of using one of those car wash things at a petrol station - are they safe? Can they possible do damage to the paint work?

Ben

Please don't go near an auto wash, they can wreck the paint <_<

I can wash and dry my daughter's Aygo in less than an hour, you will treat your car far better than anyone else would :D

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u wash and dry your daughters AYgo? tell her to do it herself i can imagine the responce from my car if i asked him to wash my car something along the lines of "do it your f*&^*$£ self u lazy git" or my mum "jog on son"

but on that note Cars = hand wash only, never go near or be tempted by the lazyness of a car wash, i've never taken any of my 2 cars to a car wash in there life, my current car has got so used to hand washing now she physically get scared and start steering away from a car wash or speeds up to get past it quicker

wash shampoo

dry slowly with a shammy leather

Mer it with cloth leaving for 30minutes

Buff of the mer

Stand and admire the shine

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When I still had a DeLorean I even put THAT through the CarWash and never had ANY problems whatsoever...

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When I still had a DeLorean I even put THAT through the CarWash and never had ANY problems whatsoever...

But the DeLorean had brushed stainless steel body panels. Not much chance of carwash rotors scratching the paint on them. :no:

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unless u hate ur paint dont use one

last one i was in put a spider swirl in my paint and ripped my spoiler off :|

you have been warned lol

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When I still had a DeLorean I even put THAT through the CarWash and never had ANY problems whatsoever...
But the DeLorean had brushed stainless steel body panels. Not much chance of carwash rotors scratching the paint on them.

The Fascias, rear louver and most of the trim still were painted...

And the brush-direction alsno never got any marks on it...

If you're all that concerned about the paint on your cars, why do you even

drive them? THAT is what poses the largest threat to anything on the car... :P

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I do drive it around, just have to be carfull as sometimes the bubble wrap flaps over onto my side of the windscreen.

Really annoying when that happens.

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The last car I put through a car wash (one of those Whale ones that is supposed to be the best and kindest to your car and the environment) was about 10 years ago - a Honda Civic 16V - It scratched the WINDSCREEN so god knows what danage it was doing to the paintwork!!!

Never used a car wash again on my own car (although the works 406 I had after that got put thrugh as I was not washing that biggun by hand!)

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A relative uses a Filling station brush-wash to clean his Celica.

In January, his car was caked with dried on salt and grime from the roads.

Off to the local Wash............Oh Dear, full on brush treatment all over his car but the pipework had frozen so no water at all.

The paintwork looked like a ploughed field!

Another warning. Years ago, some yoofs thought it would be funny to tie two or three nuts to the bristles.

Makes a similar noise to a machine gun and causes similar damage.

I daren't go near the things! Bucket, sponge and cold fingers.

*Old duffer*

Ian.

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