Cleaning water and dirt splashes off between washes

[The Ericsons]

Our Prius is a Millennium Silver and looks beautiful when clean, with the sun shining on it; however, road splashes really show and spoil the beauty. What is the easiest way to quickly clean these off and keep it looking pristine between major washings? Just wash with a wet cloth & buff it dry? The back of the car....liftback and window....especially suffer with dirty splashes and need cleaning daily in the spring weather. Does wiping with a dry cloth scratch the surface? Thanks!

[popoff]

NEVER wipe a dirty car down with a dry cloth! Best way to get scratches and swirl marks.

I use a trickling hose (no soap) and a microfiber cloth to clean the car off, always making sure the surface is wet before I wipe it. I also like to use a "wax as you dry" type of product when I dry the car off with the same microfiber cloth. Not much extra work and the car winds up looking great.

Microfiber cloths are available at Wal Mart, Sams, some grocery stores, and from many speciality catalogs. Their structure is such that they can trap dirt in such a way that it doesn't scratch. They also do a wonderful job on windows and most other surfaces. I use a clean one on my computer screen and camera lenses.