Waterless Car Wash?

take it to a coin operated car wash and do it yourself. in my area, its illegal to wash your car like we all used to do with the hose and bucket in the driveway. im not sure if its ever enforced (this year looks to be one of the driest winters ever so water will be tight this summer)

one thing to keep in mind with coin-operated places. i have found that there is a huge variance as to how much spotting occurs. spotting comes from washing your car in hard water. the water droplets evoporate and leave a residue on the car that in many cases will strip the paint off the car over time.

many places advertise using conditioned recycled water but the conditioning is borderline. so if you ever see the guy there working on the place, hit him up and find out how often he performs maintenance on the site.

 

Re: Car Wash

:? I must admit, I have been reluctant to run my Prius through a regular carwash - those where an attendant takes over. Even though there are Valet Parking "Instruction Sheets" provided with your Prius, I can't believe the average Car Wash attendant could instantly understand the peculiarities of starting and driviing a Prius. To avoid removing/replacing the stock Prius radio antenna, I replaced it with a "stubby" (2") antenna (to avoid antenna damage from brushes).

There are threads in several Prius Forums explaining how to place the Prius in "Neutral" for the type of Car Wash that puts your Prius on a driven track - to avoid possible drive train damage.

My plan is to either 1) Use a Car Wash which allows me to drive my Prius through myself (preferably a brushless one); or 2) Use a Car Wash stand in which I use the high-pressure wand; or 3) Hand wash it with a hose on my own driveway.

Enjoy your Prius when you get it - it's a remarkable car !!

 

There is a product called "Quick and Easy Wash", available at Camping World, that many auto detailers swear by. Check out the forum at www.detailcity.com and the detailing forum at www.roadfly.org for reviews. Search for the string "QEW". Another waterless product that has good reviews is Poorboy's Spray and Wipe Waterless Wash" (sometimes abbreviated "S&W").

Supposedly all you need is two buckets for QEW, one with a mix of water and QEW, and a rinse bucket for your applicator - no need to rinse your car with a spray of water. I've never used either product, and it amazes me that you can get heavy dirt off your car without scratching the finish without rinsing with a hose, but these guys do details that can cost several hundreds of dollars, and they're using waterless washes.

 

umm too bad we have had crashes here at PriusChat because several here have tried the "waterless" method and i dont think anyone prefers the method and I KNOW several hate it.

also, my sister is the scheduling manager for the detail shop for All-Star Ford in Olympia and they do not use the waterless method either.

because of antipolution laws, they are forced to wash cars with recycled and treated water in their wash pit.

if someone says they can do better with this waterless system, i suggest you witness a demostration first... have them use their own car!!

 

UPDATE!!

just got off the phone with my sister and the waterless system is the #1 cause of work at her shop. DO NOT under any circumstances use the waterless system if the car is dirty!! it will scratch the H*** out of your car. its very noticable on black paint jobs.

in her words.... if your car is already clean and you have money to blow, then the waterless system is a good idea. however, a paint seal job will do the exact same thing and her shop guarantees the results. and yes, they have done free re-buffs on paint seals when someone used the waterless system instead of the recommended wash system. (all paint seal jobs come with soap, wax, seal, and instructions on application. all washing methods involve the typical RINSE, WASH, RINSE, DRY, WAX)

 

I know I've mentioned this before but to avoid all the above mentioned disadvantages IMHO the best car wash solution is: a high pressure wash where you select the level of wash you wish, drive slowly into the bay( if you included the under vehicle wash mode to get rid of winter salt. etc) stop when the display tells you to, wait until the pressure wands mover around/over the car, and on completion drive slowly ( watching the second countdown readout) while the pressure air dryer does it's job. Up here it costs $8.00(CAD) $6.53 (US at today's exchange).
Pro's : 1.No one but you drives the vehicle.
2.No need to do other than press Park.
3.No swirls resulting from brushes/hand wiping.
4.No messing around with hoses and standing in your hip waders.
5.At the one I use no need to remove the radio antenna.

Con's: Wallet is a little lighter
Wash is not as well done as you might do yourself but see 3.above.
Loss of the satisfaction of saving $$ and self esteem.
Gary

 

$8 for the car wash??

hmmm, the waterless system was $29.95 for 4 washes...

 

Dave, Hmmmm $6.53 USx 4 = $26.12US ... I still think everything taken into consideration my "IMHO" still holds

 

Clarification: the two products I mentioned are car washes only - not all-in-one wash/polish/waxes like the product the original poster linked to. This may be why your sister is seeing paint damage at her place of work, while experienced, competent detailers swear by the waterless washes. Or it may be an incorrect application of a waterless wash product. I've never seen a review of an all-in-one waterless product, though they may exist on those two online forums I mentioned. I'm highly doubtful that they're any good though, it's hard enough to create a good cleaner/wax, let alone one that combines a waterless wash as well.

I'd expect that even the waterless washes could damage paint if you're not careful to continually rinse your applicator. Serious detailers have grates in the bottom of their buckets so the dirt is trapped in the bottom and not picked up again when they rinse their applicator.

 

My new favorite way of washing the Prius is by chasing thunderstorms! . . .:crazyeyes: . . . . . . :clap:

We actually had a severe thunderstorm and tornados here in the Sacramento area yesterday (unheard of global warming phenomenon?). The car came out very clean because we got a little too close.

My more reliable way is by using one of them Karcher electric pressure washers to blast off the heavy stuff that can scratch. The pressure washer isn’t strong enough to get the fine haze dirt, so I know it’s not going to damage the paint. I then do the normal car wash routine.

I live in an older neighborhood with a combined sewer/storm drain system, so washing the car in the driveway is ecologically the same as washing it in the bath tub.

The idea of a “dry†car wash is ludicrous! Of course it will scratch the ‘ell out of the paint.

 

Patrick:

A friend of mine purchased new an '89 GMC S-10. Or S-15, whatever the h*** it was called.

A week later he went to a car wash to keep his "little baby" looking like new. Got the pressure wand, aimed it at the cab roof, and blew off most of the paint.

He just about cried. I, being the sensitive and caring individual that I am, was absolutely ROTFFL.

Quite a few GM brand cars and trucks had crap paint jobs and needed repainting. So it's not impossible for a high pressure wand to blow paint off.

 

jayman, I would guess that the high pressure wash we have out here would not disturb any professional vehicle paint job. The word "high" probably has an accepted PSI level and above which you probably are aware of but I'll inquire next car wash what they consider to be "high " pressure wash. Maybe your friend used a 3 inch brush and latex on his GMC. :lol:

 

i should have went storm chasing with you instead of puddles splashing down here in san jose. now my car is all muddy and in need of a wash. If i had the cash i would go get a nice detailed wash and wax.. but no money.. no time. where's the good hard rains when you need them

 

I haven't had a chance to look at that link, but I've used some waterless stuff before. It seemed ok to me, but I also have a light color, so I might not have noticed the swirls, if any. If the rain ever lets up here, the Prius is due for another thorough cleaning.

 

Actually, quite a few GM-brand and Ford vehicles had severe problems with paint flaking. Apparently, they changed the primer and paint formulas to meet stricter VOC regulations, and the paint had poor adhesion.

Naturally, GM and Ford were reluctant to repaint all those cars and pickup trucks. CBC MarketPlace had an excellent story on this that raised awareness of the issue.

The Aviation industry has used "waterless" paint cleaners for a long time now. Most of them are made by Arrow Magnolia corp, such as Aero Glaze. I'm not sure if their products are compatible with Clear Coat finishes. Once you damage the Clear Coat, the paint will look *very* hazy.

 

My sisters place uses "Prestige Coatings" for the paint sealer and vinyl protector. this is in addition to clear coating.

other separate cleaners are used to wash the car first and in most cases, only mild soap is needed.

 

David:

If the "Prestige Coatings" is from the following company:

http://www.prestigepowder.com

It sounds like a superior product.