Don’t know what salt or other substance they’ve put on the roads this year but car shampoo isn’t shifting the dirt. Admittedly, I’ve let it build up over four months, but it’s not normally this bad.

You’ve probably got no wax protecting the paint anymore. Give the car a wash, followed by clay bar / iron X to remove any contaminants. Then give it a wax to protect the paint.

I just drive slowly past some eastern european gentlemen and the dirt comes right off.

Me too Legend, Although they’re from East Ayrshire, which is even more of a language barrier.

I sometimes wash my bikes though.

Not me.

It gets cleaned every time it gets serviced or repaired, no struggle at all. (-:

I’d take it to those drive in carwash thingies for the next few weeks, every week, maybe twice a week. Then I’d start doing it myself again, then treat it to some wax n polish, do that a couple of times before the summers out..

I wash mine (well put it through the car wash) every spring, whether it needs it or not.

Not sure what you’re supposed to do with the inside though.

I just put my car in for the annual service with a year’s worth of crud and half a forest of mud inside and they do a valet service on it included in the price 😀

Still though, I’m finding cleaning bikes a struggle also. Normally a hose down will do, but it’s taking a lot of them and still finding crud.

Just spent the morning cleaning the T4, it’s amazing how dirty it gets considering it spends most of it’s time sat on the drive.

No idea what they’ve put on the roads around my way this year (central Scotland) but shitloads of tar and general contaminant buildup on the paintwork. Was sealed and well and truly waxed ahead of winter too but it’s just not coming off with regular washing.

Search for ‘tardis’ tar remover then use a claybar. Then rewax. Sigh. That’s a job for a couple of months time.

Mine gets washed every time it rains……just aim for the big puddles. Job jobbed

What is this ‘washing cars’?

I wash my car proportionally to the amount of use it gets, which is not very often. Which is how life should be IMO 🙂
My bikes get a lot more TLC

I have my butler give mine a good buff and polish every evening. Innit! 🙂

I wash mine (well put it through the car wash) every spring, whether it needs it or not.

Not sure what you’re supposed to do with the inside though.

Windows down. Goggles on.

Try a bit of Mucoff or similar, I dowse the lower parts of my car and the wheels in it before i wash it and the dirt just slides off with the jet wash

I love how everyone is proud of not looking after something they’ve spent thousands of pounds on.

I’m thinking of getting Natural England round to look at mine as a potential SSSI – it’s got two species of lichen growing on it.

Bensales +1

I am assuming the same peopl don’t iron their clothes, or ever decorate a house, or comb their hair. Or wear clothes that match.

I think the moss contributes to offsetting its carbon footprint.

Well, hundreds maybe. Aren’t cars designed to be left outdoors then?

Or wear clothes that match.

Apart from suits, who wears clothes that match? Do you double denim?

I love how everyone is proud of not looking after something they’ve spent thousands of pounds on.

Don’t forget to add in all the external costs to everyone’s health and the environment for a full net valuation of the car…

If we disrespected the motor car a little more society would be an awful lot healthier and happier

Place to go

Detailing World

A good pre wash spray, jet wash, 2 bucket method with a microfibre wash mitt never a sponge, tar remover, iron fallout remover, clay bar, polish, wax. That is the basics for a perfect finish if you do it right.

I’m not sure why a bit of dirt should be considered harmful. I’ve never had a car fail an MOT through being too dirty. It’s not like a bike where the moving parts are exposed and need cleaning to work properly.

I love how everyone is proud of not looking after something they’ve spent thousands of pounds on.

Mine will get cleaned when it warms up a bit (£10), like last spring when it got cleaned.

before then, it’ll get new gas struts (£35) and an MOT because I wouldn’t want to spend money on a knackered car 😀

In the 7 years I’ve owned the thing £45 is about 5% of what it’s cost me in maintenance, including tyres.

My view is that things designed to work outside don’t need cleaning, so I don’t clean cars or bikes.
Cleaning isn’t the same as maintaining, as that’s needed for reliable operation.

Don’t anyone of you know any children!

Last year I bought some snow foam and a lance and it’s a revelation – spray the car all over then walk away for 5-10 mins, come back and rince it off with the powerwasher. Gets 90% of all the muck off which is good enough for me most of the time.
My car is filthy ATM though because I’ve run out of snow foam and we live on a country lane where tractors make up 20% of the total traffic 🙁

But it’s going in tomorrow for a new button and will come back valeted 🙂

There are many things that can actually ruin the clear coat on the car but i really can’t be bothered explaining as I don’t think you will take any notice. Each to their own though. Some people view their cars just as a mode of transport and people like me have a passion and like to care for them. That involves doing yearly services.

The dirty bits are holding the rusty bits together in my car.

Farm lane to work, so Octavia won’t be cleaned until things dry up. Truck wash removes everything, just not sure if it will take the flaking paint off the roof this year.

The Panda is far cleaner as I don’t take it to work, but will need more attention as it is black and not just a cheap tool like the Octavia.

wait … you’re supposed to wash cars after the 3 years is up ?
buggers means that mine is 9 years overdue for its first wash, oh
well that’s only 243k’s worth to get off 😉

The van gets a wash when I get dirtier getting in and out of it than when riding muddy trails but the car is washed and waxed etc as soon as its dirty with expensive products….but then it’s no different to my biggest investment bikes. The fatty and the 29er get abused like the van.

Like some automotive **** I’ve tried to keep my black car almost black at least once a fortnight with a jet spray and spray on wax stuff. I was planning to give it a proper wash and maybe even try one of those wax bar things soon, but it seems the local council aren’t a follower of the Groundhog and have salted the crap out of the roads again.

Cars cost a fortune. Why not look after them.
Mine gets washed and dried at least once or twice a week.
It was a nice warm day today, on a clean car it took 30 minutes to wax it with Auto Glym.
It will probably be washed again over the weekend, a clean car is easier to wash. Again if its nice and warm it may get another coat of wax.
Doesn’t seem to take long considering the value.

* points and laughs *

I sometime use a car wash 😯

My van gets washed every few weeks but that’s just because it was quite expensive so I want to look after it.
It is a ballache though, especially this time of year.
Kinda miss the days of my LR 90. Brush & roller painted in satin NATO green. I washed the underside regularly but the bodywork got cleaned once a year, few days before mot. If it looked a bit scruffy I just painted it again. Took a few hours tops.