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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > Wash, Wax, Detailing and Cosmetic protection/repairs > Car Washing Procedures



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      02-07-2006, 06:20 PM   #1
karbosshack
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Car Washing Procedures

Just bought a new E90 AW. Just curious as to what everyones procedures are. Do you guys apply polish every time???

What is your normal routine, how often do you do what??

Any advice would be helpful. Thanks!
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      02-07-2006, 06:31 PM   #2
karbosshack
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Oh, just so you guys know I live in AZ, so is it necessary to coat with Zaino and do all that fancy stuff all the time when it's so hot and dry???
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      02-07-2006, 06:45 PM   #3
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Ok, I just spray the car down with some water from the hose, making sure to get off any brake dust from the brakes and wheels. Next i rinse out the bucket to make sure theres no dirt from the last wash and then put in some car wash liquid and fill the bucket up. Then i wash the car moving from top to bottom and then, with a worn out rag or sponge, get the wheels. Give the car a nice rinse and use two microfiber towels to dry off. then lift the hood to whipe down under that. I then use a reg. towel to dry the wheels. I then use a spray wax (turtle wax) on the car, and whipe off with another microfiber towel. I only use actual wax like Zaino maybe once to twice a month, maybe less. Just try to keep ur car clean with reg. washes.
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      02-07-2006, 06:49 PM   #4
karbosshack
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Sounds like a good procedure to me!

So regular washes (I've done them in 2 week intervals, seeing as I'm in dry AZ no rain/slow to worry about). Do some spray wax everytime.

Then maybe once a month apply some Zaino?

Any other suggestions/revisions??

Thanks for your help!
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      02-07-2006, 07:01 PM   #5
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Try and make sure that whatever type of mit u use to wash ur car is changed as it gets dirty from previous washes. i just got a microfiber mitt, it works pretty well.
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      02-07-2006, 08:31 PM   #6
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O.K. Here is my routine. I take great pride in washing cars. I live with my parents (I'm 18, and at college). They have nice cars (just leave it at that). We tried the laserwash, but it left stripes on the cars. plus one of the cars has no b-pillar, so the water sealants aren't that good. Then I tried the mr. clean Autodry. That was O.K. but I still needed hire preasure to get more serious dirt off. So, then we upgraded to a 2400psi preasure washer. The thing is fantastic. I start by just rinsing the car on low preasure to get it wet. Then I do a high preasure rinse. I then hook up the the car wash (meguires) and drench the car in suds. I take a sponge and go over the whole car and rinse quickly (while continuously rinsing the sponge). I then take a microfiber covered sponge and rewash to make sure its really clean. Then I take a squeggie (not sure how to spell it) a dry it off (clean it after every swipe, otherwise you will scratch the paint with trapped dirt). Then take a chamois to get off the remaining water to prevent waterspots. That the end off washing.

However, once a month I wax the cars to keep them shiny. DONT DRIVE THE CAR FROM THE TIME YOU WASH IT TO THE TIME YOU WAX IT.
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      02-07-2006, 09:21 PM   #7
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Just use ONLY Zaino products and your car will look amazing
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      02-08-2006, 12:12 AM   #8
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Thanks for your guys' help.

My question is, I have a touch free car wash right next to my house, that goes off pressurized water. It First goes with a ton of pressurized water, then applies soap everywhere, then rinses for a couple minutes. Then there's the blower to dry it, and then I used microfiber towels to get the remaining water off. Does this sound ok?

Then once a month, wax it right there without taking it home first. I've never actually waxed a car (only 18, dad's always done our other cars), how long does it take? Any precautions?

I appreciate all your help!!!
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      02-08-2006, 08:58 AM   #9
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I personally would only use the laserwash for a quick fix. I have found that it doesn't get the car clean enough to wax. You may notice dirt still on the car. Dont wax on a laserwashed car as it is more likely to scratch the paint work with the dirt that isn't that noticable.

Waxing. It takes a while if you do it right. Dont wax your car in the sunlight (also dont wash car in sunlight). Follow the instuctions on the bottle. It takes about 2-4 hours to wax a car. It depends on how many steps you do ( wax, pollish). the most time I have spent on a car is about 7 hours

You also have to give the same treatment to the rims. wash properly with sponge, suds and preasure washer and dry. Then depending on the rim type (painted or not) pollish them. Then to the tires, dont use a spray on tire shine because that stuff goes everywhere but on the tire! Use a old sponge or cloth and spray the tire shine onto the cloth/sponge, and apply to tire.
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      02-08-2006, 09:43 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by england1987
O.K. Here is my routine. I take great pride in washing cars. I live with my parents (I'm 18, and at college). They have nice cars (just leave it at that). We tried the laserwash, but it left stripes on the cars. plus one of the cars has no b-pillar, so the water sealants aren't that good. Then I tried the mr. clean Autodry. That was O.K. but I still needed hire preasure to get more serious dirt off. So, then we upgraded to a 2400psi preasure washer. The thing is fantastic. I start by just rinsing the car on low preasure to get it wet. Then I do a high preasure rinse. I then hook up the the car wash (meguires) and drench the car in suds. I take a sponge and go over the whole car and rinse quickly (while continuously rinsing the sponge). I then take a microfiber covered sponge and rewash to make sure its really clean. Then I take a squeggie (not sure how to spell it) a dry it off (clean it after every swipe, otherwise you will scratch the paint with trapped dirt). Then take a chamois to get off the remaining water to prevent waterspots. That the end off washing.

However, once a month I wax the cars to keep them shiny. DONT DRIVE THE CAR FROM THE TIME YOU WASH IT TO THE TIME YOU WAX IT.
I wouldn't use a sponge for washing your car. Sponges leave fine scratches in your paintwork however because you have a AW BMW you may get away with it due to it being a light colour.

Best way to wash car is use a medium size pressure washer get all dirt off car working from top to bottom. Inspect car make sure all heavy dirt has come off. Then prepare two buckets, one with warm water on its own and one normal cold tap water with car shampoo and wax (all in 1) of choice (bmw's aint bad). Using a Sheep skin Mit wash top half of car or the least dirty area first with the car shampoo and wax. Keep cleaning your sheep skin mit in the warm water as your washing your car. Then do the bottom half/ more dirty area of the car. Again still cleaning the sheep skin mit in the warm water! dont rinse of the shampoo and wax as your doing your car because you want the wax to work into the paint but instead rinse the car with the pressure washer as soon as you have washed the whole car with the sheep skin mit. Rinse for godd amount of time. To dry car use a leaf blower or take car for spin need to hit around 80mph .
Do this every 1-2 weeks and dont let the car build up with dirt.

Only wax your car every 5-6 months.

Wash wheels before washing car separetly using seperate water/mit etc..

Last edited by NPinUK; 02-08-2006 at 11:26 AM..
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      02-08-2006, 10:07 AM   #11
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Sponges, pressure washing, only waxing every 5-6 months (I'm assuming carnuba wax, not Zaino), using the same bucket and sponge for wheels and paint... sorry people, bad advice, lol. If you want your car to look trashy in 6 months proceed with all of the above. If you want your car to look brand new, read the following thread. (Are stickies that hard to see???... seems like nobody wants to read)

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9145
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      02-08-2006, 11:23 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DavidN
How to: Properly Wash your Car


First some basic rules:

1. You should always wash your car out of direct sunlight. I usually wash my car in the evening once the sun starts to set giving me enough shade on my driveway. This will help to avoid water spots.

2. Don't ever wash your car immediately after driving it. Two reasons for this;
-Your rotors are still hot. Spraying cold water on them will cause them to warp
-Your hood will also be warm making it more susceptible to nasty hard water spots

Washing:

1. Use a nozzle gun that will allow you to control the intensity of the water you are spraying onto your vehicle.

2. Always start with your rims, rubber, and wheel wells. Start with the two front wheels since they are the dirtiest. Fill up one bucket with car wash soap. Spray the rim, rubber, and well with water. Mist the rim lightly. Use full force on the rubber, and well. Dip a sponge in the soap. Start by cleaning the rim. When complete, mist off the soap. Spray water on the sponge at full force to clean the gunk from the rim off of it. Wring out the water when complete. Dip the sponge back in the soap, and clean the well. Spray the soap off when complete. Clean the sponge with water, wring it out and place it back in the bucket. Clean your rubber by using a tire brush. Try scooping only the suds from the top of the bucket onto the bristles. Work the suds into the sidewall until you are satisfied they are clean. Use full pressure water to clean the soap off. Use the full pressure from the nozzle to clean the brush. Place it back in the bucket. Repeat this process for the next 3.

3. When finished step 2, clean the sponge and brush as outlined in step 2. Dump the soap from the bucket and rinse the bucket out with clean water.

4. Fill up the now clean bucket from step 3 and another clean bucket with car wash soap. I usually put 4 or 5 cap fulls of soap in my bucket. It allows my to fill up the bucket with more water half way through my wash, and still maintain good suds. Put two different dedicated 100% chenille wash mitts into each bucket. Do not re-use the sponge from step two on your paint! One bucket/mitt will be used to clean all horizontal surfaces and all vertical surfaces above the middle of the door. The other bucket/mitt will be used to clean all areas of the car below the middle of the door. Why am I doing this you ask? Well, the areas below the door tend to be dirtier, thus you wouldn’t want to use the same mitt on the horizontal areas as it will most likely cause swirls. I use two buckets because it allows me to keep my wash water cleaner during the process. Using one bucket will guarantee dirty water and in turn create swirls[/url]
I don't see it mention anything about rinsing you car down before washing it. If you wash a car before rinsing it with water then the dirt on it will cause scratches no matter what you use to wash it with.

Drying the car with towels = scrtaches especially if your washing your car outside because small dust particles will deposit on your car threw the air natuarally after you washed it. There only may be 1 particle but this will get stuck in the towel and cause scratches.
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      02-08-2006, 11:43 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NPinUK
I don't see it mention anything about rinsing you car down before washing it. If you wash a car before rinsing it with water then the dirt on it will cause scratches no matter what you use to wash it with.

Drying the car with towels = scrtaches especially if your washing your car outside because small dust particles will deposit on your car threw the air natuarally after you washed it. There only may be 1 particle but this will get stuck in the towel and cause scratches.
Actually, I do say to rinse the car down first (I actually specify to spray each section down before washing it with soap). Here it is from the article. You missed it on your post. It is in step 5:

5. Start by washing the highest part of your car and working your way down.

You should mist the roof and front and rear windows with water. Dip your sponge for your top part of the car into its bucket.
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      02-08-2006, 11:50 AM   #14
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My bad. Can you expalin why a pressure washer shouldn't be used? How often do you wash your car between the periods after full detailing.
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      02-08-2006, 11:54 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NPinUK
My bad. Can you expalin why a pressure washer shouldn't be used? How often do you wash your car between the periods after full detailing.
The pressure from a pressure wash can actually push dirt into the clear coat, hence why I avoid them.

As for how often to wash between details, it all depends on how dirty the car is as well as how much time a person has. For me, I try to wash my car every 2-3 weeks. I usually don't need to do it once a week as my car is still relatively clean.

Hope this helps.
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      02-08-2006, 12:08 PM   #16
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it depends how you use the preasure washer, if you use it a couple of inches away, of course this will happen
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      02-08-2006, 02:27 PM   #17
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These days I am forced to have someone else wash the car, but this was my previous routine (but I will still wax it myself).
-Spray the car down with a hose to loosen the dirt on the surface (be sure to spray the wheels, tires, and fenderwells).
-Use a good car shampoo (I use Mequires) and a wool wash mitt to wash the car (start at the top and work your way down, to avoid swirl marks from the dirtier lower panels).
-Rinse
-Clean the wheels and tires with a sponge using the water left over from washing the car (never wash the wheels first, unless you use separate buckets).
-I dry the car with "The Absorber". I will dry the wheels and tires with an old terrycloth towel (nothing fancy needed here).
-Then I dress the tires with a tire gel from Meguires. I just use a small tire applicator and this stuff lasts for a couple of weeks.
-For waxing purposes, I use Klasse All-In-One followed by Sealant Glaze once in Spring and again in late Fall.
From start of wash to finish of waxing takes at most about 90 minutes (twice per year). The regular wash would take about 10 minutes every other week or so.
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      02-08-2006, 02:51 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by younghov85
Try and make sure that whatever type of mit u use to wash ur car is changed as it gets dirty from previous washes. i just got a microfiber mitt, it works pretty well.
I heard a micro fiber mitt will trap all the dirt in it's little "hooks". You can create swirl marks with it. Use that mitt to dust down the interior. Use a sheepskin mitt and make sure to rinse it out often.
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      02-08-2006, 02:55 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gdnyc
I heard a micro fiber mitt will trap all the dirt in it's little "hooks". You can create swirl marks with it. Use that mitt to dust down the interior. Use a sheepskin mitt and make sure to rinse it out often.
Yes, MF mitts will trap dirt and are not ideal for washing the paint. Sheepskin is the way to go.
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      02-08-2006, 05:20 PM   #20
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Thanks for all the advice, getting a better understanding of what to do and what not to

David, I did read the sticky, but I wanted to get more than one person's advice. Feel free to ask me on advice about politeness and manners though, anytime you're up for it.
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      02-08-2006, 07:19 PM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by karbosshack
Thanks for all the advice, getting a better understanding of what to do and what not to

David, I did read the sticky, but I wanted to get more than one person's advice. Feel free to ask me on advice about politeness and manners though, anytime you're up for it.
Sorry if I came off as harsh. Not my intention. Just trying to get my point across. I used to be like everyone here. I'd wash my car with a sponge, dry with a real chamois and slap on some cleaner wax and think my car looked great. I know where everyone here is coming from. I was there myself. Looking back, I'd be the first to tell you that my own car looked like trash back then. If I can help others to keep their cars looking great from the get go, then I'll be very pleased.

No hard feelings. Take it easy.
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      02-08-2006, 09:30 PM   #22
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No worries, I was only giving you a hard time


Thanks again!
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