Car Wash Question - F Sport Wheels
11-18-14, 08:02 AM
#1
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Car Wash Question - F Sport Wheels
I have a new to me 2013 F Sport that I need to get washed in an automatic car wash. Before I attempt this, I would like to hear from anyone else that has done it. Have you had any problems with damage to your F Sport wheels? I am talking about the kind of wash that actually cleans your car with cloth where your car has to be driven between two rails that have conveyor belt to pull it through the wash.
Before everyone chastises me about the idea of running my car through a car wash, please consider how my climate may differ from yours. We already have 6-12" of snow and it is a whopping high of 18f today. This is not the kind of climate where I am going to a DIY car wash unless I absolutely have to. In another month it will be below zero every day for a few weeks.
Before everyone chastises me about the idea of running my car through a car wash, please consider how my climate may differ from yours. We already have 6-12" of snow and it is a whopping high of 18f today. This is not the kind of climate where I am going to a DIY car wash unless I absolutely have to. In another month it will be below zero every day for a few weeks.
11-18-14, 08:05 AM
#2
Lexus Test Driver
The FSport wheels paint is very soft. Just make sure ur not using harsh chemicals or the guide rail isn't scratching it. I've had guide rails scratching my low profile wheels before and the FSport wheel is kinda low profile, so be extra careful.
11-18-14, 08:07 AM
#3
Instructor
Are you concerned that the rails will scratch your rims or the cloth rollers? I have taken my car to those car washed only a few time but have never had a problem. But i do prefer to do my own washing. Because my climate is not too cold.
11-18-14, 09:08 AM
#5
Pole Position
Isn't it going to be dirty again the day after you wash it?
11-18-14, 09:29 AM
#6
Lexus Test Driver
Trending Topics
11-18-14, 12:13 PM
#8
Lexus Test Driver
11-18-14, 06:19 PM
#9
I'd find a touchless car wash. No damage and no swirls. A quick detailer wipe down will remove any water spots. Maybe use a wowo spray sealant to retain slickness and shine. No worry about wheel damage.
11-19-14, 10:45 AM
#10
Touchless car wash make you feel your car is clean but it does not really clean the contaminants that well regardless of how much pressure the water hose has. It looks clean on the surface but if you touch it, you will still feel the dirt or contaminants. This guy explains it very well.
Also, I think that touchless car wash will use very strong chemical to have good cleaning power. Those chemical will strip off any wax you have rendering your car without any protection. It is not good in the long run.
Also, I think that touchless car wash will use very strong chemical to have good cleaning power. Those chemical will strip off any wax you have rendering your car without any protection. It is not good in the long run.
11-19-14, 02:56 PM
#11
Touchless car wash make you feel your car is clean but it does not really clean the contaminants that well regardless of how much pressure the water hose has. It looks clean on the surface but if you touch it, you will still feel the dirt or contaminants. This guy explains it very well.
Touchless Wash - Good or Bad? - Part 1 - YouTube
Also, I think that touchless car wash will use very strong chemical to have good cleaning power. Those chemical will strip off any wax you have rendering your car without any protection. It is not good in the long run.
Touchless Wash - Good or Bad? - Part 1 - YouTube
Also, I think that touchless car wash will use very strong chemical to have good cleaning power. Those chemical will strip off any wax you have rendering your car without any protection. It is not good in the long run.
I don't dispute that a touchless wash does not clean as well as a 2 bucket method wash, or that the strength of a touchless detergent may shorten the life of most waxes and some sealants. But keep in mind, even a hand wash will not remove all of the road grime and contaminants. You will notice this if you clay regularly.
So here is where each of us needs evaluate how clean is clean enough for our cars in our environment. Junkman lives in KY. I'd like to see how he would deal with a winter in WI, MI or MN, LOL. Most likely his Vette would sit in a garage all winter much as we do with our garage queens.
In my home state of WI, winter is around 4-6 months of mostly sub-freezing weather. Often temps are well below zero. It is 22° F and snowing as I type this. Strong chemical melters, salt and sand are used on our roads in abundance. Cars get dirty quickly, typically in hours, and without a heated garage, hand washing is not an option. Even if you had a heated garage, you'd need to wash daily and likely would not be able to do the high pressure underbody wash to remove the salt residue. Given the choice of a touch or a touchless auto wash, I'll choose the touchless every time. Come spring I'll have no paint marring and water will still bead due to my regular use of D156. Come spring it will only take a good hand wash and clay to restore the paint to pristine condition ready for a LSP. Polishing, typically, is seldom needed as there is almost no paint marring.
To dwell on D156 for a minute. This is a durable sealant that applies and removes like a quick detailer. It doesn't dry white so can be used on all external parts of the car, paint, glass, metal and since it doesn't stain trim, it works well on textured vinyl. It goes on and off a SUV in about 15 minutes and a sedan in about 10. It leaves a ridiculous slickness like you would expect from a fresh detail so it sheds dirt and salt more readily.
There is also another option these days and that is a coating. These are more expensive but are several times more durable, in many cases lasting years, not months or weeks like sealants and waxes. Strong detergents of a touchless wash won't diminish a coating.
For many of us in the "North" touchless is the least damaging option for our winter season. Also, the touchless washes here in my area use blow dryers to blow off the water, not a bunch of guys towel drying the car. I might add that the high pressure wash of a touchless is much stronger than the hose used in the junkman video yet the fact still remain that touchless washes don't, in fact, do as good a job as a good two-bucket hand wash.
Your paint. you decide what works best for you.
12-03-14, 02:00 PM
#12
Here is a good question... How clean is clean enough?
I don't dispute that a touchless wash does not clean as well as a 2 bucket method wash, or that the strength of a touchless detergent may shorten the life of most waxes and some sealants. But keep in mind, even a hand wash will not remove all of the road grime and contaminants. You will notice this if you clay regularly.
So here is where each of us needs evaluate how clean is clean enough for our cars in our environment. Junkman lives in KY. I'd like to see how he would deal with a winter in WI, MI or MN, LOL. Most likely his Vette would sit in a garage all winter much as we do with our garage queens.
In my home state of WI, winter is around 4-6 months of mostly sub-freezing weather. Often temps are well below zero. It is 22° F and snowing as I type this. Strong chemical melters, salt and sand are used on our roads in abundance. Cars get dirty quickly, typically in hours, and without a heated garage, hand washing is not an option. Even if you had a heated garage, you'd need to wash daily and likely would not be able to do the high pressure underbody wash to remove the salt residue. Given the choice of a touch or a touchless auto wash, I'll choose the touchless every time. Come spring I'll have no paint marring and water will still bead due to my regular use of D156. Come spring it will only take a good hand wash and clay to restore the paint to pristine condition ready for a LSP. Polishing, typically, is seldom needed as there is almost no paint marring.
To dwell on D156 for a minute. This is a durable sealant that applies and removes like a quick detailer. It doesn't dry white so can be used on all external parts of the car, paint, glass, metal and since it doesn't stain trim, it works well on textured vinyl. It goes on and off a SUV in about 15 minutes and a sedan in about 10. It leaves a ridiculous slickness like you would expect from a fresh detail so it sheds dirt and salt more readily.
There is also another option these days and that is a coating. These are more expensive but are several times more durable, in many cases lasting years, not months or weeks like sealants and waxes. Strong detergents of a touchless wash won't diminish a coating.
For many of us in the "North" touchless is the least damaging option for our winter season. Also, the touchless washes here in my area use blow dryers to blow off the water, not a bunch of guys towel drying the car. I might add that the high pressure wash of a touchless is much stronger than the hose used in the junkman video yet the fact still remain that touchless washes don't, in fact, do as good a job as a good two-bucket hand wash.
Your paint. you decide what works best for you.
I don't dispute that a touchless wash does not clean as well as a 2 bucket method wash, or that the strength of a touchless detergent may shorten the life of most waxes and some sealants. But keep in mind, even a hand wash will not remove all of the road grime and contaminants. You will notice this if you clay regularly.
So here is where each of us needs evaluate how clean is clean enough for our cars in our environment. Junkman lives in KY. I'd like to see how he would deal with a winter in WI, MI or MN, LOL. Most likely his Vette would sit in a garage all winter much as we do with our garage queens.
In my home state of WI, winter is around 4-6 months of mostly sub-freezing weather. Often temps are well below zero. It is 22° F and snowing as I type this. Strong chemical melters, salt and sand are used on our roads in abundance. Cars get dirty quickly, typically in hours, and without a heated garage, hand washing is not an option. Even if you had a heated garage, you'd need to wash daily and likely would not be able to do the high pressure underbody wash to remove the salt residue. Given the choice of a touch or a touchless auto wash, I'll choose the touchless every time. Come spring I'll have no paint marring and water will still bead due to my regular use of D156. Come spring it will only take a good hand wash and clay to restore the paint to pristine condition ready for a LSP. Polishing, typically, is seldom needed as there is almost no paint marring.
To dwell on D156 for a minute. This is a durable sealant that applies and removes like a quick detailer. It doesn't dry white so can be used on all external parts of the car, paint, glass, metal and since it doesn't stain trim, it works well on textured vinyl. It goes on and off a SUV in about 15 minutes and a sedan in about 10. It leaves a ridiculous slickness like you would expect from a fresh detail so it sheds dirt and salt more readily.
There is also another option these days and that is a coating. These are more expensive but are several times more durable, in many cases lasting years, not months or weeks like sealants and waxes. Strong detergents of a touchless wash won't diminish a coating.
For many of us in the "North" touchless is the least damaging option for our winter season. Also, the touchless washes here in my area use blow dryers to blow off the water, not a bunch of guys towel drying the car. I might add that the high pressure wash of a touchless is much stronger than the hose used in the junkman video yet the fact still remain that touchless washes don't, in fact, do as good a job as a good two-bucket hand wash.
Your paint. you decide what works best for you.
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