I need to wash my car already! Any reccomendations

It was my wife's suggestion that I get the Mr. Clean AutoDry Car Wash. You just spray the stuff on, moving the selector as needed. It dries without spotting (well, the windows a bit), and you don't even have to worry about using a towel. I haven't had any problems with it, other than it's more pricey than others.

 

Living in Wi you might have the same problem I have in Mi. Road dirt, salt and all that yukkie stuff. It will get that way almost right away. I just go to those do it yourself spray gun things. Fot $1.50 I can quickly wash and rince all that gunk off. When spring comes I'll do a proper job.

 

Whatever you do... (speaking from an owner of a black pk8)

don't use any kind of brushes...you will eventually get black paint swirls...the worst!

I'd get:
a shammy
an electric buffer (with buffer pads)
karnuba wax (no grit)

and spray the thing down at a high pressure hose "self spray" car wash (about $2.00)

quickly wipe it down with a *wet* shammy (don't worry about getting it completely dry)

now drive the car for about 5 miles -or back home- whatever is greater...it
should be pretty dry by the time you get home ;] nature does a great job.

apply the carnuba wax all over the car and wait till dry
then use the buffer to polish (very light pressure)

it will be beautiful when finished.... just be careful that you aren't scratching
the paint with the buffer - test it in a small area first...

Wax once a month....wash once a week...

good luck.
-robochimp

 

Since your prius is black here is what you really want to do.

Head to http://www.zainostore.com and pickup the starter kit. It comes with wash, polishes, etc.

Go to any wallyworld type place and pickup a nice high pressure hose/nozzle and some higher end 100% cotton smaller towles.

Then go to a nicer bath and body works or whatever type place and get some higher end 100% cotton towels for your polishing, there is a much better guide on the Zaino site.

Wash your car with the Zaino, then polish it as per the instructions. My Prius's paint was clean enough that I didn't have to clay bar it from the factory.

The reason I do not reccomend wax is because it does nothing for the finish of your car. It just fills in the swirls, spiderwebbing, and scratches. The Zaino Polishing system actually removes these imperfections from the finish itself, as well as making your paint smoother than glass (really). Ive seen several black cars that had a numerous zaino application done and it was AMAZING.

I dont reccoment anything electric either. Besides doing it by hand is not only easier on your car (especially when you think about it removing the chance of human error) plus its a good afternoon workout. And Zaino can be applied in cold weather, it just takes it a bit longer to dry.

 

I am strongly against this theory. Having a white prius I can tell you exactly why you dont want to do this. After I detailed my car I drove with the car dry (dry objects attract less dirt than wet ones last I checked as well) and I had a nice ammount of road grime on the rear portion of the car just like that. And I had only driven MAYBE 1 mile. Not to mention that when you drive there is a vaccume behind your car created by driving that is going to suck up the dirt, dust, and whatever else is on the road.

Then when you go to buff it with your electric buffer all thouse abrasive particles are going to get onto your pad and add a nice 'effect' to your paint thats going to be very not fun to remove.

To play it safe, if your planning on waxing or polishing, never drive after washing but before applying anything to your paint!

 

They recommend using that method in the shade. I've used it when it's overcast, but generally after 4pm.

 

Thanks for that info -- I'd have to agree with you on that completely..

I still say "no brushes" or auto carwashes - also no one (including handwash places) will
take better care of the car than you... they don't care if they scratch the heck out of your car, IMO.

-robochimp

 

PriusChat has a Forum called "Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting". It has several threads on cleaning (and waxing) the exterior, including the use of car washes, a few on cleaning the interior and a few more for specialized cleaning problems.

If you use "My Assistant" (top of PC home page) and type "Washing your Prius" into the "search", it'll take you to a thread (and a poll) on car washing. About 100 people registered thoughts in the poll and there were 25 postsa couple of months ago.

All waxes print on the container a range of temperatures within which waxing is recommended.

 

Zaino can be applied in the low 30's, however if the humidity is high it can take around 2-3 hours to dry. You wouldn't necessairly need to polish it now though but after a few washes you will notice fine scratches that it will remove. Their carwash however is always good to use.

I can say from experience that if you get the Mr. Kleen gun don't put the Zaino in it unless you plan to flush it out or it will gel and clog. The Ionized water however does work pretty good, I have noticed at times that it doesnt necessairly spot but it does leave a film from where water was.

 

You continue to post this misinformation, even though anyone who knows the slightest bit about auto paint care knows that Zaino is a sealant. Zaino Z-2 and Z-5 do not contain any chemical or abrasive polishing agents, and cannot do what you claim they do. There is a reason Zaino Z-2 and Z-5 are discussed in the LSP (last step product) area and not the polishing forum of every online detailing site, and the reason is because they are sealants. Just go to www.detailcity.com and you will see that what I've stated is correct.

You really don't know what you're talking about if you think that proper auto paint care means using a polish only and nothing to protect the paint. Polishing (with a real polish) is part of surface preparation, and the final step is to protect the paint and enhance the gloss with wax or sealant (or both). Funny how Zaino states on their web site that Z-5 contains fillers to hide swirl marks, but you claim it polishes them away. Zaino even states that Z-5 and Z-2 contain no abrasives and no cleaners. How much clearer can it get (copied from their web site):

"Z-2 PROâ„¢ contains no cleaners, and no abrasives, therefore the surface must be in good condition before you apply Z-2 PROâ„¢."

If you need a polish, try Menzerna FPII (or the new PO106FF), Poorboys SSR, Zaino ZPC, or Meguiar's #82.

I'm a detailing enthusiast, not a professional, but I've got about $1000 worth of different detailing products on the shelf right now, including Zaino, Klasse, Blackfire, Menzerna, Four Star, Meguiars, P&S, Pinnacle, etc. I've been detailing my own cars for twenty years and am a longtime reader and participant on the forums at detailcity.com, roadfly.org, and autopia.org.

 

In case you want to catch fish of course.

The cargo net goes right to the very back of the trunk area. It's not really necessary, but if you have items that roll around (not a bowling ball by any means), it helps hold the items in when the hatch is open. Plus there's a pocket in it so you could stick, say, an umbrella there so it's handy.

 

I use AutoDry and a cotton wash mitt; the mitt goes through the laundry after each use. After 21 months the car looks new (no swirls).

 

WHEW our black beauty is dirty after 3100 miles in road salt and other nasties.

i spray the car down really, REALLY well, then fill up a car wash bucket with water and a small amount of soap. i use blue coral concentrate, it's cheap over at target. then i use a microfiber mitt to wash the car, top to bottom, in sections. after each section (hood and roof, front end, driver's side, passenger side, rear) i rinse off the soap, then after it's all done i give it a good rinse again. then i dry with an "aquadry" towel, which works great and gives no spots.

we have about 10 layers of zaino on the car, absolutely love the look of it. it's worth the money. even with all the crap on the car it still looks pretty decent.

 

Post some pictures.........of the newly washed car of course!

 

oh it was plenty dirty before that, 1100 miles each way and almost 1000 driving around the state. we've had a very dirty car for almost 2 weeks now

down south i get away with one wash a week.