First car-wash - which kind is better for Prime Advanced

Soapy warm water and a clean sponge. Just keep it simple.


iPhone ?

 

^ I'd second hand wash, think that's what's inferred above. DIY is all I ever do, and the big plus: you will find any dings/scratches, and guaranteed will do a better job, get in the corners, compared to any automatic car wash. That said, if you don't have the wherewithal to DIY:

The kind of car wash where the car sits and and cleaning apparatus does the moving is preferable for hybrids like the Prius, since the car must be "on" to be in Neutral, a prerequisite for the tow-along style car washes. Our nearby dealership has one of the car stationary style car washes, and our 2010 has been run through it a few times with no ill-effects.

That said, maybe the Prime has deeper pockets, as far as time it can left on and in Neutral. Anyway, for sure, if you have to go through the tow-along style car wash, turn off the AC, radio, etcetera, for that minute or two.

Wasn't there reports of the (4th gen) front bumper tow point covers being lifted off by car washes? Maybe figure out a way to secure it a bit better.

 

I've washed mine a couple dozen times, always with hose water and a sponge. No heat, no soap, no problems.

 

I've tried using a high-pressure hose and soap, only to find that there was still a layer of dirt and grime on the car which *would not wash off* so I discovered too late that I ended up wiping the dirt around and causing scratches even with a clean microfiber cloth. So, I disagree, I find that the hose is not enough.

So, go to an automatic touchless car wash (where the machine can go back and forth and your car stays still), and then you can wipe the rest down and put a coat of Ultimate Fast Finish. And the sensors can handle it.

 

What I've heard about the automatic car washes that use the big roller brushes no matter what car, avoid them, because those plastic brush tips can have grit imbedded in them from previous cars. The result can be a gazillion micro-scratches on the finish. I stick to hand washing with a soft clean sponge. Been known to use a leaf blower to blow-dry it.

 

Like I said, hose and sponge. Hose to wet everything and blast off most of the grit, sponge to remove the films, microfiber cloth to dry.

I've done this for now around 3 decades on many different cars and never had any scratches. One of them was a show car.

 

I live in an apartment complex. My car has to be kept in an unpaved, muddy parking space much of the year. I don't have a hose. And I don't want to just put my stuff down on the muddy ground while the car is being hand washed.
1. Which sponge do you recommend?
2. Is a single bucket enough for soap and water, regardless of how "dirty" the car still looks after a rainstorm, for instance?
3. Should I really put the bucket on the muddy ground?
4. Anything else that I should know before I try a full hand wash so that I do not cause any scratches? Like, how "clean" does the sponge need to be after washing the dirt off half of the car before an "oops" swiping motion happens on the other side and there was dirt and it got rubbed into the clear coat?

 

If you don't have a hose, don't hand wash your car. You need a lot more than a bucket of water.

I'd go to a touchless car wash that has people hand-drying your car.

 

Toyo makes a car wash soap.

 

Well, I know the truth is hated BUT....
Hand wash if you know what you're doing. If not, learn, or any car wash is fine.

All this worry over micro scratches. Be aware, your car WILL get scratches (some not so "micro") and rock chips and dings if you actually use it.

I see them all the time on every car I've ever bought and used. Pearl S is covered in them. She even has -some- micro scratches. And I'm responsible for some of them. The rest are "environmental".

Whatever!

 

Liquid Glass. Is what I use


Bat cave

 

So, why doesn't the Xzilon prevent these films or dings from building up?

 

I never do automatic car washes, over here we call them scratch and shines.
I hand wash mine, some good quality car shampoo and a wash mitt, then hose that off and dry with a towel.

End result a shiny cat with no scratches


2010 Gen 3

 

Thousands of opinions, but with "a brand new car" I always hand wash with a sponge until I can get it's first coat of wax. Once you've waxed it, don't use "Dawn" soap unless it's your intent to strip the wax. After I've hand waxed it, I wash it with Meguiars Deep Crystal Car Wash. it cleans but won't remove wax and it smells great.

 

You may want to try hand washing your car at one of those self-serve car wash places, the ones that have individual stalls that you drive into and you put quarters into the machine for five minutes at a time of spray. What I do is at home I fill a five gallon paint bucket with two gallons of water and add soap (I use Meguiar's), then I put the bucket in the car on the front passenger floor. It doesn't spill even with hard turns or braking. Then I drive to the car wash and pull into an available stall. Pull the bucket out of the car and set it aside. Put in the first $1.75 of quarters and rinse the car. It's a pressure wash so I stand a few feet away from the car to avoid hitting the paint with too much water pressure. When the time runs out and the water stops, I start hand washing with a sponge using the soapy water from the bucket. Since I don't have a hose for intermediate rinsing while washing, I try and keep things from drying out by starting from the bottom up, so that as I move up the water from the upper sections flows down to the previously washed lower sections to help keep them wet. When finished hand washing I put in another $1.75 of quarters and then rinse for five minutes. Then I dry it off with a chamois.

 

Since2002, I actually did that a month ago and it left a film of dirt (not water, dirt) even though I used pressure soap and water. So I ended up rubbing dirt around my clear coat when I hand dried it. I don’t trust those anymore.

 

I'm not quite following you, if you only used the pressure soap and water from the car wash then you didn't do what I described. I hand wash my car with a sponge (actually a wash mitt) using my own soap which is in a bucket that I bring with me. I only use the facilities to provide rinse water. What I do is no different than hand washing at home with a garden hose, the only difference is that I can't do intermediate rinsing. Well I could do intermediate rinsing but at $1.75 per rinse I keep it to just before and after rinsing.

 

I did the first part, spraying down with soap and water. What's the point of paying extra money to do it twice if it doesn't work right the first time?

 

For the third time now, I am talking about using a sponge, not just spraying. Four other responders recommended hand washing using a sponge, however you said that is a problem at your apartment so I offered a solution where you can follow their advice, but at an alternate location than your apartment. Sorry but I don't know of a better way to explain what I am talking about.

At this point I would say that for you, automatic car washes are best. However I can't offer any advice on that since I never use them.