How so we clean under our cars?

You consider a car wash’s underside rinse to be “high pressure “?
Certainly no worse than driving through a road puddle at moderate speed.

 

Drive-thru car wash has not caused any problem on any of my cars including PRIME. I go thru that almost once a week now.

 

With PRIME, when I have time I sometimes use coin-operated car wash to DIY wash my car to avoid those abrasive brushes and rugs rubbing against the paint surface. They have undercarriage wash nozzle looks like the photo below. Not sure if it is considered high pressure or not, but this type of nozzle may be a bit more gentle than the conventional drive true wash, and certainly much gentler than the "Touchless drive-through car washes" I think. However, the coin-operated wash is just not as convenient and fast as conventional drive true wash, so I have opted for lazy way mostly.

 

I NEVER take my car to commercial car washes to remove road salt from the underside ore even the painted body on my cars,

Most all of them recycle and just filter the water. Filtering does not remove dissolved salt; only distillation and reverse osmosis does. Both are too expensive for car washes to implement.

Like the "cleaning staff" in hotel rooms, they don't clean. They make it look "clean."

I only wash my cars with clean water form my hose faucet.

 

I agree with you that is the best way. However, obviously, you have not lived in great NORTH. We here in up north have no option but to go to commercial car wash during winter when day temp never gets above freezing. If I wash my car on my driveway during winter, it will be solid ice in seconds, like in the video.

 

Done in one, nice!

Everything is relative. rinsing off the modern MgCl spray brines is even more important than the deposits from the old rock salt they used to use. Even if you have to use slightly less-salty water to do it.

 

Talking about "the deposits from the old rock salt", this is how my PRIME look a day after a car wash. Sigh

 

Washing the car is only half the battle. Washing the road is important too. Those streams and aquifers aren't going to pollute themselves, you know.

 

Is there any municipality that has water treatment for the stormwater runoff? Certainly, our's does not. Oh yeah, we don't even have municipal water in our town. lol

 

Our car washing automatic system do the same, maybe like six years a go i talked guy who knew these machines on work related stuff, he said the same. They recycle the water and filter all particles away. Maybe every eight wash they get new water to the tank. During winter its total no no for me to go those washing machines.

 

So, where do you take your car to be washed during winter in/near the arctic circle?

 

I'm not aware of any anywhere. Near as I can tell, everyone is still hoping the problem just goes away.

That far north, nobody salts the roads. The temperatures aren't consistently high enough for the salt-modified freeze point to do any good.

Salting the roads is mostly about keeping industry open for business in temperate climates. It also sells extra cars. I was unwilling to purchase a new car from anyone because I was sick of seeing them all rust away before I got my money's worth. That changed when my wife started driving 20k+ miles per year. So now there is some harmony between the expected lifetime of the car overall and the anticipated corrosion damage.

 

They dumb whole lot of salt on the roads here at the Finland.
But yeah maybe not up north, but most people live down south.

 

Good question, im still thinking also this. I kind a think its better not to rinse whole car with salt water and simply does not wash it during ~december-february when its minus temps celcius. Err i know its bad also:[
Edit: few times i have taken it to one hand wash place during winter. Still not so often that i had to edit this as i remembered that yeah last winter i took the car few times to hand wash place : D

 

When I lived in Nebraska, I never washed my car when the temperature got below freezing, except just to get the salt off the paint. I used those quarter operated stalls just to blast it off, no more.

I never washed the underbody in freezing weather, after having it rustproofed. Freezing and thawing drives water into the "cracks" between the body panels and between the fasteners. When it freezes, water expands and when it thaws, it leaves electrolytic salts. The cracks allow road debris to enter; some are water absorbing organics.

Only when the diurnal temperature is above freezing, do I wash the underbody.

In the harsh winter "rust belt, the "garage kept" quality myth only applies when the car is a warm weather non-daily driver not taken out in freezing inclement weather. The freezing-thawing cycle in a garage and outside actually damages a car more than a car that is kept in constant freezing temperatures. Food, especially meat keeps well, in constant freezing temperatures in a deep freezer, while it easily spoiled from freezing and thawing.

 

OK, that's good to know. I see why the studded Nokian are so needed. Even if I have to buy a dedicated winter vehicle, I really wish they stop salting roads in NE.

But that still does not answer my question. @qettyz said he does not take his car to wash machine during winter. Where would he be able to wash his car during winter in such a cold climate? Or, since there is no salt, no need to wash a car???

 

Btw i am kind a envy for those car pictures of old cars what are from warm climate places, no rust at all even in original shape. I think for example my current car has max ~10-12 years life left anymore before rust takes over. First owner did not rustproof it and when i bought it, its too late. They dont recomment doing that anymore when some years have gone. Rustproofing will give many years for sure. Seeing some -98 Toyotas here on road some time to time has to be cars what are rustproofed new and originally from old owners who just dont drive alot.

Edit: i take my car to inspection in couple of weeks, i go with the inspector usually also to see under car myself. First inspection to this car while its mine. Interested to see how much there is ”start rust”.

 

I'd get it raised, safely, remove plastic pieces as warranted, brush/vacuum/blow as best you can, then apply a sealant coating of some sort. My latest preference is boiled linseed oil, applied with a foam brush. I'd take on either the front or the rear, don't try to take it all on in one day.


Obviously this sort of cleaning is not happening now, too cold. Do what you can, when you can, but next summer would be good time to do a serious inspection and coating.