how does this wash process sound?

[andrew300]

i have a brand new 2005 bmw jet black m3 which has very soft paint. now i do not want any swirl marks at all so i am taking all the precautions possibly but i cant take 3 hours to wash my car 3 times a week either so how does this process sound?



1) spray down vehicle to remove as much dirt as possible

2) fill my rinse bucket up with water

3) fill my wash bucket up with 1z perls wash

4) use a cotton chenelle sponge to squeeze wash solution across the surface to be washed

5) dip my wool washmitt from detailers paradise into the solution

6) go over the surface with light to little pressure

7) rinse

8) dip my mitt into the rinse bucket

9) do the next section the same way washing top to bottom while changing my mitt when i get to the bottom panels

10) rinse entire car off



The car will never be really dirty as i wont drive it in the rain and it will be a garage queen. I will always have coats of sealant and wax on it also. How many times should ideally wash my car a week? Any other ways to prevent swirls? And how should I dry it? i have pakshak mf ww towels and how should i use them? ANy other suggestions would be great.

[Accumulator]

That does sound better than what I suspect most people do.



I get all "you talkin` to me ?" :D :cool: when I read that you don`t want to spend three hours washing, so I assume you`ve read How I Wash (http://www.autopia.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=35232) .



A few people here have found that using a foamgun to provide constantly running/flushing soap solution works well to reduce wash-induced marring.



Others have found that the "Stage I Pre-wash" works well (I plan to test it soon).



I always use quite a few mitts when washing in winter. Seems there`s always a lot of grit that gets trapped in them no matter *how* I rinse them out. By the time I notice it it`s often too late, so I change mitts before I think I need to.



I use WWMFs the way I used to use other drying materials- blotting as much as possible, wiping as little as possible.



I dunno about the conditions your car is subjected to, but I shouldn`t think you`d need to wash more than twice a week, if that. I once had a Porsche that I washed after every winter commute, but IMO that was excessive and life`s too short. You want to wash before the grime "bonds" with the LSP. Sooner than that is a waste of time (IMO) and waiting until after the bonding has happened is too late to avoid marring.



I`d rather spend 3 hours once a week doing it right than 1 hour twice a week doing a less-than-perfect job. Remember that once you mar it you`ll have to spend all that time polishing and redoing your LSP.



Using a very slick LSP (I use 4* UPP for this) and a high-lubricity shampoo can help a lot too.

[imported_liam]

i use two rinse buckets - one at each diagonal corner of the car (ie front right, back left). the benefits are twofold - don`t have to move the rinse buckets, and the water will only get half dirty if you know what i mean... ;)

[fertzguy]

I have a jet black z4 and i dry it 90 pct of the way with a leaf blower them just blot the rest dry with a wmf. The leaf blower really minimizes the need to be wiping all over the surface and it gets all the cracks and seams as well as the mirrors to prevent weepers. Give it a try as this is the best way to prevent scratches on BMW jet black

[jeff5614]

Something I like to do is instead of putting my hand in the mitt, I just hold it like a pad. It seems to keep more of the wash solution in the mitt this way meaning a more lubricated surface.

[Accumulator]

Yeah, I do something similar when I`m not doing the foamgun/mitt balloon thing- I fill the mitt with wash solution and hold the cuff shut. The shampoo seeps out of the mitt while I whisk it across the surface, providing lubrication (and keeping the cuff away from the paint).

[Bill D]

The more mitts in your wash process the merrier. I even designate certain mitts for certain body panels only. Remember, car wash and mitts are renewable resources, paint is not.