Is Pressure Washing or Hand Washing when the car is very dirty or muddy recommended?



I`m taking the view that I would rather use the pressure washer (on it`s lowest pressure setting) with a water and car shampoo mix to try to remove as much dirt as possible before I wash the car using a wash mitt. (as opposed to just trying to clean the mud and dirt off using the wash mitt in the first place)



The reason I ask is that I realise that the pressure washer is not as gentle as the wash mitt but I`m concerned that when you get too much dirt on the paintwork that the wash mitt is not going to be able to safely remove all the dirt without scratching. I`d rather go over the car first using the pressure washer (on it`s lowest pressure setting) and then hand wash afterwards using a mitt.