non-garaged cars

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sk24max

New member
For those of you that keep your cars outside, how do you magage to keep them looking clean everyday. My car suffers from sitting under trees in the driveway so there's all sorts of crap on it within a day after I wash it.
 
I watch were I park, and I wash my car 3 times a week, I also qd a lot. Its almost impossible to keep a outside car clean . One of these days I may give it all up.
 
You don't overdo it in the washing department, but rather keep a consistent wash and wax replenishment routine. I wash my car once a week, rain or shine. I don't care even if it rains then next day, because the aim of washing it regularly is to keep the accumulated dirt off of the paint, as opposed to not washing it for a couple of weeks, and having more impact on your waxed surface.



In the summer, when the car is freshly washed or waxed, I will dust it once the following day, so as it can at least look fresh. After that I won't touch it until a few days later when its due for a cleaning.



It is very easy to maintain a good finish without a garage; It requires more maintenance on average, however.
 
sk24max said:
For those of you that keep your cars outside, how do you magage to keep them looking clean everyday. My car suffers from sitting under trees in the driveway so there's all sorts of crap on it within a day after I wash it.
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I know what you're going through. I used to park in the driveway, but with the trees, I had to deal with all sorts of pollen and other stuff blowing off the trees. Now I actually park down the street where there aren't any trees to deal with and the road is wide enough I shouldn't have to worry about the car being hit.



You see what this site has done to me ...
 
I wash mine around 3x a week. With QEW, I've cut my washes down to 10 minutes, including drying, for light dirt. For real filth, it takes 35 maybe. I'm planning on getting a CRspotless system, so I should be able to wash and dry in 5 minutes once I get it up and running.



Oh yeah, and I keep a good coat of wax on her. Right now its Souveran, layered weekly. In the Maine winter, its Collinite #915 over a good sealant.
 
I wash mine 2-3 times a week, and S&G afterward. I wax the car every 3wks or so too. As long as you keep the car waxed and wash it frequently, it can look as good as a garaged car.
 
I don't try to keep mine looking clean every day. I also try to avoid trees if at all possible. One thing that makes me less inclined to try and keep my vehicles in pristine condition everyday is that their is a huge dirt lot almost surrounding my work, tons of dust. Between that and the heavy morning dew I just try and keep them clean once a week.
 
I have found lately that an early morning round of California Car duster, and a late evening round of the same will extend the look of being freshly washed.
 
Cut the tree down....that's what my friend did. :nomore: He had a cherry tree or something. The birds would sit in the tree, eat the fruit and make doodie on the car all day long. He tried the car cover thing for a while. That turned into an indescribable mess. he cut the tree down. :p





Keep the bad stuff of the surface, find a great syn product (Klasse or Zaino) and do your best. It's a battle that you may not win.
 
Unfortunately, many homeowner's associations (like mine) won't let you cut a tree out of your front yard unless it is dead or infected with insects or disease of some kind. I would LOVE to cut down every tree that dangles over my driveway, but then I would lose the nice shade to work in. Love - hate relationship with trees when it comes to keeping a non-garaged car looking its best.
 
I guess you just learn to live with it. I wash my car once a week, I still find that even on day 6 my car still looks better then most, even the freshly washed ones
 
i think you have to realize a few things here:



1. garages are a place for assured security and a place to do private car work.

2. parking your car outside for 8 hours a day (if you work) is going to land about as much dust/dirt as the eye can tell on your car as leaving it outside for another 8 hours at night.

3. a covered parking spot, if you aren't the type of person to need privacy when working on your car (although i do generally prefer it), is going to bring you the same benefits as a garage, minus what i said in #1.

4. people generally don't care about cars. when people see a good looking car, they appreciate it. washing it everyday or 5 times a week and waxing it every week is normally going to be something no one but yourself would notice.

5. if trees are unavoidable, as silly as it seems, buy a car cover. people might think it's dumb, but your tree sap problem isn't going to solve itself.



i've had a garage, no garage, and covered parking, and while i prefered having my garage, not having one is a worse thought than it really is in reality. my advice - give your car a good polish/wax, keep it clean on the consistent sunny days, avoid trees, and your car's finish will look better than 95% of the cars out there all the time (and that same 95% of cars are probably also un-garaged). there is really no reason to take it to a greater level unless that greater level is the only level that you will achieve satisfaction; and if that's the case, i say find a second hobby ;)
 
I park outside also. I trim the 2 trees away from over hanging the driveway. I wash a couple times of week depending on weather. Every morning I use a duster even sometimes z6. And for long term protection Zaino.
 
I park on a driveway under 2 trees at home that dumps all sorts of junk on my car. At work I park outside under a major flight path, in an industrial area that is very dusty. Probably every Autopians worst nightmare.... :eek:



I wash every week and try to wax at least once a month. I often using Poorboy's Spray and Wipe in between washes (twice a week), or even use it to replace a weekly wash if I run out of time. If you have not tried it I strongly suggest you do, great stuff. :xyxthumbs
 
My car's been sitting outside the past week. We're still cleaning up the mess the raccoon did inside the garage. I've never seen the Maxima so dirty in my life.
 
When I'm in NO I'm able to keep my car in a carport and it's great but up in BR it's out in a parking lot 100% of the time. I avoid parking under trees. That's a big thing there. Dust and dirt I can handle but bird poop damages the paint. Same with tree sap.



QEW and Poorboy's Spray and Wipe are great for cleaning up your vehicle. Spray and Wipe is excellent if you notice some bird poop you want to get off right away.



The only way w/ no garage is to make sure you're always washing your vehicle. I use to wash my old truck twice a week. Sometimes three times when all the pollen is raining down.
 
yeah, i can't remember the last time i washed my car twice in between a raining period. in other words, if the forecast is clear this week, i'll wash the car on monday, and then by sunday it has usually rained. then it probably rains off and on for the next week or two, and i won't even touch the car during that time. whenever i get a free week of what looks to be no rain, i wash it again. i think i've probably gone 3 and a half weeks at MOST before without having to wash it twice because there was no rain.
 
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