Would appreciate any and all comments, tips etc. regarding the washing/drying for my 78 vette????????????? I have always used drive thru car washes for my other vehicles but not quite sure how this would do for a vette.



mk's78

I would never go through the automatic wash in mine. Not even the "touchless" kind.

I don't think either of our vettes will clear the tracks and such on the floors in some with the ground effects packages on them.

Non touchless washes do nothing more than grind somebody elses dirt into the paint.

But then I don't use the conventional wash with a wand either.....

Ours are either dirty from the 4wd trucks, wands are bent from somebody pissed because they lost their $$$$. Or, the pressure is to little too much.

I use a hand pumped pressure sprayer and wash them in the garage or in the driveway. I can regulate the amount of water easily and I don't have a huge amount of water left behind.

Occasionally I will hook up the hose clean them if I want to wash out the garage and driveway too.

Besides...... it is nice to be personal with them. Touching all of those nice lines and curves.....

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First of all, welcome to the site!  This is a great place and you'll find lots of great info here. 

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I wanted a Corvette my whole life, but I never dreamed of all the wonderful people I would meet because of it!

I think i washed mine 2 times in 2 years. Once was after getting stuck in a little rain storm, ask Davem about that one.
I have cleaned it many, many times though.
After a ride it's back into the garage. I'll let her cool down a little and then get the California Duster out and some detail spray after that.
Unless the cars gonna be your daily driver they don't get that dirty.

I give my 82 a hand wash a number of times duing the summer cruise season but rely on my california duster to save me many more washes.  As for the automatic car wash, I would NEVER consider taking mine through one of those things.  When hand washing I use only microfiber drying towels and a microfiber wash  mit.  With black paint, every little micro scratch from dirty water at the automatic car wash to polyester bath towels to dry her with shows.  I do have one advantage with the washing in that Im in the South where I can drive and enjoy my car year round and wash it pretty much any time of year.

NEVER, EVER..........

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Wait......you guys WASH your cars???? Are we supposed to do that???
In the 12 years I've had the '74, it's been washed....3 times? Maybe?
It has been caught out in some rain on road trips, too.
IF I have to wash it, it is done by hand. A little spray to get it moist, and I have some "special" wash soap that I was given when I had the "Color Finishes" coating put on. I hand wash small sections, and rinse as I go. Dry w/microfiber towels, and I'm done. Once it sits for a day, and is completely dry, I'll go over it with my spray detailer...no wax. Even once out at shows, or on the road, it's only California Car Duster, and spray detailer for me. A driver, tho, will need a little more care and attention than a garage ornament. Even so, a little time dusting, and spot cleaning after each ride will make a big difference.

Drive thru car wash? No. Not even with Mama's car!

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Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    
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"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"

[QUOTE=Adams' Apple]Wait......you guys WASH your cars???? Are we supposed to do that???
In the 12 years I've had the '74, it's been washed....3 times? Maybe?
It has been caught out in some rain on road trips, too.
IF I have to wash it, it is done by hand. [/QUOTE]

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MARK
LIFETIME MEMBER #117

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The horror! Like all the other posts, I've had mine for 2.5 years, and it's been washed twice. Mine isn't a show car, but it's only driven on sunny days. It did get caught in a rainstorm last summer, and there was water EVERYWHERE . You best friend will be a california duster .

Here is an alternative to washing if need be. Dry Wash is a product a friend of mine uses. He is very particular about his car and the products he uses. I have to admit that it looks good.

Just another option in case you were looking for one.Tuxblacray2009-02-01 11:38:06

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I would gather you now know where we stand on a machine car wash.

It would be kind of like giving your dog a haircut with a push mower.
Not a good idea.

I wash my car more than most but the key is those micro fiber towels and then keeping it clean. The California Duster just got added to my arsenal so that should help alot for dust.

Good luck, welcome to the site and hope ya stick around!

 

I don't wash mine unless it's seen bad weather. I only take my pick-up to the car wash in the winter to get rid of the salt that gets everywhere on the truck, nicer weather I wash it myself. The Vette gets the same treatment that everyone else here uses. DaveM2009-02-01 12:48:06

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Lifetime Member #116
Dave's '82

   

That's true - I can't remember the last time I washed the 76? I get the tires wet once in awhile to clean the white letters up, but other than that - just a duster and some spray detailer and it's good to go.

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Knowing how fincky the T Top gaskets are, I wouldn't go near a car wash with the angles the water is pressurized at. I try to wash mine maybe once a year and use the Meguiars show spray wash in a bottle type stuff as needed...

Hey MK,

........OMG......NO car wash!......

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MICK - C3VR Lifetime Member #113

I have to admit, I have not washed my car in 4 years.   

Like others I'm not a big fan of car wash units,...... but.....How often you wash and how you wash is really dependent on how you drive.

Handwash mine at home. No Carwash!!! But I also make sure I drive it afterwards, so the wind will blow the trapped water from the places that you can't dry like the frame and radiator support. Places like that will rust from trapped water

I do wash my car often and since i live in apt i have to go to car wash. I will admit I did used a drive thru once and lost a center hub to it...never again.

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I hand wash mine only,after I take her out of hybernation,and usually once midsummer,I use Mr.Clean car wash,no spots,the rest of the time I just wipe her down,No automatic car washes for my baby

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C3VR Lifetime Member #93
 

I'll make it real simple, NO, NEVER, NEVER EVER EVER.  Uh-uh, forgeddaboudit, nope, notta chance, ummmmmm NO!

I have had a number of Corvettes over the years, and have run them all through the car wash on a regular basis.  I also have had show winning muscle cars which I also ran through the car wash.  When I tell people that, they look at me like I am a mass murderer, but I have never had a problem.  In between, I use Dri Wash.  It really works, and makes the finish less static, so dust doesn't collect on it as quickly.  We carry the whole line of Dri Wash products because we all use them.

Larry

No way here to drive through. I would never let a machine wash my Vette! Matter of fact I won't even let a hand besides my own do it. I will only wash it when I absoultley have to. I also use Calfornia duster, and when needed A good detail spray and sterile micro-fiber towels. "T"

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[QUOTE=manget1]First of all, welcome to the site!  This is a great place and you'll find lots of great info here.[/quote] Adams' Apple2010-09-14 10:11:10

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Welcome aboard!

Yep, I do. But only  the touchless and only if it is clean inside. cj5nutz2009-02-06 08:10:46

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Well, I must be honest and admit that I have taken my "baby" thru the touchless car wash.  My "T" top does not seem to leak and I like to have a clean car, but from reading these posts I guess I should be beaten with a wet noodle for doing this!! 

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It looks like it is just two of us heathens against the rest of the world of Corvette owners.

Larry

Here is my Carwash System followed up by mirror / tailight, and a good interior cleaning with a Shop Vac .

It is simple and cost me very little in comparison to what I would have to pay to have it done or use somebodiy else's facility.

But like the others I use the Californis Duster for simple clean ups.

Each sping the Vettes get washed / clay bar treatment using Dawn & water / Waxed / Polished.....

Its simple but rewarding... thnxz to Sal Zaino.....    

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I only use Adam's Polishes stuff and a California Duster.  A trick I learned to get the water out of the cracks is to use a leaf blower after you rinse.  This seems to get most of the water out of the cracks for me.

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Chuck

I also use a "leaf blower" of sorts to dry my cars, from my vette to my daily drivers.  The blower gets the water from behind emblems and in the cracks and cuts my drying time and towel wringing considerably.  I washed 3 cars Saturday morning and used the same microfiber drying towel (slightly dampened) for all 3... never had to wring out the towel once for all 3 cars.  The blower I use  was bought during one of those "I wonder if that would work" moments at a discount tool place.  bought it for less than $20 and it works like a champ, big enough to do the job and small enough to handle easily. 

After listening to the Adams rep at Carlisle, I bought a sears leafblower last friday, they are on sale 10 bucks off...29.95 my son used it yesterday on moms jeep worked great.

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LIFETIME MEMBER 151

I use a leaf blower to find wind noises in cars at work!! I never thought of using it to DRY the car.. sounds like a great idea!!  As long as you don't siphon that shot blast into it and clean the paint off completly!

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i AGREE WITH l

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  I have two Chevron stations in Phoenix, one with a self-serve car wash. We had a "Touchless" system installed for the first 6 years and that system actually does MORE damage than the brush systems. Touchless uses very high pressure to remove dirt and grime AND molding, trim, light fixtures, fenders, hub caps, door handles, grills etc. These are just some of the parts we have found in our wash over the years! BTW: We find more BMW and Ford parts than any other...

 Two years ago, we installed a new system called SoftGloss MAXX that uses FoamBrite brushes, not the old style nylon; these are lightweight, closed-cell polymer cleaning material that is virtually waterproof and designed to prevent dirt from accumulating on the brushes. This system does MUCH better than other systems on the market IMO. BUT..... we still find car parts and still get complaints of damage! We have several warnings posted about this also stating we are not responsible.... Probably 1 in 200 cars lose something in our wash, sometimes they return for their parts, sometimes the unclaimed parts get status in my garage

  I have never and will NEVER use an automatic wash on any of my cars! I have seen several Corvettes, Bentley's and even a few Ferrari's go through our wash, many of them I personally warned, but they all say the same thing - "I have never had a problem".....

   Besides, for me, it is a kind of Zin thing I experience when washing the Vette by hand, a spiritual and emotional bonding experience - Everything that was bad in the world turns to good, ugly people are beautiful, the IRS is no longer my enemy and the amount of money I have spent on this C3 is all worth it!

So, in my opinion AND my firsthand experience with both styles of automatic washes - DON'T USE THEM!!

  BTW - Isn't it against the 10 Corvette Commandments to use one of those?!

I have run my 82 through the car wash several times. It clears the track just fine, the T Tops do not leak and the paint is already faded and needs to be redone. The only problem I had was when bubba tried to turn the key to lock without pressing the lever....he almost got it there too.
But if I spent $10k plus on show quality paint it would be a different matter.

Boy, did you touch on a hot subject with this question. I don't think I need to add much to this thread other than welcome to the site. I don't wash mine, I use Zano wax and duster when it needs it, then  the spray detailer when needed. It gets a good hand wash at the end of the year and another waxing.

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Car wash, OMG!!! Why would you do that when you can rub and caress your baby by hand? Mine doesn't get it often but when she does we spend some quality time together. LOL.

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