I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts about whether or not it's possible to wash/wax a vehicle too much? I am very anal when it comes to detailing my vehicles. I wax my car every week and often more than that just to preserve the shine (and to remove bird doo)! However, after a few years of this, I've noticed that there are several fine scratches on my finish. Is this caused by too much washing/waxing? I've got a newer vehicle with a nice paint job and I don't want to destroy the paint by washing or waxing too much. I avoid public car washes at all cost! I think of them as a last resort! Those brushes look like scratches waiting to happen! I use a standard sponge for washing and microfiber towels for drying. Could either of these be to hard on the painted surface?? I always make sure to keep any foreign objects (dirt, grass, whatever) out of the sponge/towels for fear of scratches. Does anyone have any advice?
I have a chenille (spelling??) wash mit, but I didn't like it because it didn't make as many suds as the sponge does. However, if you think it would be less harsh on the finish, I would certainly use it!
I use Meguiars or Armor All car wash (Meguiars is my fav). I wash vehicle from top to bottom, careful to not get any foreign particles in sponge. I wash the lower (more soiled) panels of the vehicle last, followed by wheels/tires. Then I do a thorogh rinse.
Next I use an Absorber to remove most of the water (again, careful to not get any foreign objects in it).
Then I'm ready to detail. My first steps are to polish wheels and tires. Then I begin the wax. I use Zymol Cleaner Wax. I love this product although it costs nearly $13 a bottle. I use a mircrofiber applicator and evenly apply wax to the vehicle (1 section at a time). I let the wax set for a minute or so, then buff the majority of it off with a microfiber towel. Then I follow up with another microfiber towel to remove any leftover wax.
If I feel up to it, I then do the windows. After I'm finished, I go around looking for any streaks/blemishes that I can go over again. That's about it!
I don't think the wax I'm using would be causing the fine scratches. I've had better success with this product (on my new car). I used other towels on my first car which has lots of the fine scratches. Thanks for the reply!
You shouldn't have to wax every week with a liquid cleaner wax, and I'm no expert, but that seems a bit excessive. Instead try a spray wax after washing if you feel you must.
I'd get a sheepskin wash mitt. Don't get too obsessed about suds, think more about what's coming in contact with your paint and lifting debris away from it.
Stick with a quality car wash... you usually get what you pay for.
Get a waffle-weave microfiber towel or a large plush drying towel (Absorbers and chamois and water blades have a following, but are quite controversial)
Have you clayed lately? It's a good idea at least twice a year or when necessary.
Spiderwebbing can be difficult to remove by hand, but a 3-step wax system like Mothers -- Pre-Wax Cleaner, Sealer & Glaze and Pure Carnauba Wax, can help hide those defects. You can use the Pure Carnauba every week (it's got no cleaners) and use the Sealer & Glaze before it if you start seeing spiderwebbing again. I think you'll like these better than what you're using. Like claying, you likely only need all 3 steps a couple times a year.
Awesome! thanks both of you for the great responses. I do use a spray wax in between washings to preserve the shine. Like I said, I'm having great results from Zymol, but I'd like to step up to something better. I live in the boonie's on a gravel road so dust/dirt is a major issue for me. I will certainly take those links into consideration.
Realize that scratches can occur from driving your vehicle on the road, not just washing and waxing.
Your best bet for getting some of those scratches out would be to clay bar the vehicle to get the paint smooth again and pull out any overspray/bugs/acid rain residue/etc, use a rotary buffer and first buff the scratches with a heavy cut compound (Like Meguair's Diamond Cut Compound 2.0 if you have access to their Mirror Glaze products although that's a dealer-level product) with a 100% wool pad. Wipe off the dust and residue with a microfibre, then take an MSR compound (Meguair's Swirl-Free compound) with a black foam finishing pad to remove the swirls from the wool pad, then use a fine cut cleaner if you want ontop of that, then wax.
Do you do much highway driving especially behind 18 wheelers? I've gotten more than a few chips and small scratches from SUVs tossing up rocks on the highway.
I'm on the highway every day, but not extended distances. Actually I'm so anal that I keep WAY back behind or pass semis or larger vehicles. If one is coming towards me I get as far over to the right as possible. This is probably good practice for any kind of driving as well as me being anal....lol. I'm sure everyone gets their fair share of damage from driving, but I was basically talking about minor scratches in the clearcoat...like from washing/waxing too much. I dust the car off nearly every night with a miicrofiber towel. I also use detail wax at least once a week to keep the shine up between 'real' waxings.
so dust/dirt is a major issue for me. I will certainly take those links into consideration.
