Pharmsoup

In order to keep your car looking like it did the on the day you bought it, how often should you wash and detail your car?

JBDinTX

I wash my s5 one to two times a week and wax it every two months. I always use spray detailer when I wash. Wipe down the inside with murphys oil soap about 3 table spoons in a bucket of warm water.

SFV A4

Wipe down once a week with damp cloth. Wax three times a year. Never have washed.

dlinoc

wash once a week and wax every month. do a clay bar, glaze in addition to a wax every 3 months.

Huey52

Too often. I wash it once a week (usually wax as well). I "detail" it most every day. That is, I at least dust it and more often detail-spray it after every evening's commute. I've detailed the inside at least a dozen times in my three months of ownership and as I'm obviously pretty **** it doesn't get dirty to begin with. So .... too often.
Good therapy tho'.

JD15

I get it washed once every two weeks on average and get it waxed twice a year. It's impossible to wash myself for a significant portion of the year, so I have to take it to the carwash.

Limestonedan

Question: what do people use to clean dust off and light road grime from the exterior? I typically hand wipe my car every couple of days in the garage with clean rags/towels and hot water. I don't get the car really dirty as I only drive it in nice weather. On occasion, when I use the California Duster that product seems to "streak" when I use it on the exterior.

Is there a terrific, and safe, hand "spray" product out there that removes dust/grime that might include a wax as well? Sort of all in one? Spray and wipe off?

uberwgn

Pharma, there's nothing more important than the weekly wash unless you live somewhere that it doesn't rain.

I spend about 1 hour per vehicle every weekend which includes washing, cleaning the wheels and giving the interior a little suck. I may skip the entire process if we're heading into a week of rain and the car is going to get dirty within 5 mins.

I do a major detail day (per vehicle) in the late fall and late spring. I'll probably spend 8 hours per car and finish everything off with an excellent sealant that will carry me for 6 mos or so. I typically power wash the engine compartment at the end of winter.

Again, the weekly cleaning is the most important step in keeping the car in top condition. This must continue right thru the winter months, assuming you experience winter.

One of the guys I work with has a couple late model VWs that sit outside 24/7 and have never been waxed. The paint on his cars looks nearly new. The only thing he does is have the cars washed whenever dirty. I suspect this is once a week or more often. Modern clearcoat on these better cars is very durable.

Huey52

The Cali Duster doesn't streak if 1) it's properly prepared from new by removing excess paraffin in some newspaper and 2) you stroke it very lightly.

I like Griot's Garage products. Their Speed Shine detailing spray and Spray-on Wax may be what you're looking for. They also have a Spray-on Wash for Winter use.

http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/...rrivals&page=1

http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/...rrivals&page=1

http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/...rrivals&page=1

Tifosi

Wash once every 1 or 2 weeks and detail the car at least once every 6 months.