raduga

Knowing nothing about car detailing, except that I don't trust pro car washes, I gave my new Lava Gray A3 a quick rinse off with some Simple Green (diluted.) ... it looks fine, but after poking around here on the forum I'm starting to worry that I stripped my wax off. If so, is this damaging? What are the effects of driving around in the rain for a few weeks without wax on the paint?

PS -- For emergencies, is it ever acceptable to visit a local Car Wash? Are some gentler than others?

cj99si

yes its stripped, put some back on, and no dont go if you care about your car.

cj99si

you didnt do anything that bad though, its all easily fixable.

schnellmb

it's okay in a diluted form for engine detailing.

pac1085

you'd think that even dish soap, or shampoo would be a more logical choice :P

bpp

You don't trust pro car car washes, but you use Simple Green? You better put on something..soon.

nynyvtecjstkickdinyo

This was around 2002 and that car went back a few weeks later off lease.

I got home... saw her drying the car, saw the empty bottle of Murphys and said... "ummm, you didnt use that did you..?" I got back, "yeah why?, does it matter...?"

We're getting divorced.

bpp

Add an abrasive sponge to complete the picture.

RichAA

I've used it on my boat for years. I like that it's biodegradable. It's a good-quality soap. It smells good. :-)

That said, I was diluting it for washing the car to 2 or 3 ounces of concentrate in 5 gallons of water. Hard to imagine it's going to do much damage that way.

Still, now I see the light and I'm going to switch to a mild hand soap until I can find a good car washing soap.

pac1085

meguiars, mothers, even eagle 1 or turtle wax car wash is better than simple green or hand soap.