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      06-16-2011, 01:59 PM   #23
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My dealer washes the car when its in for service and runs it through their auto-car wash with brushes I know that when they prep new vehicles they don't even hand wash them and run them through the auto wash
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      06-16-2011, 02:30 PM   #24
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Originally Posted by Harplayr View Post
For some reason I actually enjoy washing the car by hand.
So do I. Spending 3 hours washing one vehicle on a nice weekend morning (that's when my driveway has shade) with some music going... is a pleasure.
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      06-16-2011, 02:33 PM   #25
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Originally Posted by Want the thrill View Post
My dealer washes the car when its in for service and runs it through their auto-car wash with brushes I know that when they prep new vehicles they don't even hand wash them and run them through the auto wash
They should be horse-whipped. My dealer has a touchless, and still I always put a DO NOT WASH order when I bring it in. Even if it was a hand wash, it would be some 16 year old with dirty rags and filthy water, scraping their watch band and belt buckle along the car as they went....

I don't let the dealer wash it. I can get the dirt off later - getting the scratches out is more difficult.
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      06-16-2011, 03:02 PM   #26
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Originally Posted by LEDZEP View Post
They should be horse-whipped. My dealer has a touchless, and still I always put a DO NOT WASH order when I bring it in. Even if it was a hand wash, it would be some 16 year old with dirty rags and filthy water, scraping their watch band and belt buckle along the car as they went....

I don't let the dealer wash it. I can get the dirt off later - getting the scratches out is more difficult.
I have the loaner 35i now, but when mine comes in, I plan on asking them not to wash it when they prep it and when it is in for service.
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      06-16-2011, 03:14 PM   #27
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Want the thrill View Post
My dealer washes the car when its in for service and runs it through their auto-car wash with brushes I know that when they prep new vehicles they don't even hand wash them and run them through the auto wash
I draw the line at a wash that uses hard brushes, I only go to one that uses cloths in the process.
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      06-16-2011, 06:02 PM   #28
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incredible...

So I'm just settling down from walking in from work and logged in here to get caught up...

I'm amazed at the direction in which this thread has gone... have fun guys.
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      06-16-2011, 09:25 PM   #29
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Originally Posted by Want the thrill View Post
When we built our house I had a drain put in the center of the garage and did our hose hook up with hot and cold water. I wash the car right in the garage in the middle of winter. Works great!
Very nice!
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      06-16-2011, 09:49 PM   #30
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last post on this thread for me...

Wow LedZep you once again prove that you are the master of knowing everything....even how my local car wash works!! Wow man you are amazing. And the ability of people to flame on something as benign as a car wash really shows what is sometimes wrong with these threads…..but I digress..
Ok...so let's just level set on reality now and since I'm a person that bases what I say on FACTS and not opinions (and we all know what opinions are like) Since I have no interest in judging you or anyone else on your car washing, favorite sports teams, political affiliation or any of the other taboo topics in the world, I’ll skip to facts…again… I have my own opinion on spending hours each week away from my family when I’d rather enjoy the time with my kids instead of washing my car with a 5 dollar brush…but again I digress…
I'll give you some facts in regards to my evil car wash. So yes I live in a very affluent area but that doesn’t mean that I’m some rich snob b/c I’m not…and yes some rich folks drive around in 100K cars they don’t appreciate, but I can guarantee you that the guy down the street from me with the several hundred thousand dollar Ferrari who has red and yellow squares painted on the floor of his garage to show where his car sits cares for his Ferrari at least as much as I do my X3….and yes he and I often have conversations at that evil car was as our abused vehicles get torn up…mine in back of his or his in back of mine…what a sad sight. But wait…somehow his car looks showroom new…somehow every car I’ve owned in recent years has gone through there and the car does not have significant swirls or scratches or anything like that…then OMG what is wrong? Could LedZep be wrong? Naahhhh…well maybe… so let’s get to the facts…
When I say I have a high end car wash I mean it….it’s not some piece of crap attached to a gas station….people drive your car 6 feet in and 25 feet out b/c that’s just the policy…big f-n deal…having someone drive my car 30 feet every time I go. Anyway….the facility itself uses some super soft fabric on all of their cloth based machines (not brush based) and they change them out every year after the winter is over. I don’t know what the material is but its amazing. The soap is an organic soap that is recycled along with the water throughout the entire facility. They actually reuse their water and pass it through some filtration system before pumping it back into the water network….they even have a clear tank so you can see the material that gets filtered as it’s recycled. There are no high pressure jets that blow rocks or anything towards your paint. The workers outside all wear uniforms and they are not allowed to wear rings or watches when they are working. They have very soft cloths that they only use for a short period of time before they get dumped in a bin and taken to the back of the facility where they get washed with the recycled water and thoroughly cleaned. A person is always bringing new rags out and old rags back in.
So then let’s look at something else…they have an amazing program where for 50 bucks a month I get unlimited washes…yes unlimited…like I can take my car there every day and I only pay 50 bucks. So in the winter while you are waiting until the weekend for your 3 hour car wash and the snow and salt (assuming you live in an area with salt/snow) are eating away are your finish…I’m going there every other day to wash the crap off and preserve my paint and oh yea…my car looks showroom new even in the winter. And oh yea…in the spring when pollen is dumping on our paint…I go there and wash it off…and oh yea…that acid rain that sits on your paint in between washes...I’m going back and getting a wash done b/c…well I can b/c I get unlimited washes. So let’s figure this out….at 3 hours a wash once a week that’s 12 hours a month for 4 washes….and whatever you pay for your stuff and whatever your time is worth. As for me…if I go there 3-4 days a week I spend 10 minutes average per visit…so I’m investing 30-40 minutes a week or roughly 2-2.5 hours a month and I get 12-16 car washes that keep my car showroom new b/c of the system they use. And oh yea…once I year I pay an additional 200 bucks and they spend an entire 8 hour day prepping my car like BMW does for a CPO transaction….they remove any swirls or light clear coat scratches, clean everything inside etc…
Now for the labor I love…is that worth something…absolutely…in fact I miss doing that every week with my car..I really do…but guess what…I work 50-60 hours a week, have 2 kids to tend to and I go cycling 3 days a week…why can I do all of that…b/c I’m not stressing over the 3-4 hour car wash I have to do every week..and oh yea in between I’m not frustrated b/c it rained and my personal car wash isn’t until Saturday and it’s Tuesday…I just go get mine washed for the 50 bucks a month I pay.
I’m sure you’ll have some smart @ss answer to this but here is the problem with people like you and this board..I should not have to explain myself b/c you have to flame….I’m sorry you don’t have a facility like this near you b/c it may change your perception of sand paper based car washes.
And somehow amazingly, my car and my neighbor with the Ferrari don’t have cars that look like they are being washed with sandpaper… Zep are you sure it’s my car wash you are talking about?
So I’m done posting on this thread…totally done. Go ahead and post what you want about me or my post but I’m not clicking back on this thread to read or reply to anything. Like I said before…enjoy
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      06-16-2011, 11:06 PM   #31
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      06-16-2011, 11:25 PM   #32
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Mole, buddy you gotta relax, like you've said it's just a thread about car washing no need to get so worked up. I think you're taking this the wrong way, no one's flaming; all Zep said was that just because someone has an expensive car doesn't mean they take care of it and that most car washes aren't that good, both are true to some extent. For example I have a good friend who's family has a lot of nice cars and they don't take care of them very well. My friend drives a E60 M5, his mom a S500, dad a cayenne S turbo, a quattroporte, and a yukon denali if they didn't sell it yet. They garage the S500 and quattroporte but leave everything else outside where it rains 8-9 months out of the year, occasional hails even in mid spring & early fall, exposed to tree sap, bird crap, and other things. They're great people and I'm sure they do care about their cars but probably not as much as people who's budget is a little tighter and I think that's what Zep was getting at.

You can't go into a conversation or discussion with the preconceived notion that someone's trying to pick a fight with you. The sandpaper comment wasn't even directed at you or a response to quoting you, what he said was that no car wash is finish friendly and I guess that might be true since no matter how soft the material is the machine is still moving at a high rpm and using unknown chemicals, but your local car wash seems to be better or at least different.

I'm not sure if you're going to post back since you already said you won't, although you said the same thing 2 posts back before your WALL-OF-TEXT. This is a forum after all, people come here to post their beliefs, ideas, and experiences and sometimes this may clash with your own, try not to be so defensive all the time, if you can't then this might not be the place for you.
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      06-17-2011, 04:03 AM   #33
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Would love to be a fly on the wall if Mole and LedZep pulled alongside each other at the lights. Each in their X3s. Somehow they recognise each other. LZ looks at Mole's X3 and asks how he got that mark, looks like a belt buckle there son.

Forums are about opinion and debate, not just facts, otherwise they wouldn't be forums, they'd be wiki pages. I always enjoy a good ding dong like this one

Seriously though, not all car washes are equal. Clearly this one Mole has described sounds really good (and very good value to me) but hand washing yourself if you do it properly, have the time, the correct equipment and you are allowed to, is always superior. I also find washing the car quite therapeutic and rewarding but I agree that it takes way too much time and I have a family that I would prefer to spend time so I have to fit it in around them.

Some other things to bear in mind:

1. You don't need to regularly spend 3 hours every time you clean it in the winter, hosing most of the crap off regularly is most important

2. If you do clean it yourself, it's worth do some research and then buying (IMO) some decent car shampoo, wheel wash, a decent sheepskin mit, wheel brush, decent dying towel (not chamois). Also auto window cleaner, leather cleaner etc.

I bought the following from cleanyourcar.co.uk (thanks to the XBimmer UK member who told me about this website - couldn't find post): Poorboys Wheel Sealant, Sonus Ultra Fine Detailing Clay, Zaino - Z-AIO All In One, Meguiars Shampoo Plus, Sonus Der Wunder Drying Towel, EZ Detail Brush, Sheepskin Wash Mitt.

Also some good tips on this website
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      06-17-2011, 07:43 AM   #34
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Wash it! Are you supposed to wash it?
Damm! These foreign cars require so much maintenance!
And, What’s this newfangled stuff called “wax”?

Also thinking of "claying" the car. Should I use Amaco Hi-Fire Brown or White No. 38 potters clay?
Where can I find a kiln big enough to fire the whole car?
What glaze looks best on a X3?

Last edited by Lotus7; 06-17-2011 at 07:57 AM..
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      06-17-2011, 08:10 AM   #35
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lotus7 View Post
Wash it! Are you supposed to wash it?
Damm! These foreign cars require so much maintenance!
And, What’s this newfangled stuff called “wax”?

Also thinking of "claying" the car. Should I use Amaco Hi-Fire Brown or White No. 38 potters clay?
Where can I find a kiln big enough to fire the whole car?
What glaze looks best on a X3?
I'm partial to Dunkin Donuts

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      06-17-2011, 08:33 AM   #36
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Chocolate Frosted FTW
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      06-17-2011, 08:56 AM   #37
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Originally Posted by pault View Post
I draw the line at a wash that uses hard brushes, I only go to one that uses cloths in the process.
The problem is, no matter how soft the cloth (they could be made of baby rabbit fur), that soft cloth will be dragged over your car after having been dragged over 462 dirty pickup trucks... but yes, still much better than anything that uses brushes.

There are some weeks that I would love to spend my time doing something besides washing my car (especially in winter), but as I said, for me it is an enjoyable activity. With some music playing in the garage, my dog lying outside with me, and a nice summer morning - I enjoy the time spent washing my car. I also am a bit over-the-top in terms of being picky about how clean it is and spend a fortune at Griot's Garage every year, almost the only products I use. I used a clay bar on my X3 the second day I had it, followed by two coats of sealant, waxing the wheels, etc. I realize not everyone is insane to that level (not on an X3 forum anyway).

I wasn't trying to attack anyone, or provoke any arguments. This is a BMW enthusiast forum, and I am an enthusiast - not just someone who happens to own a BMW. Believe me, if you go to the main forum and the Washing and Detailing threads you will find that I am a slacker by comparison. Many of the practices that I follow regularly are a result of advice I have read or been given by such enthusiasts. If I came off as condesending it was not intentional, but I do stand by my statements. In the end it is a choice anyway - not everyone wants to be fanatical about car care.
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      06-17-2011, 09:06 AM   #38
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lotus7 View Post
Wash it! Are you supposed to wash it?
Damm! These foreign cars require so much maintenance!
And, What’s this newfangled stuff called “wax”?

Also thinking of "claying" the car. Should I use Amaco Hi-Fire Brown or White No. 38 potters clay?
Where can I find a kiln big enough to fire the whole car?
What glaze looks best on a X3?
I prefer to silly putty my car. More fun!
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