GT3 at Automatic Car wash

I went to the car wash on Xmas eve, the manual kind where you spray the car down with a wand yourself. (I usually bring bucket and sponge along with me to get the film off and do as much by hand as I can). I pull up to the car wash and there in line at the 2 automatic stalls, where they have those rotating brushes and the spaghetti like things hanging down all of which rub against your car is a brand new seal grey GT3. I gave the guy a wave hello and 'thumbs up' for the car, but I was thinking I should get out and say something to him about taking such a nice car through the automatic car wash. I didn't, it's his car, but I wonder what his paint is going to look like after a couple of years of that treatment. Oh well, I then wondered what the rest of the people at the car wash thought about having 2 Porsches there at the same time. I don't think Bubba and his huntin' truck with 3 inches of caked on mud really cared...

I'm always torn on the car wash thing between convenience and being nice to my car. In the end, I hand wash my cars most of the time, but when there's a long cold snap without a warm up, my non-Porsches sometimes go through the automatic. I discussed this with a top-notch body/paint shop guy in our area. He recommends hand washing, but if you do auto wash, he finds some types to be much gentler than others. He was especially disparaging about those little car washes some of he gas stations have. Said he had a lady who used those all the time and had to have her 2 year old BMW completely re-painted. By the way, my best home car wash tip: If you have hard water in your area, use softened water for car washing. It tends to do a much better job with a lot less water spotting. Most outside spigots are not hooked up to the water softener (they shouldn't be--it's bad for the plants) but if you can plumb one for car washing it makes a big differnence, in my opinion. The self wash stations are not a bad alternative, although they can be quite cold in winter. Just be careful; I once took a fingernail size flake of paint off a new Porsche when I got too close with the water sprayer(Ouch!). The water pressure on those things is very high, and when the paint is cold, it can be quite brittle.

I thought it wasn't good or safe for 911's to go through those Auto-washes? Something about the rear tires being bigger than the fronts sometimes messing up the rails that push the car along? I thought I read that on the forums?

I think the risk is that with the low profile tires, your rims can wind up getting scratched. That happened to me once and I had to have them buffed out.

auto car wash? would you subject your skin to that kind of abuse? if you don't, then your car shouldn't either i used to live in a condo that prohibits car washing in its CC&R. i drive 30 min. to my buddies house every sat. morning to wash my car. that's pretty relaxing to me. now that i got a house, i do as i wish. waxing my car 3 in the morning with hot coco.... yeah.

how is the shine with hot coco? Do you do more than one coat of coco? what kind of coco do you use?

auto car wash in a GT3? that guy should be shot. no 911 should ever be put through an automatic car wash!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

It must be leased....

Which city/country did you see this serious faux pas?

Well i would never ever in a million years go in one of those, but a friend of mine a a brand new Aston Martin Vantage he does it all the time, funny thing is his car is 4 years newer then mine, and it looks like its 8 years older........Hum point being DONT DO IT

phil, do the zaino regimen, follow it up with william sonoma's chocolate mint coco. marshmellow will add extra layers of sheen. you come by my house, i will show you. suwipin and kim has had the coco treatment on their cars already.

I live in phoenix and we have tons of those "brushlesss auto washers"...where they first vacum out your car then run it through the "wheel push auto thing" after that the car is hand dried and the wheels and windows are cleaned I have had my car washed there about 2x a week over the last 8 months and have had no problems with my rims. I am noticing swirl marks from the wipe downs but if I hand wahsed my car that much i would probably get the same thing...also these can be buffed out (at least that is what I am told) The point...I could not be bothered hand washing my car...it take too long...my time is to valuable to me. A big factor in my buying this car was that I could not covet it (if i thought i would I wouldn't have bought it). I drive it alot (12k miles in the fiirst 8 months) I let my friends drive it. I run it through the auto washer. It is an awesome car but it is still just a car to me. My neighbor has a Z8 which he has had for ~1year and has 350 miles on it...I say...if your are not going to drive it why buy it?

i am just reading this post!! i got my back left rim scratched seriously by the auto-car wash.. i didnt know... waz

When I had my '03 E55 I used to take it to the car wash, and the rear drivers side wheel got damaged. With very wide low profile tires, the problem is usually how carefully they are driven on to the track that pushes the car along. If the car isn't perfectly parallel to the track, and lined up perfectly, it can ding the wheel as it enters the track. I ended up dealing with the owner of the car wash, and after some discussion about refinishing (which I had no interest in), he agreed to pay for a new wheel. It was over $1,000 installed. Lots of high end cars go there, and the owner told me he ends up paying for 2 or 3 wheels a year--I guess it's a cost of doing business. My Porsches will never see an automatic car wash--I actually enjoy washing them!

Some auto washes also spray some nasty chemicals at your car to ensure they remove stubborn dirt.....and top coat I guess....but they don't do stainless steel any good.....rims, exhaust, etc... Guy must have been a zillionair with 6 others back home....or a total nutter. Incidentally, I always keep a cheapo digital camera in my car just in case I want to snap something special. Seeing two porkers at the auto wash would have been a great picture.

I tend to think those triple protection 3 color fluid applications are just a bunch of hocus pocus marketing slogans. It's probably just soap tinted different colors like somehow those 3 colors are supposed to magically combine to create a protective shield on your paint or something... Looks pretty though...

I don't wash my car at all. I just let it get dirty, and when it starts to look really bad, I simply have the dealership come around with a new one, and take the old one away. One tip, if money is tight, go with silver. I can drive a silver car for 5 or 6 weeks before I need a new one.

I live in the city and NEVER use an automatic wash. It's either the coin-op with my bucket or the hand detailing place in a nearby garage. There's never a reason for the auto wash IMO.

...It depends a lot on what sort of brushes the auto carwash uses. In the UK, some newer carwashes (e.g. BP ones) have brushes with long rubber strips instead of nylon bristles. I use these BP places a lot and it doesn't seem to do my car any harm. Hand detailing places are not always going to be better for your car than a good autowash. Unless they use NEW sponges for every car they wash, you are likely to get your bodywork scratched up by the use of dirty water/improperly rinsed sponges/over enthusiastic drying etc. Of course, hand washing at home is the best option, but we have to remember these are just cars and so it's best not to get too **** about things. To be honest, anyone who has time to spend 3 or 4 hours a week on washing and detailing their car needs to get a life (IMHO).

Yes, I make no disclaimers as to the quality of detailers. That's up to you guys Mine manages to keep the car free of swirl marks and nicely waxed.

Had a 2000 911 Carrera and what I found was the guide rail for the tires scratch the rear rim. Was hardly noticable but would never use an automactic car wash again. Porsche rims stick out father than the tires and are easy targets for damage of this kind.

I found a type of autowash that uses a "laser" system. You pay $5, drive into the bay and onto a metal grid with just your front, left tire. You've just gone over an undercarriage wash. A light tells you when to stop. A wash unit activates and goes around the car. Nothing (H2O, etc) comes out. I think thats when it calibrates your auto. Then the water/soap pass starts. It is a gentle application. It sits for about 30 secs, then the wash cycle, the rinse cycle and finally an air drying cycle. Takes about 5 minutes and nothing except the liquids touches the car. It does a great job. I've used it on the P-car, the M5, and the truck and would use it again in a second. I wish I could find this type of washer in someplace other then Corning NY!!!! I only hand wash at home.

i have sport classics and the wheel is pretty well recessed from the tire....now i was looking at turbo twist wheels at the dealer and they seemed more flush with the tires. guys i am sure there are people out there that would never have a p-car without garaging it or who don't driv thiers in the rain (me) but.... "....can't we all just get along" R. King

preach it brother!

Wash it like you stole it.................err.....something like that.......

um...aren't you the guy who drives your prescious p-car in the snow....heaven forbid!

C4S's love the snow! I can't believe I forgot my camera when the car had some fresh powder and the roof rack on it Next time... For the record, if I ever get a CGT, I will not drive it in the snow

Mark, where do you get your car washed (which garage)? Are you aware of any touchless wash places in the Boston area? I wash by hand most of the year, but I also drive it all winter. Vic 99 C2 cab

how much do you pay each wash? ...and i want to see snow pics...with a plow on the fron of the c4s!

I usually have my car washed at Bradford Auto Wax in the Prudential Center garage. They also have a few other garage locations in the city. http://www.bradfordautowax.com/ The wash is $15, $30 if you want them to vacuum/clean windows. Also, despite the fact that the website uses the A-word ("Armor All the tires"), all the products are Meguiar's detailers' line. I have Bradford wax the car every couple months, and I detail the interior myself at those times. I also plan to have the car detailed in the spring by one of our local PCA members, who is a concours winner and works out of her house. Vic, if you're in the city and have washing space, I'll bring food or beers

Hmmmmm. Since I usually plug $10 in quarters at the do-it-yourself bay ... do they do a nice job? I'm on the South Shore, about 20 miles from Boston. Yes, I have a driveway and a hose ;-) Vic 99 C2 cab

Do they franchise? Maybe you could buy a franchise and open up one close to you. I always thought car wash franchises made a lot of money... anyone know?