Automated car wash

[James1414d]

New convertible owner here. I'm curious if anyone takes theirs through a carwash. I searched the forum and came up empty.

I usually hand wash my cars, but we do have a pretty handy (and free) carwash at my work. Maybe I'll be the guinea-pig.

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[ORRadtech]

I've taken mine through a few times. The purest would never do it but mine is a DD and I don't always have the time to do a full hand wash detail.
I only use the basic wash, no wax or spray on chemicals.
It's done a decent job so far. No damages, scratches or leaks.

 

[JCFoster]

Nope. But, we also have cheap crappy car washes in La. like everything else. If I lived up north with the possibility of salt etc. I probably would just to get underneath.

 

[rcengr]

I've taken mine through Mike's Car Wash with no problem. I get just the basic, no wax.

 

[Fordever]

I have never put mine thru a car wash. Car washes are good for removing dust, but ground in dirt just doesn’t come off. (I have used a pressure washer on my truck... that how I know).

maybe I have Autoplenophobia. Who knows??

 

[Deleted member 35644]

Last time I ran mine through a touchless, I got out to dry it off, and watched as the water sheeted off the sides (first hint of a problem) and saw that most of the brown crap was still there. My drying towel was filthy when I got done. Wheels still had a brown film on them. I Won't waste money on that again. It's better off staying dirty.

 

[James1414d]

Guess I'm mostly leery of water leaks with the soft top.

 

[Johnnybee]

Mine is dirty most of the winter. Unless we happen to get a nice day, like 5C and sunny on a weekend, the car doesn't see the hose. Yesterday was one of those days but being a Monday, no wash. I would not bother with a car wash.

 

[ClayAce]

I just spent 20 hours or so getting out the scratches and swirl marks on my 2016 that I bought used from a guy who ran it through car washes. The car only has 4,500 miles and in the sunlight the paint looked terrible from the automatic washes.The top appears to be fine from the AM washes.

 

[Deleted member 35644]

Baby Jesus weeps every time a filthy, twirling brush spins its way down the side of a Mustang.

 

[Balr14]

Our water is too hard for hand washing. The calcium will ruin your paint. A car wash is the only choice we have.

 

[Copperhead73]

We have a local wash that used to be a Simonize with swirling auto-brushes, etc. It has since been taken over by a local company that removed all the auto-brushes. Now, you ride down the conveyor and go through the "waterfall" but up to that point and after two guys walk along side and handwash the car the old fashioned way. You do then go through the automatic dryer. They then have you pull outside and do a full hand dry, tires, wheels, etc.

My biggest concern is actually the dryer. I can't imagine it is any more abusive than 100 MPH dashes down the Mexican freeway, but it does buffet the top and back glass noticeably. I haven't been able to detect any damage, but still it worries me.

 

[JohnDoe]

I go through touchless automatic ones all the time during salt season for the undercarriage jets, and sometimes just to get the dust off after I've already coated my paint earlier.

 

[gamecoc430]

Having had several convertibles the auto car wash uses very strong cleaners which will probably lead to the threads in the top letting go. The threads are the weak point. I also don't like what they do to the paint. Hand wash mine only and dry with a leaf blower.

 

[DRB]

There's one automated spray-and-blow car wash near here in College Park that I use - never have had a problem with it. Any nice day, the lot's full of guys hand-drying their more-than-nice cars after going through.

My cars are daily drivers, thirty miles or more a day for work purposes. In terms of routine removal of winter salt and dirt from the undercarriage it's the only practical solution - for me - that I've found.

The car is garaged both at home and at my office, and I never noticed any damage to the top of my previous two convertibles from using this place.

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