I have been given a new company car. A spanking new mondeo estate titanium X in black.
its very smart and I want to keep it that way. The problem being i am lazy and never clean my own car.
I have watched and read various horror stories about "professional" car valeters scratching paint work, always minor but over time ruins new
paint.
I would probably do the same with an old sponge and well loved leather.
so, any recommendations? I currently use a £20 odd quid inside and out hand jobby, but they still stick it through a car wash.
Power wash
Snow foam with foam branch
Rinse with power wash
Works great
Example here
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ksthzBBHVfg
Foam lance prewash, Double bucket wash, with wooly mitt not sponge, and preferably a grit guard.
Hose rinse, then dry with large soft towels draped over surface and lightly pulled off. Detail spray on microfibre to clear an drying stains. Good
quality wax to ensure longevity of finish and make future washing easier..
Rain.
If you go over to the Detailing World forum you'll find plenty guidance, examples and professionals on auto detailing.
I got a little bit into it, as I'm a bit OCD like that myself, but you can spend a whole heap of cash on stuff (and a lot of time too!) if you
want anything like the results you can see on the forum. It'll cost a lot more than £20 for a pro to do it too!
That said, I have a new company car heading my way in a couple of months and am thinking of getting one of the pro's to do a new car
detail/protection job for me too.
Unless you plan to buy the car at the end of the lease or can claim back the cost of washing it I'd not be worrying too much about it. The lease cars I've had in the past have all been put through the car wash once every 2-3 months. No complaints from the lease companies on return, typically 3 years and 80-100k miles on them. I've found the ARC attended car washes are pretty good as they have people to pre-wash and brush the cars. That said modern vehicle paint with clear over base is IMHO rubbish and black is the worst possible colour for showing up damage.
If the local hand car wash does not use blades and you see them rinsing out the clothes regularly then if being lazy use them.
One in Uxbridge was excellent, power prewash, soft mitt going over with foam followed by a power wash and dry with micro fibres, bit of black on tyres
and interior Hoover was £10 
Plenty of people offer this service these days, just watch how they behave and pick the best one.
I've always found one of the big advantages of a company car is it doesn't need washing 
It's only those pesky dealers that ever wash mine, probably to keep their workshop clean 
quote:
Originally posted by Nickp
I've always found one of the big advantages of a company car is it doesn't need washing
It's only those pesky dealers that ever wash mine, probably to keep their workshop clean
Some good advice here, cheers.
Some of you have seemed to get the wrong end of the sick though, I cant be bothered to do it myself!
The ARC style company I normally use does spray the car pre wash and does not use one of those terrible blades so I don't think I am going to far
wrong.
I do get away with a slightly grim looking car but it is brand new and smart looking, I also like having a clean car.
quote:
Originally posted by mark chandler
If the local hand car wash does not use blades and you see them rinsing out the clothes regularly then if being lazy use them.
One in Uxbridge was excellent, power prewash, soft mitt going over with foam followed by a power wash and dry with micro fibres, bit of black on tyres and interior Hoover was £10
Plenty of people offer this service these days, just watch how they behave and pick the best one.
Ditto...
What is this "washing your company car" you speak of? Buy one in the many shades of the colour known as "dirt" that all large cars now come in and then all you have to do is drive through puddles to keep the wheels clean.
quote:
Originally posted by bi22le
I currently use a £20 odd quid inside and out hand jobby.
quote:
..... match the colour of road much so it will need a wash once every 12-18months.
quote:
Originally posted by simonrh
quote:
..... match the colour of road much so it will need a wash once every 12-18months.
Except if your boss needs collecting from somewhere, emergency rush to car wash
quote:
Originally posted by nick205
quote:
Originally posted by simonrh
quote:
..... match the colour of road much so it will need a wash once every 12-18months.
Except if your boss needs collecting from somewhere, emergency rush to car wash
Unless your boss shares the same cleaning habits as my old one did. He used to scuff the dirt off the rear number plate and lights with his shoe in the winter after being pulled over for illegible plates.