Oh, the shame! Just paid someone to wash the car!

[LenT]

15 minutes ago, Malc1 said:

......  and then some bugger comes along overnight and try's to park on my rear bumper corner in his white car ......  well that's the copious amount of car white paint left behind by that bugger ....  whatever you do to your car one's at the mercy of the gods and those errant couldn't care less hidden motorists that don't care a hoot about others possessions and leave the scene of an avoidable accident under cover of .......  " not seen so it's OK to scarper "             syndrome

Washing ain't getting it right, nor copious amounts of polishing either .... aarrrggghhh !

Malc

What an infuriating incident, Malcolm.

Was this a recent crime or a past event that still rightly rankles?

It may be scant consolation, but as a Case Study for having a dashcam in parking mode overnight, it may at least serve as an incentive to others.

[Malc1]

5 minutes ago, LenT said:

What an infuriating incident, Malcolm.

Was this a recent crime or a past event that still rightly rankles?

It may be scant consolation, but as a Case Study for having a dashcam in parking mode overnight, it may at least serve as an incentive to others.

‘‘Twas this last Saturday night Sunday morning sometime 🥵

Malc 

[ALAW]

Evening Len yes i can see where your coming from im soon to be 68 have health issues heart arthritis etc. so mobility worsens as getting older. I used to love cleaning my cars. Actually did a lot at work i have a job where its possible. I have difficulty kneeling down getting up etc. So my car cleaning days are now what can i do to make it easier. Like ive posted in detailing I've made the jump to a foam nozzle im experimenting with different foams and now this ceramic stuff you simply spray on and rinse off all to make my car washing easier. you must be disappointed its come to this that's why your right in doing what you've done. Onwards and upwards my friend.

[LenT]

6 hours ago, ALAW said:

Evening Len yes i can see where your coming from im soon to be 68 have health issues heart arthritis etc. so mobility worsens as getting older. I used to love cleaning my cars. Actually did a lot at work i have a job where its possible. I have difficulty kneeling down getting up etc. So my car cleaning days are now what can i do to make it easier. Like ive posted in detailing I've made the jump to a foam nozzle im experimenting with different foams and now this ceramic stuff you simply spray on and rinse off all to make my car washing easier. you must be disappointed its come to this that's why your right in doing what you've done. Onwards and upwards my friend.

Many thanks for your comments, Brent.

As I mentioned earlier, when I made my original post it was slightly tongue-in-cheek.  But since then I’ve been surprised that it’s generated such interest and comment.

Not so much that there are others who find themselves in the same position, but more in discovering that there are folk who can provide such a competent, professional mobile service at such a reasonable price.

All the best with your own health issues, Brent.

[dutchie01]

17 hours ago, Linas.P said:

Ohh don't even tell me about that... I had my car detailed just couple of weeks ago... not perfect, because it can't be perfect for 18 years old car, but it looked very nice from 5 metres away.... just to be "Frenched" in Britany. 

Some French bugger slammed the doors so hard into the side of my car that it literally dented the panel... nevermind copious amount of white paint... and obviously he is nowhere to be found, because in France that is not even considered an issue. 

Sorry I know I made big deal of mentioning Eastern Europeans, but French despite 1000 amazing qualities really do not care about their cars cosmetics, that is kind of their national thing. I know it is stereotype as well, so certainly not all of them, but they certainly care much less than Brits... Or maybe I am just salty because it is personal! 😄 

 

Thats correct Linas, the French dont care about cars at all and it shows. Not even sure detailing exists over there. I once had a French agent working for us that always kicked a dent in his new car saying the first one is mine!

BTW i always wash my car and my wifes car by hand. Drive 10 mins away from my house nice quiet wash boxes. Takes me out of the house for an hour, like the silence.... My wife tells her friends he needs an hour for himself.

[Linas.P]

41 minutes ago, dutchie01 said:

Thats correct Linas, the French dont care about cars at all and it shows. Not even sure detailing exists over there. I once had a French agent working for us that always kicked a dent in his new car saying the first one is mine!

BTW i always wash my car and my wifes car by hand. Drive 10 mins away from my house nice quiet wash boxes. Takes me out of the house for an hour, like the silence.... My wife tells her friends he needs an hour for himself.

Same here - I just find it relaxing to detail the car, although sometimes it is hard work... so I would not bother if somebody did the bulk shifting of dirt for me (as long as they don't damage the paint) and I can then focus on details.

I honestly don't think French would be offended by hearing this. I know Jeremy Clarkson is not the person that can trusted on the facts, but there is segment I believe in Grand Tour where they are mocking French car culture and it is spot on - basically caring for car, especially cosmetics is like low bar for them.

That said - Britany was unbelievably clean all around, in a week I have seen literally 2 pieces of rubbish and second thing I noticed, they all put good tyres on their cars... even some sort of rusted old Peugeot that is barely worth £100 will wear Michelin, or Continental or something like that. I did not see many cars with budget tyres, they are almost as rare it seems as premium tyres in UK. I think matching tyres per axle are legal requirement anyway, so matching tyres were non-issue. So argument could be - their priorities in right place. Except, I don't mind if they don't care about their car as long as that doesn't extend to other people car.

[dutchie01]

You are really looking at car tyres when abroad? Linas what is wrong with you!

Tyres maybe but maintenance? They bring the car to the garage if its broken thats it.

[LenT]

39 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

and second thing I noticed, they all put good tyres on their cars... even some sort of rusted old Peugeot that is barely worth £100 will wear Michelin, or Continental or something like that. I did not see many cars with budget tyres

Linus, you are a gem! 

Bernard beat me to it, but despite our relatively short acquaintance  I can safely say that you are the only person I know who would include tyre spotting as part of their holiday itinerary.

You are a true one off - and long may you continue!  😊

[Linas.P]

You know - thinking about it... it may be something wrong with me, but there is always that moment when other half decided to go to the market to look for handcrafted junk and one is left to sit on the bench in car park 😄 In the other hand I just have eye for the detail in general, so if I have a second of spare time I notice all sorts of weird things.

It is not so much that I am looking for premium tyres, but I absolutely can't stand chinesium death traps on the cars  - I honestly believe they must be made illegal, or testing methodology made more stringent and they would not be able to pass anyway. Because in UK they are so common, especially on powerful luxury cars I just got this habit of looking out for them and ridiculing it. And in general - anything that is absolutely dumb and dangerous, those sort of things boils my blood, so I notice them. In France not so much, I feel like if I lived there for a month I would stop bothering, because it seems people get it right there.

I mean if one can draw any conclusion from this, then it seems when British people need a tyre and ask for replacement, then they either ask or are advised to replace just one tyre and to replace it with the cheapest trash that could be found. When French do the same, they are advised/ask to replace both and they choose decent brands... although I have suspicion Michelin is much cheaper in France than anywhere else. Which is convenient considering they make one of the best tyres.

[Gary H]

I have to admit that I’m a self-confessed ‘car washer’ from a family of ‘car washers’! 😄 Well, by that I mean I’m someone who treats a car like a member of the family. An extension to the house as it were... I take after my father in this respect, who has also always taken pride in his car. My late grandfather was also very similar. I suppose it runs in the family! I do have multiple tales from over the years to tell but that's genuinely worth a thread in itself. 

There are, of course, exceptions to the rule but generally speaking we’ve always washed our own car and of course, thanks to the likes of YouTube and a few specific content-creators we watch with regards to car-washing, have employed the ‘two bucket’ method e.t.c for a number of years. 

Generally speaking, a fortnightly wash is about average. Sometimes that’s extended to three weeks but it doesn’t often go beyond that unless there’s some unusual or exceptional circumstance. 

Several years ago during the winter months, I will admit we did take our cars up to our local hand washing place instead of spending an hour and a half/two hours outside doing it ourselves out in the freezing old. It was very highly rated and to be fair to them, it was worth the wait in the queue. Whilst they didn’t do the car to our own standards, they certainly weren’t too far wide of the mark. It only required around five minutes of ‘titivation’ when we got back home to bring it up to an acceptable standard given the time of the year. Unfortunately once they started to get in a few different members of staff (in around 2018/19), we noticed they were taking much less care on the alloys and they quickly no longer had any concept of an electronic boot. On two occasions they did try to force it to close manually. It was at this point both myself and my father decided to ‘call it a day’ on using them and we have now reverted back to washing our own cars ourselves in the winter - and putting up with the cold. My UX has never been to this hand car washing place. It’s always been done by ourselves. 

My father (aged 70) is understandably now getting to the age where it’s becoming more of a chore than a pleasure for him. Whilst he does still enjoy car washing, he has to ‘build himself up’ to it these days. We both suffer from Arthritis (mine’s rheumatoid, his is the age-related osteoarthritis - mainly his lower back) so the pair of us often look at our cars and wonder, every so often, if we can let them go ‘another week’! 🤔😄

Obviously there will become a point where we’ll both have to refer back to hand-car washing places but we’ll certainly carry on our usual car washing practice for as long as we can.

[LenT]

10 hours ago, Gary H said:

Obviously there will become a point where we’ll both have to refer back to hand-car washing places but we’ll certainly carry on our usual car washing practice for as long as we can.

Many thanks for your contribution, Gary.

I think you’ve described the trajectory that many of us have followed.  But as Linus pointed out earlier - and I have been able to confirm - there are many articles that support the claim that a modern, well-maintained mechanical wash is likely to be less damaging than an underpaid, Tesco-style operator with well-worn wash mitt / drying cloths rushing to deal with a queue of shoppers’ cars.

And as you noted, whose work may still require further ‘titivation’!

What has come out of this thread, I suggest, is that rather than ‘refer back to hand-car washing places’  you might explore the benefits of the mobile car washing service.

After all, these are individuals who have already invested in kitting out a van with foam guns, possibly air dryers, and good quality materials - and then devote at least as long as you would to ensure that there was nothing left to ‘titivate’ at the end.

At least, that’s what I got for £40!  And others have reported similar results for even less.  So it’s something I would certainly recommend that you might consider for the future.

10 hours ago, Gary H said:

I do have multiple tales from over the years to tell but that's genuinely worth a thread in itself. 

Go for it, Gary!  

[Malc1]

owning a used car garage for some years in times past it was an absolute boon to have our self-employed elderly gent tasked to clean and polish the forecourt stock .......... he usually made a really good job of it ...  twixt cuppas and bikkies and chats to keep him going .....

s'pose with that happening i could never really get into the way of happily spending my own time washing a car .  mine included ....  nor to this day either really ...... especially with the seagulls ALWAYS  doing a better job of splashing her more than any bucket of fresh water could keep pace with 

BUT I do admire those with the will and the wish to scrub and polish away ............. 😉

Malc

[Andy B]

I am very OCD when it comes to keeping my car clean (just ask my neighbours LOL!). On average I probably clean it about once every two weeks at least. I actually look forward to doing it as I like the car to look it's best plus I find it very therapeutic. 

I think I caught the bug from my father who had a long association with the motor car (he had been a lorry driver; a bus driver and finally a chauffer).

Fortunately I'm still spritely enough to continue doing it without too much stress on my ageing joints - although when doing the wheels I find myself having to bend down in instalments 😄

I dread the day when I can no longer do it myself, at which point I would definitely seek out a mobile valet and detailer.

[NemesisUK]

7 minutes ago, Andy B said:

On average I probably clean it about once every two weeks at least

On average I probably give the car a wipe down every couple of days, maybe every day depending on the conditions..

To do the wheels I now have to sit on the same box I use to reach the centre of the RX roof, my knees are shot!

[LenT]

3 hours ago, Malc1 said:

especially with the seagulls ALWAYS  doing a better job of splashing her more than any bucket of fresh water could keep pace with 

Being about as far inland as you can get in the UK, this is not our problem.  However, our local Collared Doves and Wood Pigeons do their best to mark their territory.

My practice has been to apply a well-soaked sheet of kitchen roll and gently remove the dried deposit, relying on the original ceramic coating to ensure no residual marking.  This has seemed to work fairly well.

However, my new-found  Mobile Consultant has recommended an initial wetting with one of the Modesta ceramic finish maintenance sprays that I have instead.  

No doubt I shall soon have the opportunity to try out this Top Tip!  

[LenT]

53 minutes ago, Andy B said:

I dread the day when I can no longer do it myself, at which point I would definitely seek out a mobile valet and detailer.

Nothing to fear here, Andy.

I have come round to the view that one can regard it as the end of one era of car ownership and the opening of the next chapter!

I have discovered that there’s an entirely new kind of pleasure to be obtained from the totally pain free experience of watching someone else do the job.  

Rather like the old Potters Wheel on TV, it’s a very relaxing experience.  😊

[LenT]

59 minutes ago, NemesisUK said:

On average I probably give the car a wipe down every couple of days, maybe every day depending on the conditions..

Good grief, Peter.

What mucky business are you lot getting up to in Wiltshire?

It always seemed such a nice, innocent County to me!

[Sundance]

1 hour ago, LenT said:

My practice has been to apply a well-soaked sheet of kitchen roll and gently remove the dried deposit, relying on the original ceramic coating to ensure no residual marking.  This has seemed to work fairly well.

However, my new-found  Mobile Consultant has recommended an initial wetting with one of the Modesta ceramic finish maintenance sprays that I have instead.  

Also a good idea to invest in a microfibre cloth or two Len, it will further minimise any abrasive contact. My detailer actually gave me three with a bottle of his magic maintenance moisture for this very purpose ... aerial attack from the rear gunner! 🕊️

[LenT]

7 minutes ago, Sundance said:

Also a good idea to invest in a microfibre cloth or two Len, it will further minimise any abrasive contact. My detailer actually gave me three with a bottle of his magic maintenance moisture for this very purpose ... aerial attack from the rear gunner! 🕊️

That’s a very good thought Rowley.

I actually keep a couple in the car - and a boxfull in the garage!  It’s just sheer idleness that prompts me to tear off a strip of kitchen roll in passing.

But on the other hand….would I not then have to wash the soiled microfibre cloth as opposed to simply putting the used kitchen roll in the waste?

Decisions, decisions, decisions!!

[Sundance]

1 hour ago, LenT said:

But on the other hand….would I not then have to wash the soiled microfibre cloth as opposed to simply putting the used kitchen roll in the waste?

Decisions, decisions, decisions!!

That's a negative Len, just hang it up to dry after use.

(The cloth that is ... not the tissue! 😁 )

[Gary H]

I’ll admit I’ve never personally used a machine car wash on any of the cars I've owned in the 21 years I’ve been driving. I can't comment on how good modern machines are, but I know I've seen the odd article here and there mentioning improvements that have been made over the years. I honestly think the last time I went through one was one of the very few times my father took his company car through one (he knew it was going about three weeks/a month or so later) - so that would place it around the mid-nineties. 

I know there's two people at work who get this particular mobile car-washer who comes in every Wednesday. He seems a nice enough chap (I've spoken to him several times) and reasonably knowledgeable. His only downside, from what I can see, is that he doesn't do a very good job of drying the car off afterwards. These two particular cars he cleans, even when 'clean', clearly sport various spots of water contamination! 

One thing I would love to have and has very much been on my 'wish list' for the last couple of years has been an air dryer. It's one thing which I do lack from my own 'inventory'. There used to be a man who lived diagonally across the road from us who bought one to use on his own car (he was even fussier than me...) and I will admit I was a little jealous when I could hear him fire that up whilst I was out with my microfibre towels going through the door jams! 

Ohhh, don't remind me about seagulls! We've got some nesting on a nearby building where I work. I park in a specific spot out of the way and usually I 'get away' with it. You see, the other side of the car park has a pylon straddling it (birds often perch on it and...yes...the obvious happens) However, one day last week I come out of work to find both the bonnet and the windscreen quite literally ‘pebble dashed’. I got the worst of it off with the power jetter when I got home as there was far too much for the simple old-fashioned ‘hot, wet kitchen towel’ technique.

On 7/2/2023 at 7:43 AM, LenT said:

Many thanks for your contribution, Gary.

I think you’ve described the trajectory that many of us have followed.  But as Linus pointed out earlier - and I have been able to confirm - there are many articles that support the claim that a modern, well-maintained mechanical wash is likely to be less damaging than an underpaid, Tesco-style operator with well-worn wash mitt / drying cloths rushing to deal with a queue of shoppers’ cars.

And as you noted, whose work may still require further ‘titivation’!

What has come out of this thread, I suggest, is that rather than ‘refer back to hand-car washing places’  you might explore the benefits of the mobile car washing service.

After all, these are individuals who have already invested in kitting out a van with foam guns, possibly air dryers, and good quality materials - and then devote at least as long as you would to ensure that there was nothing left to ‘titivate’ at the end.

At least, that’s what I got for £40!  And others have reported similar results for even less.  So it’s something I would certainly recommend that you might consider for the future.

Go for it, Gary!  

Thanks, Len! No worries, I’ll certainly consider doing one when I get some spare time... I do have quite the reputation at work when it comes to car care!

[LenT]

19 hours ago, Gary H said:

One thing I would love to have and has very much been on my 'wish list' for the last couple of years has been an air dryer. It's one thing which I do lack from my own 'inventory'. There used to be a man who lived diagonally across the road from us who bought one to use on his own car (he was even fussier than me...) and I will admit I was a little jealous when I could hear him fire that up whilst I was out with my microfibre towels going through the door jams! 

It was when I found myself contemplating the purchase of one of these blowers, that my thoughts turned to finding a mobile human alternative!  Although there is a great attraction in acquiring new bits of technology, did the additional investment really justify itself merely to avoid a bit of extra arm action with the drying towel?

I realised that unless I was going to start a car cleaning business, it was hard to justify the use I could get out of it with only two cars - and an increasing feeling that it had become more of a spectator sport for me anyway.

In fact, I recently gave my neighbour my collection of car ramps, axle stands and car creeper on the basis that if I ended up underneath our cars, it was going to be by accident rather than design.

However, were I actually to own one, you’d be very welcome to borrow it, Gary.  😊

[J Henderson]

8 hours ago, LenT said:

did the additional investment really justify itself merely to avoid a bit of extra arm action with the drying towel?

No amount of effort and towels will get rid of the type of trapped water that resides inside door mirrors, grilles, fuel doors, or wheel nuts etc. That's where a blower dryer really pays off.

One needn't cost the earth. I paid circa £40 for mine. Technically, it's actually a pet hair dryer, but works a treat. 😄

[LenT]

2 hours ago, J Henderson said:

I paid circa £40 for mine. Technically, it's actually a pet hair dryer, but works a treat. 😄

I have to admit that a pet hair dryer never occurred to me.  For that matter, I suppose I could have tried one of MrsT’s…

In fact, this was the bit of kit I was looking at:

https://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/blo-air-s-hand-held-car-dryer