So... about taking yoru car to the "do it yourself wash"
 

Alrighit, here is something thats been wandering around my mind ever since I got my 8, (two weeks ago)[

I live in apartments with my girlfriend and they dont have anywhere you can hookup a hose and wash your car *sucks*.... so my only real alternative is to use those places you put like 1.50 in quarters in and wash your car with the power sprayer and wand brush.

Now my black RX8 is my BABY , and it has to have the best, so should I just accept the fact that I have to use those foaming brush wands that have touched 1000 other shitty cars, or should I be weird, and like take my car to the place but only pay money and fill up a bucket I bring and just hand wash it there?

I guess my real question is, how should I view those foaming brushes at the car wash when it comes to cleaing my 8? good? bad or what?

should i just take the extra time and pay like an extra 5.00 in quarters to wash it via hand at those places?

those foam brushes are EXTREMELY bad, especially on a black car, where EVERY SWIRL will show up

i'd just go find some friend that has a driveway and a hose, and go to town :D:

of course some complimentary beer to thank them for letting you use the facilities help a big deal too :D:

There are threads talking about washing your car already. I've been doing research on waxes, washing practices, etc. as I just recently bought a new 8 myself. The common thought seems to be that using that wand is murder on the paint!!! Bring a bucket if you can't find a spot to wash and do it by hand. Be careful with the spray as it may force contaminates into your paint as well. The third biggie that I hear is bring your own wash, the stuff they use in the machines will most likely strip your wax!!!

Good luck with your 8 and check out some of the other threads for more info about washing.

Just bring a bucket and wash it there.

Put in money, set to water only, fill bucket, then use rest of time to do initial car rinse.

Handwash.

Put in money, set to water only, rinse.

Dry.

Only bad thing is that you are using recycled water that has god knows what in it.

If its your baby, then you need to find a detail shop that will do a nice handwash on it. That is, if you don't mind paying $20-30 for just a wash.

yeah 20-30 bucks for a handwash is too expensive, i have carnotes to pay, lol

i did go and guy a bucket and my own auto-wasth, a soft cloth mitt, wheel brush, and a lambskin shammy :D

dont get a cloth mitt. even 100% cotten mitts will scratch paint. instead get TWO buckets ( go to www.autopia.org and search 2 bucket method please!!! great site btw for noobies), a megs wheel brush, and a bunch of microfiber towels (costco sells em. the yellow ones. theyre good noobie MF towels) which are so good you'll never go backt o coten towels ever again. and get some wax while you're at it please. lol yeah so check out www.autopia.org you'll love it there.

You'll find a ton of advice here and at autopia. Some of these folks are very compulsive about detailing techniques and products. I certainly can't dispute any of the advice above, but I can't claim to follow it. (Fortunately, TiGray is forgiving of swirls and microscratches). I have an outdoor car wash (paved area with faucets) available about 8 months of the year, but am forced to use the coin-ops sometimes. Bucket washing is frowned on there, unless you wash when they aren't busy (like, middle of the night).

When I'm in Houston, there's a true "hand wash" place (no mechanized brushes at all) right around the corner that only charges about $12 for a basic wash. Shop around.

I have a similar predicament. My solution has been to bring my own bucket/sponge and give it a pre-wash. Then I use the high power soap spray and rinse. Don't let the foaming brush near your paint. My only gripe is that it costs 4 bucks to do this. Friggin' $$boston$$

I had problems with this years ago and never went back

how far from your apartment is your car, what floor are you on, my friend lives on the 2nd floor but the parking spot if right by his window, he bought a adapter so he can thread a hose onto his tub faucet and runs a 50 foot house outside to the parking spot and washes the car with the hose and bucket. Works pertty good, and he can use warm water when its cold out.