Question about quick detailing spray…

[james1138]

So I cleaned my car within the last week and what do you know what I drive home in a rain storm hits. Car looks good but not great. Instead of a full detail, which takes me up to two hours depending on the wheels, I was thinking of just spraying the top car down with the hose (I don’t have a power washer) to get any dust off and then just spray in the car with detail spray.

Would that work? Is that the best alternative to wash in the whole car again by hand?

Thanks!

[shimmy23]

it takes you 2hours to wash your car?

[TheMidnightNarwhal]

Originally Posted by shimmy23

it takes you 2hours to wash your car?

It takes me around the same time as well from start to finish after storing all my stuff away. Rinse less washes are a bit shorter, depends how thorough I do the wheels.

[TheMidnightNarwhal]

Well it depends on your level of dirt really. For example sometime I hit rainfall after cleaning the car I just go over it with a quick detailer.

But if it's been a whole week maybe a rinseless would be better suited. Really just depends on your level of dirt IMO.

[Joebie]

When I wash my car it also takes hours. It takes me about the same amount of the time for just the wheels+brakes as it does the entire rest of the car. Point im trying to make is that im pretty anal when it comes to having a clean car.

Anyways, I personally never do a quick detailer/waterless wash. I feel like theres too much potential to introduce mircoscratches that add up over time. In fact, i think that for the same reason it IS possible to wash your car too much. Every time you wash it, no matter how careful you are, theres surely some amount of scratching happening. The only time i ever do a quick detailer is right after a proper wash to deal with stubborn water spots or to aid with drying.

My car only has 20k miles on it. 2 bucket method top down + extreme care with every single wash and I can already see some very very slight scratching happening on the parts of the car that arent protected with PPF when i look at just the right angles/lighting.

TLDR - Not worth it in my opinion. Learn to accept imperfection. Continue with "normal" washes when things get too dirty to stand anymore.

[arucano]

If you have a good "wax" layer and only have loose dust, quick detailers are an easy solution. The MAIN thing is use good soft microfiber towels and gently pass a folder one over the area you are working on. (I very seldom haveto drive in the rain here in Houston)

[malvern_man]

Originally Posted by james1138

So I cleaned my car within the last week and what do you know what I drive home in a rain storm hits. Car looks good but not great. Instead of a full detail, which takes me up to two hours depending on the wheels, I was thinking of just spraying the top car down with the hose (I don’t have a power washer) to get any dust off and then just spray in the car with detail spray.

Would that work? Is that the best alternative to wash in the whole car again by hand?

Thanks!

I use Optimum No Rinse mixed at 16:1 ratio (using deionised water) as a quick detailer.

This is from a detailing site that I use...

How to Use Optimum No Rinse as a Quick Detailer
• Dilute the product in a spray bottle to 16:1
• Spray onto the surface and wipe with a plush, clean microfiber towel.
• Flip the towel to a dry side to dry off the area.

Here are the pros and cons to using Optimum No Rinse as a quick detailer (QD) spray.

Advantages

• Much cheaper than traditional quick detailer sprays.
• Offers more lubrication to more safely remove dust.

Disadvantages

• Does not offer any protection like most quick detailers on the market.

[malvern_man]

Originally Posted by shimmy23

it takes you 2hours to wash your car?

It takes me 2 hours just to clean my gloss black 22's 😂 ( that includes cleaning the tyres, blow drying the wheels/tyres then putting on a tyre dressing )

[Tejas1836]

It takes me 2 hours drinking coffee to wake up in the morning, to get off the couch to go start washing mine

[icj_45e]

Rinse off the rain storm residual water spotting and dirt with a hose or pressure washer, then use a leaf blower to dry the car off (if you have some type of sealant/wax applied, the water should sheet off pretty easily). It's touchless, so no risk in creating any light scratches if any grit from the rain storm is still there. That should leave you car looking almost as good as it was when you completed your initial detail.

[james1138]

Thanks! I don’t have any No Rinse products currently… maybe that something I should look into.

And yes, I really wish it didn’t take me two hours to clean my car, but it does. I would say at a very minimum it’s 10 minutes per wheel, and then the rest obviously adds up.

I don’t mind a dirty car but my car is black sapphire metallic, and when it’s detailed, it’s a head turner. IMO.

[louielouie]

Lubrication is key if you're concerned about microscratches. I wouldn't rely on QD unless it's final wipe after a wash. ONR or other rinseless should be fine depending on techniques.

[cooolone2]

If you drag rags, even micro fibers across your paint absent removing dirt via wash/rinse you will introduce scratches.

So question is this...

Would you be upset to find a nice scratch dragged across your paint? And if so, then there's no easy way out. Just wash it, rinse, use a nice detail spray as your dry it off with proper waffle type micro fiber towels and call it a day! As noted, if you use a good wax, you could rinse it down with deionized water and blow dry it to be touchless, maybe not as clean as you want, but no water spots or surface dirt apparent. I have a gallon of rinseless wash I've never used because I'm too worried about any possibility of a scratch.

Good Luck!

[LuvMyE92]

Originally Posted by james1138

And yes, I really wish it didn’t take me two hours to clean my car, but it does.

I'm probably older than you, and as a teenager I worked at a dealership washing cars. So odds are, I've washed a lot more cars than you have. I'm also quite OCD with a BSM car. That said, I can wash and dry my car in 15 minutes if don't do the wheels.

OK, maybe 20 minutes. it really shouldn't take that long, especially if you do it often enough that the car never gets really filthy.

I use the one bucket method.

Edit: I timed it this morning. 10 minutes to wash, 10 for wheels, 10 to dry. 30, total. Add 5 minutes to vacuum.

[Dan B]

Originally Posted by LuvMyE92

I'm probably older than you, and as a teenager I worked at a dealership washing cars. So odds are, I've washed a lot more cars than you have. I'm also quite OCD with a BSM car. That said, I can wash and dry my car in 15 minutes if don't do the wheels.

OK, maybe 20 minutes. it really shouldn't take that long, especially if you do it often enough that the car never gets really filthy.

I use the one bucket method.

Edit: I timed it this morning. 10 minutes to wash, 10 for wheels, 10 to dry. 30, total. Add 5 minutes to vacuum.

If I do a "home detail", wash, rinse, dry, ceramic speed quick detailer wipe down, wheels, and interior, I can spend 2 hours.

Maybe your experience in washing contributes to the quicker time?

[LuvMyE92]

Originally Posted by Dan B

Maybe your experience in washing contributes to the quicker time?

Less my "professional" experience cleaning cars on the dealer lot, and more my 46 years of car ownership, washing multiple cars frequently.

Yes, I'm that old.