What's in your DMC car-washing kit?

[AgentDL]

I've always taken my daily driver to automatic car washes or hired others to wash it, and haven't washed my own car in years, but I'll be washing my own DMC of course. What products do you use to wash your car? Any special instructions, techniques, or products for the stainless panels and the rear louver?

[AugustneverEnds]

Depends on how much time you want to spend and what kind of look you are going for.

For regular maintenance washes I stick with whatever car detergent I have on hand (usually Meguiar's). Nothing special just wash with a cloth and dry. Gets rid of the general dirt and muck of driving.

For a quick, no water-needed sprucing, Windex or any glass cleaner seems to get most of the smudges and fingerprints off. Spray, wipe with a clean cloth or paper towel and done!

For more involved cleaning, Bar Keeper's Friend is very good at really deep cleaning the stainless and giving it a nice sheen. It's a more involved process as you want to keep BKF off of any black areas of the car and you don't want to let it dry on the car. Best to clean each panel thoroughly one at a time and rinse off as soon as finished.

Stainless polishes are kind of cool if you like a wet look. Easy to rub on and wipe off any excess. IMHO stainless polishes tend to attract dust like crazy however.

For the louvres I use Meguiar's Supreme Shine, applied with a paper towel. Armor-All is fine too.

You know the cardinal rule of course: Always wash, wipe, wax, grain, polish WITH the grain! :histerical1:

[AgentDL]

Thanks Nick!

[David T]

For general cleaning supplies look at Griot's Garage (griotsgarage.com). The Delorean venders have a spray by Chemsearch which is very good but it is pricey. For the black surfaces Black Again is very good and not greasy and lasts. Once you get the car clean the S/S is very easy to keep clean. For scratches you just use a blending pad unless they are bad. If so you have to regrain uisng sandpaper.

[Josh]

Soap and water. Dry with a microfiber cloth and Windex the windows. Spray the rockers and tires with scrubbing bubbles. Done!

[? ? ? ?]

+1 for Griot's Garage. I use their soap and micro-fiber towels and mitts and have no complaints.

This thread has lots of good info on what to use for washing as well as various washing techniques:

http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?7344-Washing-the-car&highlight=wash

I use the method outlined in post 5 for washing since I don't have access to a hose. A bucket of water and soap and I'm done in about an hour.

[Kozmatic]

Someone on this forum mentioned Turtle Wax Ice Spray Wax. I tried it out and it's the best, easiest thing I've found so far to use as a polish. It is hands down the best thing I've used for fingerprints as it works and lasts longer than anything else I've used thusfar. I love being able to just spray and wipe. I can polish the whole car in 10 min or less. Just wish the wheels were easier!

https://www.turtlewax.com/shop/products/turtle-wax-ice-spray-wax-20-fl-oz- (https://www.turtlewax.com/shop/products/turtle-wax-ice-spray-wax-20-fl-oz-)

[David T]

Someone on this forum mentioned Turtle Wax Ice Spray Wax. I tried it out and it's the best, easiest thing I've found so far to use as a polish. It is hands down the best thing I've used for fingerprints as it works and lasts longer than anything else I've used thusfar. I love being able to just spray and wipe. I can polish the whole car in 10 min or less. Just wish the wheels were easier!

https://www.turtlewax.com/shop/products/turtle-wax-ice-spray-wax-20-fl-oz- (https://www.turtlewax.com/shop/products/turtle-wax-ice-spray-wax-20-fl-oz-)

The problem with any wax is that dirt will stick to it. You do not need the wax to protect the S/S. That is the main reason for wax, to protect the painted surfaces.

[Kozmatic]

The problem with any wax is that dirt will stick to it. You do not need the wax to protect the S/S. That is the main reason for wax, to protect the painted surfaces.

I don't use it to protect the SS. Fingerprints were the main reason I tried it and it's been excellent for that. Dirt hasn't been any more of a problem that it was before using it.

[mluder]

Soap and water. Dry with a microfiber cloth and Windex the windows. Spray the rockers and tires with scrubbing bubbles. Done!

I tried using the scrubbing bubbles on my rims and it discolored the paint - or left a heavy whitish film that took a lot of elbow grease to get off. Never again.

[Josh]

I tried using the scrubbing bubbles on my rims and it discolored the paint - or left a heavy whitish film that took a lot of elbow grease to get off. Never again.

My rims are in too rough of shape to bother or be affected by discoloration lol.

I wouldnt recommend it on a painted or metal surface in my experience.

[drdelorean]

A lot of great tips and pointers here!

Just a quick dumb question. Is going to a car wash a big NO NO with Deloreans??

[DMCMW Dave]

A lot of great tips and pointers here!

Just a quick dumb question. Is going to a car wash a big NO NO with Deloreans??

Most people don't. The crazy high pressure ones will make leaks where you don't have them normally, the rotating brush type are rough on the louver, and keep in mind that you may flood the spark plug wells since the engine isn't all that well covered by a solid hood. But I have heard of owners who do it. Just not many.

[drdelorean]

Alright, thanks! Not planning on doing it, I was just wondering if there was a very obvious reason not to do it ;)

[David T]

Alright, thanks! Not planning on doing it, I was just wondering if there was a very obvious reason not to do it ;)

Another thing to keep in mind, if you have a mast antennae it MUST be lowered. If you have the one on the front fender you have to push it down manually and if you have the rear, power one you have to shut off the radio.
If the car is lowered (and I mean LOWered) you have to worry it could catch on the conveyor mechanism and damage the spoiler or if you have them, side skirts. Most of the car washes don't blast the water so much as the air which could force water into places it shouldn't be. If you have old ignition wires or they don't fit the top of the wells tightly you can get water in there and if you have an old, cracked distributor ca,p water is not good. If your rear louvre is cracked having the blower ride over it isn't a good idea. Even washing the car in your driveway, you should never direct water at the motor.

[drdelorean]

Thanks for the tips!
When you say "LOWered" you mean lower than the euro spec eibach?

[David T]

Thanks for the tips!
When you say "LOWered" you mean lower than the euro spec eibach?

Lowering is a relative term. One one car not only was it very low, it had low profile tires and ground effects (side skirts, spoilers, etc). We almost ripped some of it off getting it on and off the lift for an inspection. Some driveways have a dip going in and you can rub stuff there if you hit it straight on. My point is just to be careful and understand a car wash uses a conveyor to pull the cars through and if you are too low bad things can happen.

[Mark D]

One thing to keep in mind is that there are painted surfaces in addition to the stainless so it's not really that much different than washing a regular painted car. Meguiar’s gold class soap and a microfiber wash mitt for washing and for the painted fascias and windshield trim I wax with Meguiar’s deep crystal carnauba wax.

For the black trim parts (rub strips, rear louver, engine cover, mirrors, license plate bracket, black bumper surfaces, etc) I use Mothers Back to Black in small quantities and buff when it dries. If you apply too much it will streak down onto the stainless when it gets wet.

For the windows and stainless I use Invisible Glass. Windex works too, but I've read from others that it can stain the black trim parts blue over time. I'm not sure if that's actually true, but I think Invisible Glass works better at cleaning than Windex anyway.

For the wheels I use Turtle Wax F21 wheel cleaner and Black Magic tire shine applied with a foam sponge.

Everybody has their on preferences on products, but I've had pretty good luck with these. Once a year I also go over the stainless with Bar Keepers Friend applied to a brown scotch brite blending pad making sure to rinse really well afterwards.

I think I only washed my car once last year, otherwise I do a lot of touch ups with a california duster and Invisible glass w/ microfiber towel.

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