I'm in the Chadwick's Triple Play camp...

https://www.chadwickstripleplay.com/

John

 

quick and dirty self serve coin op

 

I'd love to hear recommendations on this myself. I have kept mine garaged for at least the last 26 years and it hasn't been driven in the rain for that entire time. I generally don't wash it since it is only out of the garage for an hour or two every week and doesn't get very dirty being a fair weather car.

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For us, unless we get caught in the rain, I'll give it a good wash once a year and then just dust it with a California Duster and then spray quick detailer at the shows. But yes, if it gets dirty, I'll fill the bucket with car wash suds and grab the mitt and than after a rinse, chamois it dry.

 

Spray bottle with a tiny bit of dish soap and fill the rest with water... and a microfiber rag.

 

I'll give Chadwick's a try.

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Don’t. I repaint.
Haha.

On my other car I use Griots Waterless Car Wash.

 

I don’t

 

Most cleaner/polishing kits are fine but if you want to take your detail to the next level get a water deionizer. Spot free rinsing.

 

Hose, bucket of soapy water. Rinse well, Chamois dry. I wash it maybe 3~4 times a year. Mothers carnauba wax twice a year.

FWIW, if you don't leave it out in the weather or drive it in the snow & salt, very little chance of it rusting as long as you don't have leaks.

 

Don't have my ride back together after paint shop yet and I probably won't wash much...but like all my cars....whenever I clean I use Ultima Paint Guard Wash and then use soft silicone squeegee to get most of water, wipe down with absorbent towels then blow dry crevices with leaf blower, wipe dry again....done.

 

When the car is really filthy (I do drive all classics in the rain, no exception for Shelby's) I go to a car wash to get the major mud off. Then a regular wash in the driveway with a bucket of soapy water and brushes, soft brush for the body, and hard brush for the wheels.

Then I drive up on ramps in the garage and put a couple of fans under the car to get it bone dry. That's gives me the opportunity to creeper under it as well, to give the undercarriage a good look-see .

Never had any rust start up with this regimen, I started doing this in the mid 1970's when I had a couple of Jag e types. They are really a bitch to repair when rust starts up. An old Jaguar mechanic shared the ramp and fan idea with me back then. So far, so good.

Z

PS. when I drive a classic to the beach, or on frozen roads that might have got some salted sand, subsequently I always put the car up on ramps and give the undercarriage a through rinsing and blow dry.

 

I’m impressed that you drive your cars, including Shelbys in the elements! I have weather apps on my phone that I check obsessively when I drive mine. My hat’s off to you sir!

 

Lots of great ideas here, thanks. I love the anti fru-fruness of 2nd 66! I’m thinking I’ll do a full wash and detail in the Spring including clay bar, sealant and wax, and then use Adam’s Rinseless Wash for the rest of the cleanings. I’ve known Adam’s had a rinseless car wash, but couldn’t wrap my pea brain around the concept. I did some reading on their forums and the ole interwebs and I think I’m ready to give this a try. I like the idea of soaking the microfiber towels in the solution rather than just spraying something on. This could work well for me since I park the car in a garage that’s about a mile from my home and there’s no water. At my home I only have street parking, so I have to be pretty lucky to get one of the three spots in front of my home. This also has the added advantage of being faster than a regular wash. We’ll see. Thanks!

 

Groit's car wash with water in a bucket(essentially a soapy bath), microfibre mitt, hose car down and wash with mitt, continuously rinse mitt before re-dipping into bucket, hose car off when done, towel and chamois dry.

 

You should try the two bucket method, one for clean water, one for dirty. By using grit guards in the bucket and scraping your mit against it when you’re rinsing it, the dirt and gunk gets trapped in the dirty water and doesn’t contaminate the clean. It’s amazing the difference between the two buckets when you’re done. One is brown and nasty and the other nice and clean. Really helps to keep the bad stuff of your paint. I’ve been doing this since my DD was new and I really don’t have swirl marks at all.

 

Dish soap once a year. I use Comet on the really stubborn parts. Works good on the rusty parts to get a nice patina where the rust stains the paint. Very cool effect. Then I wax everything including the chrome. No wax on the rust, makes it look like crap! ;o)

M

 

I drove this Cougar rain, snow whatever.

 

Don't over complicate it. If you are just driving it low miles on nice days just pick up some quality microfibers and a good detailer spray. That's all you need.

 

What would be the fun of not overcomplicating something simple? That’s my go to move.....

 

Chadwick’s for me on the Mustang and my daily.