1LEs and car wash
 

I'm pushing my time constraints on storing my 1LE. I need to have it cleaned before storing and it's wayyyyyy too cold to wash it in the driveway. Too cold as in my outside water faucet has icicles on it. So I stop by "Mr. C's Car Wash" (a well know car wash in my area, not sure if local or nationwide) to see how wide the tire guides are. A worker wraps the 'wheel guide' around the width of my tire and there was at least an extra 3-4inches of clearance.
...
Should I go thru this car wash for this one time? Or am I still risking scratching the wheels and/or tires? Do I have to worry about anything else like ruining brand new car paint or splitter clearance?
...
Thx in advance, times running out in this crazy Michigan weather:mad:

I would not do thru a guided car wash. I would use a self wash bay where you can just pull it in and wash it by hand yourself. And just because their guide template says there is room doesn't mean that the guides have the same center spacing as what the Camaro has. So by the time you start driving into the car wash both sides of your wheels might be closer to the outside of the guides on both sides and not centered on the same centerline as the guides.

Don't do it, the owners manual even tells you not to do it :popcorn:

Please dont'
 

Even if car fits just dont go through the machine. It beats the hell out of paint. Use self serve or handwash and watch them, because their buckets and mits are not always so clean. Personally I would do it myself at a self serve.

Jim

Easier to say when you are in Arizona like me, but I did the same thing in Connecticut when I lived there.

Aw hellllll no! Murphy is waiting for you at the end of the carwash in this scenario!

There's a tag on the shifter from the factory that specifically says NOT to run it through an tracked car wash. I can only guess they have done some sort of testing on this to advise not to do it. My advise if your willing to pay to run it through a machine just pay a mobile detailer to come hand wash it. Good luck.

Get a rinseless car wash, use warm water in the bucket from your house and just wash it in your garage :)

That's how I get through winters with my Daily

Hey Chibi! :laughabove:

Don't do it. If not for the wheels, do it for the paint!
What I do in the winter is I fill my car wash bucket at home with soap and warm water. Then I drive to the spray wash and turn it on soap and spray the entire car. Then I take my nice, soapy, warm water and wash it up. Then just powerwash the soap off and dry that puppy.

Total Agreement
 

Everything the sharp guys above said.:clap2:
Oh wait, one of them was me. Everything all the guys above said excluding me.:twitch:


We have to suffer a little for our girls, whether they are human or cars.:biggrin::thumbsup:

Seriously most garages can accommodate a bucket wash without getting everything wet.:laughabove:

Jim

3 choices on automatic washes when I lived in MI

1) touchless- does about the kind of wash you'd expect.
2) 30 grit sandpaper rollers/brushes-does about the kind of wash you'd expect and scratches the paint.
3) Hand wash by guys with 30 grit sandpaper mops- Then goes through 30 grit sandpaper rollers/brushes.

Like someone else mentioned. Go to self serve. Then go back over it with a wet
microfiber when you get home and dry it off. Or wait until next weekend when it will probably be in the 60s again.

Hi LuSe4 :) Weird you kept that name without having an LS4 car anymore ;) Although Lucithree doesn't sound as good lol

I try not to use the DIY car wash bay soap because the products that they use are so cheap and their soaps can easily strip your wax faster than you want it to.

The most I'll do is stop on my way home and use ONLY WATER to help hose off some of the salt / grime that might mark it up while I use a rinseless car wash.

There is a pretty good TOUCHLESS car wash on Dequindre south of 10mile, if that is close for you.

1. Wash the painted surfaces with a good waterless wash, but make sure it has a detailer or a wax in it as well (I use 3D Detailing HD Touch which is a waterless wash with a Quick Detailer) this will keep the swirls and streaks to a minimum. Use the 2 Cloth Method, 1 to Remove the big stuff, 2 to buff/finish the surface
2. Use a good Wrap Cleaner/Care on the hood (I use Croftgate Wrap Care but first remove the dust using a duster but very lightly)
3. Clean the wheels with a Waterless wash and wax (I use 3D Waterless Wash on my wheels as it works great)
4. Apply a good wax, I use Mystic Diamond Cut Wax (which can only be purchased from my Detailer @ detailersedge.ca)

My Car is sponsored by Detailers Edge and 3D Car Care and is always in mint/clean condition and that is all that I have to do (I add a coat of Wax 1-2 times a month).

:smiling1: I actually did think about "LuSe3". Although, most people didn't get "LuSe4" anyways. I have the same name on all of the forums I belong to. Oh well.

:offtopic:Sorry, back on topic.