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How long does it take for you to wash your car?

Chogokin

Autocross Champion
Location
So Cal
Car(s)
GTI Sport | Audi A3
About an hour including the wheels. I typically wash around sunset...so there is minimal amount of sun on the car. I used to wash at night to avoid water spots.:D
 

demi9od

Drag Race Newbie
Location
NC
5 hours once a year according to my Video below :D

https://youtu.be/-rmMMJ047dc

Otherwise 1,5 hour for a normal wash..:)

Seen that many of you do rinseless wash?!, never dare to try that..:eek:.

Is it working fine?!.. :confused:

I think it's fine as long as you're dealing with low particulate accumulation and use low pressure. Around here the trees are are puking all kinds of shit onto my car, so I prefer to get that off with a pressure washer instead of trapping it in my MF towels. Once the trees are done dropping stuff, in the heat of the summer, I'll switch to rinse-less to conserve water and time.
 

AJ15

Ready to race!
Location
MD
1 hour from unrolling the hose to taking my supplies back up to my condo. I rush... because it's not a pleasant environment to take my time.. in my condo parking lot.
 

Joe-MK7

New member
Location
Preston, UK
Yeah, agreed on the 1.5 hrs.

I jetwash / garage spray once a week if it gets dusty.


Hand wash / 2 bucket job every 1-2 weeks. Try to lower that but clean my windows with a microfiber cloth to alleviate my slight OCD lol.
 

ReadTheBook

Autocross Newbie
Location
Bay Area Smoke Hell
Car(s)
DVP Spektrm, MK4 R32
Prior to an accident I spent about 3 hours doing wash/clay/seal/wax. I maintenance wash with Optimum No Rinse and their big red sponge. Works well and is reasonably fast.

After a series of mishaps at the body shop between January and March (yes it took two months) I got a gift card out of them for $350.00 because I told them I wanted a professional detail and they should pay for it for all their fuck ups and all my time they've wasted. So I'm going to take it someplace shortly to have to professionally done and paint corrected.

I'll keep doing ONR.
 

annoyingmouse

New member
Location
down south
New car prep: The BMW needed a single stage polish before I could opti coat, and I think the whole wash\polish\protect job took about 8 hours.

The Mini needed multiple stages of paint correction and super finicky paint. The work was spread out over many days.

The Golf R didn't need paint corrections, so it only took a few hours.

Maintenance washes can be anywhere from a few minutes to pressure wash bug splats\bird s**t, 15 minutes for painted panel only rinseless wash, to 2 hours for exterior detail complete with trim dressings.

I keep my interior clean all the time, so there is rarely a big cleaning day inside.
 

ghost_03

Ready to race!
Location
Syracuse, NY
We get lots of weather (and birds) so I'm washing fairly often and not too particular on most of our cars since they'll be dirty again soon. A quick wash with the pressure washer is like 20 minutes for 2 cars here. If they are extra dirty or low on wax then I'll stop the washer, use a soap and bucket, and rinse with the washer again, which adds like 15 minutes per car. Add another 10 minutes if I want to dry/quick wax or about 2 hours for a full wax per car. I use the same routine on all of our cars except the black convertible, that car is garaged and I spend a while on it, fortunately it doesn't get dirty often.

For pressure washer, I definitely recommend a wide angle nozzle, a pressure regulator, and keeping some distance on anything flappy or plastic. I also try not to spray directly at any seals (like the windows, axles, etc.) or the rotors directly.
 

ThatWhiteRabbit

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Lisle IL
1 hour with the two-bucket method and drying at a DIY wash with a pressure washer. I can do it in 45 minutes if I rush, rush, rush. Wish I could take my time but it's a busy location. Someday I'll have a house with a driveway and hose!
 

mctriple

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Woodbridge, VA
I spend about 1.5 hours giving my GTI a standard wash from start to finish. This is pretty thorough and includes wheels, wheel wells, calipers, exhaust, grill, etc. This is the total time from filling up my buckets til the car is dried and my supplies are back in place. 2 bucket method (3 buckets - 1 just for exhaust and wheels).

I think I spend more time just around my wheels than I do the rest of the car. Can't beat thoroughly cleaned wheels, though, and there is never a time when I think I can skip them because there's not much brake dust or gunk to clean off them lol..
 

Gunter

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
san diego
Depends on what else I’m trying to do that day and whatever mood I’m in. Typically anywhere from 30 min if I’m doing a basic wash to 2.5 hours if I’m actually detailing it maybe more
 

AudiSport4000

5cyl turbo
Location
Fort Wayne, IN
Wash only? Maybe 20-30 minutes, max. This is with a pressure washer and foam gun. No idea why I didnt purchase this stuff years ago.



If we are talking more intensive cleaning it could be an all day affair, depending on what paint correction is needed and how deep I get into interior cleaning :)


A basic wash is very quick.


 
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