garyk876 Posted April 18, 2011 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Hey guys! So I am as green as can be when it comes to washing cars, so I could really use your inputs in this area. I will try to be as detailed as I can be, so I apologize in advance for a long post... I bought a brand new Honda (dark grey) last week and have been doing a lot of research on car maintenance ever since. Initially, I wanted to just put the car through touchless car washes, but after reading about the horrible swirl marks that they leave (and witnessing them first hand on my girlfriend's car), I have decided to hand wash it myself. However, hand-washing presents a number of challenges for me: 1. I live in an apartment, and park my car in the parking garage across the street from my building. Therefore, I do not have access to a hose. This problem is not hard to solve, as ONR can get the job done admirably. 2. I am from upstate NY, where it is currently snowing as I am typing this. Because of the insane amount of salt used on the road, undercarriage corrosion is a major concern for me, especially since I want to keep the car long term. I have researched this area and found a laser car wash that offers underbody spray in its basic plan, which includes washing (with a pre-soak spray and a soap apray) and air-drying, no polish or wax. From what I can see, it is 100% touchless and "rail-less", which should ensure the safety of the rims. I figured this is at least better than traditional "touchless" car washes. I also thought about going to a self-service bay to wash instead but I don't know if just blindly blasting water underneath is enough. I currently have a bunch of supplies (purchased here) on the way. When they arrive, I intend do the following: 1. Wash with ONR 2. Clay with Claymagic and ONR as lube 3. Opti-seal; 2 layers (an hour apart?) on all exterior surfaces, including glass and rims 4. OCW 5. Tire Shine Afterwards, I am planning to repeat the whole procedure (minus the claying) every 3 - 4 months, using just ONR and Tire Shine as maintenance in-between. I will also bring the car to the aforementioned laser wash maybe once a month (or after a road trip) during the winter season to take care of the undercarriage. Do you guys see anything in my plan that can be improved/changed? And also, I am looking for a good one-stop solution for interior surface cleaning. I've read a lot about Opti-Clean and Protectant Plus but I am not sure what is good for me. Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyk876 Posted April 18, 2011 Author Share Posted April 18, 2011 Hi Chris, Thanks so much for your response. I have the blue ClayMagic that I bought from a local AutoZone. It comes with a lube but I figured I'd just use ONR instead. Is it mild enough or do you recommend something else? I've heard about Honda's paint being very soft as well so I definitely want to be as careful as I can. Also, you mentioned in #3 that I should first presoak with ONR at QD strength. Should I spray the QD strength at the penal, then wipe it with "regular" strength using a MF cloth? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyk876 Posted April 19, 2011 Author Share Posted April 19, 2011 Thanks Chris! You've been very helpful. I will definitely let you know how everything goes with my first wash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyk876 Posted April 22, 2011 Author Share Posted April 22, 2011 Ok. Just did my first car wash this evening. I moved the car to a more secluded section of the parking garage and started off with spraying ONR at QD strength, then washed the car down with ONR (regular strength) and a wash cloth that I bought at AutoZone. The cloth turned out to be a mistake because it lints like crazy, and I had to constantly dust them away while drying with the Optimum MF towel that I bought (which didn't lint). Hence, it took me a good hour or so to wash and dry the car. I'm sure things will be better/faster next time as I get used to the whole process. Can anyone recommend a good washing media to use with ONR? Since the temperature was around 30 degrees (and my hands were frozen from washing) I decided to postpone claying until next time and went ahead with Opti-Seal. It was so easy to use! I used the applicator pad at first but it was streaking quite a bit (probably from the cold?), so I wiped it in with a MF cloth instead and it did the job much better. I retreated to the warmth of my apartment after applying the first layer, then went back an hour later to do the second layer, which went equally well. I then dress up the tires with Tire Shine and called it a day. Overall, I am very pleased with results so far. Having to do everything without a driveway (and a hose) certainly makes things challenging, but the Optimum products definitely made it much easier! Another question: I've heard that after putting on Opti-Seal, you are supposed to wait a day before OCW? I am doing that anyway but just thought I'd ask. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyk876 Posted April 22, 2011 Author Share Posted April 22, 2011 Oh, but I thought you were supposed to put on OOS first before OCW? In any case, I'm going out there in a bit to put on OCW. And thanks for the advices! Your way would definitely save a lot more time than mine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyk876 Posted April 22, 2011 Author Share Posted April 22, 2011 Lesson learned I really like how versatile Optimum products are! Well I did the OCW this morning and it went on just fine. There were some streaking on the windows but nothing a little buffing couldn't handle. After I got back from work though, I found a few bird bombs on the hood =/ I'll be heading out to clean them out with a bottle of ONR at QD strength. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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