Washing you C7 / RS7 : Safest Ways to prevent paint damage?

[shiffyspliff]

Hi Yall,

My new RS7 is finally finished getting painted, and on a trailer coming from Michigan... I will be receiving it on Tuesday, and need to know what is the best/safest way to wash it. This is my first Audi.
I live in West LA, and was wondering if there are any Audiziner's who might have some suggestions in the West LA, Beverly Hills, Hollywood area?

- I have the 21" 5 Spoke Wheels, but had them painted matte black, to match the emblems, badging, and the rest of the look of the car. It is MURDERED out.
I just am not sure if taking it to my old car wash would be smart. That carwash, had a track that trapped 2 of your tires... and while it may not happen, there is a chance of it rubbing and possibly f@ck!ng up the paint job on the wheels. (Every rim is different, and this may be less "concave" than my last wheels).

Any C7 owners out there have a recommendation, of how you best care for your cars, or the 21" Audi rims that come on the RS7 ?
- Should I only take it to a handwash carwash?
- Anyone have any experience with mobile car washers that wash at your house?
- I would wash it myself, but dont have a driveway, access to a running hose, etc. (I live in an apartment building).

*Any advice would be much appreciated. Especially if you have those same rims that come on the RS.[/B][/B]

Will post a new thread with pictures, when I receive the car next week. Ive only seen one lousy IPhone photo since they painted it, so it should be a pleasant surprise.
Thanks in advance!

[Packy]

Id wash it the same way you wash the Ferrari's you have in your apt. garage.. I take my S6 through a regular car wash. Not the cheap gas station jobs, but one that does the whole works. Never had an issue. Not scratches, dings, marks of any kind. Its harder on the wax/sealer, true, but ok on the paint. Find a car wash in an area frequented by higher end vehicles rather than old SAAB's and Fords.
Did they use a harder or softer paint type? Could help in deciding.

What color did you have it painted? Audi does a pretty damn good job from the factory.

[shiffyspliff]

Sorry for confusing. The car is still factory Black Phantom Pearl. I just matted the wheels, emblems, badging, reflectors, etc.
- Thanks for the input.

[ecpChris]

If you are out of luck on washing it yourself correctly, is find a high end hand car wash or a detailed nearby that would properly wash the car using the two bucket method. I'm way more meticulous than most, and have a pretty crazy regime of washing the car to avoid swirls.


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[Audibot]

I would hit up a professional detailer (unless you are truly comfortable doing it by hand), and also have them put on some of that Opti-coat stuff.

[VVG]

I love black cars. I also love clean cars. That is a tough combo. Here is my method. It is based on the idea that every time you touch your car, you will scratch the paint. The dirtier your car is when you touch it (and this includes washing/drying), the more inclined you are to scratch the paint.

1. Spray the car down with Auto Finesse Citrus cleaner and let it soak for a couple of minutes. You can skip this step if you only have a little grime, but it works great after a good rain storm or if you have to deal with winter salt/sand.

2. Spray the car down with a power washer starting from the roof and working down, including the wheels.

3. Blow dry the car with a Master Blaster Heated Car Dryer.

Up to this point, you will have washed and dryed your car without touching it at all. There will still, however, be a light haze to the paint surface in most cases.

4. Fill a 5 gallon bucket with water. Add to this water about a 1/4 cup of Griot's Spray On Car Wash to use as a soak. This is not what you are using in the next step....

5. Working one panel at a time, liberally apply a coating of Griot's Spray On Car Wash to you car from the spray bottle itself. Let it sit for about 30 seconds. I really mean liberally. This is a wash, not a quick detail.

6. Soak a Griot's Green Deep Pile Microfiber cloth in the wash bucket that you prepared in step #4, and ring out.

7. Using linear strokes, wipe the car panel. Turn the towel with each wipe so you are using a different portion of the towel each time. You can experiment with folding the towel different ways to get maximum use of of each towel. I fold it lengthwise into quarters, so I can get 8 wipes per towel (4 wipes per side). Rinse the towel in the wash bucket after doing each panel. You may not need the full eight wipes to do a panel. I have found that the most I need is 6 wipe passes for the hood.

8. Buff dry using more of the Griot's Green Deep Pile Microfiber. Overall, you will need about 10-12 of these towels to clean your car, mostly for buffing dry. No worries. I have had the same set for years and they hold up very well. You don't need to constantly wash the towels you use for buffing dry as there is really no dirt on them.

At this point, you will have a very clean and already shiny car, with minimal abrasive contact to your paint.

9. For a perfect finish, use Griot's Spray On Car Wax and buff dry again using a high grade microfiber. I like this product because of its ease of application. Again, the easier it goes on and wipes off, the less you will scratch your car trying to get it off.

Hope this helps. Washing my car, for me, is very relaxing and therapeutic. It is my down time. I put on some music in the garage, grab a beer, and go at it.

[roger v]

Hire a professional detailer.

[CreoSTi]

I would hit up a professional detailer (unless you are truly comfortable doing it by hand), and also have them put on some of that Opti-coat stuff.

+1

Contact Eric at Envious Auto Detailing and have him paint correct + apply a coating (he did Cquartz Finest on my S6);

http://enviousautodetailing.com

I haven't found a good car wash place in the West L.A. area, so I hand wash myself. There is a car wash off Western (hand wash + no tracks) in Koreatown that does a decent job. I believe it's called Sun Hand Car Wash, and that's where I took my S4 when I lived out there.

If you're willing to make the trek, there is also Lavaggio in the valley;

http://www.lavaggio.net/m_index.html

[moosehead1]

Mechanical car washes will swirl your paint, not to mention facking up your wheelset in the metal tracks - badly.

Rinse, soap, rinse, two bucket method with two sponges, sonax and wheel woolies on wheelset. Nano coating or wax.

[LINDW4LL]

Send it to Jimmy Lucci for a detail, and then get a clear bra installed.

[mel5151]

Go to detailersdomain.com Buy a foam gun, and research the best cleaners and sealants for your application lol

[Xtek]

http://www.ammonyc.com/det-categories/drive/

Start at the bottom and work your way up watching the videos. This guy is one of the best detailers I've come across.

1. Never use an auto car wash
1a. Never use the wash wands with the brush on the end
2. Avoid touching your car at all (not just washing) unless it is lubricated by soap/detailers spray
3. Always hand dry after washing
3a. This is where most scratches happen, use waffle weave towels that are damp and use some sort of spray wax on the weave cloth as your'e drying it

[ecpChris]

I would never start at the bottom and work my way up. The majority of the contaminants are at the bottom. Always start at the roof and work your way down. Car care 101


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[dufferdude]

Griots has a bucket with a screen in the bottom. They also have different colored wash pads. I use a different one for everything below my knees. The 2 bucket idea is good. If the mitt gets dropped on the ground it gets thrown in the wash and a clean one is used.
A foam thingy works good. I just use a fertilizer sprayer that I bought at the hardware store. Throws pretty good foam and is a good presoaker.

[Xtek]

I would never start at the bottom and work my way up. The majority of the contaminants are at the bottom. Always start at the roof and work your way down. Car care 101


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I meant the video list....

[ecpChris]

Oops


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[turbonator S6]

I would add...never use circular motions when washing - always linear as in the direction of air flow. This way, you avoid those nasty circular swirl marks that are highly visible since they catch light at all angles.

[Packy]

Mechanical car washes will swirl your paint, not to mention facking up your wheelset in the metal tracks - badly.

Rinse, soap, rinse, two bucket method with two sponges, sonax and wheel woolies on wheelset. Nano coating or wax.

Ive taken my S6 to a carwash twice a month since I owned it. Haven't hurt the wheels or paint one bit. It is a higher end place though. They do full service there. The wash acutally brushes the side 3 times and the top twice. Its a very long wash.

[Xtek]

Ive taken my S6 to a carwash twice a month since I owned it. Haven't hurt the wheels or paint one bit. It is a higher end place though. They do full service there. The wash acutally brushes the side 3 times and the top twice. Its a very long wash.

On a sunny day take it outside or use a high powered light and I'd bet you will see swirls. They're generally minor so you won't see them unless you're looking right at them, especially after the wax wears off.

[buzztt]

http://www.ammonyc.com/det-categories/drive/

Start at the bottom and work your way up watching the videos. This guy is one of the best detailers I've come across.

1. Never use an auto car wash
1a. Never use the wash wands with the brush on the end
2. Avoid touching your car at all (not just washing) unless it is lubricated by soap/detailers spray
3. Always hand dry after washing
3a. This is where most scratches happen, use waffle weave towels that are damp and use some sort of spray wax on the weave cloth as your'e drying it

good advice

i use a leaf blower to dry mine

[buzztt]

Ive taken my S6 to a carwash twice a month since I owned it. Haven't hurt the wheels or paint one bit. It is a higher end place though. They do full service there. The wash acutally brushes the side 3 times and the top twice. Its a very long wash.

by 'hasnt hurt the paint' you mean it has hasnt visibly scratched it like someone keying your car, or are you saying your paint has zero swirl marks ?

[shiffyspliff]

Anyone know why someone suggested not to use an air blower to dry your car? I thought that was the best way to ensure you get the water out of the 'hard to reach places' with a towel.

[moosehead1]

Anyone know why someone suggested not to use an air blower to dry your car? I thought that was the best way to ensure you get the water out of the 'hard to reach places' with a towel.

On the contrary, blow drying also cuts down on potential scratches from an unlubricated/dry towel or chamois. So long as the blow dryer is clean it's likely one of the best drying methods.

[Pilfer]

Opticoat is a great idea. I had my car opticoated and go to a touchless wash once a week. I have touched it up myself a few times. With opticoat the touchless wash removes almost all dirt and even salt residue.


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[VVG]

Anyone know why someone suggested not to use an air blower to dry your car? I thought that was the best way to ensure you get the water out of the 'hard to reach places' with a towel.

Look back to post #6

[XXFirefighter]

Where did you have the painting done?

[Packy]

On a sunny day take it outside or use a high powered light and I'd bet you will see swirls. They're generally minor so you won't see them unless you're looking right at them, especially after the wax wears off.

Its pretty sunny here in az. If you really look hard you can see very, very fine swirls on a few spots. Honestly, Ive never seen a car that didnt have any except in car shows. I live on a dirt road and 95% of the time the car is covered in a layer of dust (sucks). It hides the swirls and provides some UVA/UVB protection. :) Sometimes if I'm lucky, I find cat and bird prints in the dust.