Used to detail new and used cars.
Whenever anything touches the paint, it is scratching it. How much you can see depends on the color of the car, the sunlight and the angle you are looking at the paint. White shows the least, black shows the most. If you care about this, absolutely do no go to a drive through car wash unless you plan to have your paint waxed 100% of the time to hide the scratches. These things push coarse material harshly into the paint, and have the chance of containing rocks or sand that was wiped off of other people's vehicles.
What your main priority should be if you want a fairly scratch-free car is the finest materials touching it as little as possible, with lubricants. This means getting any huge mud spots off with a power washer before washing the car with a microfiber mitt/soap/water. That's really it. Get a shammy for drying it and avoid towels (even microfiber) for drying. Shammies are made for this and are the superior product both in soaking up water and avoiding paint scratches. If you have a new shammy, soak it in a bucket for a day or two prep it. It will absorb much more water after that.
Micro fibers are ok if you are attempting to apply wax because the wax in itself is lubricating the towel across the paint's surface. Before you wax (and of course after youv'e washed), drag the palm of your hand across the paint. If it doesn't feel perfectly smooth, you need to reapply soap and use a clay bar to get the embedded pieces of dirt out of the paint. If you don't you will be scratching your paint as you attempt to wax.
As a final note, I can't tell you how many new car finishes I've seen ruined (to a detailer's eye) by people taking a microfiber cloth to remove dust off the paint in combination with a "no wash" or "spray on" liquid while they sit on the showroom floor.
Whenever anything touches the paint, it is scratching it. How much you can see depends on the color of the car, the sunlight and the angle you are looking at the paint. White shows the least, black shows the most. If you care about this, absolutely do no go to a drive through car wash unless you plan to have your paint waxed 100% of the time to hide the scratches. These things push coarse material harshly into the paint, and have the chance of containing rocks or sand that was wiped off of other people's vehicles.
What your main priority should be if you want a fairly scratch-free car is the finest materials touching it as little as possible, with lubricants. This means getting any huge mud spots off with a power washer before washing the car with a microfiber mitt/soap/water. That's really it. Get a shammy for drying it and avoid towels (even microfiber) for drying. Shammies are made for this and are the superior product both in soaking up water and avoiding paint scratches. If you have a new shammy, soak it in a bucket for a day or two prep it. It will absorb much more water after that.
Micro fibers are ok if you are attempting to apply wax because the wax in itself is lubricating the towel across the paint's surface. Before you wax (and of course after youv'e washed), drag the palm of your hand across the paint. If it doesn't feel perfectly smooth, you need to reapply soap and use a clay bar to get the embedded pieces of dirt out of the paint. If you don't you will be scratching your paint as you attempt to wax.
As a final note, I can't tell you how many new car finishes I've seen ruined (to a detailer's eye) by people taking a microfiber cloth to remove dust off the paint in combination with a "no wash" or "spray on" liquid while they sit on the showroom floor.
Last edited:
