How To Wash Your Vehicle In The Wintertime: Rinseless Car Wash

Wintertime vehicle washing has always been a challenging task to accomplish In Vermont due to the frigid temperatures.  Touchless car washes rely on strong soaps and detergents to remove dirt and debris without physically touching the vehicle’s paint.  Any previously applied carnauba wax or paint sealant will be severely degraded or completely removed after a few trips through the touchless car wash.  Rinseless car wash products are gentle on existing paint protection and often leave behind their own blend polymers to boost performance.

What is a rinseless wash?  A rinseless wash is a type of vehicle washing which does not require running water. Rinseless washing not only conserves water but it allows vehicles to be washed during winter months. Since running water is not required vehicles can easily be washed using warm water in a heated garage, even when the outside temperature is below freezing.  Consider buying a pair of insulated waterproof gloves such as Hanz waterproof gloves in order to keep hands warm and dry.

Pre-soaking heavily soiled panels with a rinseless wash product or quick detailer will help minimize the risk of wash induced marring.  If maintaining a flawless finish is a top priority, consider using microfiber towels instead of a sponge.  Fold the microfiber towel into quarters so that there are eight total towel surfaces.  After one surface of the microfiber towel becomes contaminated, flip the microfiber towel exposing another clean surface.  Once all eight towel surfaces have been used, set the towel aside, and start the process over with a new microfiber towel.

Exterior Car Detailing – Vermont 05478

Jet Black BMW E92 328XI - Major Paint Correction + Opti-Glass 05401

This Jet Black BMW 328XI came in for a Major Paint Correction, Interior Rejuvenation Detail and Opti-Glass Application. The soft Jet Black paint had severe swirl marks throughout the paintwork and required a two-step paint correction. Menzerna Intensive Polish was used on an orange Lake Country buffing pad for the compounding stage and Menzerna PO85RD was used on a grey Lake Country buffing pad for the polishing stage. After 10 hours of compounding and polishing only a few random isolated deep scratches remained in the paint. Overall, I was able to achieve around a 90% level of correction including the RIDS. A total of 19 hours were required to fully detail this BMW 328XI.

Please excuse the Plasti-Dip on fender lip and in the wheel wells. I removed the Plasti-Dip from the fender lip after filming this portion of the video. The Plasti-Dip in the wheel wells would require a wheels off detail to fully remove. Also don’t ever apply masking tape to Plasti-Dipped moldings while buffing the paint. The 3M masking tape removed the black Plasti-Dip from the chrome window trim after being on a matter of hours. I accidentally removed the Plasti-Dip surrounding the windows which is why the window trim was black in the before detail footage and chrome in the after detail footage. If the window trim was not taped off the buffing pad would have surely removed the Plasti-Dip. You learn something new on every detail.

 

 

Premium Automotive Detailing (05401 VT) - Paint Correction Services

New Vehicle Prep Detail + Opti-Coat and Opti-Glass: 2013 Honda CRV - Critical Details Vermont 05478

Critical Details is Vermont’s first and only authorized Optimum Coating Dealer. Only authorized Optimum Polymer Technologies dealers can purchase and install Opti-Coat Professional paint coating. Opti-Coat Pro is a stronger version of Opti-Coat 2.0. Opti-Coat eliminates the need for regular applications of carnauba wax or synthetic paint sealant with its durability. Opti-Coat offers unsurpassed chemical resistance, scratch resistance and sheds dirt and debris better than any other paint protection product on the market.

Vermont Opti-Coat Pro Installer - Critical Details 05478

Critical Details: Alpine White BMW X5 - Road Tar Removal (CarPro TarX)

This Alpine White BMW X5 came in for an emergency Road Tar Removal.  Every inch of the beautiful Alpine White paint was stained and cover in tar.  The worst of the contamination was on the driver side of the vehicle and rear of the X5.  After spending a few hours applying CarPro TarX multiple times the paint was finally ready to be washed. 

Optimum Car Wash was used to pre-soak and wash the BMW X5 via a microfiber towel.  After washing the paint CarPro IronX was applied to remove any rust blooms before applying Optimum Opti-Coat.  After Applying CarPro IronX and CarPro TarX the paint was clayed using medium grade detailing clay.  After spending the better part of the day decontaminating the X5 the paint was smooth as glass but still stained from the tar.

The Minor Paint Correction fully removed the worst of the tar stains on the Alpine White paint.  Menzerna Final Finish was used on a white Lake Country buffing pad via a PCXP and Rupes 15 polisher.  After spending numerous hours polishing, the paint and glass received a IPA wipedown prior to applying Opti-Coat and Opti-Glass.  This Alpine White BMW will be looking like it just rolled off the showroom floor for years to come thanks to Optimum’s paint and glass coatings.

I would like to thank Autogeek for shipping a 5 liter bottle of TarX next day air and making this detail possible.  For anyone who is looking for a great tar remover look no further than CarPro TarX.

Road Tar Removal

Tar and oils from a freshly paved road can stain a vehicle’s clear coat in a matter of hours.  It’s important to remove the contamination using a dedicated tar remover such as TarX.  TarX safely removes road tar from all exterior vehicle surfaces without the use of harsh chemicals.  The longer the contamination is on the vehicle the harder it will be to remove and may even cause permanent damage.

How To Clean Wheels and Tires - Auto Detailing 05478

On a daily basis, exterior vehicle surfaces are exposed to environmental and industrial contamination (Brake dust, bird droppings, tree sap, water spots, etc). Carnauba waxes and paint sealants act as a sacrificial barrier protecting vehicle surfaces from damage.

• A hand wash is performed.
• Plastic, rubber and vinyl trim is cleaned and conditioned.
• Metal trim and stainless steel exhausts tips will be polished and protected.
• Door seals are cleaned and conditioned.
• A layer of carnauba wax or paint sealant is applied to exterior paint and glass.
• Wheels are protected using a polymer wheel sealant.

Exterior Auto Detailing - Vermont 05478