Washing your NONE-daily driver???

[sportscarhiatus]

I've been meaning to ask this question to the forum for sometime now, but never got around to it.

I know for quite a number of us fellow geeks on here, we have more than one car right? And usually one car is our daily driver (DD), and the other is the "sunny day" car (for the purpose of this thread, let's call it SDC) only, right? At least that's how my setup is.

So my question for all of you is this: How often do you guys wash your SDC? Because, I really HARDLY wash it at all. My DD, yes, prolly every weekend... but my SDC, probably 1x every month or maybe 1x every 2 months. I don't drive it in any rain at all, so the worse "dirt" it gets, are dust and minor bugs. After a drive, I just use my California Duster then I use a QD or Optimum's Gloss Enhancer to give it a shine. I then do a wax maybe 1x or so during that month. But all without a wash. As for bugs on the front bumper, I do an ONR quick wash on that panel ONLY, or QD if bugs are minimal.

Am I nuts? or am I not the only one who doesn't wash their SDC often???

[TheCougarGuy]

It's not just you. I'm the same way.

[jpegs13]

My garage queen gets washed once a month. After a drive I usually wipe her down with QD.

[Dubbin1]

Oh you're not nuts at all, this car hasn't been washed since we finished restoring 3 years ago. Yes it has been driven but it has not gotten dirty enough that a QD wont take care of.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v465/dubbin1/Camaro/IMG_0453.jpg

[sportscarhiatus]

Thanks for the affirmation guys... so I'm not the only guy with this "issue" then ;)

Dubbin, gorgeous looking car. That's a Camaro right? 60 something? Forgive me if I am not in the know of muscle cars...

[christian900se]

When I am home, my car is always in the garage and pretty much only gets a QD wipedown at night or the next morning before I take it out again. Same thing goes for the wheels which are normally hit with Duragloss Aquawax as my EBC redstuff pads like to dust.

[5.4 Shelby]

I rarely wash mine either. Although I never California Duster mine. If I am rubbing the paint, it has to be lubed. QD, Spray on Wash or regular wash. I bought ONR, but, have not tried it yet.

The only time I regular wash is if I have been driving a lot and a lot of brake dust gets on the car. The Shelbys are horrible about brake dust. I got some Porterfield pads which helped tremendously, but, I still get a lot of it.

[CEE DOG]

I'm kind of the opposite. I wash my Sky every 2 weeks. What about pollen guys? I would think you would want to give a proper wash especially during pollen season.

[DARK HORSE]

I'm kind of the opposite. I wash my Sky every 2 weeks. What about pollen guys? I would think you would want to give a proper wash especially during pollen season.

:iagree:I also wash my car garage queen when ever I feel it needs it. I try to practice good washing/drying techniques, and therefore I'm not afraid to wash and dry the paint as often as I feel it may need it. Being black, even just sitting in the garage it gets very dusty, dusty enough that I feel it is safer to wash then it is to use a duster or QD. (I never drive it during the winter months and even sometimes in the summer I may go a couple of weeks without driving it). But I still wash it frequently...

[CEE DOG]

:iagree:I also wash my car garage queen when ever I feel it needs it. I try to practice good washing/drying techniques, and therefore I'm not afraid to wash and dry the paint as often as I feel it may need it. Being black, even just sitting in the garage it gets very dusty, dusty enough that I feel it is safer to wash then it is to use a duster or QD. (I never drive it during the winter months and even sometimes in the summer I may go a couple of weeks without driving it). But I still wash it frequently...

I get the same thing. It's incredible how fast that dust gets on there!

[Old Tiger]

When mine gets dusty I like to hose it off and do an ONR wash. This is safe and easy IMO. I like to QD in between. Spray wax works great after ONR or spot cleaning.

[loudog2]

Every week it gets washed. If I see dust from sitting all week, I'll wash it.

[christian900se]

I'm kind of the opposite. I wash my Sky every 2 weeks. What about pollen guys? I would think you would want to give a proper wash especially during pollen season.

I used to do that in the NE during pollen season, but Socal for the win. I have not seen any pollen but it can be pretty dusty when it is windy.

[Dubbin1]

We are lucky here, no real pollen season to worry about.

[sportscarhiatus]

I rarely wash mine either. Although I never California Duster mine. If I am rubbing the paint, it has to be lubed. QD, Spray on Wash or regular wash. I bought ONR, but, have not tried it yet.


The California Duster (CD) picks up the dust much like a MF does... I've been doing it for years, with no swirls or scratches whatsoever. It's all in how you use it. Now remember, I ONLY use the CD for very light dust, which means before or after a drive. And when I use it, there is no weight of the CD or my arm on my paint. I literally hover the CD above the paint so the bristles hang down as I pick up the dust.

The reason why I use the CD, is that I use it as the 1st step BEFORE I use a QD. If I go straight to a QD with a MF towel, I find that there is too much dust/dirt that's on the car, so my MF gets dirty really fast... besides, I really don't want to rub all that dirt around... I'd get swirls/scratches galore.

You should try the CD... I highly recommend it for "light" dust... 1 day's worth of dust only.


I'm kind of the opposite. I wash my Sky every 2 weeks. What about pollen guys? I would think you would want to give a proper wash especially during pollen season.

I have no issue with pollen in Iowa... just dust. Our cars sit inside a garage all the time, except when driven for the day. I would imagine though, if I had a lot of pollen, I too would have to wash often.


:iagree:I also wash my car garage queen when ever I feel it needs it. I try to practice good washing/drying techniques, and therefore I'm not afraid to wash and dry the paint as often as I feel it may need it. Being black, even just sitting in the garage it gets very dusty, dusty enough that I feel it is safer to wash then it is to use a duster or QD. (I never drive it during the winter months and even sometimes in the summer I may go a couple of weeks without driving it). But I still wash it frequently...

I'm not afraid to wash/dry the vehicle as well... I'm aware of the proper techniques to keep a swirl-free finish... it's just that if all I have is "light dust", then a CD combo with a QD is all I need. My G35 has NEVER been rained on ever, since new... it's now 7 years old ;):props: