Whats you take on the waterless car wash?
There is a service that comes out to you and does the job in CPT, rather expensive at R120 but i havent washed my car in 3 months and cannot take it anymore.

Products is Turtle Wax..

they coming today so i will update the before and after pics but has anyone used this before?

IF, and it is a big if, but IF it is done properly, rinse less washing can be done without damaging the paint.

To get this right with water less washing is way more difficult though

Also, 'how dirty' your car is, is going to play a huge role in how much damage the process causes.

If it is light dust/dirt, you should be ok with rinse less, but anything more and I suspect you will see issues. I don't think I would ever do a water less wash on my own car, but I will do a rinse less.

I also seriously doubt whether these guys are going to use ENOUGH product for it to work effectively - typically you would want to spray the area first as a pre-treatment and let it sit there a bit to soften up and encapsulate the dirt, then you want to wipe with many HIGH QUALITY MF towels whilst using the product quite wet.

Given these okes are trying to be profitable whilst coming out to you to do it, for R120, product cost is going to be the one and only place they can save a few bob, and in so doing, they will reduce the chance of this process ever being safe for your car.

I wouldn't do it. Not necessarily because of the product being used. But because of HOW they people doing the work will a) use the product and b) how little they will care for your car.

uhm, my car is pretty facked already.. [edited for below]

I've tried a similar wash previously (not branded) but I cannot say that I'm convinced. Maybe I'm too set in my old fart thinking but I like to see soap and water on my car.

Keen to hear from more experienced folks on whether or not there's any material difference.

Reegz wrote:I've tried a similar wash previously (not branded) but I cannot say that I'm convinced. Maybe I'm too set in my old fart thinking but I like to see soap and water on my car.

Keen to hear from more experienced folks on whether or not there's any material difference.

they coming after 11am... so im running down now to take some before pics.. and will take some after

It is as Lawrence has pointed out - depends on the dudes doing the work.

I personally witnessed the dude wiping away muck from the rims and then using the same cloth to wipe the bonnet! *horror*

ok so they are done... and its ok... seats wasn't cleaned properly, a few spots here and there but compared to what it looked like its much better at a good price.

will be using them again for ease of use

Yakuza Racer wrote:ok so they are done... and its ok... seats wasn't cleaned properly, a few spots here and there but compared to what it looked like its much better at a good price.

will be using them again for ease of use

I assume you don't give two hoots about the condition of the paint, either before they touched it, or after, given that them missing a spot on your seat is your only complaint?

Look, if that is the case, and I am not judging you if it is, then you really shouldn't be worrying about who is washing it or how - just get it done as cheap as possible and like 90% of car owners out there, you will be happy, as long as there is no visible dirt on the paint.

However, if you do actually care about the potential damage that is being done during your wash and don't want your car to look dull because it is riddled in swirls and you don't want the clear to fail due to over-polishing or lack of protection, then my initial 'advice' stands - it is highly unlikely that someone else will be SAFELY water/rinse less washing your car, so don't let them, or even worse, pay them to do it. If, due to water restrictions, or other choices, you have to rinse less wash, then YOU are the only person who could do it safely, as you you CARE ENOUGH to make it happen.



PS: what happened to the before and after pics, and do any of them show the actual paint in the sun (so we can swirls)?

pics of new swirls?

We would rather have swirls than no water.

The struggle is real and this is the situation in CT. It's hard to see my car getting exposed to such mediocre washes but my hands is tied behind my back.

At Level 4, car washing is prohibited

I sincerely hope you guys get loads more rain, the drought is really bad there.

ICE King wrote:We would rather have swirls than no water.

The struggle is real and this is the situation in CT. It's hard to see my car getting exposed to such mediocre washes but my hands is tied behind my back.

At Level 4, car washing is prohibited

I hear you and can't imagine how tough it must be - hopefully the rains will come.

Even if you are 'forced' into rinse less washing because of the current water shortages, my point is simply that you could do it yourself, and massively reduce the likelihood of inflicting swirls, by simply using a quality product and decent technique and not relying on someone else to do it for you who at the end of the day, doesn't care on any level about your car, but simply wants to collect his paycheck.

Thanks Yakuza for having your tank washed yesterday! the rain today is well needed!

amstel18 wrote:Thanks Yakuza for having your tank washed yesterday! the rain today is well needed!

You beat me to it.

And also, I don't think he cares too much about the Q7s paint as it is for sale.

ICE King wrote:We would rather have swirls than no water.

The struggle is real and this is the situation in CT. It's hard to see my car getting exposed to such mediocre washes but my hands is tied behind my back.

At Level 4, car washing is prohibited

Closed garage in a business complex, on a weekend where there is no one - Can wash and detail to your heart's content.

I note with mild amusement that if you drive past any of the taxi ranks, it's business as normal with not a shred of care for water restrictions

amstel18 wrote:Thanks Yakuza for having your tank washed yesterday! the rain today is well needed!

a clean car still looks clean in the rain lol...

@Lawrence - the pics didnt do it any justice at all, just looks clean so no point in uploading them.

@iLy - i was actually considering washing my car in my garage then it dawned on me that im a lazy **** and i got these guys to wash my car.

@Marz - yeah its for sale but how does that comment help anyone? The car is clean... 90% of people just see a clean car, the other 10% is on this forum, which im not selling my car here sooooooooo

ICE King wrote:We would rather have swirls than no water.

The struggle is real and this is the situation in CT. It's hard to see my car getting exposed to such mediocre washes but my hands is tied behind my back.

At Level 4, car washing is prohibited

its level 4B... much more sever than a level 4... on 4 i could still wash my car with a bucket, now you are not allowed to wash your car.

cant you use the water from your drains? like the bath water?

turbowheelchair wrote:cant you use the water from your drains? like the bath water?

This was suggested by COCT but it's a BIG NO!!!!! It's detrimental to the paint.

Unless your bath water is clean JK

lawrence wrote:

ICE King wrote:We would rather have swirls than no water.

The struggle is real and this is the situation in CT. It's hard to see my car getting exposed to such mediocre washes but my hands is tied behind my back.

At Level 4, car washing is prohibited

I hear you and can't imagine how tough it must be - hopefully the rains will come.

Even if you are 'forced' into rinse less washing because of the current water shortages, my point is simply that you could do it yourself, and massively reduce the likelihood of inflicting swirls, by simply using a quality product and decent technique and not relying on someone else to do it for you who at the end of the day, doesn't care on any level about your car, but simply wants to collect his paycheck.

Agreed , it's no excuse but you get an idea of the situation. You and I understand the damage thereof but for those that don't know , are being mislead. One good quality MF towel is alone R100 bucks.

Maybe if you did this weekly from the start when it was still clean. If is is three months down the line with coastal muck on it well then they have to be awesome to get it off without scratching.

Yeah the thing about doing rinse less washes effectively is that you have to do it often. It should take no more than 15 minutes to wipe the car clean and if you do this say 3 times a week, you don't let the dirt build up too much.

In terms of the 'equipment' needed, you can get away with:

A bucket

A bottle of quality rinse less wash like Optimum ONR @R340, which essentially makes 30 x 2 gallon (around 8l) buckets of wash, so roughly R10 a wash

Then you can either use 'The Big Red Sponge' (specifically designed by Optimum for use with ONR) <- haven't tried it personally but the dudes overseas swear by it) http://www.autogeek.net/optimum-big-red ... ponge.html

Or a bunch of MF towels http://www.auto-dna.co.za/product/pink- ... bulk-pack/ at roughly R11 per towel.

If you go the MF towel route, and you have a bucket with a sealable lid you can mix up your 2 gallons of rinse less wash, place all your clean MF towels in the bucket and let them soak. Then take out a clean towel, wring it dry to the point where the towel is wet but water isn't running off the towel. Fold it in half then half again, giving you 8 clean sides with which to wipe.

Wipe a small section in one direction, flip the towel to expose a clean surface, and wipe the next section. repeat until all 8 sides are used. Then do not place the towel back in the bucket. Grab another towel out the bucket and continue around the car.

If you have solution left over, put the lid on the bucket and save it for your next wash.

Go and buy drinking water, for R1 a litre.
A Karcher K4 flows 420 litres per hour, so R200 should cover you to wash your car.
Keep the slips of the water purchased so they dont fine you.

Waterless washing done by someone as a business will f your paint up.

Keen to see the results Yakuza, pics pretty please.