If somebody brings you a car that is really filthy

[Mary S]

If somebody brings you a car that is really filthy on the outside, like caked on mud, from rough use or a long time since being washed....

And you usually do a 2-bucket wash with a microfiber mitt....

Do you do something different to pretreat it, to get rid of the excess grime and dirt?

Or do you just go right to the 2 buckets?

[rapport25]

Re: If somebody brings you a car that is really filthy

Jet wash and snow foam prior to washing with the 2 buckets.

[Shawn T.]

Re: If somebody brings you a car that is really filthy

Rinse it a lot.............that was like my dad's car last summer. My parents went upstate to follow the antique fairs and had to park in the mud. Well, when they came home, the black car was turned light brown. I just hosed it down really well and went with the same two buckets, making sure to go to the rinse bucket more often. I alos had to dump out my rinse bucket and put more fresh water in because it became so dirty.

[Zuke]

Re: If somebody brings you a car that is really filthy

Meg's has a detailer line called Body Solvent. Letting that dwell on the paint for a while really helps cut down on the wash time. I know TUCK91 uses it often.

[Mary S]

Re: If somebody brings you a car that is really filthy

Thanks, I have a sample of the body solvent. I'll give that a try. And I have a "cheap" foam attachment that attaches to the hose, but the foam is pretty dilute with that one.

I wondered about the possibility of using a boar's hair brush with hose flow through like the one Griot's sells, this one, but it might be a recipe for scratching the paint if it brushes the mud back onto the car.

I guess if you can get all the grit off with a hose before you wash you won't risk scratching the paint with the mitt.