Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

[paests]

Hi chaps, I don't fully understand the role of detailer. Seems to me it's primarily a substitute for washing; a "spot cleaner" for light dust/fingerprints/soiling, that also adds water repulsion to the surface.

Is there any point in detail if you are going to wash your car anyway?

Thanks!

[MTLian]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

That's a good question, I can't wait to see what others have to say. I only use quick detailed as a clay lube and the mothers brand that I use (that smells exactly like cinnamon candy hearts!) leaves an unsightly residue so I end up working harder to get the detailer off so I don't use the stuff as a general rule. Might be handy for removing the odd tree sap or bird droppings though. I've used rubbing alcohol with great results for spot cleaning.

[Top Gear]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

You were right in your first sentence, so the point is that we don't need to fully wash the car every time it has a little dust on it, or even every time it seems dirty in a few spots. I wash maybe once a month or less, and keep the car perfectly clean by using a duster, QD and QW, or even by rinsing without washing, using a blow dryer. When I do wash, I only use a wash fluid with wax in it, because the washing can strip off too much protection. All that said, my wheels do get dirty much quicker, and I sometimes will wash them more frequently while only rinsing the rest of the car, then blow it all dry. So, there are variations of the traditional wash which give us options for daily detail work

[Murr1525]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

I really just use the Quick Detail type sprays for bird droppings, water marks, etc, or as a clay lube. Usually too dirty otherwise, and better to wash.

But as noted above, if QDing and dusting the whole car often, there would be no need to wash.

Also, the rubbing alcohol would remove your wax...

[MTLian]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

Ok so the advantage of the QD is that it doesn't remove wax as much?

[Murr1525]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

Yeah, its more like a non-streaking soap... so some lubrication for removing dirt/debris, and then safer for wax.

[Top Gear]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

Right. "Quik" products are very, very safe and won't remove anything (even dirt, as the MF rag does that ). QD is a great protectant product and a very effective cleaning "lube".

So, say after a few days of driving and avoiding rain I've got a minor amount of road/weather grime residue and some dust, I'll just lightly dust it off, then use Gold Class QD to clean the surfaces. Right after that, I go back over those surfaces with Gold Class Quik Wax. This cleans and re-waxes the car in minutes!

If I'd been caught driving in the rain or something gets the car really dirty, I do a full traditional wash, of course. A lot of times, though, I'll just rinse without washing. Either way, I'll blow it all dry with an electric blower and then do QD/QW as described or as needed. I do this quick rinse thing rather frequently, especially with a black car in the hot South, as it loosens up collected grime and dust from all the small channels and drip rails before it bakes in, and makes my regular Ultimate Black detailing that much easier, later.

All of this allows me the therapy of light, regular detailing, without always getting bogged down in a full cleaning when it's not necessary. A car that's not dirty doesn't need a full wash, so I use frequent and light detailing tricks to keep the car pretty clean on a regular basis.

[Ed Man]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

Man you down south good weather guys make me jealous. Up here in Michigan, I'm lucky to be able to go a few days without having to wash my black SHO. We seldom go though long dry periods where QD would be the rule. I work in a car dealership but the car wash can be brutal if used too frequently. If I can I just spray it off and hit it with some QW or QD I would be happy but sometimes it get hard. I wish I had the time to hand wash it all the time but sometimes trying to time washing and rain can be a futile effort. Being new to the detailing fun I guess I have to plan on a more frequent polish/wax schedule.

[The Guz]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

For light dusting I use a QD, such as my other car that sits in the garage. A QD is helpful in rmeoving the light dust from it. On my daily which sits outside, I only use a QD when drying or after drying to add some luster back to the wax on the car. The standard QD can do double duty with also being used as clay lube. If there is morning dew on the car, I will not touch it with a QD. That is when I reach for a rinseless or waterless wash (an alternative to a traditional wash). If the car is heavily soiled then that's when I go for the 2 bucket wash.

[Poki]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

I live in southern California in the desert area of Palm Springs. We deal with dust daily in a BIG way. I use the Cal. Duster daily and sometimes twice a day. If the dust gets too heavy for the duster to remove I use a QD but have recently switched to Synthetic X-Press Spray Wax for a detail spray and wax all in one. This stuff is magic! I may wash the car a full wash once a month and I spray the spray wax on each section before drying so my car is always slick and shiny.

[Top Gear]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

Man you down south good weather guys make me jealous. Up here in Michigan, I'm lucky to be able to go a few days without having to wash my black SHO. We seldom go though long dry periods where QD would be the rule. I work in a car dealership but the car wash can be brutal if used too frequently. If I can I just spray it off and hit it with some QW or QD I would be happy but sometimes it get hard. I wish I had the time to hand wash it all the time but sometimes trying to time washing and rain can be a futile effort. Being new to the detailing fun I guess I have to plan on a more frequent polish/wax schedule.

You got me there I've spent a few winters up North, but wasn't serious into detailing like I am now. The slush and potholes alone are enough to drive you mad! I guess my first approach would be to visit a local spray wash regularly, or use a soapy pressure washer at home?? I mention this because it would let you wash and rinse salt in one go, not having to bend over as much, and wouldn't be as cold on the hands.

I live in southern California in the desert area of Palm Springs. We deal with dust daily in a BIG way. I use the Cal. Duster daily and sometimes twice a day. If the dust gets too heavy for the duster to remove I use a QD but have recently switched to Synthetic X-Press Spray Wax for a detail spray and wax all in one. This stuff is magic! I may wash the car a full wash once a month and I spray the spray wax on each section before drying so my car is always slick and shiny.

That's the way the pollen is here this time of year, but there's also dust here, too. I've used the duster quite a bit when it's light, but sometimes when it's heavy I'll avoid dusting until I can rinse and blow dry. Most people won't notice the effort, since underneath the pollen is a very shiny black. Pollen and dust also get all in the rubber drip rails, and I'd rather rinse all that out.

[paests]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

Appreciate your contributions! QD is very expensive in Singapore, so based on what ive learnt here, ill stick to a simple weekly GC wash + bi-weekly GC quik wax regimen without any QD involved. Cheers!

[paests]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

Extending the OP a bit: is there anything a detailer can remove that a wash cant? Thx..

[Top Gear]

Re: Washing vs Detailing - If you wash do you need to detail?

The way I do it, a wash with wash-n-wax soap and a mitt is more aggressive than using QD with an MF rag. Depending on what the car needs, I use a range of less aggressive toward more aggressive approaches: Duster, Rinse-Only, QW with MF, QD with MF, Wash-n-Wax with Mitt. In fact, the QD/QW applications can build up holographic residue over a few weeks, and I'll sometimes do a wash just to remove that residue.