audijk

Well, it was warm enough to wash my cars so I took a shot today. First time using the pressure washer and a foam cannon and then hand wash with microfiber mits from car guys.

Went pretty well. Definitely got the dirt off! Car looks awesome. I’ll try to post some pics.

Definitely getting the beading and sheeting even more now that the grime is gone. Of course, first time out and rushing a bit I missed some spots but I think that’s good since it will show the difference between a maintenance wash and a full hand wash.

Thanks to everyone for helping with my own perspective. I think I just needed to hear what I figured would be the case.

Appreciate everyone’s feedback again.




Nice beading action - works better than when I have grime on the car of course.

A spot I missed with the grime. Slid my finger across the dirty area and just below. Operator error by missing this spot but it shows the grime I was referring to.

Another spot I missed showing the grime when not doing the hand wash.

Didn’t have time to hit the wheels but the pressure washer and Honey Dew foam did a decent job getting them clean enough to let a deep wheel scrub go for another long while.

Some water/soap spots on the bumper. Next photo shows them coming right off with a rub.

Water spots gone! Haven’t had an issue with etching - luckily!!

AMDG75

Nice ! We'll make a hand car wash addict out of you yet

18A5SB

Walmart distilled water 1 gallon is 80 cents. Put it in spray bottle, spray and wipe dry one section at a time working from top down.
Sediment filter will not take away the dissolved (calcium) salts.

18A5SB

Tip 1 - Never take the car to a brush car wash right after a snow, give it at least a week for brushes to shed the sand. My Integra circa 2016 got a nice long deep front to back scratch right down the center of the hood - hard way to learn.
Tip 2 - Other times of year try to hit the car wash earlier in the day. The rinse water is cleaner then. The car washes filter and recycle the water. I try to hit late morning before lunch.

AgMaple

My car is a daily driver, so my bar may be a little lower than others here. However, my car does bead somewhat better than your photos show.

Obsevations:

• The ceramic coating (Modesta) definitely makes the car easier to wash. Wheels are 80% with just the pressure washer
• The surface seems to keep beading longer than when waxed before it was coated (I waited 7 months to coat)
• Summer washing with a foam cannon takes little time (20 minutes) and leaves the car looking good without manual labor. Foam cannon towel wash every three or four washings to get really clean
• During the winter, no-rinse (I use Griot's) is all that is needed to keep it pretty clean
• I work next to a limestone quarry and my car gets coated with limestone dust daily. No scratches after a year.

inphra

I got my car treated with Ceramic Pro just after I bought it (several hundred km's into ownership before I decided to). I will say the paint right out of the shop is unbelievably soft. The slightest graze from a cloth, leaf, or anything would absolutely leave a mark on the clear coat! Before it can be applied, the paint must be corrected, even brand new. No shop would ever skip this step because any imperfections (and there are a lot of them!) will be visible ten fold upon finishing the treatment.

I am unsure what your experience was like when you first got the car after it was treated, but for me, the car looked, and still looks, amazing as if it was treated yesterday! The shine is a bonus as it's really meant to be a protection layer. There are a number of beautiful Audis, MBs, BMW's, Porsches, Jags, etc in my lot and they all riddled with swirls and/or their clear coat is nearing the actual paint. Other than myself, there's another gent that has a ceramic treated 2012 Merc and his paint is immaculate. It's awesome seeing what the car would look like, if taken care of, after 7 years!

I am glad I got my car treated. The car looks incredible, even when it's dirty! Break-dust is a breeze to remove and soot stays off my tailpipes (inside and out!). The paint looks dripping wet after a wash and dry; it substantially changes the finish. You will be impressed. I get comments all the time on the finish (even when it's dirty!). Whenever I see my color on the road, I notice how vastly different it looks compared to mine.

While this may not be new information...

- It does not protect from scratches, water spots, chips, or even fine swirls due to improper washing methods; it is resistant but not bulletproof
- Dirt, dust, bird crap, sap will stick to the car but won't fully bond to the ceramic finish; it's incredibly easy to clean -- you still have to wash your car, like other mortals and don't write your name on the paint! -- I personally did notice that with the car looking so pristine and a very wet look, the appearance of dust and dirt is obvious up close but from afar, the car looks incredible
- CP applied to the windshield, calipers, and tailpipes have a limited lifespan due to abrasion and heat; CarPro reload can be reapplied to maintain hydrophobic properties
- There isn't anything extravagant you need to do for the care of your CP finish; for any car you want to use good washing techniques but with CP finished cars, you have the additional step of applying a product that restores the hydrophobic properties (e.g. CarPro Reload) --- there ARE however stipulations to follow with respect to maintaining the warranty - you'll need to review your agreement for that.
- Water spots are bad news and they will etch into the ceramic coating if left long enough. This happened to me while I left my car at a friend's place in Kelowna BC (they are known for their hard water); we tried CarPro Spotless Water Spot Remover but no dice; ended up having the shop polish the small section that was afflicted and applied CarPro Sport to reseal the finish and it looks good as new. At the end of the day, you have to know that the ceramic coating is a sacrificial layer and in this instance, it did its job to protect the clear coat and finish; small price to pay to have it polished and reapplied IMO versus destroying the original finish. Either way, it's worth having a bottle of this on the side or even in the car in the event you get hit with some hard water. If my car didn't sit with hard water on the hood under the hot interior sun, I would have been able to resolve the matter. Time is the enemy in this case. [Important Note: Water spot removers are acidic in nature; they WILL breakdown your ceramic finish over time so it's important to monitor your usage; the good news is you can use a product like Ceramic Pro Sport or CarPro Reload to fortify the area after you've used the water spot remover]
- Even the best car washing techniques, over time, will leave the finish with some very very fine marks due to abrasion or environmental factors; however you can slow this process down and mitigate damage by:

1. Using the two bucket method (with grit guards)
2. Have three mitts for top, mid, lower portions of car; do not use the same mitt for the entire car! If your mitts or cloths hit the floor, do not use them... at all...it's not worth it. Throw them in the laundry and wash properly later.
3. Using proper directional washing and not swirling and light pressure!
3. Prewashing (e.g. foam cannon) and treating the car to remove surface layer contaminants (e.g. bug spray/gunk remover) that are risk of being dragged along the paint is a big help here and will make your life easier
4. Dry the car with a blower instead of using more abrasion on the paint to dry
6. Wash and dry your mitts, microfiber clothes PROPERLY so they don't turn into sandpaper and destroy your paint on the next wash - throw away any cloths that looks suspect; they are not worth saving! (Costco has a great pack that even the pro shops use for $20 - just remember to rip off the washing label!!)
7. Touch the paint only when you need to -- abrasion of all types is never good!
8. As a general rule, do not take it to any automated car wash...ever. Even touch-less. Wash bays that have water/soap sprays and a hand held dryer are ok because you aren't touching the paint! I personally want full control of who and what touches my paint.
9. And finally.... whenever you take your car in for a service.... ALWAYS...and I mean ALWAYS... tell them "NO WASH. NO CLEAN!". These kids are in a rush to get to the next car and you can bet that they aren't going to wash and clean the car with the love, care, and attention that you would otherwise offer. Their equipment is terrible, they use the same mitt for the entire car...for ALL cars. They let the car dry wet. They are liable to run vacuum hoses to scuff up your rocker panels and damage your plastics in the car. And with that, always request that they add a note to treat your car with CARE and that they park it in a safe area on the lot for both the techs and the lot attendants. This is a significant source of damage to brand new cars. Let me tell you first hand!


My washing technique:

1. I generously spray the car down with bug remover (great for not only bugs, but breaks down tar, overspray, or anything else that's grimy/sticky) - this really helps loosen anything that would otherwise be smeared across your paint forcing you to use extra pressure to remove - let sit for 3-5m
2. Spray the wheels and tail pipes with wheel cleaner - let sit for 3-5m
3. I spend 15-20m using my pressure washer to spray off loose contaminants as I do not want to drag it across the paint during wash (top to bottom)
4. I foam cannon the car completely and pressure wash top to bottom
5. Once the snow foam is cleaned off, I begin washing the top, middle, bottom using different mitts and pressure wash again to clean
6. I leverage the hydrophobic properties by using a leaf blower to dry the vehicle entirely
7. Depending if it's a regular wash or I'm going out into town, I'll use Griot's speed shine with a plush microfiber cloth
8. Start working on the interior

My washing technique if I have to get somewhere quick and impress a girl:
1. Quick spray of wheel cleaner and bug spray remover on any spots where there is gunk
2. Pressure wash to remove contaminants
3. Foam cannon and pressure wash
4. Leaf blow car to dry
5. Gun it to pick up my date so I'm not late


Every 3 or 6 months (depending on your climate) I treat the paint with CarPro Reload (be careful, it's toxic, wear a mask and do NOT do it while the car is in the sun and/or paint is hot) - this will restore the hydrophobic properties and a little bit of shine (but know your car will be damn shiny regardless!); use plush high quality MF cloths to apply


My first aid kit for my car:
- Lots of brand new microfiber cloths
- Griot's Speed Shine - perfect for removing bird crap, sap, etc. (this was recommended to me by a tech at Audi and it's been great!); I would not recommend giving your car a "quick shine" unless the car has had all contaminants removed, freshly washed, and dried - giving a speed shine "out of cycle" will basically use the dust and dirt as a sandblaster and create a hell of lot of swirls - use it for emergencies!
- Windex
- Plastic cleaner
- Shop paper towels (the blue ones)


What do you do once you wash it? Drive it on a dirt road of course.

audijk

Great write up and your car looks fantastic! I’m pretty much following all of your recommendations except the reload and I haven’t had any tar/bugs sticking that I couldn’t remove with just a pressure washer at a self serve bay (and now my home pressure washer - knock on wood).. I will be taking the car in annually for the warranty ‘reapplication’ when that is due.

Instead of the two bucket method, I’m just using 4 wash mitts and one bucket. Using each side top down and then the bottom and it allows a completely clean side of the wash mitt without reusing a mitt for anything to minimize scratches.

Watched a few videos on washing the drying towels and mitts and first one went fine. Very low heat, scent free/softener free detergent, etc.

I was thinking about looking at P&S Beadmaker instead of Reload. Any thoughts or experiences with that? I think that would help get the shine similar to yours.

Thanks again for taking the time to post!!

18A5SB

I know one really good auto body shop they swear by bead maker.

Tundraman

I've run into car wash soaps that even though they're supposed to be great soaps, they cause spotting. So far, I've found Adams Car Shampoo to not spot. Also I have a bottle of pink from chemical guys that is pretty good, but I like the adams better. I tried a few other soaps, but keep going back to Adams for washing. It's just very slick and seems to rinse off very nicely. I'm in SWFL where if there was any spotting, it'd show up here fast as even early or late washes it seems the surface dries fast normally.

atombomb33

One key element of ceramic coatings is to NEVER use any soap or detail spray that has wax or polymers in it. The wax in those products will sit on top of the coating - effectively negating the super hydrophobic properties of the coating. Only use soap that is free of any wax and is pH neutral. Only use detail sprays, bug/tar sprays, etc, etc, that don't contain any waxes or polymers. This will help to ensure the coating is always the top/last coat on the car and you'll get the full benefits of the coating.

I use Shine Supply products. Shift soap which is made for coatings. And Throttle detail spray which is also made for coatings. Products made for coatings are a bit different than products made to apply over a wax/sealant.