How often do you wash your car(s)?

"Jay, the practical enthusiast" (jay-m)
10/08/2018 at 17:10 • Filed to: None

Under_Score’s !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! from earlier today has me thinking I might be a tad obsessive with washing my cars. Even though both our cars are garage kept and we keep low miles on them I still wash them about every 2 weeks.

Just the outside. Wash, dry, and do the outside windows. Depending on how much we’ve driven (and the amount of brake dust) I only do the rims about every other wash.

I wax our cars every 3 or 4 months, usually when I vacuum and wipe down the inside.

But a full on Svending? Maybe just once a year. I love having a clean (at least on the outside) car and it’s easy to justify spending 20 minutes to wash a car. It’s not so easy to find the motivation to spend hours cleaning them.

So how about it oppo? How often do you wash your car?

DISCUSSION (35)

Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:11

2-3 weeks for my DD, 4-5 weeks for my garage queen.

CB > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:12

It’s been probably three weeks. I should wash it this week.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:13

wash my car?

oh you mean leave outside in the rain and aim for big puddles? (bonus points if pedestrians are next to the puddle)

KingT- 60% of the time, it works every time > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:15

Same.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:16

Twice a year, maybe. Two live in the garage, one is washed by the elements.

Spanfeller is a twat > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:16

Three weeks for my daily, thought I clean the interior and the glass every week

Chuckles > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:17

For my daily driven Fiat, I drive it through a touchless wash about once a month.

For my less often driven Miata, I might take it to a self serve car wash once every few months.

I personally hate cleaning my cars and can't stand the idea of spending 3 hours on a Saturday washing my cars when I could be out driving them. I keep them uncluttered and that's good enough.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:19

I used to wash 2x a summer, then I moved to an apartment. I haven’t washed in... a while. I need to before winter.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:20

Some times

Svend > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:25

I actually wash other peoples more than I wash mine.

It sounds stupid but I’ll wait until I get something to clean and go to clean it the next day, but it invariably rains the next day and I’m not kidding even dried on bird bombs break up as the rain hits it and the car (other than the front two wheels which still have brake dust) is cleaned.

It’s infuriating.

I like a good dirty car to get my teeth into.

G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:28

Since I can’t wash it at the house I usually take it to the coin op once a month and wax every 3 months or so (black car problems). The interior gets cleaned once a week though.

Urambo Tauro > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:29

I live on an unpaved road, so keeping my car clean all the time just is n’t an option. I wash it anyway about once a moth, but the rest of the time I just try to keep the glass clear.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > Chuckles
10/08/2018 at 17:29

If we had a touchless nearby I would probably go once a week. But I'm with you in that I can't spend 3 hours detailing them.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > Urambo Tauro
10/08/2018 at 17:33

I had the problem of a dirt road back in college. I was kind of lucky in that my paint didn't show water spots so it was easy to just wash off the dust every week and not worry about drying.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3
10/08/2018 at 17:36

I was a new car detailer back in college and I remember learning black paint was the worst. Even on new cars it is so hard to get it presentable, let alone perfect .

G_Body_Man: Sponsored by the number 3 > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:41

Black wax has made it much easier and newer clear coats are so much better but my 15-year-old Infiniti paint is an uphill battle

Jay, the practical enthusiast > Svend
10/08/2018 at 17:42

I think I'm the opposite. The longer I go between washes the less motivation I have because I feel like all the extra dirt is going to take too long to clean.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
10/08/2018 at 17:44

The last apartment I rented had a washing area. Basically just one parking spot set aside with a hose. It was great and I wish more apartment complexes did that.

Urambo Tauro > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:45

Were you parking close to the road at the time? I park about two car-lengths away, and I’m on a straight section where traffic generally gets up to around 45 mph. All of the dust that settles on my car gets stuck there with t he morning dew.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > Urambo Tauro
10/08/2018 at 17:51

Oh no. That was never an issue for me or I would do the same as you, just the glass.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > Spanfeller is a twat
10/08/2018 at 17:55

Is it dusty where you are? I feel like my interior never gets dirty here in Florida. But my wife is from Mongolia and it is super dry and dusty. After just 1 week you can see a visible layer of dust on everything.

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 17:59

The outside? When it rains.

The inside? Usually before we go away...say twice a year.

There’s simply not enough water, too many dirt roads, too much dust and way to many more important things to do to be precious about vehicle appearance.

Spanfeller is a twat > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 18:00

Some streets I need to drive through have building proyects, so yes. Addittionally, it’s a very polluted city, so rain isn’t exactly clean either.

Specially my college parking lot; the new parking lot is still being built so there’s a lot of dust and dirt from the construction crew’s trucks.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 18:04

On average monthly . Hot water spray down in the winter once every two weeks , hand wash in the summer once a month . Wax in spring and summer.

Nibby > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 18:29

usually once a month but i haven’t washed my truck since... august? oops

Svend > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 18:41

You just have to be more careful with black and dark coloured cars.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 19:09

Me too! There is an apartment complex near by I heard had one of these and I was thinking I might try to go use it lol. The only thing is that I am super slow at washing my car. It would be like a 3hr commitment for me. I need to case it out before hand. See what it’s like

wafflesnfalafel > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 19:23

Averages every couple months unless I get something on it, (dirt road dust or road salt situation or something.) But I will use a spray wax every time. I’ve had good luck keeping rust away and other goo off by waxing after each wash.

shop-teacher > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 19:27

In the winter I'll wash it every time the temp climbs above 40, but I haven't washed my truck since ... March??? It's getting pretty bad.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > shop-teacher
10/08/2018 at 19:32

Here in Florida the winter weather is never a problem but the constant thunderstorms in summer can be.

jasmits > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 19:42

When I lived out east briefly a nd I wanted to keep my rust-free west coast truck rust-free? Every two weeks.

Now that I live out west again? eh, when I feel like it. Even though I do a lot of off- roading. I kinda like it when my trucks are muddy any way.

Jay, the practical enthusiast > jasmits
10/08/2018 at 19:47

Trucks and Jeeps look better covered in mud.

arl > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 19:55

In every month but winter it’s usually weekly.

Wi nter can be every 2-4 weeks depending on how cold it is.

jasmits > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/08/2018 at 20:40

My Tacoma and Range Rover Classic don’t look quite right clean.

pip bip - choose Corrour > Jay, the practical enthusiast
10/09/2018 at 07:25

once every few years