When I had company vehicles I would clean them just before I gave them back, otherwise, the dealer seemed to do it at each service, typically every 18 months.
I did once hear a colleague ask “does it damage the paint if I don’t clean it?”
This did make me wonder!
Now that I own and service my own car its about once a year.
What are your findings?
With regards to weather helping to clean my car, the only weather which I have found actually helps to clean my car is thick snow!
Our two leased VWs have just been in for 2 year servicing, the dealer normally gives them a good clean/internal valet service, but not this year due to the pandemic.
Some people religiously clean their cars, not me, but must admit in recent years trees on our street seem to produce the most sticky sap/secretions which coat the glass and paintwork. Years ago they never used to. We also have some wood pigeon and magpies that seem to go to work overnight with paintball fight effects which often requires a clean simply to be able to see!
Without fail, my cars are always cleaned inside and out.
If the weather is good, it might be a month between cleans. With weather like we’ve had recently, the car gets cleaned at least once a week.
A car is a large investment and I simply couldn’t live with a dirty car.
My van, affectionately known as the Toy Box, is cleaned every year. It always surprises me to be reminded of its proper colour. The mountain bikes (toys) however get cleaned very regularly, and thoroughly.
In this covid lockdown the car is not used much, so maybe DIY soapy polish once a month.
In normal times every 2 weeks, mud removal in winter & bug removal in summer.
Then twice, maybe three times a year or special occasions, a full pro cleaning inside & outside valet.
When I feel like it or when it looks like it’s gone a bit too far, so probably 3 month gaps give or take, but longer in summer. The inside gets a clean when it’s had a bit of use as a family car, but if it’s been just me it can wait. Not sure why this warrants a question though. The answers will be every permutation of date gaps as there are posters on here.
I have a company car too and its usually washed about once a year. However, sometimes I’ve offered to drop one of my international work colleagues off at the airport on my way home. If that happens, I’ll take it to the car wash down the road from me the day before.
On that rare occasion I do get the car washed, I try to be as responsible as I can about where I go. There are a few car washes in my city that are so cheap that I worry about the welfare of the staff and also modern slavery.
Both cars get a clean and aqua wax every 2-3 weeks and a couple of high definition gloss waxes a year. Keeps them cleaner for longer, easier to wash the next time, inhibits rust, and they shimmer like mirrors. The aerodynamics are improved too which is always useful for a demigod on a fuel budget.
As a young chap I was fanatical about washing and polishing whatever car I owned at the time, I was convinced they went better when clean and shiny. Might try it again one day, unfortunately I lost my passion for cars once children became the priority.
Aside from keeping windscreen, lights and numberplates clean, which need a wipe frequently especially in winter, I guess I clean our cars about once or twice a year - it depends really how dirty it gets: some years it needs one or two more cleans than another. More often than not I use a machine wash.
I wash my cars as frequently as required, which means much more seldom this year given they spent most of the time hiding in the garage away from the elements. In fact, I got to the point wondering if wheels will develop a flat spot.
That said, yesterday there was a very dirty shower turning my white car to brown so I rinsed it.
I believe keeping it clean and removing such as leaves, little branches deters clogging and rust. I hand
wash with a bucket and have never ever went to a car wash. It is important to know how to wash properly. Learnt from detailer that it is good to wash the top half first and then the bottom half. Otherwise, dirt and grit that get trapped in the sponge / mitt can scuff the paint.
As a natural extension to this question, how often do you clean your system - naim, TT, speakers, etc? I don’t even know if servicing is an option down under where I am.
Never really. The rain does it well enough for me. I’ll shake out the mats now and then, depending on the season, but I don’t drink coffee and eat while I’m driving as it’s a distraction, so the cars don’t get dirty, just a tad dusty.
I’ve had some very nice cars thru my life, but I don’t really like cars. They’re one of the worst investments one can make. They are A to B transport for me and highly overrated.
