Pressure Washer to clean your car

[xjsrookie]

Hi all,

I have a '96 Celebration Coupe and up till now I've hand washed it but using buckets of water. Getting to be a bit of a chore - fill bucket in kitchen and carry through the house, pour over car and return to kitchen for refill and so on...

I've seen a reasonable 1400w Karcher pressure washer on E-Bay and I can get a soft brush add on for it.

Just wondering if anyone has any advice on these.

Thanks

[dhdove]

Hi Rookie

Personally I wouldn't let a pressure washer anywhere near the "topside" of my car - wheelarches maybe, underside yes. My pressure washer did a great job stripping the crap off our block paved drive a couple of weeks ago but I think it would trash the XJS!

I wash the car by..........bucket and sponge with preferred car shampoo, rinse with hosepipe, shammy, (McGuires) microfibre cloth, removes any swirls etc. If you haven't got a hose pipe a couple of buckets of water thrown over it will do the trick.

I'm sure you know all of this already, but seriously, if you haven't got one how about fitting an outside tap if poss so you can use a hose - it makes life soooo much easier

Regards
Tony

[rainbowhardy]

Hi xjs rookie

Having owned my car for the past five years, call it hard work but I prefer
to wash with a bucket of water and a the use of two chammey leathers, one being for wiping the dirt off and the other to finish the job.

Having an ageing car, having the minumum of moisture on there can only be a good thing for the obvious reasons. My car is always covered when not in use. As regarding the jet washer brilliant for doing the Latice wheels.

Regards

Phil

[xjsrookie]

Thanks everyone, didn't really want to resort to using a pressure washer anyway. Picking up an extra long extension hose later to run from inside the house, save me ferrying buckets of water from the kitchen.

Will have to get a house with a garage the next time I move

[Brakebuster]

used correctly , i see nothing wrong with using a pressure washer

i use mine about twice a year to blow away the winter salts, and the summer dust , its very useful for getting in the panel gaps to remove dirt and ' moss ' that can build up over the winter , and around the window trims etc

if you have a stable painted surface, it will not harm it unless its used on one spot for a considerable time

i used my pressure washer only last weekend on my XJ8 before the XJS run , and even jetted out the entire engine bay ,

just ensure you go round after with the WD40 and the white grease to replace what you have removed ,

just my thoughts

BB

[BigCatXJS]

Most pressure washers have two nozzles; one for heavy duty applications such patio cleaning and the other for lighter use such as car cleaning. Never use the first one on any car unless you want to damage the paintwork.

Alternatives to this and the bucket include the hose on sprinkle mode, or using Mer to clean-off light dirt. The latter involves no water but can only be used to remove light dirt/dust otherwise you could end-up scratching the paintwork. Using a pre-wax cleanser and then a good quality wax e.g. Raceglaze 45 or 65 afterwards will avoid this.

[steveww]

A pressure washer is OK as long as you don't get too close with it. I prefer a regular hose with a spray jet on it for pre and post wash rinse; we have good water pressure.

I use Autoglym insect and tar remover to get those tough spots off the front of the car. Using a good quality wax will help to give the car a "non stick" finish which makes the subsequent washing much easier.