RazorGT

i have experienced this for many cars for many years - even in warm weather.

i hand wash my car, first the soap spray then the rinse spray then the spot free low pressure spray) then i use "the absorber" which is a maxi pad made for drying cars, supposed to be one of the best (10$ at autozone)

when its warm i also hand wax the car (when i hand wax i dont have this problem)

but during winter i just wash once a week to get the salt off and even after drying, i experience this residue....heres a video showing it (android recording @ 1080p ftw!) (the absorber doesnt dry 100%)

05xrunner

the soap you bought is probably really cheap stuff and not fully cleaning off the salt. also the absorber is one of the WORST things you could own for paint. perfectly fine for glass AWFUL for paint. Its a flat material with zero nap to pull away any dirt from the surface they may have fallen onto the paint after washing and just grinding it into the paint scratching it. it might also be from being to cold out getting some condensation on the paint and its slowly freezing up what is this spot free rinse stuff from? it could also be adding some kind of film to the paint surface to make the water not bead up and slowly sheet off to avoid spots.

RazorGT

i read the full detail guide, they recommend doing a full detail twice a year - but what all should u do for just a regular wash?

just soap+rinse good enough?

RazorGT

what do u recommend to dry besides the absorber? i hear even regular towels scratch the paint and i tried small microfiber cloths but the car is too big i would need like 100 cloths!

this is all done at a quarter paying pay and spray wash - the spot free rinse is just low pressure rinse.

RazorGT

this is what is so frustrating about car washing - some products u got people that swear by, then other people look at it and say "omg i feel so sorry for ur car"

05xrunner

ANYONE who is into detailing will be 100% say the absorber is NOT something you use on paint.
I use waffle weave towels or proper MF towels. Not all MF towels are created equal either
http://www.autoality.com/store/pc/Mi...m#.UtvwXRAo670
http://www.autoality.com/store/pc/Or...m#.UtvwbhAo670
these are towels I use to dry my paint. you dont need a large towel if you rinse properly. if the car is properly waxed. At the very end remove the nozzle and flood the paint surface. this will sheet off about 90% of the water and only have very little left to dry off so it wont take some huge towel to dry it.

Ohh i see you are just at DIY. well thats more problems there cause if your just hosing it off that will not get all the salt off at all and its hot water. So your using that absorber to grind in all that dirt on the paint and then the body panels are heated up cause they use hot water through those systems and there is condensation building up on the surface of the paint because of the cold temps

RazorGT

so what do you recommend for me? should i just go automatic wash? i live in a apartment and dont have access to a hose/bucket anywhere.

05xrunner

Automatic as in brushes type..OHH NO i wouldnt tell my worst enemy to go into those hell pits.
Just during winter hit the automatic TOUCHLESS and just the Diy spraying off as much as you can then give it proper bucket handwash when get those temp spikes during winter. just in meantime hose off as much as you can and thats it

Norm Peterson

That's all I do except for the once or twice a year that I'll wax it. Even then, I'll just use clean towels to dry it if I'm going to be getting to the waxing right away.

Maybe you've got hard water or maybe it really is something about that absorber thingie, because I've never used one and never got the results you seem to be getting.

Wouldn't spend $10 to fix a problem I've never had anyway, no matter who was pushing it as being a good thing.


Norm

05xrunner

well you spend alot for suspension stuff that I would never waste money on. I spend money on keeping my cars paint perfect. If someone ask how to take car of paint I will give the advice on proper products to use.