Hi, I am a total noobie in car wash. NEVER done it before and I need some good advice and a list of items I need to purchase. I don't wanna wash out my paint of course. I got an IS 250 AWD, I just need to do the exterior. I am fine with the interior for now. Any help is greatly appreciated

 

Grab a cup of your favorite drink, reading glasses [if you need such] and head on over to the Detail section of Club Lexus and do your research, there is no perfect set of items.

 

After reading that post, I wanna hang myself. Let's put it another way, IF just IF i just dish wash soap with water and just clean it with microfiber towel, will that work? I know the result won't be that great but will I damage my car?

 

Yes, do NOT use dish detergent to wash your car unless you plan on waxing it afterward. other wise, head on over to your local auto store and get some car wash soap.

 

I sure hope you're kidding...dish washing soap?

 

I am so sorry lol I mean car wash soap hahaha, not dish my bad. so you think if wash my car with CAR wash soap and water, and then water down all the soap then use a microfiber towel to dry it, will it do a good job?

How do I clean my wheel? any special product I need? nothing fancy tho... pretty dirty after all the wet floor...

 

seriously.... look up

 

Although I agree with the thread on top, let me help you out a little. Depending on whether you want to spend 4-8 hours cleaning your car OR 2-3 hours. First you must wash your car with CAR WASH SOAP. Dry it with a a micro fiber towel, then apply a good wax, I use NXT Meguiar Wax. If you want a longer process head over to Detailing forum and search fo Zaino.

So basically,

Meguiar NXT Wax
Microfiber towels
California Water Blade (helps me alot)
California Duster (for after your clean it)
Meguairs Auto Detailer (for touch ups after you wax it)
Good Car Wash Soap
Any Rim spray
Any Tire Spray to make it look glossy.

 

maybe someone should write up with a DIY carwash..haha

the power of google:
http://autos.msn.com/advice/article.aspx?contentid=9780

 

I am not sure about the wax part because I have never done it and don't wanna mess it up. I will try to wax it later on, I will just clean it with car wash soap and spray the rim and tire if needed. Then will just dry it with microfiber towel and see how it works out.

 

All I know is that the guys down the street from my house give a great hand job for only $12.

You can add a rim job for only $3 more

 

Just get the Meguiars spray-on car wax and spray-on auto-detailer for touch-ups in between waxes.

 

You almost crossed the line there, buddy...

 

I don't endorse dish soap and I actually opt for the boutique brands like Zaino or Poorboys over Gold Class but seriously, has anybody actually seen damage caused by using dish soap? My dad washes his car exclusively with dawn dish soap and hot water and not all that often. Once, maybe twice a year i'll detail it for him, wash, clay, polish, and either a simple wax or if i've got the time i'll Zaino it for him. I've never seen any damage and his car looks better than most washed with car soap and not maintained even once a year. So I think this dawn wash thing is way overblown, what say you.

 

I am pretty ****, but not ridiculous, when it comes to washing my car, and can still do the job right in about 45 min. Here are few things I have learned from the detailing forum and personal experience: I do the wheels first, with one set of sponges only on the tires and rims for every wash, since you don't want to clean the rest of your nice paint with nasty brake dust residue. Spray the car off as best you can, especially along the bottom of the car to remove as much dirt as possible before you start the wash. I would use my pressure washer, but it's too much of a pita to get out every time. After I clean the wheels, I make a new bucket of car soap, use a car wash mitt, and clean the car from Top to Bottom, in that order since most of the dirt is right along the bottom edge of the car, and you don't want to bring that up to the hood or roof if you can avoid it. A huge key to this is rinsing your mitt or sponge VERY often with the hose. Some people will tell you to use a second rinse bucket, but I say that is lame, since you have to drag out another bucket, and soon you will be rinsing in dirty water. While you are washing the car, use gentle, forward and back motions instead of the circular {wax on, wax off} motions to prevent future swirls in your paint. I then use microfiber towels to dry it off{forward and back}, with a different one on the wheels.

Between washes, my car gets dusty with my daily driving, and I use a California Car Duster to easily wipe down the car.


Not sure what color your car is, but black will show swirls the easiest, which is why I will never get that color.

Good luck keeping that Lexus looking brand new!!