A series of polishing steps are used to remove a layer of the clear coat to produce a smooth surface with little to no defects. This process is often referred to as 'paint correction' by the true professionals, but most production environments simply call it 'buffing'.... and $300 would typically be quite low for a project like this, but it varies depending on the market in your area.



Some of my examples:




^Before Correction


^After correction


^Years of 'touchless washes' with harsh chemicals left staining all over this car that needed to be corrected.

 

I am OCD about having a clean car, but I am more OCD about flawless paint. I live in snowy, salty road NH, so I get TOUCHFREE washes. These have never caused me grief.

 

In surfing this topic, I found the following article. What is interesting is that it is the only article I have seen that espouses the superiority of an automated wash. The article goes so far as to say that hand washing is dangerous to your car's finish. Of course, I bet the author is unaware of the two bucket technique. It should be noted that the article appears on the website of an automated car washing business - hardly an unbiased source, although it cites a study done at the University of Texas. Still, its presence is certainly self-serving. Anyway, I provide it here as an interesting read.

http://www.thecarwash1.com/carwash-study.html

 

I would say if the home wash consists of using a single bucket with some dishwshing soap and a old foam sponge and dry with some towels from the bathroom then yes. I agree it is bad. But a proper 2 bucket with good quality products is very safe.

 

Sounds like you want someone to tell you it's ok to take your car through an automatic wash. If that's what you want to do, go right ahead. Not everyone cares to maintain their car in show car condition. We all have different priorities, nothing wrong with that.

Had you actually been searching for articles to learn how to wash your car, you'd have learned that by using the proper products, the proper tools, and the proper technique, you could hand wash your car a hundred times without causing the type of damage described in that ridiculous article you linked.

Right now my SUV is due for a paint correction. It's been over seven years since it received its last paint correction, which was shortly after I bought it. Even now, its paint is still in better shape than 90% of the cars on the road, and in far better shape than any car that's been through an automatic wash with spinning brushes even once. That's after hundreds of hand washes.