[bmdoubleu]

Hello all, just got this E90 06 325i SG CPO with 35K miles.
I love this car, I dont think I can ever drive anything other than a BMW for the rest of my life.

I have been lurking in these forums for about 1 week now and I have a question.

How often do you wash your car?
Do you wash it yourself? Not talking about detailing, just a quick wash.

I probably wont wash the car myself for a few reasons...
I was wondering if any of you take your cars to a carwash and if so, what kind? I heard that I should avoid certain places but am not sure which ones.

Any tips would be great...

Thanks

[Duhst]

I wash mine 1-2 times a week depending on weather. when i dont wash my car myself(which is really rare) i take it to lenny dykstra. GREAT job for $20!!

where in So Cal are you!?

[bmdoubleu]

I live in San Dimas. I dont think I have a Dykstra's around here. Do some of the car washes scratch the clear coat?

[Duhst]

Originally Posted by bmdoubleu

I live in San Dimas. I dont think I have a Dykstra's around here. Do some of the car washes scratch the clear coat?

oh nice, im in corona.

ive been there give or take maybe about 15 times or soo... havent seen a scratch at all in mine.

[mmm def]

I only wash mine myself, once every 1-2 weeks.

[dkhm3]

wash and wax every month or so.

i never allow others to wash my car- im either unhappy with the result, or they scratch the car.

if you wax, then you can avoid washing for a longer amount of time.

[jopa489]

Nice car! Once you drive a BMW, they say you'll never go back..

I wash mine, and in the winter it will be going through the touchless just to get the salt off. Jet Black is a very soft paint and gets swirled to hell in tunnel washes. SG isn't as bad, but tunnel washes in general can do damage over time. With the SoCal weather, you should definitely wash it yourself.

If dragging out the hose and buckets is a turnoff, you can try something like Optimum No Rinse (ONR). Doesn't require a hose, just a 5-gallon bucket or two and some good wash media. Hit up the detailing subforum for more information on it (and the hundreds of other products and techniques you can use to get an amazing shine).

[TommyK]

i wash mine once a week and wax once a month or else the car starts to look purple and i hate that, every one bashes on me when they look at it durring the day time when the sun hits it just right and make it look purple. so i wax as often as i can

[Evil E90]

Car washes are too damn expensive. I wash mine every other week. The only way I would take it to a car wash is if it was like this:

[zerox_guru]

^ summer is coming up

[bmdoubleu]

Thanks for all the info fellas, I am seriously thinking about washing it myself now. Any threads in the forums that you know about that deal with washing the car yourself that you can point me to?

[BK]

Originally Posted by bmdoubleu

Thanks for all the info fellas, I am seriously thinking about washing it myself now. Any threads in the forums that you know about that deal with washing the car yourself that you can point me to?

We have a dedicated forum for detailing: Wash, Wax, Detailing and Exterior repair. Feel free to ask any questions there, no matter how "newbie" they may seem. There are a lot of good detailers on that forum, and a lot of people who are willing to share.

If you're new to detailing, read this sticky on that forum: Detailing 101: Common Question and Answers, What and Where to buy stuff + Technique. That thread has probably the best description of "how to properly wash a car" that you'll find anywhere.

Another excellent forum for detailing: Autopia.org Car Detailing Forum

Best of luck! Detailing can be addictive, a labor of love.

[jopa489]

Originally Posted by bmdoubleu

Thanks for all the info fellas, I am seriously thinking about washing it myself now. Any threads in the forums that you know about that deal with washing the car yourself that you can point me to?

Tons of information here: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9145

That thread is a good place to start for basic washing technique. There are loads of other resources depending on how much you want to learn about detailing.