Car Wash

[csriram45]

how thin the paint is on the LEAF

That seems very odd. Have you spoken to your dealer? This is my 4th Nissan, and have never had a problem with paint. I find it hard to believe (but concerned that) Nissan is painting the Leaf any differently than its other cars. I have not noticed any problems with my 8 week old Leaf.

Read the thread here on thin paint - http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=4965

 

[ttweed]

Those of you who have used "automatic" drive-thru car washes, have you removed the antenna from the roof as recommended in the manual, or have you found it not necessary?

Thx,
TT

 

[aqn]

Those of you who have used "automatic" drive-thru car washes, have you removed the antenna from the roof as recommended in the manual, or have you found it not necessary?

I don't remove mine. My LEAF has been through a drag-it-through car wash (w/ brushes) twice and a "touchless" car wash once. Nothing has happened yet. I don't think I will ever remove it.

FWIW, I always remove my VW GTI's whip antenna, but I suspect if something breaks the antenna, I'll have more serious problems to worry about than the antenna.

 

[ttweed]

I don't remove mine.

Thanks for the input, Andy. So far I have washed ours by hand, but SWSBO is thinking of taking it through an auto-wash place tomorrow.

TT

 

[evnow]

Even the full service ones here that have an auto wash tunnel (like Pink Elephant) - asks us to take the car through the tunnel and then to the area where they do manual cleaning & drying.

Ofcourse real detailing places do everything manually.

 

[gascant]

After seeing how thin the paint is on the LEAF I think I am going to stick it on DIY car washes. I was bummed to see so few chips on the car even after taking extreme care. one of them had gone all the way through....

Do you drive on I 880 a lot? I commute on it and I have noticed a few pebble dings and missing paint after only 2 months. I'll have to look at my wife's Altima Hybrid closely to see if there is something similar. We have taken it up to the City a lot.

I got a scratch in the clear coat a couple weeks ago and, luckily, I was able to rub it out with NuFinish scratch remover. The area that I treated was incredibly smooth and "soft" afterwards. So, I decided it was time to wax the car (after 60 days) and it came out great. Side benefit is that dirt doesn't cling to it now.

Oh, yeah, I've done nothing but hand wash it so far. It'll probably be a year before I take it to the car wash (standard practice for any new car in our family).

 

[mark13]

I never thought any thing about it when leaving the car with the attendent..I just leave the car running and go inside ..I payed the xtra $20 for rain insurance in July-August = Monsoon-Badoo=Phx ..I had the car washed 6 times in July..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W4Cx44XKZ4&feature=related

 

[gmuzhik]

One car wash question: Do you need to remove the FOB remote device from your keyring and put it inside the Leaf as you release it to the car wash attendants? Will it continue running if you take away the FOB?

 

[dlich18]

Do you need to remove the FOB remote device from your keyring and put it inside the Leaf as you release it to the car wash attendants?

It will continue to run without the Fob in the car, until the car is shut off. You should leave the Fob in the car because if they do shut it off, they will not be able to turn back on.

 

[DarkStar]

Those of you who have used "automatic" drive-thru car washes, have you removed the antenna from the roof as recommended in the manual, or have you found it not necessary?

Since I only use touchless car washes it hasn't been necessary, however I think I would be comfortable even using a traditional style car wash.

 

[aqn]

Since I only use touchless car washes [...]

Here's something for you to consider:

I used to use touchless car washes exclusively until... One time, I was sitting in the car (1995 VW GTI VR6) with one forearm resting on the door's armrest. When the "rocker panel" water jets went by, I felt the door getting pushed in against its rubber seal! The high pressure jets aside, it wouldn't take too many grains of grit in the water to sandblast the car's paint off.

True, grit is just as much if not more of a concern with felt curtains of "touchful" car washes, but in the 20 years since, I've not an issue. I suppose one has to pick a poison.

Additionally, I've heard (but have not yet done the research to confirm) that touchless car washes use more toxic/corrosive solutions because they need to make up for the lack of scrubbing action.

 

[csriram45]

After seeing how thin the paint is on the LEAF I think I am going to stick it on DIY car washes. I was bummed to see so few chips on the car even after taking extreme care. one of them had gone all the way through....

Do you drive on I 880 a lot? I commute on it and I have noticed a few pebble dings and missing paint after only 2 months. I'll have to look at my wife's Altima Hybrid closely to see if there is something similar. We have taken it up to the City a lot.

I got a scratch in the clear coat a couple weeks ago and, luckily, I was able to rub it out with NuFinish scratch remover. The area that I treated was incredibly smooth and "soft" afterwards. So, I decided it was time to wax the car (after 60 days) and it came out great. Side benefit is that dirt doesn't cling to it now.

Oh, yeah, I've done nothing but hand wash it so far. It'll probably be a year before I take it to the car wash (standard practice for any new car in our family).

Not 880 but 680 daily from South bay to Pleasanton and back and I am sure the drive is not different. I am just bummed because my 10 year old car before the Leaf did not seem to pick up scratches so fast. Anyways...I plan to touch up and then wax it as well... Would love to put on "Rejex" or "Zaino" but that would be a lot of effort and I never seem to have the time..

 

[DarkStar]

Since I only use touchless car washes [...]

Here's something for you to consider:

I used to use touchless car washes exclusively until... One time, I was sitting in the car (1995 VW GTI VR6) with one forearm resting on the door's armrest. When the "rocker panel" water jets went by, I felt the door getting pushed in against its rubber seal! The high pressure jets aside, it wouldn't take too many grains of grit in the water to sandblast the car's paint off.

True, grit is just as much if not more of a concern with felt curtains of "touchful" car washes, but in the 20 years since, I've not an issue. I suppose one has to pick a poison.

Additionally, I've heard (but have not yet done the research to confirm) that touchless car washes use more toxic/corrosive solutions because they need to make up for the lack of scrubbing action.

Please, do the research. Car wash manufacturers take a lot of care to make sure they don't damage the vehicles with the jets or the cleaning solutions.

 

[SanDust]

Interesting thread. I've never thought about the car wash so I have no idea how they work (or don't). I just leave the keys in the car, tell them what level of wash I want, and pick it up after they've done the detailing. Obviously I'm going to have to pay more attention.

The manual says to avoid brushless car washes. Any other tips?

 

[aqn]

The manual says to avoid brushless car washes. Any other tips?

Good find! The owner's manual says, on page 7-2:
"Do not use car washes that use acid
in the detergent. Some car washes,
especially brushless ones, use some
acid for cleaning. The acid may react
with some plastic vehicle components,
causing them to crack."
It sounds a bit like a CYA statement, but there could be some truth to it.

I'd say there are no "safe" car washes. There is always some risks of damage, even when washing by hand. I am the most comfortable with touchful car washes with cloth curtains, based on my own experience. YMMV.

 

[dlich18]

So, I took the plunge at a full service car wash today. When I left the car with the ticket writer, I asked him if he knew how to place it in neutral. He said "why don't you show me". So I did. He and the "jockey" who drove it to the line and the "jockey" who drove it off the line all took care as I stood by to help if needed. They were all excited about the new car (I don't think they had washed one before).

My conclusion - at this point, I would stand close by in case help if needed, but they seem to be able to figure it out.

And it looks so nice!

 

[CJF]

Can someone help me out here please.... the statement was made in this thread that according to the manual the antenna should be removed before the car is placed in a car wash.... I don't see that statement in the owners manual. If it is in a manual, which manual and on what page?

Thanks!

 

[rawhog]

.

 

[dznit]

What brand / type of car soap & wax do you recommend for Leaf?

 

[shay]

What brand / type of car soap & wax do you recommend for Leaf?

I do not think there is a recommendation per se. I used Meguiars Deep Crystal Car Wash and Meguiars NXT Generation car wax.