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How do you all keep your cars clean

93 replies

coffeegirl73 · 06/04/2025 18:16

All the car washes round be me seem to have closed down? I cannot find one. I’ve been washing it occasionally with a sponge but it takes me ages plus I can’t reach the roof. And then to do all the windows as well and then the inside… how does everyone else manage now all the car washes seem to be gone!

OP posts:
LauraNorda · 06/04/2025 18:17

I don't. I hate washing cars.

taxguru · 06/04/2025 18:18

Don't you have any garages around you that have DIY car washes? That's what I use. All our garages have them except for Asda's.

But yes, the hand car washes where a handful of people do it for you have indeed disappeared - probably the tax/immigration people have finally got onto them as there were strong suspicions of money laundering and modern slavery.

SirChenjins · 06/04/2025 18:19

I wait till it rains.

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coffeegirl73 · 06/04/2025 18:19

I’ve never used one I don’t know how to!! I must go and see how you do it

OP posts:
PinkSparklyPussyCat · 06/04/2025 18:20

I don't. My last car had 2 washes in 18 months, one when it was serviced and the other when I had an accident and it was repaired. I know I need to clean my car but I just can't be bothered!

DappledThings · 06/04/2025 18:21

I don't either. I'm not bothered by it. I wipe the numberplate with a bit of rag once in a while to keep it legal.

Motherknowsrest · 06/04/2025 18:23

I don't have a driveway and can't park near my house so it goes through the drive though car wash at the supermarket about three times a year.
The fire station sometimes does a car wash too.

I don't use the hand ones as it seems to be an incredibly dodgy grey area of staff exploitation and tax avoidance.

coffeegirl73 · 06/04/2025 18:25

all the drive thru ones seem to have disappeared round by me I literally cannot find one anywhere!

OP posts:
Rubybetsie · 06/04/2025 18:27

I wash mine every week by hand, including the inside. I want my car to look nice as it cost a lot of money (to me)..doesn't take long as it's cleaned so frequently.

Gazelda · 06/04/2025 18:28

Do any of the petrol stations near you have a do it yourself pressure wash? Our tescos does - a hand held jet wash that wets, soaps with a soft brush, rinses then puts on some sort of light wax. It’s got a long pole so I can reach the roof ok. Just remember to wear suitable shoes because they can get wet!

CaramelGhost · 06/04/2025 18:28

We just chuck a couple of quid in the jet washer now and again.

Give it clean with a hose etc once a year. I can't reach the roof so OH does that

Decapitatedsausage · 06/04/2025 18:31

We use the VIP parking option when we go on holiday and leave the car at the airport - they wash it and hoover it then. I do it sod all the rest of the year 😂

TaupeMember · 06/04/2025 18:32

Got a really good one (still one of many near us) and a few blokes do the inside amd outside for £20 every 6 or 7 weeks.

I love it when it's all clean

PrettayGood · 06/04/2025 18:33

I’ve never washed a car. I take it to a car wash place where in 10 minutes, it’s spotless inside and out. £30 well spent. There are loads to choose from around here.

Sortalike · 06/04/2025 18:40

I go all bougie and get it washed at a very posh garden centre once a month. Meet up with a friend, have a coffee, admire plants I will not be able to keep alive, and hey presto pretty sparkly car.

Several hand carwashes around me have shut down - I believe they were raided by immigration, according to local press.

Middleagedstriker · 06/04/2025 18:41

We wash ours every 6 months of so. Takes half an hour

notacooldad · 06/04/2025 18:44

I'm surprised there are no car washes near you. Most of our garages have a drive through car wash and there are loads of hand wash places where about 4 people clean your car. It costs between £7 and £10 to go to them. I usually go about twice a month th. Dh goes everywhere.

Octavia64 · 06/04/2025 18:45

This is England. Most people either don’t or get a local teen to do it for a fiver.

Whu · 06/04/2025 18:46

I don’t bother more than a couple of times a year. It’s an old car and I’d rather not spend money and time on car washing - it rains often enough! If I had a nice new car I’d be a bit more bothered.

feelingalittlehorse · 06/04/2025 18:47

With rain and optimism.

Nannyfannybanny · 06/04/2025 18:47

Good God. White SUV and we live near the coast! It gets washed weekly,DH did it today.. the bird poo would ruin it.. inside vacuumed and valeted every couple of months. Dog crates in the back, washed every few weeks,plus their bedding.

DappledThings · 06/04/2025 18:49

Nannyfannybanny · 06/04/2025 18:47

Good God. White SUV and we live near the coast! It gets washed weekly,DH did it today.. the bird poo would ruin it.. inside vacuumed and valeted every couple of months. Dog crates in the back, washed every few weeks,plus their bedding.

Also have a white SUV and live by the coast. No sign of bird poo ruining anything as yet. Dog blanket in the crate washed about 3 times a year when I remember. The crate itself never so far.

Country lane mud has it filthy as soon as you've taken it out once so I can't see the point.

BobbinThreadbare123 · 06/04/2025 18:53

I'm lucky to have a driveway with an outside tap, and I treated myself to a small jet washer. I run it for max 10 mins because it's obnoxious (I slightly despise myself while using it) but it blasts all the bird poo and country lane muck off! Prior to the jet wash I do 2 washing up bowls of hot water with car shampoo in.

DrCoconut · 06/04/2025 19:04

There are loads of car washes here but the DC do it for the fun of getting wet through and throwing water at each other.

CarolinaWren · 06/04/2025 19:13

I'm in the US so my options are probably different. I just wash my car in my own driveway on an extremely infrequent basis. In the area where I currently live, all of the car washes seem to have switched to a "membership" plan, were you pay a small fortune every month for access to their do-it-yourself car wash.