Dodge SRT Viper Forums : ViperAlley banner
1 - 20 of 47 Posts

· Registered
Joined
·
164 Posts
Discussion Starter · #1 ·
In case you missed this post on the morgue, here's an excerpt the my buddy ChrisGTS wrote after we both used it:

Those of you who watch Speedvision will probably have seen advertisements for the new "Mr. Clean Autodry" car washing system. Basically, it is a system which uses allegedly "special" detergent, plus a spray nozzle with a water filter. The concept is that, by removing minerals from the rinse water, you can let the car air-dry and no water spots will form. I was really interested in this because I feel that a substantial part of the scratch/swirl mark damage that occurs comes from drying, either with a water blade or a more conventional method. So, my friend Achilles99 and I each ordered one of these and tried it for the first time yesterday.
First, the great thing is that the system actually does work. We washed my Viper and his BMW and let both air dry -- I can't find a single water spot on my car. Excellent!
Second, we suspect there is some sort of coating or other kind of residue from the soap. My car is unbelievably shiny -- so much so that there has got to be some kind of coating or something left on the car. I don't know whether this is harmful to the car at all, but it looks really nice.
Third, we noticed that our wash mitts got EXTREMELY dirty washing both cars -- more than I have ever seen. In addition, it was impossible to fully clean them in between washing sections of the car. This leads us to believe that the soap is doing something to cause the dirt to stain the wash mitts or otherwise making the dirt stick to the mitt. This causes us some concern, as it may promote scratch/swirl marks to wash the car with a dirty mitt.
Finally, I don't think the time savings is that great. Sure, you don't have to dry the car, but you DO have to meticulously spray it with deionized water. The filter does not flow very rapidly, so you have to be quite patient rinsing the car. It doesn't take more time than hand-drying, but doesn't save that much time, either.
The bottom line is that I plan to continue using it for further evalulation, but I really like it. It is supposed to be in stores starting this spring; meantime, you can order it online.

Excerpt from my post on the morgue:
The system definitely performed better than expected. The mitts being dirtier than normal is of concern... especially in light of the fact that the soap that you spray on isn't extremely lathery. However, I think that constantly rinsing the mitts help.

Although the time savings isn't tremendous, I'd have to say that if the system allows me to skip drying with a shammy and waterblade, it's a success. I really do think that most of my swirl marks come from hand drying my car...
 

· Registered
Joined
·
164 Posts
Discussion Starter · #6 ·
I called a sales rep... they assured me that what was written in the manual was correct in that this product does not strip wax.

Since I never drive the Viper in the rain, I'll let you know if the BMW wax has stripped off during the next rainstorm... if it beads up, I'm assuming that either the wax (Zaino) is still there, or that the soap has stripped my wax and then added a layer of wax to it /images/graemlins/smiles
 

· Registered
Joined
·
164 Posts
Discussion Starter · #8 ·
Sgt. Snatch said:
uhhhhhh, I'll pass :leaving:
How come? Do you think something is wrong with this system? Let me know your thoughts... if there is something that you think is legitimately bad about this system, I will definitely reconsider using it. The beauty of a second opinion!
 

· Registered
Joined
·
120 Posts
Hey all ordered 2 to save on shipping, decided to try it on the wife's car first. Did 2 wash/rinse cycles as the car was quite dirty. It dried without spots as advertised, but the paint felt like crap. Normally car is smooth as glass once cleaned, now it felt like sandpaper. I am returning and will not try on the viper.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
1 Posts
Hi all. A couple of weeks ago I went to Target, and to my surprise they had a big display on the shelf. They were selling them for $19.99, plus they had the soap and filter refills there. Looks like they shipped them out early.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
164 Posts
Discussion Starter · #13 ·
I didn't have the "gritty" feeling on my paint after washing like you did. Are you sure the grit wasn't there before? My friend washed his car, and he didn't have a problem, either.

As for the appearance of dirt on the mitt... I think it is more of a "stain." I tried to wash the mitt, and it still isn't white. From now on, my friend and I are probably going to use a bucket to dunk the mitt in between sections.

I still think that most of the scratching comes from the drying process. If you really think the soap is leaving grit, why don't you just wash it the normal way with your own soap, and then use the autodry as a final step to dry your car?
 

· Premium Member
Joined
·
10,500 Posts
I'd rather dry my the old fashion way, by hand. :nod:
 

· Registered
Joined
·
164 Posts
Discussion Starter · #15 ·
AUSTIN said:
I'd rather dry my the old fashion way, by hand. :nod:
Why? Drying by hand creates swirl marks... I've tried everything. Waterblade, several types of chamois, cotton towels, etc. They all (predictably) create swirl marks... the autodry is "touchless" drying /images/graemlins/smiles
 

· Premium Member
Joined
·
10,500 Posts
Achilles99 said:
AUSTIN said:
I'd rather dry my the old fashion way, by hand. :nod:
Why? Drying by hand creates swirl marks... I've tried everything. Waterblade, several types of chamois, cotton towels, etc. They all (predictably) create swirl marks... the autodry is "touchless" drying /images/graemlins/smiles


Swirlmarks are even made by shamee's(sp)?
 

· Registered
Joined
·
164 Posts
Discussion Starter · #17 ·
AUSTIN said:
Achilles99 said:
AUSTIN said:
I'd rather dry my the old fashion way, by hand. :nod:
Why? Drying by hand creates swirl marks... I've tried everything. Waterblade, several types of chamois, cotton towels, etc. They all (predictably) create swirl marks... the autodry is "touchless" drying /images/graemlins/smiles


Swirlmarks are even made by shamee's(sp)?
Unfortunately, yes. I've bought really freakin' expensive ones, and they STILL leave swirls. Essentially, anything that touches your paint can create swirlmarks. The wash mitt probably has the least tendency to do so, because there is a layer of soap that prevents the mitt from rubbing too hard. The drying stage is a different story... no matter how soft the material is.

That's why this autodry system has a lot of potential, IMHO. It eliminates the step that creates the most swirlmarks. I don't think it's a huge time savings, as mentioned above, but if I can avoid as many swirlmarks as possible, it's worth it!
 

· Registered
Joined
·
120 Posts
I used the autodry soap with my mitt twice and still had the gritty feeling, I rewashed my car the old fashioned way and dried with towels and the car felt like glass again. I believe that without sufficient volume of soap and water that the car is not getting truly getting cleaned, like it is with a bucket of soapy water.
 

· Registered
Joined
·
164 Posts
Discussion Starter · #19 ·
01BEE said:
I used the autodry soap with my mitt twice and still had the gritty feeling, I rewashed my car the old fashioned way and dried with towels and the car felt like glass again. I believe that without sufficient volume of soap and water that the car is not getting truly getting cleaned, like it is with a bucket of soapy water.
Interesting... when you rewashed the old fashioned way, did you use the autodry soap? I might try using the autodry soap in the bucket if I have an extremely dirty car.

Maybe I've had better luck than you using the autodry soap directly from the dispenser because my cars don't get as dirty down here?

Anyhow, I'm determined to make this work, or at least use the deionized water to rinse off and air dry without water spots!
 

· Registered
Joined
·
120 Posts
I used my regular soap when I rewashed the car, the car was quite dirty before it was washed, but I would have thought that with 2 wash/rinse cycles it would be perfectly clean. The Viper never gets as dirty as the wife's car, but I was afraid to even try it on my car after the less than satisfactory results on my wife's car. I think that you have to use their soap to get the spot-free rinse, at least that is what their literature says. I gave up trying, only takes my 1/2 an hour to do my car the old fashioned way, so how much time was I really going to save.
 
1 - 20 of 47 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top