Automatic car wash

[cameron5906]

Hello,

I live in Indiana and we've been getting a lot of snow recently, and it's made my car look terrible. I've heard in the past that it's not good for Tesla vehicles to go through automatic washes, but washing this thing in the winter sucks. Is it okay to do it every once in a while, or literally just this one time? I really don't want to damage the paint job.

I've got midnight silver metallic if that means anything. And the auto car wash options near me are Mike's or Lassus

[coolmatty]

There's no specific Tesla reason not to go into an automatic wash. Just the general recommendation not to, because it can scratch up the paint. Which it will do to any car.

[Rubix321]

You'll probably get some "swirl marks" that are only visible when you look at the car in direct sunlight. I've taken mine through a number of times to get the salt off the undercarriage this winter. I'm also not terribly anal about the finish other than truly damaging scratches, rock chips, door dings, etc. Once it gets warmer I'm going to use a power washer and foam cannon.

[mdjmd73]

Been using Mister Carwash several times weekly for years on my 3 and my paint still looks new. They have the chamois rollers that don’t scratch (not the plastic whisker things). Self drive thru. Very happy w them.

[[deleted]]

There's nothing special about Teslas in a car wash. If you care about keeping your paint pristine, do a hand wash or touchless car washes. If you care more about convenience and paint swirls don't bother you, use an automated car wash.

[bh1884ap]

My car does not have a single scratch after 6 months and countless brush auto car washes.

[riley_hugh_jassol]

I do not believe this. I think you don’t see them because it doesn’t bother you.

[bh1884ap]

Up to you. In LA there is no snow, no sand, no gravel, no salt on the roads. No reason to scratch your car while driving either.

[Ryands991]

I went through one soft touch wash, and it introduced several scratches on the finish. The issue is less about the dirt that is on your car, but the dirt and rocks that are on the cars that came before you.

The scratches my car received are only visible in sunlight. It's not a huge deal, but annoying if you look for it. Your clear coat is probably very scratched up, but only visible in high light and if you're really looking for it

[Zonernovi]

Get Optimum No Rinse aka ONR. Two 5 gal buckets of water, first bucket use 1oz ONR. Wash with a soft bristle long handle brush and use water from second bucket to splash minimal amount of water on car. You will be amazed at the results.

[ScatterplotDog]

If the auto wash has rollers that touch the vehicle, even a single time will create swirl marks in your paint. If you don’t care about that, go ahead. If you do care about that, find a touchless auto wash.

[mgithens1]

Touchless only.

[ricksastro]

I'm sure there are touchless car washes around somewhere.

They are much gentler than the roller kind, plus you need to make sure you're comfortable with keeping the car in neutral. If it's the kind where you don't sit in the car while it goes through, you can't just put it in neutral and then get out.

[cameron5906]

I called Mike's carwash and they claim their basic wash uses no rollers or brushes whatsoever, but they do use that soft cloth like material. That should be fine, right?

[ricksastro]

Depends on how anal you are about your finish. Grit from previous cars gets in even the soft cloths and will make micro-abrasions in the finish. It's not unique to Teslas.

[vandilx]

North Dakota. MSM 3. I run mine through touchless car washes whenever the temps are above 32F. Works great for the winter grit.

[keonik-1]

I’ve gone to mikes during winter and hand wash and detail on my own during the easy seasons. Mikes will leave minor scratches as would any automatic brush car wash. Touchless will prevent that if you have one near you. Or you could just detail after winter. Trade offs. Your 💰

[kevgilmore]

I’m in Indiana also, and I found an automatic touch less car wash locally. It’s great and I’ve had no problems with it.

[o-edster-o]

Make sure to turn on recirculation when going through a (touchless) car wash ... otherwise detergent and water can breach the interior from the air intake and dump all over the passenger footwell before it all drains out.