I'm in MA, returned from a trip to northern NH and my car was COVERED in salt and sand. It took me more than three hours to wash it because there are so many nooks and creases, etc. After I finished the C, I washed our 2008 Jetta and that took me about a 1/2 hour because everything is so flat and flush. I always hand wash my cars using two buckets as not to swirl the paint. I wonder if I should spray it with my power washer (on a low setting) before I hand wash. I feel so reluctant to do that though. What do you folks do in the winter locations?

 

I don't think the w204 is "hard" to wash, but it certainly isn't easy. The thing that I find to be the biggest pain to clean is the rear bumper. I have so much rear brake dust buildup after only a short 20 minute highway trip... It takes forever to get those tiny black specs completely off the car.

I don't see any problem with using a pressure washer to get grime off. Almost all car washes do that first. I use mine myself most of the time, especially during winter so I don't have to keep my hands in freezing cold water too much. I don't even put it on a low setting, just be sure not to blast the pressure washed directly into the side markers or side view mirror turn signals. They tend to let water seep in and can cause condensation. Besides that, I have had no issues and have been doing it many years. I guess if you wanted to be cautious you could avoid rock chips to prevent causing excessive chipping, or only use the pressure washer on grim buildup areas only (side skirts and behind wheels and front bumper & rear bumper.

 

I don't find it difficult to wash and use a drive-through wash in Winter.

 

I dont find it difficult, especially after washing our RX. Buy an SUV and then you wont be complaining

 

We had a brief thaw in Michigan yesterday, rainy, but high 40s. So, in the rain, I did a quick driveway wash on the C and E to get off salt/slush/grime residue. The E has size going against it, but the only parts of the C which always seem to need more attention are the undulating surfaces on the AMG style sill moldings and indentation on the top of the rear fascia just under the license plate pocket...seems to be a vacuum for a lot of dirt and grime!

Anyway, the cars and I came back in the garage dripping wet, and somehow they looked a lot cleaner than I felt!

 

I noticed the first time I did a hand wash on my C Class that it took longer to wash than my previous cars. I am used it it now.

 

I always pressure wash first - then hand. Far less chance of scratching. If you have Parktronic just take it a little easy on the sensors.

 

Buy one of these, a Gilmour Foamaster foam gun to pre-soak the car with car wash, then rinse and do your normal 2-bucket method. Detailers Domain is a forum sponsor and gives 10% off to MB World:

http://www.detailersdomain.com/gilmo...eriiquart.aspx

A picture of my car pre-soaking with the foam gun:

 

When I peered out at 7AM, the temp was 22 deg f but by 3PM it was up to a sweltering 39 deg so I donned my disposable plastic gloves, mixed up some Griot's car wash in a bucket of warm water, hosed all the loose dirt and sand off and set to work. After rinsing off the paint and running lots of water through the calipers to clear out the brake dust, I drove it about a mile to dry the brakes and blow some of the water out of the creases and as I drove into the garage to dry it off, the temp was down to 33 deg.

I had almost forgotten how good a clean car looks.

 

Thanks for all the feedback, this is very helpful! I think I will try to hit it with the pressure wash next time, avoid spraying all the danger spots mentioned, then use my two bucket regiment. I think I may also order the Foamaster gun, that looks awesome! I try really hard not to drive this car when the roads are crap, but sometimes can't avoid it. Here's some before/after pics.

Joe

 

Yup, these are the same exact trouble spots I have. The lower front grill is also a major PIA.

 

Unfortunately, this time of year is where car cleaning is a real chore.
However I tend to adopt a "prevention rather than cure" approach by making sure my C350 is prepped during the year....ie a major paint prep and clean using a simple approach..

Here's my 10 point Plan......

Winter Prep (Paint) -
1. Prep the car with a suitable snowfoam agent using a lance and let it soak for 8 - 10 mins
2. Rinse off with cold water from a hose
3. Use the 2 bucket cleaning process with a good car shampoo and microfibre mitt...(Poorboys Citrus Clean)
4. Rinse off with cold water from a hose
5. Dry off using a microfibre towel
6. Remove remaining paint contaminents with clay bar and fluid.
7. Towel dry
8. Cleanse the paint with a suitable cleanser
9. Apply 2 coats of Wax (I use Collinite 476S Super Doublecoat Auto Wax)
10. Polish off using thick cotton towel

Winter Prep (Wheels) -
As 1 - 7 but then apply a wheel wax (2 layers) to seal the laquer.
Apply a tyre gloss (Meguiar's Gold Class Endurance Tire Gel) to each wheel....allow to dry and then re-apply another coat.

Winter Prep (Glass inc lights) -
As 1 - 7 then apply a class cleaner (Carlack Glass Cleaner) to coat the glass and act as a rain/dirt repellant

Sounds like a lot of work (4 - 5hrs) but it pays off this time of year as all I need to do is Snowfoam / rinse with cold water and the dry off with a towel...less than 30 mins...!!!

Hope that helps

 

Holy Crap. When I saw the first two pics I was thinking not too bad...for a silver car. Didn't realize until the last pic that you have a black car!
Guess I shouldn't complain too much about the Atlanta heat in the summer since we can generally wash our cars year round.

 

The hood medallion on the C Sport is Chinese sourced and of terrible quality. I am now on my third hood badge, one at the dealership was also horribly flaked. I now take the W204 to a wash that does it by hand. Here are some pictures, the Ford emblem is 20 years old. Come on MB, your quality is crap.

 

Would I be correct in assuming that the "two bucket method" is matter of rinsing the mitt after each sweep of the car surface in a clear water bucket before picking up more suds from the soapy water bucket?

 

A bit of a different topic, but I just ordered a small one ($25) from JBSpeed which should fit into the depression in the hood. Hasn't arrived yet, but he prides himself on quality!

 

This is helpful! I actually thought I was nuts doing what I do but you really go the extra mile! I usually give my car a massive cleaning, clay bar and have it professionally machined in the fall. When I bring it home after having it machined, I will hand polish it with GLANTZ and top it off with a glaze and apply Mothers Cleaner wax to the wheel rims so the paint is totally free of any contaminates. This process makes it so much easier to remove all the winter dirt for at least 4 washes. In the spring I repeat the same process and keep it maintained during the summer months. I took note of your process and will try some of this going forward. It does make sense.

 

No kidding. The Northeast is complete hell on your car, it will look like a $500 POS after a snowstorm.

 

Correct. I keep a bucket of clean water that I clear my micro-fiber sponge before I dip it back in the soap water. I will change the rinse after cleaning each quarter... then I change the soap water 1/2 way through.

 

I owned 3 SAABs before I switched to my last 2 MBs, the emblems on those were awful! I had to replace them all the time.

 

Here's my post on my detailing regime
https://mbworld.org/forums/4157887-post15.html

As you already have a pressure washer, I'd suggest going with a Foam Cannon instead of just a Foam Gun. It's a pretty huge difference in the amount of suds you'll get. I'm using a Camspray Foam Cannon right now, but Autogeek.net has several that are pretty good as well.

Also, for those venturing into two bucket washing, I'd highly suggest getting a Grit Guard for each bucket. Basically a filter that sits at the bottom of your bucket that you can swipe your microfiber/sheepskin mitt or grout sponge or whatever your wash media is across and keeps the dirt released at the bottom of the bucket so not to recontaminate your media. Get the Meguiar's branded one at $8 a pop which is just a rebranded official Grit Guard they sourced out.

 

The guards I have seen have fairly large openings and I'm not sure I see how it traps the grit. What keeps the grit from circulating around and getting caught in your sponge again?

 

Once the grit falls below the level of the gaurd, you would have to do some really enthusiastic swirling to get it back up off the bottom. Most "grit" that is solid enough to damage the paint will be significanly heavier than water so it should stay down pretty well.
So it really isn't a filter, it is just a device to ensure your mitt stays above the grit.

 

OK, got it. Thanks.

 

It also serves as a "wash board" that I can scrape my wash pad against.

Also, beneath the grit guard grate, the "legs" serve to stop the water beneath the grates from swirling.