gl350

I just got my new GL350 last week. I am pretty happy with it so far.

But it seems to me that I cannot use touchless car wash for the new car. Here is what I found in the manual:

"Never clean your vehicle in a Touchless Automatic Car Wash as these use special cleaning agents. These cleaning agents can damage the paintwork or plastic parts."

I am wondering if anybody has any problems with the touchless car wash.

Thanks,

43221B

I had a battery drain the night after using a high pressure washer. My guess is that water got into somewhere it wasn't supposed to like a keyless door handle and caused a relay to stay on. Dealership never figured it out either. The other problem is that the detergents in the wash strip the oils out of the paint and leave it less protected with each wash. Most people don't care but I have a black GL and I've found that the only way to keep the paint nice is by hand washing it and having it polished once a year. Kind of a pain but I figure on any expensive vehicle that I plan to keep more than a couple of years I should protect the paint.

gl350

Thank for the input. Mine is black too. And I do care. I should stay away from touchless car wash. I guess I can use self served car wash in winter. I am in Canada.

JimBarnhart

I have obsidian black. I have to admit I go through car washes, both brushed and brushless. I can't decide which is the lessor of two evils. My finish is holding up acceptably to my lower standards.

43221B

Jim, I think the metallic paint is probably helping you out a bunch. With solid black, it just shows everything. If you hand wash it, a polishing can return the finish to a very close to new finish. If you run it through car washes (brush or soft cloth) even a thorough polishing will not get out the deeper scratches the brushes and soft cloths will leave in the paint. There are sealants that used car dealerships have applied to to paint that will mask the scratches temporarily but after a few washes, the sealant will wash off revealing a lot of swirls and scratches. I have a silver car that I take through car washes but I just can't do it to my black GL. Solid black is a whole different ball game if you want it to look good 2-3+ years down the road. I think I'm a glutton for punishment because I'm about to take possession of my second black GL next week.

Ntuck

I agree. I have never been one to hand wash my cars. I would take them into a nicer car wash that used brushes. I did it once with the GL and I have the plain black color and you could see all the swirls from the brushes etc. I was so irritated that I took it in, that now I just suck it up and do it myself. I kick myself that I did not get the obsidian black because I feel the metallic hides a lot more. You can see everything on the standard black.

fabbrisd1

1st thing - it's best with the newer nano-ceramic clear coats - to use a EZ/affordable hi-tech "sealant" - wipe-on/wipe-off type - every 6 months that helps fill-in the micro-textured surface of the nano clear coat - I recommend $20 Einzsett Glanzwax (BlueTop) from Amazon - enough for 4 applications - use on standard silver painted wheels and running boards too - objective is thin even coat one 4 sq ft area at a time - let dry to haze (3-4 min) then let "set/cure" for 30 min - wipe off.

2nd thing - without a sealant for the nano - or protection for silver painted wheels/running boards - hard water - soap or chemical residue - can either lead to nano-clearcoat "spotting" and/or stains on painted running-board/wheels.

JimBarnhart

I do use the Einzsett Glanzwax on my GL per Fab's recommendation and do like it.

blittle

I do the same..... great stuff!

mist68

Been using a Klasse sealant with great success on 2014 550. I put Souvergn over it.

Silversun262

hand wash, microfiber towels, and a compressor with air nozzle. no one else will wash my baby!

methos1969

I have obsidian black as well and I use touch less washes a couples time per week. The paint finish is just fine. I have venture shield up front and I use liquid glass as a top coat every couple months. My problem with the chemicals is with my aluminum side runners. They changed from shiny aluminum to a smoked white look after one pass through the wash. No matter what I do I cannot get that original look back.