Car Wash
 

Reading the manual, I found something astounding. The manual states "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" :eek:. I have always washed my cars (new and old) at automatic touchless car washes and have never had any problems. Does MB use special paints that other car manufacturers don't? What is the collective wisdom of the forum members who have owned MB cars for a while on this issue?

I've read this before. I guess Mercedes is suggesting you buy "Mercedes Approved" car soap and wash it in your driveway. Since I haven't washed my own car in years, I consider the warning unacceptable.

I'd agree they want to encourage you to buy their soap.......I even use Mercedes Benz approved towels to dry my car LOL.........joke


I never use the auto-washes.....I like to bond with my car by rubbing it head to toe with hot soapy water:naughty::naughty:

I'm with you - I don't use auto-washes either. Why pay some kid $15 to scratch your car????

I don't use automated car washes as they will either install swirls or damage plastics with the chemicals (depending on whether they are brush or touchless type). Another vote here for washing at home or if you don't want to do that than find a detailer who will do a maintenance plan for you.

I've been using Mr Car Wash for years now and have NEVER had any scratches, swirls, etc. They do a fabulous job for exterior cleaning along with vacuuming and cleaning the inside of my car. I get unlimited washes and vacuums for about $42 per month with tax. If there is a Mr Car Wash in Fargo, I would strongly recommend it for the OP. In addition to a high powered air blower after the wash cycle, humans wipe it clean as well. This is the ONLY car wash I trust. Unfortunately, Mr Car is only available in a few states so when I am away on a long trip, I just use the Griots cleansing products and clean the car myself.

Note they said touch less car washes . The soaps used by touch less washes are stronger to compensate for the lack of brushes. These soaps also rarely get fully rinsed as these washes use little water and soap residue often remains on the paint

I used touchless washes on my old Sclass and jaguar and ruined both clear coats after 5-6 years . My cars where I didn't use touch less washes are still ok. With a brand new w222 you can probably easily go 8-10 years using tiouchless washes as my cars were used when I bought them , but there is a reason for the warning . If you plan to keep your w222 for many years I would avoid them just as the manual says

If you are the type to trade in your car every 1-5 years you can ignore the warning and let the next owner worry about paint issues down the road

So that there is no misunderstanding, Mr Car Wash is NOT touch-less.

I used to be a fanatic about my cars, but when I realized that I was trading them in every two or three years and that my fanaticism was mostly benefiting the dealer or the next owner, I gave up. I take my car to the Auto Spa in Newport Beach, CA. For $69.95 a month, I can take it there as many times as I want. They vacuum the interior, then run it through a rack, but humans with soapy mitts wash the car & wheels and then it is automatically rinsed and air blown. At the end, a guy wipes it down, does the windows, etc. After I drive it away, I stop for gas a few blocks away and dry off the water droplets once more and I'm good. When I had my black 2013 S550, I went there two or three times a week. When my new Palladium Silver S550 shows up, I'll probably go there once a week. They never put swirls in my black car. I have seen brand new Rolls, Bentleys and even a new Bugatti Veyron being washed there, so I am in good company. I do have a Mars Red 2004 SL500 that I bought new, with only 22,000 miles on it and I even let the Auto Spa wash that one, maybe once a month. Car washes are fine, you just need to find a good one, which can be difficult.

I totally agree with you Streamliner. You just need to find the right one. It's evident that you and I have found the right one.