How do you clean your Taycan

[designbymys]

Hi guys, I have recently been looking at detailing and learning how to wash my car prior before my Taycan purchase I would just get this done down the local car wash. However on my Taycan I decided to go get a Ceramic Coating and upon research I realised I would need to maintain this in order to protect the car paintwork. I had been quoted by some companies who had a strict policy of you have to commit to a detailed clean every 2 weeks and each clean would cost around £50 so a total of £100 a month.

I felt the price didn't really justify me having the car washed every 2 weeks as I primarily work from home so I would only need to wash the car probably one a month or once every 6 weeks. This is when I started watching detailing videos, looking at different products and reviews. I eventually took the plunge and invested in some kit.

1) Karcher K4
2) Flexi Pipe from eBay - 20m
3) AutoGlym - Foam Canon
4) Drying Towel from GTechniq
5) Auto Glym - Polar Wash Collection
6) 2 Buckets
7) Upgraded Pressure Washer Gun

I wanted to create this thread to perhaps maybe do a small video when I am washing my car or even just share my own tips and tricks that I have learnt since I started washing my own car (I am still a rookie but learning with every wash). Let me know if anyone would be interested and I would also love to see how you guys maintain your cars and what advice you would give or what you have learnt.

Sponsored

 

[daveb3473]

I have exactly your setup. My ct is ceramic coated and front PPF. I intend to have the ceramic refreshed each year at about 400 pounds.

my routine is..

water pressure wash
Iron off wheel spray
Spray snow foam
water pressure wash
Spray snow foam and wash mit with two clean water buckets
Water pressure wash
Dry with gtechniq towel
Polish glass
Mcquiers spray on wax
Wheel shine

 

[WuffvonTrips]

I wanted to create this thread to perhaps maybe do a small video when I am washing my car or even just share my own tips and tricks that I have learnt since I started washing my own car (I am still a rookie but learning with every wash). Let me know if anyone would be interested and I would also love to see how you guys maintain your cars and what advice you would give or what you have learnt.

Sounds like you're taking a sensible approach. Having gone for PPF and ceramic coat, I'm a simple 2 bucket person, every 4-6 weeks or sooner if it needs it, so you won't learn anything from me . But I'm subscribing to this thread in the hope that my minimalist routine can be improved without additional effort (though I'll never bring myself to use the "d....ling" word!)

 

[designbymys]

Sounds like you're taking a sensible approach. Having gone for PPF and ceramic coat, I'm a simple 2 bucket person, every 4-6 weeks or sooner if it needs it, so you won't learn anything from me . But I'm subscribing to this thread in the hope that my minimalist routine can be improved without additional effort (though I'll never bring myself to use the "d....ling" word!)

Great - I am happy to do a step by step!

 

[designbymys]

I have exactly your setup. My ct is ceramic coated and front PPF. I intend to have the ceramic refreshed each year at about 400 pounds.

my routine is..

water pressure wash
Iron off wheel spray
Spray snow foam
water pressure wash
Spray snow foam and wash mit with two clean water buckets
Water pressure wash
Dry with gtechniq towel
Polish glass
Mcquiers spray on wax
Wheel shine

I havent got my Taycan PPF but I have been recommended by a couple of people, especially to get the front bit done.

Thats literally my routine - the only thing I also do is at the Polar Seal which acts like a ceramic sealant which just tops up the ceramic coating. The GTechniq towel is awesome. Any particular products you would definitely recommend. For the interior I use Auto Glym Leather cleaner as well as interior brushes.

 

[daveb3473]

I havent got my Taycan PPF but I have been recommended by a couple of people, especially to get the front bit done.

Thats literally my routine - the only thing I also do is at the Polar Seal which acts like a ceramic sealant which just tops up the ceramic coating. The GTechniq towel is awesome. Any particular products you would definitely recommend. For the interior I use Auto Glym Leather cleaner as well as interior brushes.

Interior is:

- Vacuum with hand held dyson
- Add stripes to mats with brush ! (how sad I know)
- Leather cleaner (use Tesco as it works great) with microfibre
- Glass cleaner for all screens and also use it on plastics

 

[RSouthern]

I just washed my Taycan this weekend (for the first time), but I'm not new to washing delicate paint and/or expensive cars. From my experience. Assuming you're generally careful with your wash process, your goal is to really avoid cumulative damage, like swirls and small scratches that dull the finish over time and lead to the need to polish, which then thins the clear coat and reduces the protection of the color coat.

These interactions can happen whenever you touch the paint, so your goal is to minimize touching the paint with things that can cause scratches. The will mostly be 2 actions, the washing and the drying processes. So here's what I do:

1) use a 2 bucket wash process (rinse and soap in separate buckets - do a google search) - with a mesh at the bottom of the bucket to keep the mitt from touching any sediment that collects in each bucket. Use plenty of good quality car wash soap in the water. Using a foam gun is fine but not necessary in my opinion and if you're not using it right can cause the soap to dry on the paint causing more rubbing to remove I think the real risk comes when using a wash mitt to rub the paint. You want to wet the car first, then use the soap then rinse. The Taycan is small enough you can do each step on the entire care, but you may need to do sections if you wash other cars or it's a hot day. Work top to bottom and even consider using a separate mitt for the top and upper surfaces and a different one for the lower areas around the wheels in case you get some dirt embedded in the mitt. Use a quality mitt that is soft (microfiber works well). Never press hard! The weight of the wet mitt should be enough for general washing and make sure you don't drop the mitt on the ground, have a spare mitt if you're clumsy! Keep the car wet when washing (don't wash in the midday sun or if it's hot out since the water can evaporate quickly leaving dry paint and water spots!). Having a good nozzle on your hose makes it quick and easy to _mist_ the car to keep water spots at bay. Also, if you have hard water, you might look at a portable de-ionizer. Something to attach to your hose for the _final rinse_ that makes soft water to further reduce the possibility of water spots happening as you dry the car.

2) drying is where I think most of the paint damaging mistakes happen. Use a decent quality microfiber drying towel (don't drop on the ground!!), but the secret I've found is to remove most of the water without touching the paint at all using a small battery powered leaf blower with a special head: Here's what I use: https://www.worx.com/20v-air-cordless-leaf-blower-wg545-4.html but there are plenty of others available. The broad head with the rubber lip in the picture is the thing that allows you to remove most of the water without any contact with the paint, then your microfiber towel is there to just do some touch-ups where the water didn't blow off well. When I do use the towel on the paint, I spray the towel with distilled water first to make sure the towel is a little bit damp instead of dry. I also spray the distilled water on the panel before wiping to make sure there is some lubrication between the towel and the paint (this seems counterintuitive since you're trying to dry the car and are spraying water on it first - but if you use the leaf blower to remove the water first, and you still have wax or ceramic coat on the paint, the blower will dry the panel pretty well)

There are plenty of specialty products out there to spend your money on. I don't think most of them make much difference. I think the technique is the thing that matters, assuming you're using decent soap, mitts, towels etc. I'm sure others will chime in and add to this list. Also do some google searches, but remember, you don't need expensive products to keep your Taycan looking new. Just stay on top of the cleaning so you don't have a lot of build up and never wipe the paint if it's dry and dusty!

 

[RSouthern]

Interior is:

- Vacuum with hand held dyson
- Add stripes to mats with brush ! (how sad I know)
- Glass cleaner for all screens and also use it on plastics

Be careful with glass cleaner on plastics! I've see that ammonia based cleaners can damage certain types of plastics, causing fading, discoloration and crazing (fogging).

Also, for the stripes in the carpet, use a narrow head on a vacuum with a hose and get your carpets clean and get the stripes in 1 pass (saves time!). I have a garage vac, which is basically a shop vac that's hung on the wall and has a long hose. Use an attachment like a brush head on the hose when doing the floor mats, seats and trunk (boot) and you can't avoid the stripes.

 

[Trogdors_Peasant]

Agree with all of the above except for towel drying. Like the poster above with the leaf blower idea, I got tired of even the most carefully curated drying towels causing micro-scratches, so a couple of years ago I switched to blower drying. Yes, you can use leaf blowers, but I personally prefer this for the flexible extending hose from a fixed blower. It also heats the air which makes blower drying even faster:

https://ibigboi.com/collections/blowrs

I use the Mini+ and it works great for every possible situation. I only have to move the blower unit 2-3 times during the drying process.

 

[RSouthern]

one final thought, I'm seeing several mentions of power washers. I think these are ok in general, but it really isn't needed to wash your car, especially the Taycan. A good spray nozzle on a regular garden hose is all you really need. And using a power washer can cause damage if you're not extremely careful. The high pressure water can lift up paint if you have rock chips, can loosen the edges of PPF (highly recommend getting PPF!!), can damage trim and rubber strips and can even spray water inside, past the water seal in the windows and doors. If you have one, then use caution. If you don't have one, think about if you really need one. You have to hook it up, drain it when done (avoids internal rust issues) have an electric plug available (don't use a gas/petrol powered one - way too strong!) and you will probably still want to use the hose for misting while washing and a de-ionized final rinse. I'm sure others will disagree and there are lots of videos on Youtube showing professionals using a power washer to clean their clients cars. But they are professionals and time is critical to them and they probably use the power washer 2-3 times a day so they know how to use it safely. All I'm saying is, I have one and seldom use it to wash our cars.

 

[MBAZ]

I have very hard water where I live, so I purchased a 2-stage deionizer system. I get no water spots.
Highly recommended for final rinse. No other chemicals are needed.
Agree with PPF, must have!

 

[JWreck]

Go watch Larry at AMMO NYC. Then buy his products, and get equipment from Obsessed Garage.

 

[The Riddler]

I have exactly your setup. My ct is ceramic coated and front PPF. I intend to have the ceramic refreshed each year at about 400 pounds.

my routine is..

water pressure wash
Iron off wheel spray
Spray snow foam
water pressure wash
Spray snow foam and wash mit with two clean water buckets
Water pressure wash
Dry with gtechniq towel
Polish glass
Mcquiers spray on wax
Wheel shine

Literally exactly this, albeit with Auto Finesse products which i can only report good experience (I think they are excellent)

 

[Archimedes]

Pressure washer, foam cannon with a good soap, clean water buckets to rinse out wash mitts, blow the car dry (don’t towel dry it), then I use Bead Maker Pro and wipe/buff dry with Cobra Woobie blue towels (the best IMO). That’s been my approach with all my cars and I don’t get any swirls.

 

[Fall7St8nd]

Nice thread and great to learn how others take care of their car. +1 to Obsessed Garage. For me... pressure washer, two-bucket wash method with microfiber mitts and brushes, leaf blower, and microfiber towels for drying small spaces and interior cleaning. I'm currently using Koch Chemie GSF soap for car, Brake Buster for wheels (don't need often with PSCB's), Bead Maker after drying (on occasion for maintenance purposes), Adam's Graphene spray for tires, P&S Interior cleaner, and Invisible Glass. The car has PPF and ceramic... very easy to wash... slippery and glossy when done.

Sponsored