I agree. I handwashed mine before it had seen 200 miles.

 

Mine made it to over 200 miles before th first wash, but only because i purchased mine on the other side of the state of pa and had to drive it home the next day, but with less than 400 miles on mine i spend about 6 hours washing and cleaning mine and still felt like i did nothing. When you really get into it time really flies.

 

One additional step I find necessary when washing my black HHR is to take it for a short ride after calling the job done. The air blows all of the trapped water that could not be reached with a towel out onto the body surfaces. If it is left there, the result is water spots. I go after the remaining little rivulets of H2O with a microfiber towel.

Even with all that - I never seem to get it all.

 

I would use a leaf blower. Driving to blow all that out then doing a whipedown especially on black will cause marring.

 

a good thing to do when drying is get some instant detailer and spray it all over your car while its still wet, then dry it, it helps with drying easier and less streaks.

 

What do u clean or how do u care for the black rubber around the windows?
Thanks Tommy L.......... Love my HHR................ &&&&&&& are the under lights legal in Fl????

 

Bump!

 

I use the "do it yourself" car wash stalls. Did this on my Suburban & it looked like new 5 years later. Have done the same on the Ferrari & my $60k Jap crap car. Look like new. No need to waste time petting your car, or burn money on snake oils.

 

Couple of points:

1 - Johnson Baby Shampoo. It is mild. 1/2 capful to 5 gallon bucket with about 3+gallons of water and suds is good for general wash. 1 full capfull if you want to remove the wax. Been using this for 20+ years.

2 - Spray detailer immediately after rinse.

3 - I use a chamois to dry. Old school I guess. I buy a new one every couple of years. With the spray detailer on, it leaves a nice shine.

4 - Always wash the tires first with low, low preassure and an old scrub brush. Rinse with low pressure. You don't want to blow chunks on the finish of the car.

5 - Buy a cheap "REAL HORSE HAIR" 3 inch paint brush from Home depot, cut the bristles down a little so it is a little stiff and use it to brush the interior surface grooves. Gets the junk out.

6 - If you gotta groom your tires, buy the stuff that goes on with an applicator. Do the tires before you wash the car (and after you washed the tires) so if you get any on the car, you can wash it off.

7 - For cleaning the inside of the windows get one of those micro-fiber window washing things with the handle. It is SOOO much easier doing the windshield.

8 - For cleaning wheels one word - POWERBALL!

9 - For road tar, bugs, sap, mystery glop etc use 3M Prepsolvent 70. It is great for removing the glue residue from those peksy Autodealer stickers as well as the stuff listed. You'll need to wash and wax after use. Also, peanut butter (not chunky) works well for removing bugs, tar etc. Put some over the afflicted area and let it set for about 1/2 hour and wash.

 

If it's not in too bad of shape, you can use furniture polish, like Pledge (it works great on your plastic interior, also). If it's getting a little gnarly looking, Mother's makes a product called "Back to Black" which works great, but a little bit goes a long way...