Washing your Tacoma

Just for fun.

 

Do it myself. 2 bucket method or if it's too cold I do a waterless wash if the truck isn't too dirty. Tried a "no touch" drive thru wash on my last truck and always came away unsatisfied, spots all over that weren't clean at all. Some dirt just has to be wiped off. And after seeing what the typical drive through wash did to my wife's paint job I'll never even consider letting my Tacoma go into one of those. Most of the time I just do the exterior with some detailing and skip the interior. It gets done about 1 out of ever 4 washes.

 

Drive through washes since new.

 

Always wash myself. Touch less car washes don't work and the ones with the spinning things scratch your paint. Had a friend that got his truck messed up from one of those that spin and touch your vehicle. Didn't know that the truck that was in there in front of him had his 4" angle grinder sucked up out of the bed of his truck and the cord wrapped around the spinning thing. Beat the crap out of his truck when he went in there.

 

Depends on what the month is. I let it go to crap until Spring. During Spring I'll clean it nicely inside and out myself. Then during the wheeling months I let it accumulate dirt and scratches with maybe the occasional spray off at the do it yourself place if I'm gonna work on it (to avoid dirt getting on me while wrenching). But mostly I just clean it in spring. It's a truck and not a new one so I think it looks better caked in dirt and road grime with paint scratches poking through that coating.

 

Where's the "Just pressure wash it" option?

 

Well, that, kinda the same as the no=touch spray drive through...

 

Hand wash at home every Sunday, full inside detail along with it.

 

Hand wash it. I bought the Chemical Guys wash bucket with the grit screen that fits in the bottom of their bucket, a micro fiber was pad and their citrus car wash. You use only one ounce per five gallons "their bucket looks like it's three gallons". And you'll be amazed how foamy it is. It foams up as if you were using one of those expensive foamer guns. I bought one and it was a pain in the ass to use. Then I use a leaf blower to get most of the water off, then finish it off with an "adsorber" towel.

 

Hand wash, only option for me

 

I bought a Ortho $10 hose end sprayer from Lowes last week, worked great to foam the truck before washing.

 

Hand Wash, I have a Foam Cannon Gun which is pretty awesome at spreading the soap on it but I don't always use it.

 

Gas station pressure washer then hand wash at home after a day of wheelin. Or just hand wash after a day of mall crawling.

 

My situation is a bit odd...I only have a well for water, which has a kind of limited amount of water I can use at one time, PLUS it's loaded with minerals and sulfur. I have filters in the house, but my outside hose connection comes directly from the wellhead.
I have to either use the no-touch drive through or the wand/foam brush at the local car wash, with an occasional full service wash and hand drying. In my case, though, as soon as I drive home from wherever I am, she's dusty again from 3 miles of limestone gravel roads.

 

Try Optimum No Rinse or Quick and Easy Wash. That and a gallon of distilled water will do a good job. Many mobile detailers use these products. Dry with a microfiber drying towel.