Wash after an off-road run?

Is it a good idea to wash your truck right after an offroad trail run?

Or can I keep the dirty look for a few days… lol

 

Wash. Especially if there's a lot of mud, ice, or salt. All that crap contributes rust.

But since you also asked, It probably is a good idea to wash the underside of your truck to prevent moving non-native plant species around too.

 

Do you wipe before you pull your pants up or just carry on? At least rinse the truck off if you're not going to wash it.

 

Always, I dont care if people think I'm a poser.

It makes it easier to scratch if dirty, plus it gets me and my boys pants dirty if left like that.

I do a simple quick wash, then a better one a day or so later.

Plus I park in the garage, I hate when my trucks poop.

 

Real 4 wheelers don't wash their truck until it rains.

 

Just pray for the frame

 

Nevermind, you’re in Cali. Carry on!

 

Highlighting the latter part because it's especially important.

 

If you have clay based mud like we do around here, it can STAIN your paint.

Wash it, unless you just DGAF about paint on your vehicle. It also depends on if you have things like sliders with covers on them that notoriously collect hardened mud, and letting it dry will ensure its in the cracks and crevices of the sliders nearly permanently

 

If you're in high school, leave it. Because that was cool. Otherwise, wash your damn truck. Don't wash your dishes or wipe though, that's just a waste of time.

 

Do you wash your dick off after anal?

 

I don’t, just my butthole.

 

Never understood the fascination with having a dirty ass truck just for the street cred lol.

Even in the best conditions, your truck is still dirty and more susceptible to scratches. never mind potential staining of paint, damaging the clearcoat (or lack thereof for us superwhite folks), adding extra needless weight, dirtying up your clothes as you brush against it. Then there's the aspect of flinging dirt all over the road, or letting it fall off in your or someone else's parking spot, propagating rust, and looking like a pseudo rust bucket when you eventually get enough condensation for it to bead and run.

I always at least rinse off my truck and the underside once I get home or the morning after.

 

The mud can harden to a cement-like consistency if you leave it too long.

I always stop by a self-serve car wash on the way home from each wheeling trip to wash off the mud. I then run through a touchless automatic car wash close to home. At the end of the day, truck is cleaner than before the wheeling trip.

 

Not sure about others but the 2-3 hour drive home its already cemented/on the paint whatever. So leaving it for a bit wont hurt anything, however washing the frame and undercarriage is probably more important as abrasive particles get in crevices such as sheet metal lap areas, between hardware, nooks and crannies, seals and other tight clearance areas. vibration from operating the truck allows the particles to essentially sand down the coating such as paint as water gets in and allows for rust to begin and sustain its process. The only way to completely avoid this is to not wheel your truck, but if thats the case then why have one just whip around in a sedan lol. You could also undercoat your truck with a wet type corrosion inhibitor that seeps into all the nooks and crannies and allows for an easier cleanup of mud.

 

It's Friday already...

 

Pics of before and after washing might help the conversation.

 

don’t act like you don’t have before and after pics of my butthole.

 

Just wash it when it rains. Way easier than constantly worrying about the shiny clean paint.