car washing! /scratch help

[sachpreet_s@hotmail.com]

Hi, its been snowing like **** where I live, anyways my car is a month old and I have not yet washed it. Anyways, I do want ot wash it by hand, but what are some products/ techniques you recommend because I a) don't want to scratch it, or damage the finish and overall ruin the rain sensor. Okay so my stupid dad scratched my trunk in two spots when he was removing snow from my car, they are small scratches so would I need to order touch up paint? My car is a mazda 3 GS 2008.5. Thanx please b nice when responding.

[sachpreet_s@hotmail.com]

Hi, its been snowing like **** where I live, anyways my car is a month old and I have not yet washed it. Anyways, I do want ot wash it by hand, but what are some products/ techniques you recommend because I a) don't want to scratch it, or damage the finish and overall ruin the rain sensor. Okay so my stupid dad scratched my trunk in two spots when he was removing snow from my car, they are small scratches so would I need to order touch up paint? My car is a mazda 3 GS 2008.5. Thanx please b nice when responding.[/b]

I was also wondering do only older cars get rust proofing on the undercarriage? Okay sorry for all the dumb questions but I don't know much about cars and I have to take care of my new car since my parents bought it for me. thnx!

[ken.boyer@gmail.com]

For the scratches - what you need to do depends on how deep they are. Minor scratches can be fixed with Meguair's Srcatch-X. It's available at most auto parts stores. If they are through the clearcoat down to the paint, you should get some estimates at a few collision shops. Touch up paint is not recommended unless you know what you're doing - it can look worse than the original scratches.

As for rustproofing, where do you live? If you are in a northern climate, you may want to consider it if you are going to keep the car for a very long time. But cars these days will usually start rusting on the body (especially the quarter panels around the wheels and the bottom edges of the doors) and rustproofing the undercarriage won't prevent this from happening.

It's good that you want to take care of your new car! You are very lucky to have such generous parents. Keep it washed, waxed, make sure all the maintenance is done on time and your car should last you a good long time.

[Xedosman]

Snow removal is always a threat to the paintwork, especially during freezing temperatures. I use a soft brush (not all snowbrushes are soft) and don't apply too much pressure. Then it's better to drive with a remaining layer untill it melts from either engine/coupe heat or mild periods. Further it is important to avoid hitting painted areas while scraping the windows.

Keeping the car clean during winter is way more important than during summer, in cold areas. To avoid said scratches, and to prevent salt and tar to grow stuck on the paintwork. Door openings, wheel arches, sides and rearend are more important to keep clean than the hood and roof.

As for cleaning, using a hose to remove sand is important before using the sponge. Use a bucket and a good cleaner with wax, squashing the sponge often. I use the Turtle Wax super wash, blue bottle. It removes tar and salt better than any environmentally friendly tar remover which is useless. Plus it adds wax.

In my opinion, using a car washing machine is better than not washing the car at all during winter. Expect some clearcoat wear and swirls though. In my book, driving more than 3 weeks during winter without washing the car is a bad idea. Once a week is my goal.

Good luck with your new car!