no, please tell the truth. My high end auto an Infiniti is washed here in OKC at the dealership with the Benz, Audi, Land Rovers, and Bentley's n the same car wash as what you get in a good car wash down the street. It has been shown that hand washing puts more scratches on a car than a top line car wash.
Oh, this is going to start something, I'm sure. I'm not saying you are wrong, because I don't know what you mean by a "top line" car wash. I've NEVER seen one. I'd be interested in how they work that's gentler than a careful hand washing.
In a touchless car wash (no brushes, strips or mechanical action), the chemicals used to clean are very harsh and damaging to paint. A typical car wash with rolling brushes or scrubbing strips (fabric or rubber) introduce much heavier mechanical pressure and friction between the dirt on your car and its paint than a hand wash. And if you happen to follow a nice muddy truck, you can bet there is residual contaminants on the cleaning equipment sanding away on your finish. Additionally, no filtered, recycled waste water is cleaner than my well.
I pre-rinse my Stinger and '89 Mustang GT (looks like it has 35,000 miles, not 210,000) and use pristine, specialty micro-fiber cloths and towels that have no tags, no exposed sewn seams, and all are laundered separately from anything else in cold water. I use an extremely mild neutral cleaner on my wheels (Staples' Sustainable Earth #64 and a microfiber covered sponge wand)- never spray-on chemical wheel cleaner, as I have seen them etch and dull the clear coat on wheels. I usually use Blue Coral washing soap and Meguiar's and
Chemical Guys detailing products. I know this is a bitterly controversial subject on Amazon reviews, where no one agrees on anything, so you can fault me there if I deserve it.
I blow dry the whole car and detail the little remaining water drops with clean microfiber. If I drop one on the ground, it gets replaced immediately. I live in the coastal redwood rain forest and there have been rare instances in the past when I've used Oil Can Henry's or the local Chevron wash for my Mustang. I always regret it. Then there are the guys that use a foam sprayer or cannon between hand washes. No touching at all.
Please describe the attributes of the car washes you think are better. I certainly wouldn't guilt you for using them- it's not like you are committing murder. And it is your car, not mine. Luckily, I have a corner of my garage set up for car cleaning and everything that touches the car is kept in sealed bins. I know that not everyone has that luxury.
