Do you wash your car if it's going to rain?

[Chramiji]

I wash my truck when I think it's getting too dirty regardless of the weather forecast. I never put much faith in the weather forecast anyway, it seems they're wrong more than they're right.

The people making the weather forecast is the highest paying wrong people in the world.

and to answer the question, it usually rains the evening i finish washing my car and applied a fresh coat of wax.... it never fails and happened 100% of the time so far. Weather forecast is usually like 10% chance of rain. IDK if im unlucky or the weather person is just plain wrong.

 

[VISITOR]

don't touch the car until it's time to wash again...

 

[ducksfan]

I like washing my vehicles in the rain - saves me the effort of drying them.

I actually enjoy working in the rain occasionally.

 

[ArnoldLayne]

No it is a waste of time to wash the car when the forecast says its gonna rain. The monsoons here bring dust storms along with rain so wasting an hr to clean the car only to watch ti covered in dust and splotchy rain spots is a waste of time.

I usually wait for a rain free forecast to attempt washing the car. Don't see a point in cleaning my car for rain to mess it all up.

That said, it hardly rains here except in July/Aug so I have the luxury of waiting for the storms to pass.

 

[ArnoldLayne]

Hello everyone,

I live in McKinney, TX and looks like it's going to be rainy for the next 7 days or so. Normally I wash my car every 1-2 weeks on the weekend. But if I know it's going to rain for the whole week, is it worth washing it? Or should I just wait until the forecast looks more promising (i.e. wash next week)?

Not unless you are a glutton for doing needless repetitive work. Wait and wash once the forecast looks promising.

Unless of course you are one of those people who runs out with a handful of microfiber towels and 8 different solutions when a few specks of dust fall on your car (like some characters here )

I like a clean looking car in general and would do reasonable cleaning when its merited but not act like the car owns you instead of the other way around.

Some people go way overboard with their car detailing obsession without realizing we don't live in a sanitized bio dome.

Maybe inhaling all those chemicals in car detailing products too much too often does have side effects
(I also won't buy any product that requires surgical gloves and SARS mask to apply it, however great the product might allegedly work)

 

[derass]

My car needed to be washed but I decided to wait since it's been raining all week. Seems like a waste to do a good cleaning if it's just going to get dirty right after. But the rain seems to have passed now and the next few days are looking clear. I'll be out there washing tomorrow!

 

[Eldorado2k]

I like a clean looking car in general and would do reasonable cleaning when its merited but not act like the car owns you instead of the other way around.

Some people go way overboard with their car detailing obsession without realizing we don't live in a sanitized bio dome.

I realize you're somewhat joking, but I'll still post my thoughts on a couple of things you mentioned.. As far as the car owning you and not the other way around? I think that label is best used to describe things or responsibilities that one doesn't like, or feels obligated to do against their true desires.. I.E. an overly obsessed girlfriend who requires you to text her when you get home safely.. Or a crazy cat lady who has 5 cats, but is so paranoid they might run away if she's not around to keep the doors and windows closed, so she can't even take a vacation or go on a honeymoon because she's basically on house arrest thanks to those cats..

Crazy things like that are what I consider it owning you and not the other way around.. No one enjoys having a psycho gf who requires you to check in every hour..

On the other hand, the kind of people on this forum that you speak of [the obsessed detailer, car enthusiast] actually enjoys every aspect of detailing. We enjoy buying new products, trying them out, we get personal satisfaction with how our vehicles look thanks to our expertise and dedication towards maintaining our cars at a higher level than the average person.. Same way a person who loves to tend to their garden and is out there watering their plants nearly everyday even though they're not in any danger of dying if left alone without water for months.. That person tends to his/her garden because it brings them personal satisfaction. They love to do it, and they enjoy the little differences that extra care yields, the same way us overly obsessed detailers/enthusiasts enjoy every last detail that our eyes can see compared to other peoples uncared for vehicles..

It's not an obligation or a chore.. It's something we enjoy to do and get personal satisfaction out of.. A hobby.


And you're right, we don't live in a sanitized bio dome.. But it sure as heck is nice how we can have our cars look like we do at all times when compared to nearly every other car in the parking lot
And getting that compliment every so often from the average Joe, or an attractive nice lady about how sharp and clean our vehicle looks is the cherry on top. Getting unexpected random compliments from strangers makes me smile You know you love it too.lol.