What are you using to wash and wax your cars
 

I wash by hand only with a light pressure washer to wet her down , only using a terry cloth and simoniz car wash soap and I use hot water in a pail. Wet her down wash with hot soapy water and I normally do it twice to get the bugs off the front end . Then using a few dry terry cloths between 4 and 6 lol I dry her off don't forget the trunk lid wells on the in sides of the convertibles hold water . Terry cloths don't scratch . I use meguiars wax and again terry cloths to wipe on and wipe off. Using 2 or 3. Don't use softner when you wash the terry cloths in the wash. Wipe the insides of the doors and door jambs. With same cloths make sure to do tires and rims using same steps makes for a great job . Good luck with your car wash.

Any cloth will scratch if dirt is dragged across the surface. Some are just better about preventing this.

If the car is very dirty, I will spray it with a foam canon twice with the first time as a touchless rinse. If not it gets the foam canon once. After soaping I have a pail of warm water with several high quality Korean microfiber towels. I use one for a couple of panels and do not put it back in the pail. At this point, I only use the weight of the towel for agitation. After a spotless rinse, if there’s anything left that wasn’t removed with gentle agitation, I will spot clean those areas with a good wash mit. My wash routine goes pretty fast. I’m guessing it usually only takes about 15 minutes from start to finish.

For wax I used a ceramic sealant. After several washings it’s showing no signs of degradation and does a great job of not allowing dirt to stick to the surface.

Thanks for the info
 

Never heard of ceramic sealant till now I need to look into this thanks

Ceramics are actually coatings, not sealants, there's a million of them around, I find everyone I've used works well, some are easier than others. See the detailing forum here for more on coatings.

The one I used bills itself as a coating, but they also claim a 2 year lifespan. So if it isn't permanent, it seems to me that it should be called a sealant or at least that seems like a better description.

Foam cannon: Amazon $15 cheapo
Pressure washer: 3000psi gas
Shampoo: Carpro Reset currently, also Adams car shampoo
Water: tap
Buckets: two, with grit guards
Mitt: chemical guys
Paint Protection Film: Suntek Ultra (full front, rockers, mirrors, windshield surround, rear lower to body line)
Ceramic coating: Gtechniq Crystal Serum Black (pro) full car and wheels
Hydrophobic coating: Gtechniq EXO (v3) full car and wheels
Sealant: Carpro Reload
Quick Detail: 1 part Carpro Reload, 5 parts Distilled water.

coatings sealants etc
 

thanks for the info i will have to check some of them out on my older car first

thanks
 

thanks for the info so much to choose from great ride by the way, here are a few more pics one of my favs is in the fog looks mean

very smart way to wash
 

thanks again great ideas thanks to all of you for your imput

The less you touch the paint , the less chance for unintended swirls , scratches etc. that are sometimes caused by wash mitts and the like.
I try to avoid washing, understanding not always possible. California Duster, microfibre cloths with Meguire's Showtime and a carnuba wax is my go to when feasible. Only 1450 km on the odo so far and have not needed to wash yet. Mind you, it only gets driven on top down days.
When I washed my GT500, 2 buckets, one with a wax friendly soap and the other to rinse the microfibre wash mit. A microfibre towel to pat dry . Never washed using circular motions, just light back and forth. A bit anal I guess, but what the hell, I baby my rides.

Great info
 

I have washed the Beast in the dark and in the rain on a few occasions no water spots and for the most part rain is soft water

Stratford water is hard. Loads of minerals, bad for washing but great for farm produce. Some of the richest farm land going.