Waterless car wash. Any good, how does it not scratch

Waterless car wash. Any good, how does it not scratch

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Discussion

firemanSimon

Original Poster:

656 posts

137 months

Friday 21st December 2012
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A new waterless car wash place has opened up in edinburgh. http://www.nowet.co.uk/
Anyone used these places. How dose it work,does it work, how do they not scratch the hell out the paint work?

ImDesigner

1,958 posts

193 months

Friday 21st December 2012
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Do a YouTube search for ONR to see it in action.

toddler

1,245 posts

235 months

Friday 21st December 2012
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From their website:

nowet said:
6. How does NO-WET Work?

When NO-WET waterless car wash and wax is MICRO/MISTED over a soiled area, our exclusive formula has the unique ability to encapsulate and emulsify the dirt particles, lifting them off the surface, (thus no scratching) preparing them for removal by the simple swipe of a clean 100% terry towel. No need for soap, buckets, hoses, no more mess!
and:

nowet said:
A revolutionary product in the car industry. NoWet is an all-in-one waterless car cleaning product suitable for all vehicles in all weather conditions and provides an excellent paint surface protection. It cleans, seals, polishes, waxes, seals and uv protects in one easy application, without scratching!.
Sounds like snake oil to me. Anything that sound too good to be true, usually is.

And besides, the kind of people who worry about marring a car's paintwork when washing, and go to the bother of polishing, waxing, sealing etc... are probably the kind of people who enjoy the process. I can waste an entire weekend cleaning my car. It's a labour of love.


anonymous-user

53 months

Friday 21st December 2012
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ImDesigner said:
Do a YouTube search for ONR to see it in action.
Looked like a bloke wiping his car down with a damp sponge. confused

ImDesigner

1,958 posts

193 months

Friday 21st December 2012
quotequote all
That's basically what it is but with an additive added to the water that lubricated the dirt/bodywork to prevent scratching. I would only trust myself to do it on my own car.

Fubar1977

916 posts

139 months

Friday 21st December 2012
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No, just hell no.
You might get away with it a handful of times but waterless washing regularly is going to fk your paintwork.

V6Paul

171 posts

142 months

Friday 21st December 2012
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It's absolutely fine if the car isn't too dirty in the first place.

TX1

2,348 posts

182 months

Friday 21st December 2012
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Never seen such crap in all my life, he sprays a chemical leaves it there for a pretty long time while he is chatting nonsense, and after gets a wet sponge and wipes it clean, wow what a revelation.

anonymous-user

53 months

Friday 21st December 2012
quotequote all
V6Paul said:
It's absolutely fine if the car isn't too dirty in the first place.
....which is very similar to that other waterless method known as "Not washing it"

Hoofy

76,253 posts

281 months

Friday 21st December 2012
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If someone wants to test it on my car, they're welcome to. The bodywork's fked so another scratch or twenty won't make a difference. hehe

Cobracol

8 posts

148 months

Monday 7th September 2015
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I've been using a waterless wax, namely Showroom Shine (many other brands are available now) for years, in fact I've only ever washed my car (AK Cobra replica) once in 9 years!, I do get the odd sporadic light scratch (swirl) just as you would (or more so!)with any other form of cleaning/polishing, but cleaning the car takes about an hour to do completely, rather than a day or so using traditional methods!. If you are a staunch traditionalist, crack on!, if you are pondering on trying it, just do it!, you wont go back!

Dannbodge

2,160 posts

120 months

Monday 7th September 2015
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I used ONR for two years when I lived in a flat.
Could wash my E36 coupe in about 20 mins once I had the technique sorted.

It was great tbh. The condition of my paint stayed pretty much the same so would suggest it doesn't scratch or marr as some people may suggest.

VeegasRS6

367 posts

156 months

Monday 7th September 2015
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I commission a charity car valet in East Sussex that use this method, although they spend about 4 hours on a car, and it is a multi stage process with an actual polish product, as well as the waterless wash.

I've found that on the odd times that I've had it done, the shine doesn't last as long as a conventional wax / polish and I'll start to pick up a light film of road dirt and grime much quicker than normal, on that basis I expect there is some residual left of the body after the method which things cling too.

I cant report any swirl or scratch marks either with this, but the charity is factitious about changing the cloths during a valet and they have ones to put the stuff on with, and ones to take it off.

It looks good when it's done, but doesn't last as long in summary.

Monty Python

4,812 posts

196 months

Monday 7th September 2015
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There's no way a product can "lift" dirt off a surface without water, and neither can you emulsify oils without water. Sounds a bit iffy to me.

Mercury00

4,098 posts

155 months

Monday 7th September 2015
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I've been wanting to test some out after watching videos of it. I made the mistake of buying the aldi one - it comes out as pure hard wax rather than liquid!

RustyBison

40 posts

117 months

Monday 22nd August 2016
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I use a waterless called smart polish pro and have done for the past year. I, like probably everyone else that switched to waterless was very sceptical about cleaning a dirty car without washing off with water first but as long as the car has a light dirt mist/general road grime, waterless washes are perfect. In no way is waterless wash advertised or should be used on a heavily soiled car with visible stones or thick mud. This is when I rinse with water first.


Alex_225

6,234 posts

200 months

Tuesday 23rd August 2016
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There was a chap on Detailing World who used nothing but Optimum No Rinse on his car for quite a significant amount of time (year or 6 months something like that) and then checked the paintwork.

The conclusion was that it had inflicted no worse scratches/swirls than a decent wash (two buckets etc.) so I do believe they work well. The idea is to make the paintwork very slick so dirt can't inflict the scratches.

Personally I'd always opt for the hose/Karcher, two buckets, mitts etc but if you're going to a car show or on a holiday whereby you'd want to wash the car, I think these products server a purpose.

Greg-

167 posts

191 months

Sunday 28th August 2016
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I live in a flat so can't get a hose out to the communal parking area, jet wash at the Shell down the road then use it, I do it on an old car, but I keep changing clothes.

I don't think it's doing much damage to my car. but if you're worried about scratches and swirl marks I think a proper wash is the way forward.

Dave3166

1,770 posts

125 months

Thursday 1st September 2016
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Honestly, would you drive your car for 6 weeks in the winter, on wet, salty roads, then wash your car with this water-less stuff.

What about the wheel arches, inside of the wheels etc.

I would go no where near my car with this stuff, would only use it as an instant detailer.

This is just my opinion.