i like it diiirty

[Matt]

One of the threads with somebodys exceptionally shiny car started me thinking about the whole washing & polishing malarky...

Like Christina Aguilera I like it diirty []. I firmly believe that most cars look better when they are covered with the right sort of sheen of dirtiness. the 968 has been racing up & down the M4 recently and it looks fantastic from behind (as does Christina..) at the moment, hunkered down over those wide tyres with the streaks of dirt wrapping themselves around the bumper corners. It looks like its been enjoyed.

It does get washed every couple of weeks to ensure the paintwork is not damaged, and polished once or twice a year, but on balance I'd prefer to be driving it than washing it...and polishing it is so dull [:'(] (no pun intended) that I'd rather poke sticks in my eyes.

The best looking dirt to complement Guards Red in my opinion is the fine sand (I believe from the Sahara) which you only seem to get in France. Maritime blue responds well to good old dark brown English mud. The most versatile colour must however be Grand Prix White - the purists choice for the wide range of dirt it can display. []

Am I alone in this fetish.....?

 

[John H]

Matt,

Pleaze lie on ze couch and try to be still, you are obvioulsy a very sick man and ve are here to help. Perhaps we could start by asking about your mother, and whether she washed you as ein child, Ja?

Dr Helmut MacKenzie.

 

[paulf968]

Matt

You have just saved me a fortune -- had almost weakened and was about to get into all that HD Cleanse, clay bars and Zymol up to the eyebrows. It can all wait and I will seek out more driving opportunities as a priority!! Yes, dirt can look rather good on white.

paul

 

[Matt]

ORIGINAL: John H

Matt,

Pleaze lie on ze couch and try to be still, you are obvioulsy a very sick man and ve are here to help. Perhaps we could start by asking about your mother, and whether she washed you as ein child, Ja?

Dr Helmut MacKenzie.

[][][]

 

[Guest]

I used to have a girlfriend who never washed her car. Her theory: The dirt protects the paint. []

 

[2alexcoo]

I alternate between two extremes - I'm obsessive about cleaning it in the summer but right now I can't be @rsed to tell the truth. Perhaps there is a support group I should join []

Next time I will just buy a car in a colour which doesn't show dirt - easier all round!

 

[Mr968]

On the other side of the coin,
dirt and debri on the paint will eventually start to corrode it and leave it in poor condition and devalue the car, could be a respray job in a few years. I'd prefer to use the car regularly, take it on the occassional track day, but still keep the paint in good condition. Consider what is in the atmosphere these days especially if you're near industry or railway tracks etc. All of that will have time to do a good job on your paint work, not to mention the dreaded gifts from our feathered friends, and when you do eventually wash it off how much can you rinse off before applying that cheap nylon sponge and rubbing it into the paint surface, because you can't jet wash it off without sandblasting the paint with all the tiny particles of dust and debri.
Yep, that's one of the reasons we see so many otherwise beautiful cars with poor paint.
Have a look at,DT Concours go to the Clay Bar page for info on what dirt in the paint can do.
PS. there's ome nice piccies in the Gallery.
But I do take your point Mike and as long as it doesn't get too bad it'll be OK.

 

[Melv]

Any dirty piccies then?

[]

Melv

 

[Matt]

just for you Mel...

 

[Matt]

I agree. The amount of damage the environment does to paint - especially the new water based stuff used - is terrible - which is why I'll make sure my car is cleaned every couple of weeks - and gets a decent polish twice a year... as well as cleaning off the bird sh1te as soon as i see it [:-]

But - you could clean and polish every couple of days and have lovely paintwork until you drive the thing and it gets stonechips. you park it anywhere near other cars and you are guaranteed that the Fulham nanny will open the door of the Range Rover into the side of it etc etc.. and its more fun driving the thing than polishing it []

Starting this thread made me realise that the 968 was due its bi-annual polish around now, so I did it on Saturday. 4 hours worth of cleaning etc.. [] looked very shiny and new, but still not as sexy as when I started it [], and I'm glad I don't need to do it again for half a year.