Rich_Eason Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Is it me... Or does the C4 seem to attract general road dirt and grime more than any car on the road.... Hear me out on this one, all my previous cars I have owned in the past have generally looked clean-ish two weeks after a wash and wax. Apart from the usual spray up the wheel arches, general conditon was still ok/acceptable. However three days on from a laborious full valet my VTS looks like it has just completed the Super Special Stage of the WRC at the Millenium Stadium. Not only is the car now frequently garaged but is used less than previous cars! So.. Theory 1.Does the body design of the C4 just "have the knack" of getting grubby Theory 2.Wicked Red looks like a dull brown when it gets a bit grubby and looks dirtier than it actually is.....however always looks stunning when buffed :wub: :o Quote
wozza Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Its the wicked red I think. Just give up trying to keep it gleaming it wont happen unless you do it every weekend. But if you gave it a decent wash and wax etc just a case of jetting it off with the jet washer. Quote
Stuey Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 I have noticed that the back gets really bad quite quickly. The wheels get filthy days after washing...that bugs me the most... Quote
philstott1983 Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 I've had my C4 in the garage for 4 weeks, not driven but the other day it came out, and the alloys where all dirty. How does that work? Quote
sammys hdi vts Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 yeah my silver vts is a dull grey most of the time, got my sis to wash it over the summer and had a shock! it looked bloody brilliant again! I find it almost impossible to wash the vts alloys when there is a hose pipe ban, cant get enough water on them to get rid of brake dust. I find the rear windscreen get dirty quickly and we all know how small the rear wiper is! Quote
Rich_Eason Posted October 16, 2006 Author Posted October 16, 2006 I find the rear windscreen get dirty quickly and we all know how small the rear wiper is! I've tried Rain-X'ing my rear window and seems to be working.... The brakes do seem to create an awful lot of dust for some reason compared to other cars I have owned. Hands up for those who have sworn buggery bollo*ks catching/cutting your fingers on the metal valve stems when cleaning the alloys?! Apart from all the other bumpf that covers the car keeping it in the garage doesnt help as it gets covered in spider poo...small white spots. Quote
ham's c4vts Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Ive got the mudflaps on my VTS and they do help to keep it a bit cleaner than with out them, and ive got rain x on all windows, so the rear stays a bit cleaner in crap weather. And regular cleaning does help! :wub: ive not found it to attract more dirt than any other car ive owned. Quote
wozza Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Give your wheels a coat of wax next time after they have been washed will help them to stay a little cleaner looking and also makes them easier to clean in future. Quote
Stuey Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Ive got the mudflaps on my VTS and they do help to keep it a bit cleaner than with out them, and ive got rain x on all windows, so the rear stays a bit cleaner in crap weather. And regular cleaning does help! :P ive not found it to attract more dirt than any other car ive owned. your car has never been dirty!! and Mat, that is disgusting!! you have only washed your car 4 times in a year :D This is the longest mine has gone without being washed, I did mine the day before the meet in september, I now own a dull metallic blue car with black wheels... Quote
wozza Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Last time i got mine washed was the meet day of it actually. Everytime i was going to do it over last few weeks it starts chucking it down. Quote
Stuey Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 same as me Wozza. I keep meaning to drop mine off at Ham's house, go shopping then come back to a shiny car... Quote
wozza Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Trying to decide if i should go do it now or not its not raining at the moment but its cold lol. Only gonna get a wash cant be arsed polishign and waxing it. I just need to be able to see out of the windows properly again. Quote
Stuey Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 its gonna rain here tommorow so I'm not doing mine...I might just do the windscreen as the wipers are just smearing over the filth... Quote
Mike5483 Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 The back gets really dirty because of the design of the car. Its a very aerodynamic design and when the air hits the front of the car, one 'layer' of air clings to the car surface allowing all the other air to slide over it cleanly. However, when the air leaves the back of the car, it very quickly has nothing to slip over anymore and becaomes very turbulent and thus, dust particles in the air cling to the back of the car, rather then floating away. Thats the long winded answer!!! Quote
Stuey Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 yep always does it...if you drive backwards really fast you go into another dimension Quote
wozza Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Mines clean now :-P just finsihed washing it not clayed it or anything took me bloody ages to do the wheels. Tooth brush was needed lol. Will get clayed polished and waxed tomorrow if it does not rain. Quote
ham's c4vts Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 yes they are a bit of a bugger to clean, i'm going to wait to after winter and take each wheel off and wash, claybar, polish and wax each one unless we get a really good day soon. but will have to do them again any way :D Quote
Safety Engineer Posted October 16, 2006 Posted October 16, 2006 Got myself a Halfords own alloy wheel brush, bloody fantastic, mine often looks grotty after a couple of days but then visiting construction sites does that to most cars. Quote
Rich_Eason Posted October 17, 2006 Author Posted October 17, 2006 Trying to decide if i should go do it now or not its not raining at the moment but its cold lol. Only gonna get a wash cant be arsed polishign and waxing it. I just need to be able to see out of the windows properly again. Wozza Its only too cold when you are washing your car and you start to put your hands in the bucket of warm water to warm them up...and when they do you get that funny "expanding" feeling in your hands and actually hurt! Believe me in days of past I have washed a car before and as I was chamoising down ice formed on the body :) If it gets too cold wozza, I'll buy you some Marrigolds... ;) :D :P Quote
Rich_Eason Posted October 17, 2006 Author Posted October 17, 2006 Got myself a Halfords own alloy wheel brush, bloody fantastic, mine often looks grotty after a couple of days but then visiting construction sites does that to most cars. Not most cars...All cars! Used to work on construction sites as a project manager and never bothered to even consider washing the car. The only bit I bothered to keep clean was the bottom of the front door sills as they would always leave a line of filth on your trousers. Apart from the filth wilst working on site you also get "muck" and mortar splashes all over the car The tat man scratching down the side with a lenght of old copper pipe... Plenty of general scratches Believe me if there is one test for any cleaning product, it is cleaning a car that is frequently parked on a construction site... Quote
Safety Engineer Posted October 17, 2006 Posted October 17, 2006 All good fun Rich, have found that the Mer car cleaner seems to do fairly well with site gunge, too right about the scratches, thank god it's a company car, would be even more hacked off if it was my car. Shame because the blue tends to show up nicks and digs. Quote
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