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How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

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ksher
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How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by ksher » Sun Mar 22, 2009 9:07 pm

I have been a Z4 owner for one month now. I washed my roadster first time last week, and the steps as follows:
(1) Clean alloy wheels with BMW Wheel Rim Cleaner and rinse;
(2) Spray BMW Convertible Hood Cleaner on the roof and clean it with damp sponge, and rinse;
(3) Wet the whole car with hose, and use BMW Car Shampoo to wash bonnet, windscreen, windows, rear screem, boot lid, and rinse;
(4) Wash upper part of front bumper, front wings, doors, rear wings and rear bumper and rinse;
(5) Wash lower part of front bumper, front wings, side skirts, rear wings and rear bumper and rinse the whole car from the top to the bottom;
(6) Dry the car with chamois leather;
(7) Apply BMW Impregnating Agent to the roof (not everytime).

Do you guys use soft-top cleaner for every car wash? Or just use car shampoo? Or do you wash the roof everytime when you wash the car? Please let me know if you wash your Z4 differently. Thanks.
Current BMW: 640d Gran Coupe M Sport (F06), 118d SE (F20).
Previous BMW: Z4 sDrive23i M Sport (E89), 318i Sport (F30), 120d SE (F20), Z4 2.5i Sport Roadster (E85), 523i Sport (E60), 323Ci (E46), 523i SE (E39), 318i (E36).

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by Wondermike » Sun Mar 22, 2009 9:17 pm

I used to only wash my roof every 3rd or 4th time, in between I would hoover it, and also use a sticky roller thing.

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WLH
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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by WLH » Sun Mar 22, 2009 9:21 pm

X2 on the sticky roller thing... :thumbsup:
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paddy wright
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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by paddy wright » Sun Mar 22, 2009 9:28 pm

will this reduce the look of the shiney fold marks?
Z4 2.2 sterling grey,Msport seats,retrofit cupholders,cruise,footwell lights,sound gen and mfsw,18"ellipsoids,xenons+light washers,ZHPknob,folding mirrors,3"stubby,update wheel caps,gateway300 ipod, wind deflector to keep the wife happy!

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by Wondermike » Sun Mar 22, 2009 9:32 pm

The roller? Or the treatment?

No, whatever you do you're stuck with the marks. They do look marginally better after the roof has been treated, but you can't get rid off them completely.

:thumbsdown:

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by WLH » Sun Mar 22, 2009 9:41 pm

The sticky roller does a nice job of picking up loose dirt, pollen and just about anything else on the top.
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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by paddy wright » Sun Mar 22, 2009 9:46 pm

ill try the treatment again- they have got worse recently!
Z4 2.2 sterling grey,Msport seats,retrofit cupholders,cruise,footwell lights,sound gen and mfsw,18"ellipsoids,xenons+light washers,ZHPknob,folding mirrors,3"stubby,update wheel caps,gateway300 ipod, wind deflector to keep the wife happy!

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ksher
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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by ksher » Sun Mar 22, 2009 9:47 pm

How do you get rid of bird droppings on the roof before a proper car wash? Last time a white stain was left on the roof after I cleaned it with water and brush.
Current BMW: 640d Gran Coupe M Sport (F06), 118d SE (F20).
Previous BMW: Z4 sDrive23i M Sport (E89), 318i Sport (F30), 120d SE (F20), Z4 2.5i Sport Roadster (E85), 523i Sport (E60), 323Ci (E46), 523i SE (E39), 318i (E36).

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by Elliot » Mon Mar 23, 2009 3:56 pm

after cleaning the roof properly as stated above what I do is mask or cover the screen and side windows with paper and spray the roof with Scotchguard outdoor waterproofer which is available in Robert Dyas for around £5, its a heavier duty proofer than the indoor version, this does a great job, ive been using this for the last 5 years on my roadsters.
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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by Stealthyman » Mon Mar 23, 2009 5:08 pm

ksher wrote:I have been a Z4 owner for one month now. I washed my roadster first time last week, and the steps as follows:
(1) Clean alloy wheels with BMW Wheel Rim Cleaner and rinse;
(2) Spray BMW Convertible Hood Cleaner on the roof and clean it with damp sponge, and rinse;
(3) Wet the whole car with hose, and use BMW Car Shampoo to wash bonnet, windscreen, windows, rear screem, boot lid, and rinse;
(4) Wash upper part of front bumper, front wings, doors, rear wings and rear bumper and rinse;
(5) Wash lower part of front bumper, front wings, side skirts, rear wings and rear bumper and rinse the whole car from the top to the bottom;
(6) Dry the car with chamois leather;
(7) Apply BMW Impregnating Agent to the roof (not everytime).

Do you guys use soft-top cleaner for every car wash? Or just use car shampoo? Or do you wash the roof everytime when you wash the car? Please let me know if you wash your Z4 differently. Thanks.
This thread is hilarious :D !

How to wash a car!!. Just wash the bloody thing with a bucket of water & sponge or a hosepipe & brush. I've had 5 (Five) soft-top BMW's since 1997 (One Z3 2.8 for 5 years from new) & never had to worry or treat the BMW soft top with ANYTHING!!

I suspect a troll here - if not, certainly a piss taker.... :headbang:

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by laurahenley » Mon Mar 23, 2009 6:49 pm

Stealthyman wrote:
ksher wrote:I have been a Z4 owner for one month now. I washed my roadster first time last week, and the steps as follows:
(1) Clean alloy wheels with BMW Wheel Rim Cleaner and rinse;
(2) Spray BMW Convertible Hood Cleaner on the roof and clean it with damp sponge, and rinse;
(3) Wet the whole car with hose, and use BMW Car Shampoo to wash bonnet, windscreen, windows, rear screem, boot lid, and rinse;
(4) Wash upper part of front bumper, front wings, doors, rear wings and rear bumper and rinse;
(5) Wash lower part of front bumper, front wings, side skirts, rear wings and rear bumper and rinse the whole car from the top to the bottom;
(6) Dry the car with chamois leather;
(7) Apply BMW Impregnating Agent to the roof (not everytime).

Do you guys use soft-top cleaner for every car wash? Or just use car shampoo? Or do you wash the roof everytime when you wash the car? Please let me know if you wash your Z4 differently. Thanks.
This thread is hilarious :D !

How to wash a car!!. Just wash the bloody thing with a bucket of water & sponge or a hosepipe & brush. I've had 5 (Five) soft-top BMW's since 1997 (One Z3 2.8 for 5 years from new) & never had to worry or treat the BMW soft top with ANYTHING!!

I suspect a troll here - if not, certainly a piss taker.... :headbang:
You should steer well clear of http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/ or you might actually explode with rage. :wink:

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by Philosophico » Mon Mar 23, 2009 8:42 pm

I have washed my car twice in the last year and that's more thana ny other car I've owned :D

x2 avoiding detailingworld...life is too short.

I used AutoGlym fabric cleaner and treatment...made a surprisingly good job of reducing the shiny fold marks and rain just bobbles and runs off now.

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by duckson » Mon Mar 23, 2009 9:19 pm

detailingworld is not all about cleaning your car every day, far from it, alot of the talk is about the longevity of the products which mean applications once every 6 months for example.
By not really looking after the cars paintwork, alloys etc why bother even servicing it? IMO of course.
Personally speaking, I've made an expensive purchase and want to make sure its looked after! 8)

For the hood i've just bought and used the Autoglym hood cleaning kit, not bad and it does cover up the lighter grey marks to some extent but i'm sure there are better products out there to "dye" the colour.
I'm intending to add another layer of protection to the hood at the next wash after its intial protection last Friday, though i will not wash the hood like the paintwork and i wont add protection every time, maybe once every 4 or 5 washes thereafter.

Wash process wise i generally start on the windows and upper panels and leave the lower portions till last as they tend to be most dirty, otherwise your potentially using a dirtier wash/mitt to do the cleaner portions of the car.
Ditch the sponge (if yo uuse one) and get a lambwool mitt and ditch the chamois and get a microfibre drying towel.

detailingworld.co.uk sounds like the ideal place for you to start if your interested in keeping your paint in good condition and looking like new.
Cheers, Stu

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by Stealthyman » Tue Mar 24, 2009 3:27 pm

duckson wrote:detailingworld is not all about cleaning your car every day, far from it, alot of the talk is about the longevity of the products which mean applications once every 6 months for example.
By not really looking after the cars paintwork, alloys etc why bother even servicing it? IMO of course.
Personally speaking, I've made an expensive purchase and want to make sure its looked after! 8)

For the hood i've just bought and used the Autoglym hood cleaning kit, not bad and it does cover up the lighter grey marks to some extent but i'm sure there are better products out there to "dye" the colour.
I'm intending to add another layer of protection to the hood at the next wash after its intial protection last Friday, though i will not wash the hood like the paintwork and i wont add protection every time, maybe once every 4 or 5 washes thereafter.

Wash process wise i generally start on the windows and upper panels and leave the lower portions till last as they tend to be most dirty, otherwise your potentially using a dirtier wash/mitt to do the cleaner portions of the car.
Ditch the sponge (if yo uuse one) and get a lambwool mitt and ditch the chamois and get a microfibre drying towel.

detailingworld.co.uk sounds like the ideal place for you to start if your interested in keeping your paint in good condition and looking like new.
What a sad, sad man. :?

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Re: How to wash a roadster with fabric roof?

Post by Herminator » Tue Mar 24, 2009 4:58 pm

Stealthyman wrote:
What a sad, sad man. :?
You seem to be the one trolling here :|
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