Taking Cybertruck through Automatic Car Wash (Finally)

[Carlos Thomas]

One of my first thread post I made on this forum is questioning if the Cybertruck will be able to use these automated car washes and if it will clean the SS well.

So excited that it came out so clean! Definitely put a smile on my face and I will definitely be using these car washes for my Cybertruck when the time comes. It is a lot simpler than trying to find the "magic formula" on what to hand wash it with.

Exactly.

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[scottf200]

I agree. The Brillo pad robot does not make the appearance uniform.

IMO very unrelated as we've seen many CTs with that appearance. It was talked a lot about on the cleaning videos from Out of Spec Detailing. Totally unrelated to an automatic carwash. Bar Keepers Friend was used as *one* solution followed by Windex or the like to clean the BKF off.

 

[davidngo44]

Yes, the wash missed various spots on the truck. The whole point was, “Can you take it through a car wash and will the finish look smeared/streaky/etc.?” Based on other videos on YouTube, they had a series of videos talking about how hard it is to clean.

So this video kinda puts that myth to bed.

any leak ????

 

[HaulingAss]

Yes, the wash missed various spots on the truck. The whole point was, “Can you take it through a car wash and will the finish look smeared/streaky/etc.?” Based on other videos on YouTube, they had a series of videos talking about how hard it is to clean.

So this video kinda puts that myth to bed.

This is no surprise to those of us who discount dumb narratives like this. It seems the Tesla detractors are throwing anything they can think of at the Cybertruck, hoping to dull demand for this breakthrough vehicle.

Most of it is complete nonsense and has little to do with why the Cybertruck is so superior in ways that really matter.

 

[HaulingAss]

It missed some spots but with one of those quick drive throughs it did about average, fender flares on CT are a little tricky to spray wash quickly by the looks of them.
I think in general for a quick car was most people don't use with nicer cars it looked good with that wash cycle. Not ready for the showroom but definitely ready for the worksite.

Cybertruck handled that car wash better than these trucks:

Ford tough is a nice slogan, but it would be nice if it meant something.

These will not be covered under the Ford Warranty or by the carwash business, so the owners have an expensive out-of-pocket repair. Or they could fix it with duct tape!

Cybertruck toughness: priceless.

 

[Texarado]

IMO very unrelated as we've seen many CTs with that appearance. It was talked a lot about on the cleaning videos from Out of Spec Detailing. Totally unrelated to an automatic carwash. Bar Keepers Friend was used as *one* solution followed by Windex or the like to clean the BKF off.

It seems BKF really did a good job removing the patina and restoring to the original bright SS. Will be interesting to see if drive through car wash coupled with Windex afterwards for fingerprint removal will work as a routine cleaning system. BKF regularly seems like a lot of time/effort.

 

[scottf200]

It seems BKF really did a good job removing the patina and restoring to the original bright SS. Will be interesting to see if drive through car wash coupled with Windex afterwards for fingerprint removal will work as a routine cleaning system. BKF regularly seems like a lot of time/effort.

Agreed and hope for some 'treatment' after the BKF to make it last many months. Sometimes you trade one problem for another

 

[Kahpernicus]

Cybertruck handled that car wash better than these trucks:

Ford tough is a nice slogan, but it would be nice if it meant something.

These will not be covered under the Ford Warranty or by the carwash business, so the owners have an expensive out-of-pocket repair. Or they could fix it with duct tape!

Cybertruck toughness: priceless.

Any touch carwash that's ripping off antennas will probably rip off the fender flares on the first pass.

 

[HaulingAss]

Any touch carwash that's ripping off antennas will probably rip off the fender flares on the first pass.

Nope. There is no evidence of that.

 

[CyberBeastRN]

Finally someone got their truck super dirty and then took it through a car wash. The reviewer said they got the Ceramic Duck, but you can see when they went thru the car wash the Lucky Duck was what he got. I think the Ceramic coating would not have worked well. The reviewer responded to my comment on YouTube and believes they got the ceramic coating…either way, it came out great after drying it off.

Needless to say, I was happy to see that the stainless steel didn’t come out the other end a pure mess after watching the OCDetailing videos.

I guess I will keep my Quick Quack membership.

Great to know but will not be taking my CyberBeast through any auto car washes Handwashing and pressure washer work just fine for me

 

[Carlos Thomas]

My Cybertruck won’t be inside my garage. So it will get dirtier faster than if it was garage kept. Washing trucks by hand take too much time. So running it through a car wash that take 90 seconds and comes out the other end looking good…that will be my ticket.

 

[SentinelOne]

No hand washing in winter for some of us....

 

[CyberMoose]

I think I will take it to manual car washes and use the pressure washer myself.

Personally I'll just keep it simple with soap and water and only use the current best known method. Which seems to be windex for a nice shine and barkeepers friend (liquid) for any black spots. I also don't really expect to do a deeper clean with barkeepers friend more than once per season, which is the same schedule that I use for the deep clean/wax on my current model 3.

I would also prefer to wash the bed or keep it dry as I see fit. If I want to wash the bed, I will need to clean the cover, then open it, then clean the bed. Not something I can realistically do and expect a good job done even in a touchless wash due to the cycle. Also as I've noticed and pointed out in the waterproof testing videos of the bed. It seems that leaks are mostly just a problem when water is sent up under the overhang at the top of the cover, or a lot of water pressure if applied at the tailgate. This is something I could control doing it myself and I suspect the bed will remain dry if I wash it at the right angles.

I also don't really want any spots missed. I'm not someone that's going to be cleaning my truck daily or weekly. It'll probably be once or twice a month at a manual car wash. While I don't need a spotless truck, I don't want mud build up missed by an automatic wash and then I need to wash it off again anyway.

 

[Crissa]

I think I will take it to manual car washes and use the pressure washer myself.

Personally I'll just keep it simple with soap and water and only use the current best known method. Which seems to be windex for a nice shine and barkeepers friend (liquid) for any black spots. I also don't really expect to do a deeper clean with barkeepers friend more than once per season, which is the same schedule that I use for the deep clean/wax on my current model 3.

Yeah, but you have a place to do it and a pressure washer with the right modes and whatever else is needed.

I wipe my Mazda down in the rain, but I'll run it through the carwash every other month or so and get it detailed twice a year.

'Cause I don't have those things. I don't have a way to dispose of the water, I don't have a water recycler, I don't have a pressure washer.

I do like a clean car, tho.

-Crissa

 

[CyberMoose]

Yeah, but you have a place to do it and a pressure washer with the right modes and whatever else is needed.

I wipe my Mazda down in the rain, but I'll run it through the carwash every other month or so and get it detailed twice a year.

'Cause I don't have those things. I don't have a way to dispose of the water, I don't have a water recycler, I don't have a pressure washer.

I do like a clean car, tho.

-Crissa

I think you misread my comment. I will 'take' the truck to a manual carwash. Just the carwashes that you drive into a bay and there is a pressure washer there for you to use.

The automatic carwashes, touchless or not, often use a bunch of extra stuff. As seen in the detailing videos, a lot of things that are commonly used on cars, could leave me with an even bigger cleaning job to take car of. It will depend on the car wash of course, but it seems like all the signs that I read have a list of things each price gets you and I would want just a soap/water option. I know the carwash I go to has a wax even on the cheapest price, I checked after watching the detailing videos.

I'll still have to test out the local manual ones in my area once I get my Cybertruck, make sure the 'soap' option isn't leaving anything on the stainless when i'm done. If it is, I would just start spraying it down with water and then give it a thorough wipe down to get any particles that the water didn't collect.

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