Best Waterless Car Wash Sprays
Not everyone has the time or desire to wash their car regularly, and frequent trips to the automatic car wash can get expensive. Not only that, but repetitive runs through an automatic wash can remove wax and create swirl marks in the paint. If your car is covered in only a small amount of dirt or dust, a waterless car wash may be the handiest way to give it a quick cleanup. T
Waterless car wash products are premixed solutions typically come in a portable spray bottle, perfect for keeping in the garage or trunk. Simply spray the dirty areas of the car with the waterless carwash solution and wipe clean (preferably with a microfiber towel). Better still, do the entire car at the same time for a complete job. While a conventional wash is still the best way to clean the dirtiest rides, a waterless car wash is simpler, cheaper, less wasteful, and more convenient in a pinch.
What is Waterless Car Wash?
Think of it as like furniture polish, specially formulated to capture and lift dirt and dust away from a surface. Difference is, this stuff is designed for hard automotive exteriors rather than a soft, wood table. Naturally, waterless car wash isn’t the best solution. But if you’re in a hurry or away from a hose-and-bucket or even a car wash facility, it’s a fantastic way to spruce up your ride quickly.
Clearly, wiping anything on your vehicle runs the risk of scratches. But waterless car wash products are made to be gentle and leave a smooth finish. Put it this way: It’s far riskier to wipe away plain water from a simple garden hose. Still, we can’t recommend using waterless car wash thinking you’ll magically restore a faded rustbucket. This stuff works best on newer cars that are consistently washed, waxed, and maintained.
How Do I Use a Waterless Car Wash?
Whenever you’re wiping something, anything, on your car, you want to avoid scratches and swirls. This goes doubly true for when you’re trying to wipe dirt and dust off a dirty car.
Just like when washing with a hose and bucket, you want to avoid using waterless car washes in direct sunlight on a hot surface. Fold your microfiber towel (always use a microfiber towel, people; we’re not animals here) and wipe slowly and gently, turning the towel as you go so you’re always applying a fresh, dry, clean portion of the towel to your car’s finish and not grinding the grime you just wiped off back onto the surface of the paint.
Try to avoid swirling and sweeping motions with your arm; it’s harder to keep a dry, clean section of your towel on the surface when you go back and forth or in circles.
How We Chose Waterless Car Wash Products
We tested all of these waterless carwash products in the Car and Driver garage on a variety of dirty cars and also cycled them into our regular photography routine, because we often need quick, on-the-spot cleanups. While we did rank these cleaning products—just as we rank the vehicles in our comparison tests—we found that all provided satisfactory results. There are subtle differences, but we would recommend any of them. Some waterless car washes come in concentrate form; these require dilution with water in a separate spray bottle, but they are cheaper per ounce than the premixed cleaners.
$0.62 per ounce
This is our favorite waterless carwash product. It not only cleans efficiently but also leaves a smooth, shiny, just-waxed feel, and it’s reasonably priced. Our photographer noted that this bottle also had the strongest and widest spray nozzle. The smell was pleasant but not overwhelming.
$0.50 per ounce
Meguiar’s has an entire suite of wash products that are affordable and work well, and its Ultimate Waterless Wash & Wax is what we use most often around Car and Driver. It’s found in most auto-parts stores and supermarkets, and it leaves a clean look with little effort. It also has less odor than many of the other products—a pro or a con, depending on personal preference.
$0.64 per ounce
Adam’s waterless carwash solution is also waxless. We had no complaints, but it also didn’t stand out in any way. It did leave a better finish than the Mothers Waterless Wash & Wax (see below), however.
$0.47 per ounce
Mothers-brand waterless wash and wax was the least inspiring of the products we sampled. It left some streaks that needed to be rewiped, and it left a finish that wasn’t as smooth as even some of the waxless products. It also smelled more like a conventional cleaning product than the other washes. Still, it resulted in a clean car, and that’s the most important part. It helps that per ounce, it’s the cheapest ready-to-use product here.
$0.37 per ounce
This is the newest waterless carwash from Chemical Guys. The company also sells a three-step waterless wash-and-wax solution that requires buffing but leaves a great shine. This two-step waxless solution provides a quick clean and has a strong sweet smell—some editors liken it to Skittles candy. However, the spray didn’t evaporate as quickly as the other waxless products. The 16-ounce bottle was not for sale on Amazon at time of publishing, but this one-gallon container is filled with the same stuff and works with refillable sprayers. The 16-ounce bottles of this solution can be found for around $12 (just not on Amazon at this time).
$0.20 per ounce (once diluted, includes towels)
Aero Cosmetics provides a high-quality spray bottle and four microfiber towels with its concentrate.
This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io
