Corvette Convertible Tops and Car Washes
Corvette Convertible Tops and Car Washes
The Pros, Cons and Concerns with Using Automatic Car Washes on Convertibles
Let’s revisit the age-old discussion of automatic car washes, shall we? But this time, let’s add a small twist and focus exclusively on soft-top cars. Corvette Forum member USe-car posted up a thread asking about the C7 convertible top and automatic car washes. He was mostly curious to hear if the auto washes would actually get the top cleaned, or if he would have to scrub it on its own. What we ended up with was a nice discussion on the pros, cons, and concerns with using automatic washes.
We have the obvious concerns about brush washes destroying paint, but a few other smart points were brought up, as well. One that I had never considered is that the washes that use the “heavy rags” to drape across the car could be heavy enough to cause the rear window to separate from the top. Other concerns include potentially pulling the top seal with the rotating brushes, thus letting water into the cabin.
Other members made sure to voice that many “touchless” pressure washers are fine, but to be wary of washes with the tracks in the floor that drag your Corvette through them. The Corvette’s tires are wide enough that it might not fit, and some older car washes have high rails that are tall enough to catch the underside of your car. Not a great way to treat a C7, if you ask me.
As always though, our amazing community did manage to actually answer USe-car’s question, and let him know that yes, an auto wash will keep his top clean. If he needs some extra touching up though, a few products like Rag Top and 303 Fabric Guard were recommended.
But what about you guys out there with the older cars? This was posted up in the C7 forum, where the tops are the newest and strongest, but do any of the older cars have issues with wheel clearance at car washes? Feel free to hop into the thread and share any stories you may have. And if you have other special tips for keeping a cloth-top in pristine condition, we would love to hear them.
