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Car Wash with Soft Top?

adk749

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Okay I am new to the soft top world. My truck is full of rock salt and disgustingly dirty (I am in NJ). What’s the protocol for car washes? I’d love to baby it with a gentle hand washing but not in the middle of winter with temps below 20 degrees outside. TIA!
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1stBroncoBase

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Okay I am new to the soft top world. My truck is full of rock salt and disgustingly dirty (I am in NJ). What’s the protocol for car washes? I’d love to baby it with a gentle hand washing but not in the middle of winter with temps below 20 degrees outside. TIA!
Good question, my wife just asked me the same...
 

Cwill79

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Okay I am new to the soft top world. My truck is full of rock salt and disgustingly dirty (I am in NJ). What’s the protocol for car washes? I’d love to baby it with a gentle hand washing but not in the middle of winter with temps below 20 degrees outside. TIA!
I’m still waiting on my Bronco, and I’ll be new to the soft top world as well. How well does the soft top hold in heat? I’m in KY, so if you’re warm in NJ, surely I’ll stay warm here. Lol
 

cigartexan

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Okay I am new to the soft top world. My truck is full of rock salt and disgustingly dirty (I am in NJ). What’s the protocol for car washes? I’d love to baby it with a gentle hand washing but not in the middle of winter with temps below 20 degrees outside. TIA!
No touch-less carwash in your area? I would not run softie through a brush wash!
 

Snydermann

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I've never used an automatic wash on a convertible and I've had a dozen over the years. I don't trust the cheap detergents they use, or the mechanism. I seldom use anything but water and a soft brush. Haartz (who supplies Ford top material) also advises against using detergents.

Suck it up and hit it with the hose at a manual wash station. Bring a small step ladder.
 

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JediMcMuffin

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I have done it, twice actually, at a non touchless car wash. It survived just fine and boy did it get clean. They turned off most of the features for me so that it didn’t use soap up top. The air blowers put the most stress on the top.

all that being said I’m unlikely to do it again
 

broncoGIRL21

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Agree. I'm in Michigan. Been at the self hand-wash all winter. It's freezing. And you have to be careful of the temp because the water literally turns to ice on your truck as you're wiping it off if you're not careful. But I don't trust any other car wash. And the salt is stressing me out.
 

Snydermann

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I take my soft top through the car wash all the time. Probably a dozen times since I've had it. I have never had a problem, the soft top doesn't leak or anything.

My Bronco is fine.
It's hard on the top long term. The detergents strip the UV protection out of the fabric and the stitching rots away.
 

Big Boss

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I have been taking mine to one of those coin operated do it yourself bays to just blast the salt off.

The owners manual states not go through a car wash with the soft top

There is a hand car wash around the block from my office I will probably give a try to but there has been rain or snow in the forecast pretty much every week since it's last bath
 

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Berggie

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The manual does not state not to use a car wash it states:
" CLEANING THE EXTERIOR PRECAUTIONS If you have a Sasquatch or soft top package, wash your vehicle by hand, or by using a touchless commercial wash with no mechanical tracks on the floor".
If your tires fit in the track any touchless wash is approved by the manual as I read it.

Had my TJ 12 years and went thru washes in winter, too cold to wash by hand in MN winters.
 

tjnoffy

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I have taken my soft top Sasquatch OBX to the local touchless car wash several times with no issues. No leaks or damage. BTW, ours has no tracks on the floor to deal with.
 

Datoad

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I take my Mustang and a previous convertible thru the car wash but they had/have glass windows.
I don’t think I would hesitate taking a Bronco soft top thru a touch free car wash.
 
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adk749

adk749

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The manual does not state not to use a car wash it states:
" CLEANING THE EXTERIOR PRECAUTIONS If you have a Sasquatch or soft top package, wash your vehicle by hand, or by using a touchless commercial wash with no mechanical tracks on the floor".
If your tires fit in the track any touchless wash is approved by the manual as I read it.

Had my TJ 12 years and went thru washes in winter, too cold to wash by hand in MN winters.
How does the car move through the car wash if there are no tracks?
 

Berggie

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How does the car move through the car wash if there are no tracks?
Washes now have flat moving floors or the wash moves around your car while stationary.
The days of the tube rails on the sides is going away at least the ones near my home.
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