What's the best way to wash a GT40?

[Tony Hunt]

After I had finished work on my '40 after returning from the Le Mans Classic, I decided it needed a wash because it was covered in dust, dead insects and travel stains.
How best to go about it without drenching the electrics (the 6AL seems particularly susceptible to water), wetting the carpets and generally making a fine mess?
If you hose it down and cover everything with soapy water, then hose off as you would the Daily Drive, water gets everywhere - inside the cockpit, all over the carpets, into the plenum chamber under the rear clip, down the nostrils and into the box that the steering rack lives in - which is particularly difficult to get dry. I learnt all this the last time I started sloshing water about!
So, how did the beauty queens so often photographed on these pages get as beautiful as they are? My car has to work for its living - I have done 2000 miles since 1 May going to meetings and Le Mans, and I don't want major histrionics every time I want to clean the bodywork, wheels, horizontal areas around the fuel pumps and filters - and the aircon and ignition on the other side. How do you get the nose clean without water getting into the front nostril compartment?
Patent methods, please, then I'll tell one or two of the tricks that I have discovered!

[Bill Bayard]

Tony,

I stuff terry cloth golf towels at the bottom of the

nostril holes, more towels below the window vents, yet more

towels in the induction holes. As soon as I have washed a

particular area, I remove the towels and dry the area

completely with a chamois. This requires being very

consevative with the hose spray in certain areas(mist, as

opposed to a flood), but beats the alternatives. I get no

more than a few drops of water where it doesn't belong.

The moral of the story is: Don't slosh!

A tip for those of you who have ceramic coated exhausts:

Don't wash the car with the engine(exhaust)hot! It will

leave watermarks that are a MF'er to remove!


Bill

[Peter D]

Tony, I washed mine once as per the daily driver, & had all your problems. Since then, I have used a "microfibre mitten", dipped in a very, very weak solution of car wash in a bucket of water. That seems to get all the grime off without leaving too much of a sudsy mess. Then I just run the chamois over it. Here in Oz, we are in a drought situation, with $250 fines for getting caught hosings cars, etc, so this method works well from that point of view as well !

Kind Regards,

Peter D.

[JOSEPH]

Tony, I have a CAV s/s monoque. The first thing when I found out that my 40 leaked like yours I bought aluminum colored silicone glue. I forced it into every space that I thought water could get into. It worked great and it is the same color as the stainless steel. I also wiped off the excess to make it look neat. Then a guy in Nashville Tenn. washed and waxed the body with Griot's Speed Shine. www.griotsgarage.com It is a dry wash. You spray it on a small area and then carefully wipe it off then buff it by hand with a soft cotton cloth. Two people and 15 minutes you are done. If you must use soap and water wash it from back to front. Now for the big hint which a friend put me on to. Use an air compressor with at least 100 psi to blow all the excess water out of all the crevices. It really works great under the front and back clips. You will be amazed how much water that will not be present to run down and leave water marks after you think you are finished. Joe [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
PS: I have no affiliation with Griot.

[JP]

I'm completely anal when it comes to cleaning cars.

Once I get my MDA I already have a plan.

1) I don't use sponges. They hold dirt and grit. I use flannels, and wash them after cleaning my cars(what a tossa!). I would try and block nearly all the vents, air intakes etc. with towels.

2) For a GT40 I would use a large towl for the front clip and a large towel for the rear clip. Soak them in a purpose made car wash. Zymol or Swissol. Leave it on the front to moisten insects etc. Then after leaving to soak I would use the flannel to remove the dead insects etc.

3) I'll repeat the process all over the bodywork.

4) Rinse using a hose, I certainly wouldn't go near a 40 with a power hose!

5) Chamois dry.

6) Pre-treat using Swissol paint feed. Smells bloody nice! Reminds me rubbing some sun tan oil into a fine lady! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

7) Next use a bloody good wax. Swissol and Zymol make some really good ones. The difference is amazing compared to polishes like Autoglym etc.

8) From what I can make out Zymol and Swissol make products that acutually feed the paint. I used these type of products for over a year now and I'm impressed.

9) Admire with Vodka and Tonic. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

[Rick Chattell]

That's total Bollocks JP.

You need to enjoy with a pint of Bishop's Finger (washed down with a small Malt)

Oh yes, and then another one [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Julian West]

I lick mine clean every night. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Rick Chattell]

Do you sleep with it then Julian?

[JP]

[ QUOTE ]
You need to enjoy with a pint of Bishop's Finger (washed down with a small Malt)

Oh yes, and then another one [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

Better still have another 10 pints and then just piss on the bastard thing! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Rick Chattell]

[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] Yeah, as long as you blow it out with an air-hose!

[Tony Hunt]

Thanks Bill, Peter, Joseph & JP for your thoughts - all very useful - unfortunately I don't have compressed air otherwise that would probably be my preferred way of drying the car.
A couple of specific points:
1. Front Clip Wash the car's face with the clip down. Get the squashed flies off with a very weak vinegar solution, then rinse off with lots of water and a little detergent to make sure the area is properly wetted and the vinegar rinsed away. Then lift the clip and wash the rest of it.
2. Windscreen Most of the water gets into the box below the steering rack, also onto the carpets just behind the A post, from running down the windscreen and then not really having anywhere to go. So wash it very sparingly; use a proprietary window cleaner and polish off instead.
3. Rear Clip As for front clip. Wash the back of the car, which seems to get a lot of soot and exhaust dust all over it, with the clip down. Then lift it and wash the rest. To get into the rear deck under the window, stand on the rear tyre and, with one foot on the cross member supporting the exhausts you can get over the top to do the plenum chamber and the underside of the rear window.
These little tricks have helped a lot to cut down the amount of slosh, but even still it has taken up to 4 hours to get the car really clean.
I think I'll try Julian's method of licking the car clean next!

[JOSEPH]

Hey Tony,
Don't forget about the silicone glue it will stop almost all of the leaks. Oh, about the soot problem. Take a closer look at the back of your 40 and make very sure that your exhaust pipes are protruding at least 2" out of the back clip so all the soot is ejected out the back.Then the guy in the car behind you can figure out how to clean the soot off. Or you may need a tune up, you should have flames coming out the back not soot. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]
A small portable electric air compressor costs about $100 here in the US.
Joe

[gt40rick]

Personally I think that the best way to clean your car is to let one of the young girls at the track wash it down with their terry cloth shirt while you and the guys relax and watch her. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Peter D]

Rick, you just took 1st Prize - mind you, telling the wife that you are just going out for a couple hours to wash the '40 may have life-threatening consequences !!

Kind Regards,

Peter D.

[Mark Worthington]

[ QUOTE ]
Personally I think that the best way to clean your car is to let one of the young girls at the track wash it down with their terry cloth shirt while you and the guys relax and watch her. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]



Spike heels. It's very important that the women wear spike heels when they wash your GT40 with their terrycloth shirts.

[Malcolm]

Well humbug to all the time consuming faffing above.... I wash my 40 much more than my daily driver but in the manner you guys say you would wash your daily driver! I hose it all over and have been doing so for 12 years. I have two extra drain holes in the floorpan behind each fuel tank and only ensure I don't hose the carb! I am surprised you have trouble with your MSD taking in water, mine is quite tolerant.

My car leaks as much as everyone elses but the carpets have only worn out and not rotted out. They vacuum up as good as new allowing for the wear and tear. The leather seats are not too keen on the damp, but have taken it quite well overall. About once every two years I give them a leather treatment. I do wipe them dry with the chamois each time.

I give the car a polish maybe once or twice a year and then just use a normal wash and wax additive to my bucket.

If you use WD40 or similar on cleaning your engine bay that is a natural water repellant and I find it good for the ali panelling. No mirror finish for me thank you! Gives a nice historic patina too.

My car gets a clean before each competitive weekend so I guess up to 12 times a year.

I do have concours trophies for the car but have more competition trophies by far, so you can guess where my priorities lie! Don't spend all your time polishing the damn thing, drive it!

[Malcolm]

Oh and just remember how much you spent on the paint job. If you polish too much (also depends on polish) you can wear through paint on certain points on the body shell just because you put more pressure in those spots without thinking. Main cuplrit here is air intakes on sides of rear clip. Thats when I decided I was polishing way too much!

[Pete.]

How badly do they leak when you drive in the rain?? [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif[/img]

[40 Bud]

Hey Rick, do you get it blow dried when you are finished?

[40 Bud]

I dust the car with a regular car duster if the car isn't to muddy then I use a very wet terry towel from a bucket of water to loosen the dirt, followed by a second cleaning using a wet towel form the bucket. Follow this up with a couple of wipe downs