The temperature here is staying consistently around 32 or below this week and I got all this salt on my 8 :-(. How long before I risk messing up the paint? I hate winters.. Should I just bite the bullet and wash it in freezing temps anyway?

 

Take it to a shop and get it detailed if your so really worried...
Whats your location?

 

ohio, near columbus

 

buy a winter beater!!! but the salt will have to take a few winters before u start to see it cause rust and eat at the paint I would take it through the auto washer and then through the dryer and should get it all off! but like i said before winter beaters are ideal when driving the 8 in a northern state...that's what i did when living in the NOrth

 

I'm moving to socal next year. thanks for the tips though, I may autowash it tommorrow even though its gonna snow :-/

 

$8 car wash every week or two is what i'm doing right now to get through this NE winter.

 

yeah ur almost through the winter just auto wash every couple weeks or every week and u should b good

 

almost through the winter?

man you just dont know staying down there in FL.

winters are getting weird. last few years the winter has been starting later and later. i cant remember a time i had snow in december. last year winter was from jan-march.

up north they still get snow, but its still getting later every year. so odd.

 

OP, You hate salt ? more like you hate snow.

Last night I just crash my car at 5 mph. With snow tires and stuff. car just wont stop when Im going down a slight downhill near my garage. I just watch my car slide into a curb. my front left bumper's paint is totally fucked. Sheesh.

global warming anyone ?

Ahh, really gotta look for a new bumper.

 

Touchless car wash is the only way to go if you have to do it. Be sure to get the undercarriage clean option because it'll show signs of rust there first.

Must see video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZjWkB_q2lE

Otherwise, as long as you have a good amount of quality polish/wax on the exterior it should be fine.

FYI - A brand new car will start to show rust under it even after 5 months of salt ridden roads.

 

Should this thread be here? https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-show-shine-26/

 

My '8 hasn't been out on the roads in over a month now, thanks to a major snowfall every week and therefore the ludicrous volume of sand & salt spread these days (good thing I've got it on a Battery Tender).

As others have said, the touchless carwash with an undercarriage spray is the best you can do if you must daily drive the '8 in winter snow condiitons - the type they have at many Mobil and Shell stations. They do recycle/filter the wash water, but the final spray is virgin deionized (or so they claim).

Keep a good coat of wax on the paint, as difficult as that can be this time of year.

Again, the undercarriage spray is critical.

 

i'm a fellow ohio reident and i drive my 88 F-150 when the city is using road salt or the roads are wet and i know that salt has been applied to the road recently. remember that if you wash the car and dont get the salt off, it can accelerate the degredation process. i suggest frequent washing if you are driving your 8 in the snow. i try to keep mine as clean as possible but black shows every little dirt particle.

if you have rear aero flares or side aero flares or even front or rear splash guards, you will want to remove them at least once a month and clean underneath them as the road salt can get trapped behind there and you'll never see it. then in a few years your 8 will start to rot.. and heaven help you if you have any paint chips...

 

I garaged mine in October (when my insurance expired) for the winter and I am sharing a car with my girlfriend. I typically buy a beater every year during winter.

 

winter beaters ftw! my 8 is high, dry and salt free in storage :D

starting around august start hitting police and impound auctions.. can pick up a decent winter beater for a fraction of what 3rd party sellers sell them for since they dont care about making much more than that of towing and impound fees.

 

Now if only my garage was heated, I could actually finish the stuff Im working on. Its too damn cold (-10 degrees). SOrry, random rant/ thread jack.

 

^^i have one and a half car finished garage and heat it with a 60,000 btu heater. its more than enough. its a multifuel heater and i paid $199.99 from home depot. its a ready heater brand.

 

It use to be 3 years but now they last 5 years before you see alot of impact.

This also depends upon where you live.

 

yea mine is an unfinished 1 car garage/ storage unit seperate from my apartment complex.

 

Haha!!!!! I know what winter is I have lived about 45min to an hour south of Lake Erie (aka Snow Belt) all my life till this past may! I know what winters are like one day 1 inch of snow then get 36inches overnight! I've seen it....and it's january so only about 4 months left of winter and about 2 or 3 of bad stuff after that it's stuff that melts during the day!

 

dude your gonna love the weather out here...no worries with all that salt crap...its 85 degrees out side right now...with the sun out, looks like a summer day

 

I like salt especially on my eggs...............

 

Do you also like salty mayonaise?

 

No..............

 

^haha i like salt on myeggs too!!!!