Your first battle scars
Written by Fred Ginsburg
The world wants to know. Are you a poseur or an offroader?
Buffing out the desert pin striping.
There are two mindsets when it comes to owning a jeep (or other rugged looking 4x4).
Some folks want to show off their beautiful, shiny, spotless status symbol to impress onlookers. They originally considered driving around in a sleek sports car, but felt that the outdoorsman theme was more suited. Urban adventurer and all that stuff. So they got themselves a 4x4 SUV, jazzed it up with some cool looking offroad accessories, and set off to conquer their workplace parking lots and local malls. 20-inch fancy wheels (rims) with skinny sidewall tires are a dead give-away!
The rest of us went into auto loan debt to actually venture off the paved highways and seek out natural splendor. If we only wanted practical transportation around town during less than ideal road conditions – we’d be driving reliable Subaru’s! (full disclosure: my wife and I do own a Subie as our daily driver, and it handles wet & snowy roads with aplomb)
As much as I enjoy my Subie Wilderness, it doesn’t even come close in offroad capability to our Wrangler. Our jeep can tackle hills and obstacles in its sleep that would totally overwhelm the Subie (which ranks best in its class for AWD). Different cars, different purposes.
When I composed our club’s waivers during my leadership, I included the following warning:
There is always some uncertainty when you go off-roading, because of weather, ever changing road conditions, natural obstacles (rocks, ruts, sand, etc.), fragility of your vehicle, and your driving skills. Cactus and other shrubs will scratch your paint; nasty pointed stones might threaten your tires; and the skid plates beneath your Jeep will earn their keep!
We strive our best to keep the runs safe , but trail runs are not theme park rides. They are 4x4 off-road adventures. And with any true adventure, there is always some degree of risk. You and your passengers participate in all of our club events AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Yes. When you drive offroad, more likely than not, you will sustain some paint scratches from roadside bushes (affectionately known as desert or shrub pin striping). Your fancy wheels (rims) will get scuffed. Other minor cosmetic blemishes are also possible.
That, however, is what comes from true offroading. Mother Nature constantly tries to pet you, and that will create blemishes in what used to be showroom finish.
Your first instinct is to rush out and get a tin of scratch removal polish (which is just clear car wax with a dab of clear-coat protectant), or to rush straight to the body shop. OMG, what will people think when they see all those itsy bitsy scratches!
Relax. What they will think is that you are the real deal. That you did not buy this jeep or 4x4 to look cool, but because you ARE cool. You are authentic.
Our (then) “new” Jeep Sahara used to be Gaye’s daily driver. After retiring, we transformed it into an offroad worthy rig.
I confess, it did take my wife a while to accept that her prized jeep (which used to be her daily driver before she retired) was no longer virgin. She anticipated “scorn” from her coworkers for being behind the wheel of a less than pristine vehicle, but soon realized that the parking lot attention was actually ADMIRATION.
“You did what over the weekend? Show us the pix. You mean you actually drove up that dirt mountain; not your husband? Was it scarey?”
Those battle scars signify that you have taken your vehicle out adventuring. Wear them with pride, not shame. They tell passers-by that this is an authentic offroad vehicle, and not a wanna be or imposter.
It’s okay to use car wax and scratch removal polish to minimize the scratches. But don’t fret when they don’t disappear completely; and they won’t. They may not call attention to themselves at a distance, but they will be visible under close scrutiny. So what?
Save that trip to the professional body detailer for when you are ready to sell or trade-in. Until then, just do what you can, and accept a little trail damage.
It adds character and veracity to your ride.
What about dirt and mud?
There are split opinions as to whether or not to wash & detail your rig after a good dousing of dust or mud from a rugged trail. Many jeepers savor the stares and can feel the wonderment from pedestrians & other drivers about the mysterious origins of all that spatter.
I confess. After a long trail run during jeep jamborees, it felt boastful to rest our filthy beast amongst the groomed civilian sedans in the hotel parking lot.
However, that was only for a couple of nights. At the conclusion of our trail events, we did power wash that coated on crud. My wife and I are of the belief that a clean machine runs better than a dirty one. Dirt and mud lead to corrosion, as well as mask leaks or damage. We clean our guns after a day at the range. We shower after a workout…
So, to us, it only makes good sense to keep our jeep well groomed while awaiting trail runs.
When you do wash your jeep, make sure to rinse the dirt, mud, and salt off of the undercarriage.
If your vehicle is fairly streamline, meaning no aftermarket bracketry that might jam up those automated rolling brushes – you should be able to use a drive-thru car wash. Be forewarned: some drive-thru’s will ask you to hose off the excess mud before entering their wash tunnel.
We subscribed to a local drive-thru for over a year, and got our money’s worth out of that unlimited monthly car wash subscription. However, after adding side brackets to mount running boards and fuel tanks, we could no longer utilize automated drive-thru’s on account of the rollers catching on our accessories. Those high school kids working the line sure miss us (they adored brushing our jeep).
Manual power washes turned out to be better. They run only a fraction of the cost. And they do a much better job of removing caked mud from nooks & crannies. Don’t cheap out… do the soap pre-wash, brush, hi power soap, hi power rinse, clear-coat, and the final anti-spot finishing rinse. Those steps may take a little longer, but the results are worth it.
“To add rich black shine to your tires after a wash, spray them with a diluted solution of glycerin + water. The glycerin restores and hydrates the tire sidewalls, better than commercial auto-store sprays, and for way less expense.”
