If ever there was a video to prove that some people have more money than brains, this would be it.
According to the individual that shared this video on LiveLeak, the man wielding the pressure washer is in fact the owner of this fairly new Mercedes-Benz CLS 350 CDI. And he’s apparently totally unaware of the fact that he is inflicting potentially thousands of dollars of damage to his car.
(More after video)
Leftlane’s Car Care Corner take on this detailing no-no:
So why is taking the pressure to the interior such a bad idea? For starters, the car has carpet that is clearly not intended to have standing water on it. Because of that, water will soak through the carpet and get into the padding underneath, which in turn will hold that water virtually indefinitely.
That trapped water can lead to rust if there are any exposed or rough edges of metal, but even more likely it will cause an incredibly foul odor over time. That odor (and mold) can be difficult to purge from the vehicle and almost certainly will require complete removal of the interior carpet and seats to do properly.
Then of course there are the electronics, something obviously not in short order in a modern Mercedes-Benz. The water shot on the door panels from the inside could potentially get into wiring harnesses and create shorts, which could also be true for any wiring run along the floor.
The navigation screen and other electronics in the center of the dashboard are also definitely not intended to be soaked in water, and they could be entirely ruined if they are soaked.
The bottom line: Stick to proper products, techniques and application methods when tackling any detailing job, or potentially introduce more (costly) problems then you first set out to fix.
