My vehicle is CAKED in hardened mud!

[BroncoTrail]

My Bronco has mud caked all over it - pretty thick in some spots too and a lot of it has hardened. It's actually worse than in this particular photo.

What are the steps that you would take, including products and chemicals, to wash this thing and make it look showroom fresh again? And what's the best way to wash the undercarriage?

I have a ceramic coat on it so I'm sure some steps would not be necessary, such as clay bar, polish, etc.

Could leaving mud on it for a long period of time (how long?) cause any damage to the ceramic coat or paint?


Thanks!

 

[Smileyshaun]

May sound silly but put a sprinkler under and just move it every couple of minutes, does a good job of getting things loosened up . Also wash it after you’re done Whelan you’re gonna find that you’re gonna have mud stuck in that thing probably as long as you own it because it always seems to work its way into every little nook and cranny you can’t get to.

 

[the_great_white]

I was about to suggest the sprinkler method as well

 

[OTH Overland]

If you are lucky enough to fit in one of the touchless car washes with an undercarriage wash feature that can knock a lot of crud off the bottom of the rig. Have also used one of the garden tractor style lawn sprinklers with the spray arms turned upside down. lay the hose under the center line of the rig front to back and the sprinkler drives under and comes out the back. put it in the slow gear and it does a pretty good job. When done washing is a great time to do a quick inspection of your rig for loose fasteners or any damaged parts from your adventure

 

[pl626]

If you are lucky enough to fit in one of the touchless car washes with an undercarriage wash feature that can knock a lot of crud off the bottom of the rig. Have also used one of the garden tractor style lawn sprinklers with the spray arms turned upside down. lay the hose under the center line of the rig front to back and the sprinkler drives under and comes out the back. put it in the slow gear and it does a pretty good job. When done washing is a great time to do a quick inspection of your rig for loose fasteners or any damaged parts from your adventure

LOL - I've been turned away from those before. They said I had too much mud and it would clog their drains...

DIY with a pressure washer (<1500PSI) and undercarriage attachment is probably best. The key is to do it as soon as you can, don't let it sit for an extended period.

 

[OTH Overland]

LOL - I've been turned away from those before. They said I had too much mud and it would clog their drains...

DIY with a pressure washer (<1500PSI) and undercarriage attachment is probably best. The key is to do it as soon as you can, don't let it sit for an extended period.

We have an automated brushless wash near us and it has not complained yet..lol only bad thing is only our WJ will fit thru, the JK and Ram are both too tall. Had not seen the pressure washer undercarriage attachment before, a quick google search and I have now added it to my shopping list, similar to my tractor sprinkler but on steroids! Thank you for that Idea, that will be great since I have 3 rigs to wash and perfect before pulling a rig in the shop to work under.

 

[smritte]

May sound silly but put a sprinkler under

^^^^^^^^^This^^^^^^^^^.
I put one of the small "twirly" sprinklers underneath. I have had to run one several hours to clean. I normally only have to move it once or twice depending on size of vehicle.

Be happy the mud isn't high alkali. We have some areas out here like that. Everything underneath will rust fast and it will eat through thinner layers of paint.

 

[Red_Leaf_Overland]

Lol been there! Sprinkler works well to loosen stuff up or spend $50 at a car wash and try to get into all the nooks and crannys the best you can .... you will be finding mud in random places for a loooooong time lol

 

[MazeVX]

Get a decent pressure washer with good pressure AND water volume, pressure says how easy it is and volume how fast it will remove the masses of crap. Undercarriage cleaner are relatively cheap available at eBay or Amazon and work really well.
How long or hard it is doesn't really matter much in my experience, the silt will stay on your paint anyway.
I use a special cleaner from the dirtbike world (pow) to help with that, mixed 50/50 with car foam, foam it up (foam gun) rinse it off again with the pressure washer followed by a classic hand wash. Looks like a a different car after that.
There are a couple of spray waxes/sealants on SiO2 base that work really well with reducing the the "stickiness" of the paint.
I recommend checking some detailers on YouTube like "detail geek" (how to clean) and maybe "ammo NYC" (care and protect) maybe some others as well.

If I have some more ideas I will just edit this post ;-)