| With winter just a stone's throw away and fall in full | | | | material. That's all I want to place on my car, otherwise |
| season, we're looking at what could be some very | | | | it wouldn't be worth the investment. |
| harsh weather conditions in the end of 2008 and into | | | | I went with a fabric with several durable qualities, |
| 2009. I'm not a weather man like Bill Murray was in | | | | here's what it offers: |
| Groundhog Day.... However, whether you're in the | | | | The high-strength, polyester base fabric is naturally |
| mid-west where leaf foliage is at high levels, or in the | | | | UV-resistant. To make the car cover more resistant to |
| west or east coast areas where rainfall may reach | | | | the rigors of sun exposure, UV inhibitors have been |
| extreme levels, I'm going to go over one of the easiest | | | | added to the polymers to help slow-down |
| ways to protect the exterior of your vehicle. It's as | | | | naturally-occurring degradation. |
| simple as one two three with a car cover. You'll stay | | | | * Weatherproof |
| protected at a very reasonable price, keeping your | | | | Fabric sheds water as soon as it hits the car cover, |
| precious ride in tip top shape. | | | | leaving your vehicle dry. |
| For me, the issue became apparent that I need | | | | * Superior Dry Time |
| something to protect my ride when I had bird droppings | | | | Because the car cover fabric sheds moisture, it has an |
| and tree droppings on my windshield on a weekly | | | | absorption factor of only 2%, compared with up to |
| basis. The cost to get my 350z detailed is near 50 | | | | 40% for standard woven and non-woven fabrics. That |
| bucks. I would get it washed at least twice a month to | | | | means, if the car cover has been sitting out in the rain, |
| keep it nice and shining so these costs were really | | | | just shake it out and it's practically dry. |
| adding up. It looked great, but I still had to deal with the | | | | * Breathable |
| bird spots on my windshield in between details. Let me | | | | The car cover fabric allows any heat or condensation |
| just say, I pretty much despise seagulls now :) | | | | that builds up under the cover to easily escape. |
| So what I wanted to find was a better long-term | | | | * UV-resistant |
| solution. A car cover seemed like it would require a lot | | | | Special additives in the fabric prevent UV degradation |
| of hands on work and I didn't really want to deal with | | | | while protecting your vehicle's paint and interior. |
| that on a daily basis. What I ended up finding out was | | | | * Dust-proof |
| that it took about 1 minute to put it on when I got to | | | | The car cover fabric's patented fiber encapsulation |
| work, and even less time to take it off. And I was able | | | | process prevents dust from filtering through the fabric. |
| to cut down my detailing costs to once/month. I could | | | | * Scratch-less |
| cut that back even more now but I like to to have the | | | | Polymers provide a silky smooth finish to the fabric |
| interior shined up... the Z looks great that way. | | | | and provide superior paint protection. The fabric has |
| So this leads to my overall recommendation. Since I | | | | been tested at 1,000 cycles on abrasion wheels |
| have a feeling this will be a harsh winter, I really think | | | | without scratching (surface must be clean and waxed). |
| those that spend a lot of time and money keeping their | | | | * Durable |
| car nice should get an outdoor car cover. It also helps | | | | The encapsulation process is not affected by heat or |
| protect your vehicle from those little knicks and dents | | | | cold and the process won't degrade over the life of |
| that can happen in parking lots. | | | | the car cover fabric. |
| What I found in most retail stores like Walmart were | | | | * Easy Care |
| pretty cheap covers, but I didn't just want to wrap my | | | | Unlike non-woven fabrics, you can clean most car-size |
| car in a towel. I have read that on windy days, cheap | | | | car covers in your home washer and dryer. |
| car covers have the potential to actually scratch your | | | | * Packs small and Light |
| paint when they flap in the wind. So what I looked for | | | | The car cover packs into 1/4 to 1/2 the volume of |
| was an outdoor cover that was made of high quality | | | | standard multi-layer, non-woven fabrics. |