The only reason to use foaming car wash is as a pre treatment before a 2 bucket hand wash. It's just to help get dirt off and prep the paint before you hand wash. I would never just foam, rinse and be done. My method is foam, rinse, foam, 2 bucket wash, rinse, dry. I've tried a bunch and Adam's car shampoo is my go to.

A good pressure washer with a proper gun makes a huge difference in how the foam performs. Those sprayers that just attach to the garden hose are largely junk.

 

Totally agree, foam alone doesn’t cut it. I use it the same way: foam, rinse, foam again, then 2 bucket wash, rinse and dry. It really helps reduce the risk of swirls. I’ve used Adam’s too, great stuff. Recently grabbed a new foam cannon setup and some detailing supplies off autoplicity. Prices were solid and shipping was quick. A proper pressure washer with quality soap really makes a noticeable difference.

 

A little off-topic, but you mentioned pressure washer... what to do about hard water and water spotting. Will an inline water filter for an RV hookup do the trick to reduce water spotting?