Best Pressure Washers for Car Detailing UK (Reviews) 2022

Cleaning your car with water is essential, but using a pressure washer is, without doubt, the easiest and most effective way of giving it a wash down. Pressure washers should be part of your detailing process for your car, providing you have the budget to do so. There are cheaper alternatives out there, such as using a standard hose pipe or manually running over the car with a bucket, but these aren’t nearly as effective.

Pressure washers simply attach to a hose connection for a water supply, but also need a power supply depending on the type of model you buy. You can also attach a lance easily to your pressure washer if you want to use some snow solution as part of your wash for a more thorough pre-clean.

Best Pressure Washers for Car Valeting in the UK Reviewed

#1. Bosch EasyAquatak 120

Bosch isn’t an alien brand in the UK, and are known for producing quality. This washer is a great portable option that also guarantees a high-pressure wash for your car. A lot of portable options lack the power needed to give a powerful clean and generally give a bit of a weaker wash, not the Bosch EasyAquatek.

There are 3 EasyAquatak models to choose from, the 100, 100 and 120. In this review, we have selected the 120 bar model.

The washer itself has a max flow rate of 350 l/h, motor power of 1500 watts and a hose length of 5 metres.

It’s a well designed, reliable model backed by a reliable brand and won’t break down on you. The purchase also comes with a range of different nozzles for different cleaning tasks.

The best thing about this pressure washer is the design and how light it is to carry around while still providing a powerful jet.

If you’re a professional detailer, need to jet down a lot of cars or clean other things outside without having the stress of moving a heavy pressure washer around, then this should be your choice.

Pros

• Portable, lightweight design for moving around with
• Reliable investment
• Decent power for such a minimalist design
• Reasonably priced

Cons

• It won’t provide the power of bigger pressure washers due to its size

#2. Wilks-USA RX510

An absolute powerhouse of a washer comes from USA Wilks who are all about designing quality pressure washers and accessories for them. The power of this model is what makes it onto the list as it is clearly designed to put out a high-pressure jet of water for a tough clean.

The RX510 has the impressive specification of a 1950 PSI, a max Bar of 135, 1800 watt motor, 450 l/h flow rate and a 5-metre cable.

It is heavier than our number 1 pick and isn’t as portable coming in at 8.2kg, though it is still a reasonably light weight for a bigger pressure washer model. It is still designed to be compact and portable, though isn’t as easy to carry around as the Bosch model.

Because Wilks have heavily invested in the pressure washer game, you can be sure that they know what they’re doing when it comes to designed durable, well-designed cleaners, and this is no different. You’re backed by a 24 month warranty and free support phone line if anything does go wrong.

There are some extra accessories included with this purchase – 5 nozzles, patio cleaner, detachable rotary driven brush, 450ml detergent bottle that can be used for snow foam and a 5M hose.

Overall a powerful washer that’s built by people who know a thing or two about pressure washers, with everything you need for a car clean included in the purchase.

Pros

• Powerful clean
• Lots of great accessories included such as a snow foam lance
• Portable design
• 24 month guarantee and telephone support line backed by a great brand
• Durable

Cons

• Slightly more expensive, though worth it and comes with lots of accessories
• A little heavier than other brands, but still light enough to move around frequently

#3. WORX WG625E

This is our best pick for portability as it has a cordless design and doesn’t have to be plugged into a power outlet to work. There’s also no pressure washer machine as such that you need to move around with you.

There are a few different models in the WORX Hydroshot range, we have selected the 20V single pressure model as our choice.

You don’t need to have bulky cables trailing around when you use this pressure washer on a car, as it sports a 20V MAX Li-ion battery, just like you would have with a cordless drill. A full charge should provide you with 30 minutes of continuous runtime.

It also doesn’t require you to buy a standard garden hose to attach it as a narrow, non-bulky hose is provided.

It has a built-in adjustable nozzle that has 5 settings to choose from – 0°, 25°, 40°, shower and a mist setting.

The power itself isn’t as strong as some of the other model’s PSI and Bar outputs as a lot of power has been sacrificed for portability with the Hydroshot 625E.

Overall if you’re looking for something that you can jet a lot of cars or vehicles with quickly without worrying about moving cables around and are happy with a little less power than your typical pressure washer, then you should consider this. If you want a balance between power and portability, check out the #1 pick on the list from Bosch.

Pros

• Best for portability
• Doesn’t require a power source being cordless
• Reasonable price
• Built-in adjustable settings
• Durable design

Cons

• Not as high-powered as other picks
• Battery life could be better

#4. Kärcher K4 Full Control

A pressure washer list wouldn’t be complete without including something from the well-known manufacturer Kärcher. Kärcher is dedicated to manufacturing quality cleaning products and have a long line of pressure washers. Our selection from them for detailing your car is the K4 Full Control stand-alone model.

This is a well-rounded pressure washer that has everything you need for any wash attached to it. Although it is one of the heavier models, it has a solid handle that allows you to transport the machine and everything else about like luggage.

There are only 2 lances provided with the purchase – Vario and Dirt Blaster, however, they can both be adjusted in conjunction with the smart LED screen on the trigger gun to switch through the pressures easily. Thanks to this, there’s no need to have hundreds of attachments with this machine.

It has a good specification of 130 max bar, a flow rate of 420 l/h, 6 metre cable and weighs in at 11.4kg. The only thing that stands out as being a slight negative is the weight, but it is still easy to transport around as mentioned above.

Everything you need for different car cleans is included in the purchase, except a snow foam lance, which will need to be purchased separately if it’s part of your car detailing process. The purchase includes: The  Karcher K4 Full Control Pressure Washer unit, Vario spray lance , Dirt Blaster spray lance and x2 AAA Batteries.

Overall this is one of the more expensive options out there, but the great thing about it is that it has everything you need attached to it and doesn’t require lots of accessories to be bought on top of the purchase. It’s perfect for transporting, storing, changing jets on the spot, is convenient all round and has good specs.

Pros

• Designed to last a long time, backed  by a 3 year warranty
• Everything you need attachment wise provided, except a snow foam lance
• Very convenient
• Good, powerful jet
• Nice long hose cable

Cons

• Expensive
• Heavier than other models, though still easy to transport
• Quality control issues

#5. VonHaus 1600W

This is our top budget pressure washer pick for detailing cars. VonHaus do a bit of everything when it comes to the home and outdoor garden, with a massive range of power tools and cleaners that combine quality with affordability. This is a great little, compact pressure washer that has everything going for it at a great price.

It’s one of the smaller machines, measuring in at L31 X W24 X H45 cm and weighing 5.83kg. It has a nice handle on it for being carried around, although it is slightly heavier than you would expect for being such a small built machine. 

It’s quite a basic no thrills washer that doesn’t use lots of attachments, with the nozzle being fully adjustable for a change of either softer or harder pressure sprays.

The spec of the machine itself is a max pressure bar of 135, flow rate of 5.5 l/m, 1600W motor and a cable length of 5M. This is a good specification for a lower-priced machine and can compete with the specs of much higher priced, larger models.

Everything is included in the purchase that you need to get going and it even includes a detergent bottle attachment that can be used as a snow foam lance if you.

You can also see from other reviewers and consumers that the VonHaus pressure washer is made with quality and has a lot of satisfied users that describe it as reliable. VonHaus although they have produced something that’s cheap, it isn’t low on quality and is backed by a 2 year guarantee.

Overall a great pick for the money, is compact and easy to chuck in your car, store away etc. Although, it is slighter heavier than what you would expect from a smaller machine. The specs are good and doesn’t require lots of accessories to be bought. If you’re looking for something simple and straight-forward at washing your car at an affordable price, this should be your choice.

Pros

• Great price
• Simple, straight-forward use
• Compact and small
• Good specs
• Reliable, backed by a 2 year warranty

Cons

• Heavy for size
• Does not have a lot of adjustable settings for different cleans

Pressure Washer for Car Detailers Buying Considerations

Type

There are two types of pressure washers to choose from – electric or petrol.

Electric is the most commonly used amongst detailers as they are generally cheaper, have enough power to give a car a thorough clean, cheap to run and simple to use. Simply plug your electric pressure washer into a water supply with the hose and plug it in at a mains socket.

Petrol pressure washers are more powerful and give a much stronger jet, which may be overkill for most car detailers. They are more portable due to their lack of power cables, however, require a constant supply of fuel to keep running.

Pressure – PSI and Bar

Simply put, the higher the PSI and max bar a model has, the stronger the pressure of water it puts out. Cars can be one of the toughest things to get stubborn dirt and other nasty stuff out of, so generally, we would recommend looking at something with a higher PSI and max bar.

Flow Rate

Flow rate is also very important as it is a measurement of the rate at which the water is output through the hose. The higher the flow rate, the more water that you get through your spray gun. A good flow rate is important when washing cars as although you want a thorough clean, getting the job done faster than using a standard hose is the reason you’re probably using a pressure washer.

Accessories and Attachments

You’ll want to check if you have to purchase different accessories or attachments for your chosen model as this could run the cost up considerably.

Most machines have all the accessories and attachments provided or even built-in, but some may need extra purchases such as different nozzles if you’re looking for different jetting pressures and styles.

Snow Foam Lance

Snow foam lances attach to most pressure washers so that you can use some snow shampoo as part of your detailing process for an extra tough clean. Some pressure washer purchases come with these bottles as part of the purchase, but in most cases, you’ll probably have to buy one separately. If your purchase does not come with one, then a good snow foam lance that’s designed especially for cars can be purchased relatively cheap.

Cable Lengths

If you do decide to use an electric-powered model, then unless you’ve bought a portable machine or a petrol-powered unit, you’ll have a power cable that you’ll need to run to a mains to power up the washer.

A typical cable length for these cleaners is 5 metres. If that’s not enough for the car washing jobs you want to use it for, consider purchasing an extension cord or even going for a portable, cordless option.

You still obviously have to run a water hose into the pressure washer to supply water to the gun, so make sure that the built-in hose provided can stretch far enough for the job.

The Final Word

Pressure washers are a big investment for car washing, with a lot of things that need consideration. We’ve narrowed things down to 5 of the best pressure washers for car detailing in the UK, with the most important things that you should consider for specifically washing a car. A good spec unit that has decent pressure, is easy to move around, has everything included in the purchase, is backed by a reliable brand and is reasonably priced, covers the main basis for choosing one.