One of the drawbacks to cloth towels is their limited ability to soak up water. Esp if you're good about waxing, a lot of water will bead up on your car. You can soak 2-3 dish towel-sized rags just wiping the roof!

To address this, I like to use a squeegee - not to dry the car - but to wipe most of the water off before doing a more thorough job with a towel. I found a pretty neat squeegee that has a very soft gel blade. It forms to the shape of the car with very little pressure and doesn't retain any grit.

I personally have found it worthwhile to spend a little more money on the terry cloth. Cheaper brands leave some fuzz no matter how often you wash or shake them out. I've been meaning to try microfiber, so was glad to see the suggestion below.