Tips On Detailing A Car - Exterior

Tips on detailing a car can help you protect your investment and keep it looking like new. After a house, purchasing a vehicle is most people's second largest purchase. It only makes sense that you would want to care for and protect your investment.

And, thoroughly detailing your car, truck or SUV a few times a year will help you do just that.

Follow these basic tips on detailing a car to keep it sparkling like new and hold its value.

Exterior
Begin by parking the car somewhere out of the direct heat and sunlight. Find a nice, cool, shady spot to prevent baking any car cleaning products into the paints surface. Baked on soaps and waxes can be hard to remove and could cause permanent damage to your car's paint job.

Next, wash the car. Start by simply rinsing the car with the garden hose. Avoid using a nozzle that forces the water from the hose. A slow, steady rinse will gently remove unwanted dust, dirt and debris from the car's surface.

Before washing the car, spray the wheels down with a wheel cleaner designed to break through brake dust, tar and other grime that the wheels pick up. Let this soak on your wheels as you wash the car.

Next, use a "soap" that is designed specifically for washing automobiles. Never use dish soaps, laundry detergents or cleaners designed for the bathroom. These types of cleaners include ingredients that are made to remove grease and oils and some contain bleaches. These types of cleaners can strip off the clear coating from the manufacturer's paint job, and may even leave stains.

Use soft terry-cloth towels, 100 % cotton or a lamb's wool mitt to scrub the car from top to bottom. It is a good idea to break the car down in sections, wash it and then rinse to avoid getting soap stains dried on that can be harder to remove later.

Once you have completely washed and rinsed the vehicle, use a scrub brush to clean the wheels, one at a time and rinsing after each wheel is complete. Most likely this will be the dirtiest part of your car.

Now that the wheels are clean, completely rinse the car down one last time. Now, use a terry cloth bath towel or better yet, a chamois to thoroughly dry the car. Depending on the weather conditions, this may need to be broken down in stages also.

Now that the car is shiny and clean, it is time to protect its paint job.

A quality carnauba-based wax will give you the best protection against the elements. Use the small foam pad to make circular, over-lapping patterns to apply the wax to your car's finish. Do this in section also.

Leave the wax on for approximately 5 minutes and then use a terry cloth rag to remove the wax. Use one side of the rag to remove the initial goop and then the other side to make it shine like new.