How to Car Detail Like a Pro

Detailing your car is a great way to keep it looking its best. Not only does it make your car look nicer, but it can also help protect the paint and increase its resale value. Professional car detailing services can be expensive, but you can easily do it yourself at home for a fraction of the cost.

In this blog post, we will walk you through the basics of car care and show you how to do it like a pro!

What Does Detailing a Car Involve?

Car detailing involves thorough and meticulous cleaning of the interior and exterior of a car. Vehicle washing is an important step in car detailing because it helps remove dirt, grime, and other debris from the vehicle’s outer surface. Car cleaning products such as waxes and polishes are often used to help protect the finish of the car, making it look like new.

Interior car detailing involves not only cleaning upholstery and carpets but also making sure all surfaces are free of dust and grime. This may also include applying leather conditioner to prevent any discolouration or cracking. Car detailing is a great way to make sure your car looks its best and can even help you maintain the value of the vehicle.

What is Needed for Car Detailing?

Car detailing requires cleaning products such as soaps and waxes, as well as specialised tools such as cleaning brushes, cloths, and vacuum cleaners.

Here are some suggestions for both the exterior and interior.

Exterior:

• Jet Wash – we recommend a Karcher instead of a hose pipe as these can get tougher dirt off cars easier.
• Jet Wash Accessories: Snow foam lance that can fit your Jet Wash. Snow foam solution to loosen up the dirt in areas mitts might not reach – we recommend Meguiars. Soft detailing brush.
• Pre-wash Solution (not a must but can help remove grime from the road).
• 3 buckets – accompany with grit guards, mitts and sponges (use only for the wheels).
• Fallout remover.
• Rinse aid.
• Plush towel for drying – we recommend Auto Finesse.
• Car Wax – for quickness, we recommend Meguiars quick wax.
• Glass cleaner solution and glass cloth.
• Wheel dressing (can accompany with a tyre dressing application but a clean sponge/brush can work just as well) to get a great tyre shine.
• Metal polish for exhaust – we recommend Autosol.

Quick Run Through:

• Use the pressure washer to spray water over the car and clean the wheels, arches, and under the bonnet first.
• Work with one of the three buckets for your wheels. Use a separate sponge/mitt for this one that touches wheels only and a wheel brush to get in the hard-to-reach bits.
• Apply pre-wash solution.
• Rinse off.
• Apply snow foam.
• Wash using the 2-bucket wash method: you have a rinse bucket and a wash bucket – hot water ideally but not necessary. The dirty mitt that’s just been on the car has to see the rinse bucket before going back into the soap so you’re not washing your car with grit and dirt.
• Rinse off snow foam.
• Apply Fallout solution and agitate with a mitt.
• Rinse off the solution.
• Dry with a plush towel.
• Apply car wax.
• Use a glass cloth and a glass cleaning solution on both sides of the windows ideally for a better finish.
• Finishing touches with wheel tyre dressing and metal polish for the exhaust.

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Interior:

• Hoover with a thin-end nozzle for getting in tight places – we recommend a multi-purpose one that can be used as a wet vacuum.
• 2 stick brushes for agitating dust.
• Carpet brush to remove dirt from footwells.
• Microfibre towels.
• An all-purpose interior cleaner or purpose-built interior cleaner – we recommend Meguiars.
• A leather brush or magic sponge for the steering wheel and leather seats – accompany with a leather cleaner if you have a leather interior.
• Glass cleaner and glass cloth.

Quick Run Through:

• Remove any litter that will get stuck inside the hoover and nozzle.
• Work from the top and make your way down: start by hoovering the dashboard and move down to the floor carpets and floor mats. Not forgetting the places we don’t see – under the steering wheel, indicator, etc.
• Focus on the seats: hoover the seats and within the seams – pull them apart if possible. Move seats forwards and backwards to get to every part of the interior.
• Use a stick brush or carpet/leather brush (depending on the material) to agitate dirt and dust and hoover again.
• Repeat on the back seats.
• Hoover around the rest of the car: door pockets, centre console areas.
• Use your all-purpose interior cleaner and work downwards again (not forgetting your mirrors and the roof lining).
• Spray on the dashboard, and agitate with a stick brush. If you are using a wet vac hoover combined, then use it to suck up the excess product and wipe off the rest.
• Repeat the same method for the rest of the car but be sure to keep an eye on the state of your cloth as you may need to change it.
• For a leather steering wheel, spray the solution onto a leather brush/magic sponge and rub it against the wheel. It will be clean when the leather has a matte finish. Be sure not to press too hard or it will burn/rip the leather. This tip is the same for any other leather features within the car, such as seats.
• Finish off the interior using your glass cleaner and cloth to clean the windows.

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What Are Some Tips and Tricks for Car Detailing?

• If you opt to use a fallout remover to remove all other bits that still may be on the car, keep this wet or avoid direct sun.
• A good wheel cleaner can benefit you too but nothing acidic as this can strip your paint.
• When drying your car, don’t let the towel touch the floor. The tip is to fold it into four or in half and use two hands, one at the top ensuring it doesn’t fall, slip and one doing the movement.
• A head torch or any kind of torch – this isn’t vital but it can help remove as much dirt as possible by improving visibility such as under the steering wheel.
• If you’re doing it on a shiny black surface, then be sure to use a finer or softer brush as some will scratch it. AND don’t hit the hoover head on it!
• Floor carpets probably will not need wetting. If you have spilt anything such as milk, this would need a specialist detailer to clean and decontaminate the area.
• When cleaning your windows, lower the windows if they have frames. This means you’ll never miss the tops and they will look better. Use same product to clean interior mirrors and glass.
• Add an air freshener or odour remover for that extra added clean feeling.

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Ready for a clean car? Get yourself out in the sun and have some fun with it! Don’t forget to check out Car Accessories Plus too, which has a wide range of car detailing accessories.