Whether you pay hundreds of dollars to have your car detailed or do it yourself in your driveway or garage, auto detailing is a matter of three basic steps. It is mostly a matter of patience and common sense rather than expensive supplies or fancy techniques.
Step 1: Cleaning the interior. The interior of the vehicle should be thoroughly vacuumed using an upholstery attachment. While picking up those stray sunflower seed hulls and the crumbs left behind by the kids is obvious, it is important to go over the seat cushions and floor fabric carefully to remove tiny particles of dirt that may become ground in and, over time, contribute to the deterioration of the fibers. Then clean your cloth seats using ordinary rug shampoo, the same type used in electric carpet cleaners. (If you have leather seats, apply a leather restoring cream with a terry cloth towel.)
By the way, if you’re wondering how to remove stubborn pet hair that your car vacuum leaves behind, the easy solution is to go over the carpeting with a pair of latex gloves. The static electricity created by this process will pick up those dog and cat hairs.
While many amateurs go right for the soap bucket and the chamois to tackle the car’s exterior, the experts clean the interior first. Forbes magazine points out that it makes no sense to clean the exterior and then mess it up again by blowing on dirt and dust while cleaning the cabin.
As for cleaning your auto glass, Forbes recommends using a mixture of white vinegar and water, particularly if you have tinted windows. A recent CNN article promoted the advantages of drying in two directions: Horizontally for the interior and vertically for the exterior. “Then, when you find the inevitable streak, you’ll instantly know whether it’s on the inside (horizontal) or the outside (vertical) of the glass. You’ll get perfectly clear glass without jumping in and out of the vehicle chasing that streak.”
Step 2: The wash. So you hosed off the car and now you’re ready to get busy with your soft cloth and your bucket of soapy water. Not so fast, says CNN. They point out that the experts always use two buckets, one for clean water and one for suds. Each time you wet the rag, dip it in the clean water first and wring it out before hitting the soapy water. This assures that you’re always working with a clean rag rather than reapplying the dirt and grime that you just removed.
Step 3: Paint and trim care. Before waxing, most auto detailers use a clay bar application to remove dirt, tar and metal particles from the clear coat. After applying a spray lubricant, an 80 to 100 gram clay bar is rubbed all over the paint job. According to CNN, clay bar kits are relatively inexpensive, typically retailing for about $20. An old trick of detailers is to stick your hand in a plastic bag and run it over the paint surface, which should now be smooth. If you feel any little bumps, you need to go back over that area with the clay bar.
Word of Mouth Auto Detailing Services says, “When waxing, pay attention to the directions on the can. For example, some types of wax require using a soft cloth rather than a rough towel.”
Don’t forget to check the headlights and tail lights. If any signs of rust have started to show, a polishing compound should be applied, followed by a plastic sealant. Forbes recommends using a commercial headlight lens restoring kit.
A thorough auto detailing job includes cleaning the undercarriage and the wheel wells. Wheels and tires should be washed before applying a protectant that prevents cracking. Some detailers even mist the engine bay with water, then clean it with a degreasing solution before rinsing it off.
Attention to the three basic auto detail components described above can make your car or truck look showroom new and will often increase its trade-in value by thousands of dollars.
