How to Detail a Car Exterior

Exterior car detailing involves a comprehensive wipe-down, decontamination and protection of your vehicle’s paint. It often involves multiple protective products such as car wax, sealants or ceramic coatings.

Detailing your car can give it a fresh new look and extend its life. However, if you’re new to detailing, the process can seem intimidating at first.

Clean the Exterior

Exterior car detailing is an essential element of car care, helping keep your ride looking its best year-round and shielding its paint from external elements.

Start by steam cleaning the exterior to eliminate any loose dirt and grime that has settled into pores on your vehicle’s surface. Doing this will help you prepare for further steps in detailing its exterior.

Next, use a car cleanser and either a soft natural sponge or lambswool wash mitt to gently cleanse the exterior of your car. Make circular motions when scrubbing surfaces, making sure each section is rinsed thoroughly after each pass.

Once you have cleaned each area, use a microfiber towel to dry the surface of your vehicle. Make sure you wipe it repeatedly until all water spots have been eliminated – these could stain the paint of your car if left unchecked.

Clean the Interior

Car interiors take a lot of abuse. Dirt, crumbs and spills are often present, creating an ideal breeding ground for germs to flourish.

To effectively clean the interior of your home, you’ll need a few essential tools and products that likely already reside in your cupboard. These may include a vacuum cleaner, microfiber rags and various kinds of interior cleaner.

Begin by spraying a quality interior cleaner onto a microfiber towel and working in small sections. Buff these areas until they’re clean and glossy.

Next, use a foam swab to gently scrub away grime from vents and speaker grilles. This also works well in tight places where fingers or towels cannot reach.

Once your car’s interior has been thoroughly cleaned, protect it from UV damage by applying an interior conditioner and protector to plastic and vinyl surfaces. Doing this will help minimize fading as well as other types of environmental harm.

Clean the Windows

The windows of your car are the first and most visible part that need cleaning. Dirt, smudges, dust, and other contaminants will adhere to them if not eliminated effectively.

To effectively remove these, utilize a quality cleaning product and some microfiber towels. Simply spray generous amounts of the cleaner onto the cloth then wipe it away in an up and down motion.

Once you are finished with the initial pass, switch to a new microfiber towel. This will help dry the window completely and prevent streaks from forming.

The next step is to apply the same technique to cleaning interior windows and windshield. Just as with exterior windows, spray your cleaner directly on a microfiber rag and wipe it clean in an up-and-down motion.

Clean the Tires

Your tires are an integral part of your vehicle, so it’s essential that you keep them clean. Road tar, dirt, oil, salt, brake dust and UV damage can degrade rubber over time if left unchecked.

Maintaining your tires prevents them from wearing down and creating a variety of issues, from poor traction to dangerous air leaks. Furthermore, this process allows you to resell the tires at a higher price, potentially yielding you profit in the long run.

At this stage of the detailing process, you’ll apply tire cleaner to your tires and wheels in order to loosen any brake dust or other particles embedded into the pores of rubber. Once that has been rinsed away thoroughly, you can move onto cleaning the sidewalls.