See all Motoring NewsNot everyone wants to spend hours every Sunday cleaning their car, and it feels like a waste of time during the winter months as it gets dirty again so quickly, but it’s a worthwhile activity all year round, regardless of whether you cherish your car or just see it as a device that gets you from A to B. Other than keeping the car looking at its best, cleaning it properly on a regular basis helps protect the paintwork and bodywork from corrosion and other damage. Here are our top tips.
1 – Ignore the sunshine
Counter-intuitively, the best time to clean your car is not when the sun is shining brightly. That is undoubtedly the time most of us think about cleaning the car, but the problem with warm sunshine is that it dries the car too quickly in between the various steps, leading to watermarks and potentially other deposits on the paintwork. Leave it until later in the day or when it’s cloudy if at all possible. Saying that, don’t do it if it’s likely to rain either, as rain is not pure and clean water.
2 – Remove the heavy dirt
In winter, a car gets quite obviously very dirty, but even in the summer, no matter how often you clean the car, there’s always a layer of road grime on it and it’s a good idea to get rid of that before you start scrubbing the paintwork. If you go straight to wiping the car down then you could risk scratching the paint permanently, or at the very least putting swirl marks into the paint that are very difficult to get rid of. So, first step is to hose the car down. It’s even better to use a pressure washer, but make sure you don’t give the window seals and air vents a hard time with it. Don’t forget to clean under the wheelarches, within the wheels themselves and under the doors, plus of course the roof. You should start from the roof and work down. If there are stubborn spots of tar or anything else that a pressure wash won’t remove, it’s worth investing in an oil-based stain remover, though some find the likes of WD40 effective. Once the stain is taken off, make sure you clean the area thoroughly afterwards, of course.
3 – The actual cleaning
It’s time to get out the bucket and sponge, but hang fire if you’re just about to squirt a load of Fairy washing up liquid into that bucket, as it’s not good for car paint at all. There are hundreds of dedicated car shampoos for all budgets and you really should use one of those instead, as they’re designed specifically to care for automotive paintwork. Warm water is recommended and don’t skimp on the sponge either. For a few Euros more you could get a proper microfibre or even wool-based ‘mitt’ that is softer on the bodywork (and your hands!). Keep an eye on the bucket of water, too; although there should be very little heavy dirt remaining on the car before you start this step, you don’t want any grit in the shampoo, so change the water as you need to. Work on a panel of the body at a time, again from the top down, and don’t spend so long on it that the car is nearly dry when you finish. Don’t forget to open the doors and boot/rear hatch to wipe the areas you can’t easily get to.
4 – Don’t skip the drying
Many casual car washers skip this step, but it’s crucial for the process to be at its most effective. Without drying, the paint will invariably end up streaked with watermarks. A soft microfibre cloth is ok for this, but a proper leather chamois is far superior. Note that this needs to be damp before you start wiping the car.
5 – Waxing and polishing
Most normal people won’t bother with this step, but those that cherish their cars will, as it makes the paint shine and it protects it. Follow the instructions on the packaging to evenly apply the wax, leave it dry and then buff it off with a very soft cloth. Leave drill-based buffing to the professionals…
6 – The extras
It’s worth using a regular glass cleaner on all the exterior glass of the car and also on the interior, which builds up a surprising amount of grubbiness. There’s no need to spend more on a specific automotive glass cleaner; just pick up a good name brand window cleaning product from your supermarket. And don’t forget to drop the side windows a fraction to clean the edges that are usually within seals.
Depending on how long it has been since you washed your car, and how hard you’ve been using the brakes, the wheels may need a little extra attention. There’s no substitute for a dedicated alloy wheel cleaning product for removing baked-in brake dust, and an old toothbrush is very useful for getting into all the nooks and crannies as well. If you want the whole car to shine, you could also buy a tyre cleaner.
For the interior of the car, we recommend trying to get a strong home vacuum cleaner in, using its various attachments to cover all areas, under the seats, in the storage boxes, in the boot and even the upholstery itself. Make sure you remove the floor mats and slide the seats back and forth as well to access all areas. There are trim cleaning products available of course, but make sure you read the labels as to their suitability for your car’s trim materials and never ever spray anything on the pedals, as they could become dangerously slippery. We’d resist putting anything on the steering wheel rim for the same reason.