Car cleaning & detailing tips to complement your car wash
Abby Wingett | 8th July 2023 | 5 minutes to read
There’s nothing more satisfying than giving your car a deep clean after a muddy adventure in the bush, but real car enthusiasts know that the true satisfaction comes from the extra effort you put in after the fact.
Waxing, polishing, and tyre shine are what sets your car apart from the rest, and knowing which areas to target is an important aspect of a premium car wash experience.
Here are some areas you should look to focus on if you want to take your car wash to the next level:
Exterior Detailing
Having washed your car, now is the time to protect and enhance your vehicle.
Although you can get some protection for your car just from using the right car care products, this is where the true detailing element of car care comes in.
Vehicle detailing both enhances the appearance of your vehicle whilst maintaining its value through application of any number of waxes, coatings, and sealants.
Tyre Care
As the perfect way to offset clean wheels, tyre shine does more than just make your tyres look black and glossy. Formulated with UV protectants, tyre shine comes in matt, gloss, and semi-gloss variants to provide both the look you want but also the protection needed from the harsh sun and against road grime and pollutants.
The application of tyre shine also is a great opportunity to visually inspect your tyres and rims for any signs of dangerous tread wear or damage.
Available as a foam, gel, aerosol spray, or paint, these all have their benefits but the easier they are to apply is usually an indicator of the how effective they would be over the longer term. Proper tyre treatments may take longer but will withstand more punishment while looking better.
Glass Care
Glass cleaners provide clear vision for both interior and exterior glass. Used on mirrors and windows both inside and out will help remove stubborn dirt, grease, bugs, and other airborne contaminants. Glass cleaners are also great for removing interior glass hazing and smog build up that comes from the chemicals given off by your car’s interior plastics.
This interior glass cleaning also helps your vehicles defrost and demisting functions operate more effectively, which makes it particularly noticeable on cold or frosty mornings.
Headlight Cleaner
Having clear headlights can be just as important to visibility as cleaning your mirrors, because dull, yellowed headlights will lower the amount of illumination you get from your headlights at night. This is a safety concern as well as an aesthetic one, so performing a quick headlight restoration when you wash your car can be incredibly valuable.
Paint Care
Car polishing is an area of detailing that requires both an understanding of your paints condition and the steps necessary for suitable paint correction.
A product such as Autoglym’s Super Resin polish is a fantastic starting point when looking to revive tired paint with minimum fuss and labour. Application of this polish can be done by hand and adding a small 10c piece size to a polish applicator. Working into a small section of your vehicle paint in a circular motion, you then let it dry to a white haze before buffing off with a microfiber polishing cloth.
Car Wax
Car wax is formulated with both natural and synthetic waxes and compounds to provide both an extra layer of protection against UV rays, dirt, bugs, and bird droppings but also a deeper lustrous shine to your paintwork.
A car wax will have no cutting compounds so will only coat the existing paint surface in whatever form that is — which is why it pays to suitably clean and correct your paintwork prior to applying these.
Car wax is typically applied 2 or 3 times a year, but this is largely dependent on the environment your vehicle lives in. There are several different forms of wax, including liquid wax, paste wax, spray wax, wax wipes, and wash and wax.
All of these create a similar finish, and it will mostly come down to the look you prefer, what fits your budget, and how much time you are willing to spend waxing your car.
Interior Car Care
Whilst cleaning the exterior of your vehicle is often what you think of regarding car care, it’s important not to forget that your interior needs love too. Over time, the surfaces inside your vehicle naturally become soiled with all manner of dirt and residue, degrading the look of your interior.
All cars’ interiors have an array of different surfaces and materials to make it as plush and comfortable for our long and short adventures. Over time these surfaces, leather, plastics, carpet, vinyl, suede, Alcantara, and rubber naturally become dirty, dull, and soiled. No one wants to get into a car that looks uninviting.
With our interior cleaning products, you can have your car looking better than ever.
Carpet Cleaner
Carpet cleaners are a great way to keep your upholstery feeling like new, whether it’s to do some spot cleaning or just to give your car interior a fresh scent.
Interior cleaning wipes
If you need to wipe down your dash, steering wheel, or consoles, then interior wipes are going to help to give them a nice sheen.
Leather conditioner
A great way to prevent wear, drying and fading of your leather interior, leather conditioners use moisturising oils to help your vehicle’s interior retain its original look and feel.
Air fresheners
An air freshener is like a garnish for your car, it adds that little extra bit of aesthetic appeal to all the work you’ve put in keeping it cleaned and polished. Air fresheners can come in physical forms — like the iconic pine tree hanging from the rear-view mirror — or they can come in sprays if you’re looking to avoid having something dangling in your windscreen or off an air vent.
Vacuum Cleaners
Having a good vacuum on-hand for cleaning up major dirt and grime in the backseats from your kid’s muddy footy boots our winter leaves is always a necessity for thorough interior cleaning. You can go with a handheld option or something more powerful that can be a multipurpose tool for cleaning your garage or home as well.
Car Care Is Covered at Repco
Washing your car doesn’t have to stop with soap and water. Using a few extra products and techniques can get you a dazzling finish without a lot of extra effort and often for little extra cost. Repco stocks a wide variety of car cleaning products and accessories, so if you’re looking to perform interior or exterior car care, get into a Repco store or shop online to get the best results.
