CAR’s ultimate car cleaning guide (2024)

For some washing the car sounds as dull as taxation forms, but for others, it's the perfect way to spend an afternoon. And if you're wanting to take your first step into this pastime, we've put together a conclusive guide of what to do and what products you'll need to have your car looking like it should be at the Concours d'Elegance.

Other than the cleaning products themselves (shampoo, glass cleaner etc), there are a few extra items that make all the difference between a cleaner car and a clean car:

Cloths: How you clean your car can vary, whether you're going waterless, with a pressure washer and snow foam, or the old fashioned shampoo and bucket method. Irrespective of which routine you go with, you need cloths for buffing and/or drying.

Invest in some proper wheel cleaner to remove the debris. Then some wheel sealant to make it harder for grime to stick, keeping them looking fresher for longer and easier to clean.

Essential equipment for cleaning your wheels:

Hose or pressure washer

Wheel cleaner

Wheel brush

Bucket

Wheel sealant and a clean applicator

1. Spray the car's wheels with your hose or pressure washer to remove any embedded dirt and loosen grime and debris. Don't forget to wash down the tyres too.

2. Apply the wheel cleaner using the instructions as a guide.

3. Use a bristled brush to help agitate the surface. Make sure you use your buckets to clean the brush regularly.

4. Rinse the wheel with the pressure washer (a hose is also acceptable here) and use a drying towel to make sure it's dry.

5. Apply the wheel sealant according to the instructions and wait for it to properly cure.

6. Buff the wheel with another drying towel for sparkling alloys that won't get dirty as quickly.

7. Finally, as an option, apply some tyre dressing using an appropriate applicator and wait for it to dry too. You now have a stunning set of wheels.

Cleaning your car's bodywork

Essential equipment for cleaning your car's exterior:

Hose or pressure washer

Snow foam and/or car shampoo

Buckets

Cloths or wash mitt

Detailing brushes

Drying towels

Polish

Paint protectant

1. Using your pressure washer with a foam lancet, liberally coat your car in snow foam. This will help dislodge stubborn bits of dirt making the rest of the cleaning process easier. It will also limit bits of dirt scratching your paint as you begin to clean it by hand.

2. Get those buckets filled with water, adding shampoo to one of those buckets. Then take your wash mitt and begin to wash the car with the shampoo starting at the top and working your way down. Remember to clean your wash mitt in the clean water before dunking it into the shampoo bucket.

3. After rinsing away the shampoo with water it's time to crack out the clay bar and lube (no snigg*ring). Spray the lube onto the bodywork in small areas and run part of the clay bar over the area. The clay bar will collect any last pieces of debris from your car, including tree sap and overspray. Once you've finished with your clay bar, rinse your car down again.

4. Dry the car using a clean drying towel. Drape it over the bodywork, starting at the top. Doing it this way will maximise the drying towel's surface area and is the most effective way to avoid having any leftover watermarks.

5. Once the car is dry it's time to polish and seal it. You can choose to either polish by hand or with a machine (by hand is much easier). Follow the instructions of the polish and remember to take your time.

6. The final stage for your bodywork is to seal it with a protectant. Apply the product according to the instructions and make sure to buff it with a clean drying towel.

Trim pieces

Essential equipment for cleaning your trim:

Trim restorer/polish

Applicator or cloth

Buffing cloth or pad

Essential equipment for cleaning glass:

Glass cleaner

Cloth

1. Firstly, don't worry about getting shampoo or snow foam on your car's glass. They will do no harm and will probably help remove some dirt.

2. Once you've washed your car with shampoo and dried it, add some glass cleaner onto the windows as per the product's instructions.

3. Wipe away the residue on with a drying towel and repeat on the other side of the glass too.

Anything else?

If your car has a folding metal roof then you can clean it like your other bodywork (just remember to put the roof up first). But if you have a soft top then a special product is needed.

Although not essential, you may want to clean your engine bay from time to time. Any serious grime should be investigated straight away but it's only natural that your engine will get a bit of muck on it over time. Thankfully it's an easy fix with some engine bay cleaner and a nylon brush.

Simply spray the product onto the engine bay as directed and brush away the grime with the brush. Then wash away the leftovers and you'll have a sparkling engine bay to match your car.

Headlights are not something you should need to tackle every time you clean your car. But eventually you may need to look into restoring your headlights to their former glory. After all, nothing will ruin the look of your freshly cleaned car like some clouded lenses.

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