Cleaning and Caring for Your Car's Paint

Whether it's your classic ride, your performance sports car or just the daily driver, caring for your car's paint preserves the finish, keeping it looking great for years. While car washes seem to be popping up on every corner, nothing beats the level of care a hand car wash brings. The level of attention is unmatched by any machine, and nothing gets into all the crevices and corners like a good hand wash. On top of that, a basic wash set up you can use many times is often cheaper than a single trip to the car wash. And it doesn't have to be hard or time consuming, not to mention it's a great way to bring the family in so they can all take a little pride in their part of taking care of the car.

Let's get started!

1. Find a spot in the shade if at all possible. Washing in the sun can lead to early drying of detergents or minerals in the water, leading to spots on your finish.
2. Start at the top and work your way down. That way you don’t blow dirt and debris back up on a clean surface. Spray as much of the loose dirt off the car before you start washing or else you risk dragging grime and grit across your car's finish.
3. Wash with the tried and true cotton wash mitt, a 5 gallon bucket of water, and a good automotive safe cleaner like 1320 Video Street Shine Sudz Car Wash Soap. Measure per the instructions on the bottle. Excess detergent is just a waste and can lead to residue. NEVER use liquid dish soap to wash your car. Yes, you get a lot of suds, and it cleans really well, but what you are actually doing is stripping all of the wax from your car...which is fine if you intend to buff the paint and start building a quality finish all over again. But for regular maintenance, use a specifically formulated car wash detergent.
4. Make sure to rinse the mitt often, otherwise you’ll end up with scratches from the trapped debris. Ideally, a second "rinse bucket" with a grit guard that fits inside your bucket will keep your mitt clean and prevent the mitt from getting in the dirt settled at the bottom of the bucket. Repeat until you've covered the entire car. Don't forget the wheels and fenderwells!
5. Rinse thoroughly, again from top to bottom.

Now it’s time to wax. Our recommendation is a reputable carnauba-based wax, either in paste or liquid form. This will usually last between 6-10 weeks. After you have waxed your beauty, you can maintain that gloss at car shows with quick detailer sprays like the Lucas Oil Slick Mist Speed Wax, a product that you can use as a traditional wax, detail spray, or spray on the vehicle between rinsing a drying for a fast and easy polish job. Just make sure that before you hit the finish with the detailer spray, you dust off the car with our Nebraska Duster. This will get all of the surface dirt off the car, instead of grinding it into the finish.

Now if your paint is still oxidized and dull, you have a couple options available to try. First, keep in mind these options will all remove some paint, just in varying degrees. Your standard polish is the least abrasive, then a cleaner and finally rubbing compound. Compounds are better left to professionals, being best utilized by a machine buffer, but polish is something that anyone can use. One trick with old oxidized paint is to use a clay bar and lubricant spray to take off the top layer of powder, before polishing it up by hand or having a shop do it. The best part about having a shop do it, if they burn through the paint they can fix it. If you burn through the paint, you get to pay to fix it.