We’ve already told you how to clean the inside of your car, but what about the exterior, the part that most people will see? You want your vehicle to look nice, and there are ways you can do that without splurging for all the bells and whistles at the carwash.
- Wash your vehicle in a shaded area to keep the surface cool. If the car is hot, soap suds will dry too quickly and stain the surface, so you’d have to wash it all over again.
- Pre-soak the vehicle in order to remove heavy contaminants.
- Use mild liquid soap and a car washing mitt or sponge. Use plenty of water!
- Rather than sudsing up the whole car at once and rinsing it down, wash and rinse one section at a time. Start with the roof, then the hood and the rear, making your way down. Next, clean the upper sections of the sides, and finally, the lower areas, where the most dirt will most likely be located.
- Always hose off the mitt or sponge before re-soaping. This way you start and finish with a bucket of clean soap.
- Rinse the vehicle thoroughly. When you think you are done rinsing, give it the final rinse!
- Use a different sponge, mitt or cloth to the clean the tires and rims. This reduces the chance that you will scratch the car’s paint with dust and dirt picked up from the rims.
- Be cautious when cleaning the wheels with spray-on wheel cleaner. If the car has just been driven, the wheels are sure to be hot. When you spray them with chemicals, those chemicals will vaporize, and you will inhale them.
- Forget pricey automotive cleaners. Instead, go for a mild liquid soap that is well diluted – it will take care of everything you need, like removing dirt, grease and films without damaging other materials. Plus, it’s a lot cheaper!
- Dry your vehicle right away to prevent water spots.
