The Ultimate Guide to Quick Car Detailing

Keep You Car Looking Fresh With These Easy Steps...

Maintaining your car's fresh appearance during this time of year can be challenging. Follow this proven technique with 6 simple steps, 6 products, and under an hour to keep your car looking great.

Step 1 - Wheels

As always, we begin with the wheels, making sure they’re cool to the touch (in other words, don’t rush straight in after parking the car—let the engine and brakes cool before you start cleaning).

Treat each wheel individually by first spraying our Imperial Wheel Cleaner onto the face and barrel. Rinse it off, then apply the product again and use brushes that suit your wheel design. For this process, we’re using a standard Barrel Brush and a 2-inch detailing brush.

After agitating the Imperial cleaner on the surface, rinse again and move on to the next wheel, repeating the process for all four corners.

Step 2 - Pre-Wash

With the wheels clean, it’s time to focus on the bodywork. Start by removing any loose road grime and debris with a thorough rinse using a pressure washer, working from the top down.

Next, apply your pre-wash cleaner—in this case, we’re using Citrus Power Bug and Grime Remover. Citrus Power is safe for the entire car, but be sure to give extra attention to the dirtier areas, such as the lower sides, front grille, and rear end.

Allow the Citrus Power to dwell for a few minutes to lift the grime, then rinse it all away with your pressure washer.

Step 3 - The Contact Wash

Now, it’s time to make contact with the vehicle. Begin by setting up two buckets, both filled with water. Add four capfuls of Lather Car Shampoo to one bucket and give it a quick stir with the pressure washer. For the wash, use an Ultra Soft Wash Mitt for the upper areas and a Noodle Wash Mitt for the lower sections, rear, and any ‘grubby’ spots. This helps prevent cross-contamination between your wash media.

We begin at the roof and work our way down, focusing on small sections at a time. After each section, rinse the wash mitt in the plain water bucket before dipping it back into the Lather bucket to pick up fresh solution for the next section.

Here’s the order we follow around the vehicle:

1. Roof
2. Windscreen
3. Bonnet
4. Upper Sides (to waistline)
5. Front Bumper
6. Back
7. Lower Sides

Next, we move on to the final rinse, ensuring all the shampoo is completely washed away from the car's body. Make sure to thoroughly rinse areas like gaps, grilles, wheels, and barrels. Once done, dry the entire car with an Aqua Deluxe Drying Towel.

Step 4 - Dressing

It may sound unusual to apply the finishing touches so early, but trust us, it makes sense.

If you're like us and prefer a more natural look (rather than overly shiny tires), then Dressle All Purpose Dressing is the perfect product. While its durability isn’t the longest, keep in mind that by the time it starts to wear off, your car will likely be dirty again. After all, dressings don’t need to last more than a few days, especially during this time of year.

A water-based spray-on dressing is incredibly convenient in these conditions because it's quick, versatile, and effective. A generous application of Dressle on your tire walls and wheel arches will do wonders. At the end of the detail, we like to give the tires a quick final buff to ensure even coverage and remove any excess product.

Step 5 - Glass

There's nothing more frustrating than streaky or poorly cleaned glass, which is why cleaning both the interior and exterior glass should always be a priority every time you wash your car—even if you're not planning to clean the rest of the interior.

Your interior glass can accumulate more than just oily fingerprints and the occasional cough or sneeze. Dog owners will know that their furry friends can leave quite a mess on the rear tailgate glass, which doesn’t make for the best view in your rearview mirror.

A quick spritz of Crystal Glass Cleaner will tackle these issues swiftly and effectively. Simply spray and wipe the exterior and any heavily soiled interior glass (save the dog's mess for last, of course). For lightly soiled interior glass, just apply a light spritz to a cloth and buff the windows to a clean finish.

Clear windows not only give your car a polished look but also improve visibility and safety.

Step 6 - Finishing Up

Always, always finish with Finale. Some might wonder why you'd use a quick detailer at this stage, but we believe—especially for a quick job like this—it’s the key to elevating a simple wash into something a little more, dare we say it, detail-worthy.

Think of this step as a final touch-up: mopping up any stray drips or water streaks, buffing away any overspray from dressings, and adding that perfect finishing shine. Finale also provides an extra layer of protection, making it easier to clean your car next time. In other words, it helps maintain that fresh look longer, even through the winter months.

And there you have it—6 stages, 6 products, and a car that’s ready to tackle the daily grind, looking fresh... and staying that way a little longer, too!