Keeping your vehicle looking good boosts its resale value and enhances your driving experience. A well-maintained car will also cost you less in service and repairs over time. However, it does not always require a huge budget and the services of a professional detail shop to maintain the appearance of your car. Here are tips you can practice to keep your car looking new.
1. Wash Your Car Like a Pro
There is more to washing a car that soaping and rinsing, especially if you want your car to look sleek. The first step is to avoid those quick car wash shops that use detergents and big brushes. Choose your car cleaning chemicals carefully and read the label to understand the particular purpose. For example, chrome wheel cleansers tend to be more acidic and using one on your aluminum wheels regularly will ruin them. Use appropriate microfiber clothes on your paint, windows and wheels. Wash, rinse and dry your car with towels and cleaning mitts. Check that no sharp particles are stuck on the towels before you use them. Never use a dish-washing soap and other household liquid detergents on your car as they can damage your paint and strip away wax.
2. Polish and Wax
Polishing and waxing can help your car look showroom new if you understand and perform these task correctly. Polishing will remove small damages on the top coat of your vehicle's paint such as bird poop and swirl marks, and it gives the car that extra sheen of gloss.
Waxing, on the other hand, is like wearing sunscreen. It adds a protective layer on your car and prevents fading and debris that might land on the paint. It also preserves the glossy finish.
3. Pay Attention to Details
Pay attention to your tires, rubber and plastic trims. Use tire-specific shine products to protect the rubber compound from cracking and fading and to give them a wet, shiny look. Use chrome treatments to polish metal surfaces and window cleaners to give them a spotless appearance.
Restore your headlight transparency to its original shine by using buffing items and lens-polishing agents sold as a headlight lens restorer kit.
4. Remember the Interior
Your car will look horrible if you glam up the exterior but the interior looks like an abandoned workstation. Polish and clean up the interior surfaces, clean the seats and invest in a good air freshener. You should also remember to clean the rugs and mats and minimize clutter. While a clean-looking car boosts your image among other car enthusiasts, the primary reason for keeping it new and fresh is so that you can enjoy driving it. Therefore, it is only fair that you focus on achieving a clean, refreshing and enjoyable interior because it is the area you will see more often.
5. Give Your Car a Paint Touchup
Some scratches are too deep to polish away, but a paint touch-up will fix them. Also, if you have neglected your vehicle for too long, getting the shine back may call for a paint retouch. Combined with a good interior cleanup and a revamp, a well-done paint job will leave your car looking as good as new. Getting a high-quality paint job is one great way to revamp your car's look. Whether it is just for aesthetic purposes, fixing scratches or repairing the body after an accident, working with someone who understands paint jobs is paramount. A good paint job makes it easier to maintain the luster of your car's paint. Contact the experts at Jim's Auto Body for a quality paint job and professional advice.