Many people give little thought to how they wash and wax a car. However, it is a rigorous process that must be done correctly and carefully to have a good outcome. If you want to know how to do it correctly, here is how I get the best results and looks.
To start off, you will need a bucket of soapy water (not kitchen soap, car soap) to wash it. Kitchen soap would be hazardous to the paint because it may be to strong. You will also need a scrub brush and a rag to wash it. .
First, you need to hose the down the entire car getting into every spot so that you wash off any excess heavy dirt. Then you start to wash from the top down. Many people make the mistake of washing from bottom to top, which would cause dirty water to run all over the spots you have already washed. Also you have to use a rag not a brush. A brush could put swirls and scratches in the clear coat. After you get about half of the car done you should rinse off the soapy water so it will not dry on their and leave marks. Then proceed to the other half of the car and repeat what you did to the first half. Make sure you get in all the door jams, the grill, under the hood and under the spoiler if your car has one. For those tiny cracks and crevices that fill with dirt I find that an old toothbrush works great. An old toothbrush has less coarse bristles than new ones, making it safer on paint. For the rims of the car be sure to use a brush because there is often a lot of brake dust on the rim and it will surely ruin your rag from being used on the rest of car. Make sure you scrub the entire rim and also in the wheel wells. Now hose off the rims and grab a shammy for the drying process of the car.
To dry your car you can use a simple lint free towel but I would recommend a shammy, they work the best. A chamois or shammy as it is popularly called is suede finished leather made from a sheep or lambskin. Originally a chamois was made from the skin of a chamois, a small goat like antelope found in the high mountains area of Europe and the Caucasus.
