If you have a car, you're probably wondering how to make it shine like glass. A shiny exterior enhances the look and appeal of your ride, but it will draw curious glances wherever you go. That's not to mention the shiny look can add to your car's resale value. Potential buyers will notice the car's exterior first. They will first judge the car's paint and the paint job before looking at other factors when shopping for a ride.
Many car owners in Baltimore do not realize that secret to making a car shine as glass lies in protecting the car's paintwork. You can preserve the car's paintwork by cleaning the car's surface and protecting the paint surface from surface scratches, road grime, and any other contaminants that may dull the car's paint. Here are is a five-stage method that will leave your car clean and with a glossy shine.
Car Paint Restoration
Ensure that your car's paintwork is best for the perfect shine. A great-looking exterior is the foundational base for further paint correction and detailing that will leave your car shiny and well protected from environmental and climatic conditions.
After cleaning your car, inspect for any dents, fine scratches, and minor blemishes and address minor superficial scratches on the surface. For deep scratches, extensive body repair, and minor blemishes, you should visit an auto detailing and exterior shop for assistance. Leave the professionals to restore your paintwork as they can guarantee you an excellent car finish.
Foam Cleaning the Car Surface
Start by thoroughly cleaning your car's surface with a microfiber towel and car shampoo. Thorough cleaning will rid your car's body of dirt particles and any other paint contaminants that may create scratches on the car's surface. Take note that using an old wash mitt does more harm than good. While cleaning, the wash mitt picks up fine particles from the surface that creates scratches when dragged over the paint surface. A better alternative is microfiber towels. These towels are gentle to the car's surface and will not leave any scratch marks.
The other challenge to overcome in your quest to have your car shine like glass is making sure that swirl marks don't appear after cleaning. Swirl marks reflect light away from your eyes and leave the car looking dull. While cleaning, it's advisable to clean without applying physical pressure on the car surface. The result will be a deep shine that enhances your car's appearance. A foam gun together with car wash soap or ph-neutral automotive shampoo will solve this for you. Car shampoo is precisely engineered to lift dirt particles off your car's surface and wash it down as it slides off its surface. The longer it stays on the surface, the more effective it is. This effect makes it more favorable than ordinary soap and water mixture. Car shampoo is also more gentle on your car paint than regular soap.
Clay Bar the Cars Surface
Clay barring or clay bar claying is the final cleaning process for that perfect shine. Washing shampoo may remove all the dirt particles but may be ineffective on other components and impurities. Impurities like tree sap, tar, grime, bug splatter, and other contaminants stick on the paint and may not completely disappear after a regular wash. You can perform a simple check to determine if your car needs clay barring. Take a large microfiber towel and gently run it over the car's surface. If it catches any slight protrusions on any car panel, that section will need clay barring to even out the imperfections.
For effective results and perfect shine, mold a small piece of the clay bar into a size you can comfortably hold. After that, apply some clay lubricant on the target surface and gently rub the clay bar in an up and down or right to left fashion. As you do this, constantly check the smoothness of the surface by running the microfiber cloth over the surface until the clay bar and microfiber cloth glide smoothly over the surface. Repeat the same process across targeted areas. Take note that clay barring is also effective on glass surface imperfections.
Apply Car Polish
Applying polish is the essential step to making a car shine. Car polish helps with removing scratches, minor paint correction, and restores fading paintwork. A good polish will also aid in eliminating fine swirls and improve the car's finish by smoothening out even deep scratches on the car paint. For this stage, you will need one microfiber cloth to apply the polish and another to buff the polish and give it the perfect shine.
Let it settle and dry once you apply your favorite polish, then gently rub it in a top to down or side to side motion. You will realize that your paint will start to sparkle and shine like glass.
Protect The Car Paint
For your car to retain its shine, make sure you protect the paint from external damage. This stage works to create a protective barrier that shields your paint from hostile environmental and climatic conditions. Currently, there are three main ways of protecting your car paint. They Include ceramic coating, wax protection, and paint sealants.
Car waxing shields paint from scratches and keeps the paint looking shiny, similar to when brand new. In their natural form, the waxes may not work as effectively and need to be infused with sents and other solvents to give us the desired consistency and make a car shine. The most popular car wax includes carnauba wax, paraffin, and montan wax.
Ceramic coating and paint sealants have different chemical compositions to car wax but work the same way.
Looking for the Best Automotive Detailing and Protection Shop In Baltimore?
At Detail Solutions, we understand what it takes to have your car looking good as new. Our friendly and experienced technicians are always ready to handle all your
exterior and
interior detailing needs. Our core areas of expertise include
ceramic coating,
paint protection, among other exterior detailing services. To request a free quote for your exterior detailing job, fill out this form or call us at (410)238-3000.
