Keeping car paintwork in tip-top condition

The mechanical condition of a car is important than the cosmetics, but that does not disqualify the merits of a good wash and polish.

To keep your car looking as good as new, always rinse and wipe using cold water every day; and a more thorough wash with a mild detergent once a week, to stop a gradual build-up of stubborn road grime.

The weekly wash (or immediately after a dusty or muddy safari) might include vacuum cleaning of seats and carpets, a wash of floor mats,  a damp-cloth wipe over the dashboard and other smooth surfaces, and a more thorough hosing on the inside of the wheel arches.

Depending on operating conditions, the paint should also be polished about after four months. Even though most modern cars come with a “clear coat” over the base colour paint, this semi-permanent polish layer is not indestructible and the paint will be better protected with regular waxing, using any of many good quality cream polishes that are easy to apply and rub to a sheen.

Further, at least once a year (or more often if necessary) a full valet service is recommended with high-pressure washing of the underpan and engine compartment and shampooing of the seats.  

PASTE POLISH

This also pays much more attention to detail, especially to seams and crevices that regular washing might miss and where hairline stains might build up.

If your car has not been kept clean in these ways since it was new, the paint may have ingrained stains and the surface layer dulled by oxidation. Drastic action may be warranted to restore the paint to super clean and shiny.  

For this, the cream polishes will not do. You need to use one of the “paste” polishes (the best known is turtle wax original) which are hard work to apply – every square centimetre of the bodywork needs to be rubbed thoroughly with the pressure of a single finger, working in a circular motions with the radius of a tennis ball...or less.  But the results are worth it.

Because paste polishes contain a very fine rubbing compound, they should not be used more than once or twice a year. In the interim, wax should be maintained using one of the less aggressive creams.

If paint work is severely jaded, there is the option of using the so-called “T-cut” compounds which, true to their name,  act more like a scouring powder.  

They are unrivalled at removing stains and restoring original colour brightness, but they leave a matt finish (as though the paint has scrubbed with super-fine sandpaper).

Extreme cleanliness is achieved, but thorough and regular wax polishing is needed to restore shine and to maintain protective layer.

If even that extreme remedy does not give you the result you want, then the next level of restoration is a refinishing job: a full body respray.

If that’s done badly, it can look as ugly as an overdose of botox. Done well, it can transform the vehicle’s appearance… and value.