Cleaning your Toyota

    There's nothing quite like a nice clean car.  Here in Florida we have harsh weather conditions that can make keeping a car looking its best difficult.  I would like to share a few products and techniques I use to keep my car looking its best.  We will start with the outside.

    First you will need to clean the outside of your car with car washing soap.  Using dish soap or hand soap or anything other than car soap is not a great idea.  Some soaps may have compounds in them that may scratch stain or otherwise ruin the finish on your car.  My personal favorite is Turtle Wax Zip Wax Car Wash.  It is not only very affordable, but it does an excellent job of removing dirt, bugs, and other road grime. 

    To wash the car have a bucket and some type of cleaning implement like a sponge or a soft brush.  I prefer to use a brush as I find that cloths and towels can pickup and hold dirt that can scratch the paint.  The brush rinses clean almost instantly and since it has a long adjustable handle I can clean the car very quickly.  I also keep on hand 2 small scrub brushes for cleaning wheels and tires. One is very small for reaching into nooks and crevices and the other is palm sized for cleaning the larger areas.

    Start with the roof and work your way down.  The most dirt is on the bottom and you don't want to dirty up your water right at the beginning.  The last part that should be cleaned are the wheels and tires.  To clean the wheels I use Eagle One All Wheel Cleaner.  Clean one wheel at a time by spraying the wheels one at a time with the wheel cleaner and gently brushing away the road grime and brake dust.  I know it says on the bottle that it can be sprayed on and hosed off but this is not true, to get them clean you are going to have to scrub a little.

    The next step is to dry the car using a chamois.  I use an artificial on since it can be easily cleaned in the washing machine.  Whichever you choose the process is the same.  Dampen the chamois and start with the roof and work your way down to avoid scratching the paint with any debris that may still be on the car.  Once you have the car clean and dry it is time to think about putting a nice shine on it.  If you haven't used a clay bar before I highly recommend it.  There are several companies that make the clay bar kit which consists of a hotel soap bar sized piece of clay and a spray bottle of lubricant.  The most popular being Mothers, I use the Clay Magic kit from AutoZone it is a few dollars cheaper and gives excellent results.  Just spray the lubricant on a small area of the car and slide the clay back and forth over the surface.  You will feel the contaminants and debris being picked up by the clay.  Continue over the whole car, knead the bar between sections to keep the clay surface clean.

    Next polish the car using a glaze polish.  Meguiar's Show Car Glaze #7 is the best glaze on the market.  Polish the car by following the directions on the bottle.  The glaze will fill in minor scratches and defects in your paint and shines much better than wax, however it offers no protection from the elements this is why you must also wax the car if you drive it on a regular basis, park it outdoors, or foresee the possibility of foul weather.  After the glaze has been applied and polished out its now time to wax the car.  My favorite wax is Turtle Wax Emerald Series Paste Wax.  Apply the wax very sparingly just using enough to cover the surface, putting the wax on thick will only waste the wax and make buffing it out more difficult.  I use an electric buffer with a lambs wool bonnet to buff out the wax once it has hazed.  After you have gotten this far you should have a very clean and shiny car. 

    Now its time to detail the outside of the car.  I start with the trim pieces, using Mothers Back To Black to clean all the trim around the windows, on the side of the car, the front bumper, and the taillight area.  Using a small rag to apply the Back To Black and a dry towel to buff it out and bring out the shine.  The Back To Black can be used on any type of trim whether it has a flat or glossy finish, and it doesn't even have to be black.  If you have alloy or chrome wheels that are looking somewhat dull, I recommend  Eagle One   Mag/Chrome Aluminum Polish.  Once you have your wheels looking good you should apply some tire dressing.  I like to use Black Magic Tire Wet, just spray it on a rag and spread it around the tire.  If you like a less shiny tire use a dry rag to wipe off the excess dressing to give you a nice deep black color.  The final step is to clean the glass.  A trick to get good results cleaning the outside windows is to use a steel wool pad.  Using the finest pads you can find (about 5 Zeroes).  I use Armor-All glass cleaner.  This cleaner is safe to use on tinted windows if you have them.  Normal cleaners like Windex can damage aftermarket window tinting so buying a cleaner that is tint safe is very important. 

    That is about all for the outside of the car, step back and take a look.  It should look better than it has ever looked now.  Now its time to move inside.