Do you like having your car looking its best all the time? Wait until we’ve told you all about the difference between detailing and cleaning, and believe me, there is a difference. Trust us when we say you’ll never want to go back to normal washing ever again.

Know what you’re dealing with

We all know how hard it is to try and maintain that showroom-ready look. It takes time and effort to have your car looking immaculate on both the inside and out. We hate to be the one to break it to you, but more often than not, you might need the help of a car detailing expert too if you want your car ready for the road.

The one thing that most people don’t realise either is that detailing and cleaning are two different things. Detailing might sound more expensive, but you pay for what you get. You could clean and do the job yourself, but will that cut it for you? If you want your car to have more than just a few buckets of water tipped over it, then car detailing is the way forward.

Dishing the dirt on a detail clean

Car detailing, what’s involved? Normally, it involves cleaning and reconditioning the interior and exterior of your car. We’re talking washing, waxing and detailing, as well as vacuuming, and deep cleaning. It can also include a fancy exterior paint polish and shampooing your carpets so that they smell so nice you want to face plant them, oh and deep cleaning the engine too.

The aim of detailing is to restore the paintwork of your car by getting rid of any unwanted scratches or swirls to make your car look as good as new again. It sounds long but a good car detailing service usually only takes around thirty minutes or so up until as much as a full day, depending on the current condition of your car that is. If it’s a quicky you after then the best ones are travelling detailers that come out to your house, these guys are on it.

That’s detailing for you. Experts would recommend that you detail your car every four to six months, which would be twice or three times a year at a push, but this all depends on your car and the type of person you are. What we really mean is how clean you are and how clean you like for your car to be. There isn’t anything more satisfying than finally seeing the back of that stubborn stain on your car seat that you’ve been trying to scrub off for as long as you can remember. Your car will be back to smelling like it did when you first bought it in no time.

What about car cleaning?

Detailing is about getting cleaning every nook and cranny and getting rid of all that dirt. Car cleaning though isn’t about that. It’s not about cleaning that grease and dust and everything that gets in there that isn’t meant to be there. It’s about cleaning, waxing and polishing your car to enhance its look or to try and create a new look.

It usually just includes a spritz of your wheels, the bodywork, dressing the exterior and glass. Your standard clean would be removing all those unwanted bits that have ended up on your car, for example, bird droppings and tree sap. It doesn’t make your car look pretty and can really grind your gears when it starts to cause your exterior paint to chip.

The aim of the game with a clean is to just clean off as much of the dirt as possible and to have your car looking as good as new, but not nearly new. Interior wise, this would be vacuumed, along with the dash, centre console, seats and carpets. A freshen up of everything and your clean will be gleaming before you know it