Learn How to Detail Your Car Just Like a Pro

Detailing Tricks Route 66 Cleaning Products

Ah, summer, what a great time of year. The sun is up, the shows are in full swing, birds are out crapping, and your car is probably in need of a little clean up. No matter if your ride has been sitting in a garage waiting for the sun or been out in the elements, it's going to need a comprehensive detailing. We are sure you know how to wash your ride, but there is always some knowledge to be learned even on the simplest of subjects. This story will map out how to clean like a detail freak and prepare your ride for the next show or cruise night.

No detailing story would be complete without a vehicle, and for that we are going to use Sam Head's '56. The car was painted a couple of years ago, but has been in storage since completion. There isn't any oxidation to remove, but the paint needs to be protected to maintain that shine. Also, along the way a few things have found their way onto the paint job like minor scratches and some fall out.

For all the products in this story, we decided to make a one-stop shopping trip to Route 66 Motorsports, the restoration and custom car-building giants who built the Super Chevy Project American Heroes II Camaro and the Project American Heroes III Chevelle. The complete line of Route 66 Exotic Coatings car care products, including waxes, polishes, and accessories, can be ordered on its website and shipped to your door. Enthusiasts made this stuff for enthusiasts right here in the U.S.A. We picked up one bottle of each product, an assortment of micorfiber towels and applicators, a wash bucket with a grit guard in the bottom, a microfiber wash mitt, a vent brush and some detailing clay. It took all of these products, a whole day, and a lot of elbow grease to get the '56 ready for cruise night, but it was well worth it. We think that is enough with the blah, blah; let's move on to the work.

There is not a lot to think about when it comes to just washing the car, but here are a few tips to get you started on the right path. First off, don’t use dish soap as it’s too aggressive for auto paint. It also strips the wax right off the finish, so pick up a bottle of vehicle-specific soap. Also, get a bucket that has a grit guard in the bottom to keep the mitt from sitting in the dirt sediment. Speaking of mitts, a microfiber mitt holds loads of soap and is very delicate on the paint.
There is not a lot to think about when it comes to just washing the car, but here are a fe
Give the car an initial rinse off with the hose before grabbing the wash mitt. This will remove or soften any loose dust and dirt stuck to the surface. Wash the car from bottom to top out of direct sunlight if possible. Working from bottom to top will prevent the soapy water from running down the side of the car and possibly drying on the surface. If you don’t have a shady spot to work in then you will need to wash and rinse one section at a time and keep the whole car wet during the washing process.
Give the car an initial rinse off with the hose before grabbing the wash mitt. This will r
Once everything is washed, take off the hose nozzle and flood the car. The water’s surface tension will sheet off most of the water, leaving a lot less on the car that you will need to remove with a microfiber drying towel. Once the car was dry, we pulled it into the shop to let the paint cool while we addressed the wheels.
Once everything is washed, take off the hose nozzle and flood the car. The water’s surface

We used a second bucket and soft rag to wash the wheels before attacking them with polish. This will prevent you from getting any of the harsh brake dust on your good wash mitt. Because polishing a whole wheel by hand just sucks, we used the wheel and rim polishing tool. This tool will cut your polishing time in half if not more and works best in a drill spinning about 500 rpm. After adding some Pedal To The Metal polish to the rim, we worked the tool around any part we could get to.
We used a second bucket and soft rag to wash the wheels before attacking them with polish.
For the areas the tool won’t fit, you can use your hand (preferably inside a glove). You will be surprised that this works just as well as using a rag, plus the polish will last a lot longer as the glove isn’t porous. Try it and you will see what we are talking about.
For the areas the tool won’t fit, you can use your hand (preferably inside a glove). You w
After the rim is all shined up, you have two choices when it comes to tire dressing. The Burn-Out gel will give you a wet look for an extended period of time. The Drive-In rubber and tire shine will give you a dry to the touch sheen while providing some UV protection as well. We went with the Drive-In because we like our tires to have a satin sheen instead of the wet look. The Large Contoured Tire Applicator made evenly spreading the stuff nice and easy.
After the rim is all shined up, you have two choices when it comes to tire dressing. The B