Best Exterior Detailing Products – Car Wash Must Haves
Welcome to this guide on the best exterior car detailing products, the ultimate tools for achieving a spotless and showroom-worthy vehicle. Whether you’re a car enthusiast, a professional detailer, or simply someone who takes pride in maintaining the appearance of their car, these high quality detailing products are essential for a successful car wash routine.
We’ll go over the complete exterior car detailing process and talk about the tools used in each part of the process. Starting with washing the car, cleaning the wheels and tires, different drying methods, and finally putting the finishing touches on exterior trim and rubber.
Washing
Wash Mitts
There are multiple types of car wash mitts, each having a different type of material used. The chenille microfiber mitt is one of the most common mitts used. I use Amazon Basics Mitts or The Rag Company Mitt because the quality is good and the price great. Buying economical mitts especially helps when washing with the Multiple Mitt Method.
Moving to a higher quality mitt, we have The Rag Company Cyclone Mitt that features high quality microfiber and more microfiber strains. This is more gentle on the paint and helps trap any dirt or debris, protecting your car from scratches. This dense microfiber holds more soap than the chenille mitt which can aid in cleaning.
Lastly, my personal favorite is the CarPro Hand Wash Microfiber Mitt. This mitt holds the perfect amount of soap to maintain added lubrication during the car wash process. It is the perfect weight and just glides right across the car paint. This microfiber mitt is very soft and seriously so fun to use!
Foam Cannon
A foam cannon is an excellent addition to a detailers tool arsenal to help speed up the washing process. The foamed soap can help to remove the layer of grime from your car in the initial wash process. I’ve tried this budget Amazon foam cannon, a foam gun for the garden hose, and some of the popular foam cannons like the MTM Hydro PF22.2 and MJCC Foam Cannon. The foam cannon I use is the MJCC Foam Cannon as it has produced the thickest, shaving cream like, foam in my experience.
My wash process is to spray the vehicle down with car soap and let it dwell for 5 or so minutes. During this dwell time, I knock the wheels and tires out. I then rinse the foam off the vehicle which removes as much debris before the initial contact wash.
If you’re looking for a pressure washer I would check out this Sun Joe Pressure Washer which has been pretty reliable for me or this Active 2.0 pressure washer.
Undercarriage Washing
There are quite a few benefits to cleaning the undercarriage of your vehicle like preventing corrosion, dirt or contamination build up, and easier future maintenance. The tools pictured above are pressure washer attachments and make cleaning the undercarriage a quick process.
This undercarriage washer rolls easily and has 4 spray nozzles to clean the underbody of the car. Pictured above is the Ridge Washer and is an upgrade from the previous product that I was using.
Wheels and Tires
Wheel and tire cleaning can be tedious, however I believe I have gathered the best tools for the job! After rinsing the wheel down, I use an IK Foam Sprayer to apply P&S Brake Buster diluted about 5 to 1. A regular spray bottle works too. I start by cleaning the tires with Detail Factory’s Tire Brush and move onto the wheels. For the face and spokes of the wheel, I highly recommend The Rag Company’s Wheel Mitt. Being able to use your hand to clean and work around the wheel makes the job a lot easier.
For the barrel of the wheel, I use a microfiber wheel brush like Detail Factory’s Wheel Brush to safely get in between the spokes. The Wheel Woolies Boar Hair Brush, pictured above, is great for tighter areas such as lug nuts. If you’re looking for a quicker way to clean your wheels and tires, I would recommend a tire brush like this Wheel Woolies Long Handle Boars Hair Brush. This is a safe and effective way to get your wheels back to that show room condition.
Drying
Drying Towels
Using a good drying towel is a great way to dry a car quickly. There are many different types of drying towels out there. Back in the day, using a chamois towel was the way to dry a car but now we have many more great choices. The drying towel that I recommend right now is The Rag Company Gauntlet. If you’re interested to see how some drying towels stacked up against each other, check out this article on the best drying towels.
Drying Aids
Drying aids can be used with towel drying to leave an extra layer of protection behind and help soak up the water quicker. My favorite drying aids include P&S Bead Maker and Sonax Brilliant Shine Detailer. One great thing about Sonax BSD is that it can be diluted 5:1. If you use it at full strength you might notice that its a bit “sticky” to put on. After using Sonax BSD, be prepared for some nice water beading!
My preference on drying aids is to use them with separate microfiber towel so no sealant is being absorbed by the drying towel and possibly affecting its ability to absorb water. My absolute favorite do-everything towel is The Rag Company’s Edgeless 365. These towels have held up over many, many washes and really do an excellent job.
Air Drying
This no-contact drying method is a great option to help preserve the car’s paint from unwanted scratches that could come from using a drying towel. It also evacuates water from areas that could not be reached with a drying towel. This is beneficial because it will prevents water from dripping down the car paint and leaving water spots.
Whenever paint correction is planned, I will air dry the car so there’s no water running down and disrupting the polishing process. It’s no fun when polish is getting flung everywhere! I used the Metro Vac Sidekick for many years and it did an amazing job. Recently, I’ve switched to the EGO 650 and it makes drying a car go by quick! The attachment shown on the EGO blower is the Stubby Car Drying Nozzle. One thing to note about the EGO blower is that the 5.0ah battery is a bit heavy so it may be a workout on your arms.
Post Wash Care
Exterior Trim, Plastics and Rubber
Taking care of exterior trim will add back that deep black luster and add UV protection to help prevent any future fading. I’ve been using Chemical Guys VRP for the last 10 years and it has been my favorite product to use. It can be applied to the wheels or any vinyl, rubber or plastic. When applying this product, I like to use this tire dressing applicator pictured above as it distributes the product well. This product can be applied to trim with foam or microfiber applicators like Adam’s applicator.
Glass
Window cleaning is my the last step of the detail process to remove any overspray or grime build up at the top of the windows that wasn’t cleaned by the wash process. Stoner makes a great glass cleaner that is also window tint safe so it does not contain any ammonia. This glass cleaning kit by Stoner has a glass cleaning tool that makes cleaner all interior windows a breeze. After cleaning the windows with this kit to remove any grime, I’ll follow up with a Rag Company waffle weave towel to get a lint free finish.
Conclusion
In this article, I’ve shared what I think are the best detailing supplies and tools for exterior car detailing and maintenance. I hope that my experience can help with your detailing process and possibly introduce you to some of the best detailing products. With just a few amazing detailing products, you can bring back or maintain that showroom shine!
