Best Car Polishes: Give Your Car The Shine it Deserves (2023)

FAQs

What's the best thing to put on your car to make it shine? ›

Apply Car Polish

Applying polish is the essential step to making a car shine. Car polish helps with removing scratches, minor paint correction, and restores fading paintwork. A good polish will also aid in eliminating fine swirls and improve the car's finish by smoothening out even deep scratches on the car paint.

What car polishes do the professionals use? Professionals don't use one particular car polish. To get a professional auto detailing look in your car, it's important to use a random orbital or dual-action polisher and to seal your paint with a wax or ceramic coating after you've finished polishing.

Car polish contains abrasives that help remove surface imperfections from paint, like swirl marks, scratches, and watermarks. Polishing also adds shine and depth of color to dull, weathered paint.

Much like car bra, ceramic coating also gloss and depth into your car's paint. It will give your car a glossy look, bringing the best out of the original paint job.

Car polish is only ideal for getting rid of mild surface defects. It won't paint the defects that have penetrated the clear coat and subsequent layers. However, a car wax is normally used to make the paint look shiny and protects it from airborne contaminants. It also helps to minimize sun damage and prevent oxidation.

Keep in mind many used car dealers will use a product called a glaze, which basically makes the car look really slick and shiny, only until it washes off. If you are a mobile detailer considering stepping up to washing fleets (like dealerships), check out my post 8 Tips for Starting a Fleet Washing Business.

HOMEMADE LEATHER AND VINYL CLEANER

Pour 1/4 cup plain white vinegar, 1/4 cup olive oil and 6 drops lemon essential oil into a spray bottle. Shake well. To use: Spray a generous amount of leather and vinyl cleaner on a clean cloth (not directly onto the leather or vinyl).

If you've just polished your car, waxing it afterward will improve the shine and make it last longer. Essentially, car polish removes imperfections and creates a shiny surface while wax protects and smoothens the paint's surface.

Professional detailers use microfiber towels to wash, dry and even apply wax to your car. This ultra-soft, microfiber material consists of thousands of tiny, highly absorbent fibers that encapsulate dirt and soils to protect your clear coat from scratches and swirls, drawing them away from your car's painted finish.

What wax do professional detailers use? ›

Our preferred wax is Carnauba wax, which is typically preferred among professional detailers. Waxes applied after vehicle detailing sits on top of the paint and help to create deeper hues in the paint with a liquid-like finish.

For car detailing enthusiasts, polishing is a must in any detailing regimen. For most car owners, on the other hand, polishing is often neglected and overshadowed by waxing and sealants, but is by far the most beneficial step in maintaining the pristine appearance of your car's paint finish.

Polishes are abrasive and for that reason we recommend only polishing your car as needed because each time you polish, you're removing a layer of material. If you over-polish your car, you will eventually thin out the paint and in extreme cases can cut through the clearcoat and the paint right through to the undercoat!

Disadvantages of the Procedure

Duration of the procedure (it may take much more time than waxing). Price (ceramic coating is an attribute of an expensive car. Not everyone can afford to apply ceramics). Difficult to remove (ceramic coating doesn't last forever.

For most people, the answer is ceramic and wax

For the ultimate combination of long-lasting protection and shine, we recommend applying both wax and ceramic coating. Wax will give your car that showroom-fresh look, and the ceramic will help it keep it looking fresh for months to come.

Ceramic protectants (coatings) provide a much higher durability than wax. They resist heat, UV rays, environmental contaminants & harsh detergents much better than wax. Wax on the other hand simply sits on top of the paint's surface. It does not create the chemical bond like we find with ceramic coatings.

Nothing leaves a longer-lasting glass-like shine than high-grade carnauba wax. Of all the different types of carnauba waxes, this is the best car wax for the longest-lasting finish and shine of a vehicle's exterior.

When To Polish Your Car. If you're taking good care of your car, polishing your car once or twice a year should be sufficient to fix up any minor scratches or wear. If you frequently find yourself with scrapes or spots, you can take it to be polished more regularly.

To begin, clean and dry the problem area, then box it in with automotive masking tape. Do an initial sanding with wet and dry 300-grit sandpaper. Finish by smoothing with a wet and dry 1200-grit sandpaper. Wipe off the sanded area to ensure you've smoothed out the paint glob and then remove the masking tape.

Ozium was created in the 1940s as a sanitizing spray, but it eventually caught on with car people. Dealerships use it to freshen used cars. Car detailers use it. Car owners use it to keep their cars smelling nice.

What makes a car look fast? ›

Nearly all cars have a small amount of speed designed into their look. This is due to them being moving objects- and the design is usually intended to be directional. This is often functional as well as purely for styling. The most obvious aspect of this is what we will call the “wedge” and the “taper”.

You can use Windex^® Ammonia-Free Glass Cleaner on your car's tinted windows, mirrors, glass, chrome, stainless steel, plastic, and vinyl surfaces. For a streak-free shine, clean car windows when the surface is cool and out of direct sunlight whenever possible.

To clean vinyl seats, use soap and water or a protectant. If using soap and water, make sure to use as little water as possible, and dry quickly so water doesn't soak through to the cushion or padding. Use a brush or toothbrush along seams to get into the pleats.

They come in a wide range of colours, and look like paint once installed. Solid colours with no sparkles or flakes, they reflect a lot of light and make your car shine even on a gloomy day.

How long do the results of polishing last? It depends on what protective coating is used. For a carnauba wax you're probably looking at two to three months depending on environmental conditions, ownership and wash routines. If you go for the expense of a ceramic sealant, that timeframe is significantly increased.

You should apply wax twice a year as a minimum – once in spring ahead of the summer temperatures, and once before winter to protect against rain, snow, salt and hail. If you want to keep your car protected further, we'd recommend waxing four times a year.

Car detailers will start by thoroughly cleaning your vehicle. This is done to keep loose dirt from getting caught in the buffer and scratching your car. Following the washing, the detailer will use their rotary buffer to buff off the scratches with a cutting compound.

Natural colors are generally better than bright or bold colors. Reserve bright or dark colors to highlight outliers or important calls to action. Also remember that each color in a data visualization should serve a purpose. Use different dashboard colors only when you're communicating different things.

What wax does Jay Leno use? ›

Jay's Hand Wax goes on easy, hazes quickly, and the best of all – it wipes off even easier! Using a specific blend of high-grade carnauba wax along with synthetic polymers, we've designed this to be easily applied by hand or with a machine buffer.

Tire dressings, also known as tire renovators, and protectants, also known as vinyl dressings, have the purpose of enhancing the appearance of rubber and plastic surfaces. . Basically, this is just a detailing product that helps to bring back the deep dark color of rubber on your tires.

No, waxing your car too much will not cause any issues, but it can be unnecessary. We recommended you protect your car with our ceramic wax. How often should I wax my car? As a rule of thumb, you want to wax your car every three months.

Yes, you can use Windex on car windows and to clean the inside of your windshield. While some will advise you to skip the Windex with tinted windows, there's no evidence that Windex with ammonia causes problems.

Machine polishers such as rotary, orbital and dual-action polishers, are the clear winners at removing water spots, scratches and swirls. They are all capable of providing faster, more consistent results than when you hand polish cars.

For example, if you don't wax your car, you're just letting tiny scratches stick around and possibly exposing the paint to damage over time. Plus, not waxing your car means you're missing out on the chance to drive around in a car that looks shiny and brand new!

Ceramic protectants (coatings) provide a much higher durability than wax. They resist heat, UV rays, environmental contaminants & harsh detergents much better than wax. Wax on the other hand simply sits on top of the paint's surface. It does not create the chemical bond like we find with ceramic coatings.

Polishing generates a brushed or lined finish, where buffing removes the lines and creates a bright luster finish. The process of buffing generally requires surface refinement polishing prior to buffing.

Our preferred wax is Carnauba wax, which is typically preferred among professional detailers. Waxes applied after vehicle detailing sits on top of the paint and help to create deeper hues in the paint with a liquid-like finish.

What is the longest lasting car wax? ›

Nothing leaves a longer-lasting glass-like shine than high-grade carnauba wax. Of all the different types of carnauba waxes, this is the best car wax for the longest-lasting finish and shine of a vehicle's exterior.

Polishes are abrasive and for that reason we recommend only polishing your car as needed because each time you polish, you're removing a layer of material. If you over-polish your car, you will eventually thin out the paint and in extreme cases can cut through the clearcoat and the paint right through to the undercoat!

Our pick for the best car polish is Meguiar's Ultimate Polish. It acts as a pre-wax glaze and helps produce a glossy, wet look, particularly on dark vehicles. It also removes minor defects. For a more budget-friendly option, consider Nu Finish Liquid Car Polish.

Machine polishers such as rotary, orbital and dual-action polishers, are the clear winners at removing water spots, scratches and swirls. They are all capable of providing faster, more consistent results than when you hand polish cars.

Ceramic coatings deliver incredible protection and durability to your car's finish, but they don't necessarily add the same eye-popping shine that you expect from a traditional car wax. That's why it's a great idea to wax your car intermittently even after you've protected it with a ceramic product.

As a general rule of thumb, I use 1 pad per panel, which comes out to about 4-6 pads per car. This means if you are performing a two step polishing process, I will use 4-6 heavy correction pads and 4-6 light correction pads. I use each pad on the hood, trunk, front quarter panels, sides, and the rear quarter panels.

You can leave the polish on the shoe for anywhere between 20 minutes to overnight. The more time that the natural ingredients have to work into the leather and nourish it, the better.