Keeping Your Paint Alive in the Aussie Heat (Mar 2026)

Honestly, I wouldn't bother washing the car if you're just going to use one bucket of filthy water. You're just swirling dirt around. Use two buckets, one with your soapy suds and one with plain water to rinse your mitt. I learned this the hard way on a black Commodore I used to own; one lazy wash and I spent the next six hours polishing out the scratches. Use a decent pH-neutral soap like Bowden’s Own Nanolicious. It won't strip your wax and it handles the Aussie grit well.

If a bird or a bat decides to use your bonnet as a toilet, get it off immediately. In 40-degree heat, that acid can eat into your paint in under an hour. Keep a bottle of quick detailer and a clean microfiber towel in the boot. A customer once brought in a white Audi where a bat dropping had sat for a week in the sun, I had to wet-sand the spot to get it out. Don't be that guy.

You don't need to spend $2k on a professional coating if you're on a budget. These new ceramic 'Sio2' sprays are brilliant. After you wash and dry, chuck a coating of something like Gtechniq C2 or Meguiar’s Hybrid Ceramic Wax on. It takes ten minutes but makes the red dust from the outback just slide off next time you hit it with the hose. It's the best protection against that salty coastal air too.

Don't go overboard with the greasy, silicone-based tyre shines from the supermarket. They look alright for five minutes, then they sling all over your paint as soon as you drive off and attract dust like a magnet. I reckon a water-based dressing like Autoglym High Gloss is better. It gives a nice satin finish that doesn't turn into a brown mess after a trip down a gravel road.