Taking Your Car Care to the Next Level: Advanced Detailing for the Aussie Summer

Always start with the wheels. If you do them last, you'll splash brake dust and grime onto your clean paint. Use a dedicated wheel cleaner and brushes. If you've got red dust caked in the arches, give them a heavy blast with the pressure washer first.

Cover your alternator and intake with some plastic bags. Use a mild degreaser and a soft brush. Rinse gently, don't go 'full bore' with the pressure washer here or you'll be calling a tow truck for an electrical fault.

Apply foam to a dry car. I know, sounds weird, but foam clings better to dry dirt than wet dirt. Let it dwell for 5 minutes (not in direct sun!) to encapsulate the grit.

Use the two-bucket method with a high-quality wash mitt. Start from the roof and work down. Rinse your mitt after every single panel. No exceptions.

Spray an iron remover over the paint. If it turns purple, it's working. This pulls out the metal shards from brake pads and industrial zones that are literally rusting inside your paint.

Using plenty of lube, glide the clay bar over the paint. You'll feel it grabbing at first, that's the grit. When it slides like silk, the panel is clean. Fold the clay frequently to expose a fresh surface.

Dry the car thoroughly using a dedicated drying towel or a blower. Use automotive masking tape (the blue or green stuff) to cover rubber trim, plastic edges, and badges. You don't want polish residue turning your black plastics white.

This is where most blokes mess up. Don't just start buffing the whole car. Pick a small area on the boot or lower wing. Try your least aggressive combo (finishing polish and a light pad) first. If that clears the swirls, great. If not, then step up to a heavier compound.

For heavy swirls or those nasty water spots from the sprinklers, use a cutting compound. Work in 50cm x 50cm sections. Apply 4-5 pea-sized drops to the pad, spread it out, then work in overlapping passes.

This is what brings the 'pop' back to the paint. Use a finishing polish to remove any 'haze' or 'marring' left by the heavy compound. This is the difference between a 'clean' car and a 'mirror' finish.

Use your Panel Prep/IPA mix to remove all the polishing oils. This is vital. If there's oil left on the paint, your ceramic coating won't bond, and it'll fail in weeks rather than years.

Work inside a garage if you can. Apply the coating to a suede applicator and wipe onto a panel in a cross-hatch pattern. Wait for it to 'flash' (it'll look like oil on water) then buff off immediately with a clean microfibre.

Don't forget the windscreen. Use a dedicated glass sealant. It makes a massive difference during those sudden summer thunderstorms, the water just flies off at 60km/h.

Apply a UV-resistant trim restorer to all black plastics. This prevents that grey 'chalky' look that plagues cars in the QLD or WA sun.

Apply a high-temp wheel sealant or ceramic. It makes cleaning brake dust off later a 10-second job.

Use a water-based dressing. Avoid the oily 'sling' versions. You want a nice dark satin finish, not a greasy mess that attracts red dust.

Pull the car out into the sun (briefly) and check for 'high spots' in the coating. If you see dark patches, buff them out immediately before they cure.