What is Car Detailing?

Remember the days when washing the car simply meant digging out an old sponge from the cupboard under the sink, mixing some washing up liquid in an old, gritty bucket, and running this soap-sudded creation over your car’s paintwork three times a year, dropping the sponge as you did so. You may even have had the cheek as a child of asking the neighbours for money for your efforts, despite adding to the scratches and swirl marks on their car, not removing them!

Well, that’s about as far from car detailing as you can get. Car detailing means taking TOTAL care of your car’s bodywork. By carefully and thoroughly removing the dirt and grime that accumulates in everyday driving…. by removing embedded contaminants in the paint… by enhancing or even renovating the paint finish… and then protecting the finish that has been created, by using a modern car wax or sealant that lasts for many months in even harsh conditions.

There is a lot more info on on the detailing guide page, so be sure to check it out. INSERT LINK.

My car isn’t such a nice or expensive one, why would I need to bother with these products?

Keeping any car’s paintwork in top condition is worthwhile. No-one in their right mind says ‘my car is so old, what is the point of taking it for a service?!’

Some very nice detailing work has been done on older cars, just check out this picture courtesy of dodo juice of a INSERT ‘old’ PIC HERE.

The owner is not ashamed to wax his 11 year-old white Toyota Corolla, and no car is too bad for our products.

At the same time, few things are more soul-destroying than seeing a newer car’s paintwork swirled, scratched, chipped or ingrained with dirt and grime before the odometer has reached four figures. And if you come to sell your car, you’d be surprised how much beautifully maintained paintwork can add to the asking price!

I can buy waxes and shampoos at the petrol station, more conveniently and more cheaply. Why do I need to buy these products?

Most of the commerically available car shampoos and waxes contain cheap ingredients and are heavily diluted so they seem to offer good ‚value for money’. These can give poorer results than dedicated products, but also require more regular application than professional products. They also don’t provide a wide enough range to take into account the individual detailer’s needs, type of paintwork etc.

Aren’t these products damaging to the environment?

Many of the waxes contain carnauba wax, an ecological product taken from the carnauba palm tree which grows in tropical Latin America. The wax has been in use commercially since the 1930s and its other applications include furniture waxes and food preservatives. Many waxes also contain beeswax, coconut oil and other ecologically sound ingredients. Good quality shampoos will use biodegradable surfactants (soaps). And whilst sealants and quick detailing products may be more synthetic, they will not produce any discernible pollution with careful use.

How much time and money do you need to spend on detailing your car?

You can spend as little or as much as you want.  This largely depends on how frequently or fanatically you detail your car, of course, but by way of example a 250 ml tub of Dodo Juice wax is likely to last you three or four YEARS of regular use, and a 500 ml bottle of shampoo at a dilution ratio of 800:1 will last you around 20-30 washes, or half a year even if you’re washing your car once a week. A clay bar will cover several clayings, and since we recommend this job only be carried out every 2-3 months at most, you’ll only need to buy a new one every year.

If you don’t have the time or inclination to wax your car, you can use an ‚all-in-one’ product like Dodo Juice Need for Speed, after washing your car of course.

Check out the detailing guide for more information.

Are the products only for the car paintwork? What about other areas such as plastic trim?

Yes, they are, but some products like Red Mist Tropical, Time to Dry and Lime Prime Lite can be safely used on plastic trim, and will not leave white residue behind. The general rule is to keep polishes away from trim, as it is the polish particles that create the white dust.

What about machine polishing? Why don’t you sell compounds and polishing machines?

Machine polishing is quite an advanced technique and could harm paint if you are not careful. It is not necessary for a good finish, but it is useful for removing swirlmarks. We may stock machines and compounds in the future.

I can take my car to a valeting place, why do I need to do it myself?

Car valeters are likely to prove more expensive in the long run, and you have no control over which products they use on your car’s paintwork. You’d be surprised how little they know about car detailing. They’re a business, so their products are bought in bulk, and you will not know how the products are used or what techniques the valeter employs. Does a car valeter change his sponge or cloth if he drops it on the floor accidentally? Some do, but some don’t. Can you take the risk that your paint will be clean, but more marked, afterwards?

At  busy times they can be under pressure to get cars through and out the door. If you’re in a hurry, they’re in a hurry too (top tip: always go to a car valeter’s when it is raining, if you want them to take their time!). Imagine the difference between buying a burger at a drive-through outlet of a well known burger chain, compared with taking the time to make your own burger at home with fresh meat and all the trimmings, and you get the picture.

And some of the automated machines that you see at petrol stations are so damaging to your car that we call them ‘swirlomatics’!

Do these products contain any hazardous chemicals?

‘Mummy this marzipan tastes funny’ is a sentence which would alarm the most unhysterical of parents, so of course keep these products away from small children or talking pets (!!!).

If ingested seek immediate medical advice. If you have sensitive skin it might be better to wear surgical gloves and use an applicator for applying waxes. Otherwise keep away from naked flames, do not heat waxes up in a microwave or conventional oven in order to soften them, and exercise due common sense.

For your information, Dodo Juice’s “Diamond White” hard wax does contain trace elements of almond oil.

Also worth noting is that the products are intended solely for car detailing, and despite their appearance are not suitable for waxing surfboards, sculpting hairstyles or using in a gunk tank in a kids’ TV show!

What about winter time in Estonia?

Of course, when it’s minus 25 and the snow is piled high in the streets, applying wax will not be as much fun – but Dodo Juice products are used in Iceland, Finland and Sweden so they can cope with very cold conditions.

Mikko at www.erased.fi advises that – “It’s important to get the car waxed because wax protects paint against salt, sand, slush etc. White spirits shortens the waxes’ life span but you must use it sometimes them to get the car clean from wax. I usually use Wurth Pineline for prewash wintertime because it’s pineoil-based so it’s wax-friendly”. So there you go.

Next you’ll be telling us that we need to buy special water to wash our cars?

Nope, the tap water in Estonia is up to the job. If you can drink it or wash yourself with it it’s ok for the car. Still, it’d be interesting to hear if anyone goes to the lengths of buying bottled water for washing their car. Let us know!