As well as spoiling the look of your car, dirty bodywork also reduces the value of your car. Chemicals in rain and corrosive winter salt mixed with extremes of temperatures really test the paintwork of your pride and joy.
The grime has to be shifted if you don’t want to have problems down the line when you want to sell your car.
It’s also good practice to wash your car as it gives you a chance to take a look at the bodywork and see if you have accumulated any chips or dings that need attention. You can also look at wheels, tyres, etc and make sure that they are in good order as well. So apart from treating your paint work to the wash that it needs, a bucket and sponge is a great opportunity for a quick check-up.
In order to get off to a good start you need to make sure you have some basic kit.
A hose (providing you aren’t breaking any hose-pipe bans in the UK), a good bucket (with no grit inside it; give it a good wash out beforehand), a clean sponge, chamois leather and a squeegee blade (Turtle make one that Halfords sell).
When you are buying a chamois leather a good indicator of its quality is a strong smell of fish oil....