How to Make Your Car Shine Like New in 11 Simple Steps

How to make dull paint shine on car? How to make your car shine like new at home? What do car dealers use to shine cars? How to make your car paint shine like glass? These are some of the most common questions almost all car owners often ask whenever they search for the best way to make their car paint shine again. And probably sometimes you might also have thought about it. Isn’t it?

Whether you believe it or not, your car’s exterior is the very first thing that people notice when they come across this asset of yours. Investing in something to purchase it and keeping it well-maintained to increase its life span are two completely different things.

While most people buy a car, they often forget to take care of it. When it comes to taking care of the vehicles resting in your garage, it is crucial to focus on making your car paint shine like new. After all, it is the vehicle’s paint that makes it attractive and challenging for the onlookers to miss out on.

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It might be the extremely heated rays of the sun or rough washing affecting your car paint. No matter what’s the reason behind the fading paint on your car, choosing the most reliable car care products and the best way to make your car shine would make up for all damages done to the exteriors.

How to make your car shine like new? Using the right car wash soap, auto glass cleaner, clear coat car polish, and applying a high-quality synthetic car wax are among the best ways to make your car paint shine like new. But there are plenty of other crucial things you will have to pay attention to as well.

Moving ahead with this article will bring you across various ways of making your car shine like a brand new one. So, are you excited to find out how to make dull paint shine on car and how to make car paint look new? If yes, then begin the learning.

How to Make Your Car Shine Like New in 11 Simple Steps

Browsing through these best ways on how to make your car paint shine like new will let you know the simplest and most effective options you can conveniently utilize to give your car an attractive look and feel. In addition to the methods utilized by the dealerships to ensure an appealing essence for a car, you get the cost-effective alternatives on how to make your car shine at home.

Well, no matter which car cleaning product or car waxing and polishing alternative you use to make sure your car paint remains healthy and shining, these simple steps explained below are the most effective ones that you should follow to ensure getting the desired result.

So now, without further delay, let’s find out what are the best ways to make your car paint shine again and how to make your car shine like new. Here we go:

Rinse Your Car Before Washing

The first step of making a car shine at home is to rinse it prior to washing with soap and water. If you are thinking of using soap wash directly on the car’s surface, which is already filled with lots of dust and dirt particles, it is advisable not to do so.

In case you use the soap water on the dry paint, it will only make your car paint absorb all the road grits, thereby hampering the life span of your car. Thus, never think of washing the car’s body with soap water without rinsing it beforehand.

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So far as the products to be used for thorough rinsing of the car are concerned, there are lots of items available around of which 100ft Expandable Garden Hose with Spray Nozzle and Sun Joe Electric Pressure Washer for Cars are the most popular ones.

These are light-weight, flexible, and easy-to-use tools that guarantee proper cleaning of the car’s exteriors before you apply soapy water on it. Therefore, when it comes to making your car shine, start with rinsing the car using the best tool and then proceed to the next step.

Use the Right Car Wash Soap and Shampoo

Most of the car owners have been found negligent when it comes to choosing the most effective soap and shampoo for car wash. If you are looking forward to having the best way to make car paint shine, it is essential that you choose the right soap and shampoo for the purpose.

Which car wash soap or car wash shampoo is good to go is something that could be determined only when you consider certain factors, including the surface metal and type of paint on the car. Of course, the color of the exteriors also serves to be an important factor.

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Not every type of paint can bear the amount of bleach, ammonia, or other chemicals soap or shampoo is made of. Therefore, it is recommended that you research and consult experts to know which soap or shampoo to go for.

And if you genuinely want to know how do car dealers make cars so shiny, there are some premium car wash products like Chemical Guys Mr. Pink Super Suds, and Meguiar’s Gold Class Car Wash, etc. that help them offer the desired glossy appeal to the sedans they display for purchase.

Don’t Use Sponge. Use A Microfiber Car Wash Mitt.

Using a sponge is the most commonly tried way to deal with the dirt and dust particles accumulated on a surface, be it a windowpane or a car’s body. While most people find it an apt alternative to deal with the road grit, it is advisable to think beyond the traditional ways and try using microfiber car wash mitt, especially when it is about making car paint look new.

Using the microfiber cloth effectively helps in retaining the shine that your car originally had. While a sponge holds the dirt in the pores it has, the microfiber car wash mitt lets the road grit fall out while you rinse the car’s surface.

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In case you use the Sponge, you will have to have sandpaper to get rid of the dirt particles that embed in the sponges. Instead of making the process more complicated and time-consuming, you can directly have a microfiber mitt for the purpose.

The Cyclone Korean Microfiber Wash Mitts and Meguiar’s Microfiber Wash Mitt are the two most popular microfiber mitts used by dealers and car owners to retain the shine of their vehicles back. What do car dealers use to shine cars? You already have an answer, right?

Follow the Two Bucket Car Wash Method

Though there are multiple methods that you may consider when it comes to washing or cleaning your car’s surface to get back the shine it had earlier, the best way to make dull car paint shine is to utilize the two bucker car wash method. A bucket with soapy water to lather the exteriors and another one with rinse water help deal with your car’s dullness and fading color effectively.

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As soon as you start washing the car’s surface, you can dip your dirty microfiber mitt in the bucket containing rinse water. Swirl the mitt around to let the road grit, and dirt particles dislodged. Now dunk your mitt in the soapy water and start wiping the rest of the parts, repeating the same process of dislodging the dust and dirt particles from the microfiber you’re using in the process. When you feel the rinse water is dirty and need a refill, do so.

You can use Chemical Guys Car Wash Kit and MEGUIAR’S All in One Essentials Car Care Kit that comes in a package and lets you have every “how to make your car shine like new” product readily available.

Use Auto Glass Cleaner for Windshield, Mirrors, And Windows

When you are entirely focused on the car’s exteriors, you will likely forget about the mirrors, windshields, and windows. Remember, once you decide to retain your vehicle’s shine and keep it well-maintained, you should emphasize handling each portion and corner of your car. To make sure your best way to make a car shine gives effective results, you must take care of the other parts of the vehicle as well.

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How to make your old car paint shine like new? You may have a shiny car surface, but if your windows, mirrors, and windshields are not glossy or attractive enough, all your efforts will go in vain. For the best output, it is crucial that you concentrate on everything while cleaning the vehicles to help them retain the original shine irrespective of the type, nature, or shade of the car paint you have used.

You can use all-purpose glass spray specifically designed for the purpose and get the shining glasses all over. You can try products like Invisible Glass Premium Glass Cleaning Kit, or Shine Society Glass and Window Cleaner, etc. and see the difference they make.

Use the Best Microfiber Towels for Drying Car

Are you still stuck to using chamois leather for drying your car? If yes, you should re-think about the same. Of course, chamois soaks up water, but it hardly picks up the residue left post-rinsing. This is why the microfiber towel is considered the best way to make car shine after it dries up.

While the remaining dirt particles left on the car’s surface after rinsing enters into the car paint via chamois, a microfiber towel allows you to get rid of all the dirt particles and road grit at one go while soaking up the water, drying the car’s surface.

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If you are looking forward to the ways of how to make your car shine like a mirror, only rinsing and cleaning with soapy water is not enough. Drying it manually using microfiber towels is equally important to get back the original shine of your old car.

To check how effective these microfiber towels could be, you can try and use products like Chemical Guys Professional Grade Premium Microfiber Towel, and Meguiar’s Water Magnet Microfiber Drying Towel, etc., which are the most recommended and popular choices available in the market.

Remove Tough Contaminants with a Clay Bar

Now, when you are perfectly aware of the initial steps to start with cleaning the car’s exteriors to bring its shine back, you know that microfiber mitts are the best to rinse off and dry the washed car, you still have something to discover.

Not all the road grits are soft enough to get rid of so quickly. There are a few stubborn stains. If you are searching for ways on how to make your car paint shine like glass by removing those tough and rigid contaminants, you should use a clay bar without giving any second thought.

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Clay Barring is a technique opted for contaminants or particles that stick to your car’s surface and are difficult to take care of using mere soap or shampoo. If you are still wondering what do dealerships use to clean cars, this is the method they apply to ensure the vehicles displayed at their place are clean, clear, and robust.

Products like Mothers California Gold Clay Bar System, and Chemical Guys Clay Bar and Luber Synthetic Lubricant Kit are widely popular for their effectiveness and the shine they offer to the exteriors of your car.

Get Rid of Scratches Before Polishing Your Car

How to make your car paint shine again? To make an old car shine and look like a new one, most car owners choose to get it thoroughly polished. Undoubtedly, the polishing of the car offers a brand new look to your sedan, but before you go for it, there is something that you must note. If you get your old car polished without dealing with the scratches, the new appeal will reflect the presence, thereby hampering the efforts you have put in to enhance the appearance of your car.

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Therefore, before polishing the cars, you should choose something that will help you remove the scratches successfully. When it comes to removing scratches from cars, there are plenty of options available in the market. But if you want to fix scratches as quickly as possible without spending much money then follow this car scratch repair guide and learn how to remove deep scratches from car at home with household items and car scratch removers.

Once that’s assured, you are ready to have your old vehicle on the road once again, and that too without embarrassment. There are dealers who sell used cars, but then you don’t find any fault with the exteriors while going through those second-hand options, right?

What do car dealerships use to make cars shine is the question that instantly strikes in such situations. Well, The Ultimate Car Scratch Remover Kit, and Carfidant Scratch and Swirl Remover (car paint polish and restorer), etc. are some of the most popular and best car scratch remover products that help them achieve such scratch-free and stain-free results.

Use a Clear Coat Car Polish for Deep Glossy and Swirl-Free Results

When it comes to getting a clean and shiny car exterior, you usually think of different ways on how to make your car shine like glass. It is quite evident, as you know that it is the first thing that every onlooker notices about your car. Anything that owns if remains unmaintained will only make it less valuable.

As you invest a considerable proportion of your earning in buying a car, keeping it well-maintained is your responsibility. With the clear coat car polish, you can ensure getting the shine of your car back no matter how old it is.

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While there are different solutions to help you polish your car’s exteriors, there are some that are all-purpose products that take care of the scratches while helping your car retain its glossy and swirl-free appeal.

Using products like 3D Speed All in One Polish and Meguiar’s Ultimate Polish will surely guide you on how to make your car paint shine and also let you come across the best possible results. The right product will ensure offering the best output, thereby helping your car regain the original glow that it deserves to continue with.

Apply a High-Quality Synthetic Car Wax

How to make your car shine without wax? Is this what you are thinking to proceed with? If yes, you might find many ways to clean and make your car shine without using wax. However, in case of longevity is your concern, it is recommended that you don’t think of anything except a high-quality synthetic car wax.

When you wax a car, the treatment builds a protective layer over the car’s surface. As a result, the longevity of not only your car’s paint and shine gets increased, but the body of your vehicle also remains stable as it feels secure against the harsh effects of the UV rays.

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If you keep wondering what do car dealers use to detail cars, you should know that they highly prefer car wax to enhance the shine of the vehicles as they know the owners do not look for temporary shine but a permanent glow for their cars.

The car wax will keep your car paint protected, helping your vehicle be an owner of its shine for a more extended period. Meguiar’s Ultimate Liquid Wax and CarGuys Liquid Wax are the two most popularly used products that are known to offer high-level protection to your car’s paint, increasing its lease of life.

Don’t Forget to Give Your Tires a Deep, Black Shine

While you keep searching for the best way to make a black car shine, there are several other things that you forget to focus on. Why not look for the best products to take care of the deep black tires that your car has. When you drive, the tire or wheel bears all the weight and stress throughout the journey. Therefore, it is recommended that you skip looking for the best way to make your black car shine and hunt for something to take care of the tire, for a change.

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Though tires are the most roughly used components of a car, they are often ignored while you think of its maintenance. Imagine you own a fantastic glossy car, but then your tires are dirty, messy, and full of road grit.

Browsing through the collection of products available for the purpose, you are likely to come across multiple alternatives. However, the two most widely used and trusted products for tire maintenance are TriNova Tire Shine Spray No Wipe and Chemical Guys Silk Shine Spray for tires, trim, vinyl, plastic and more. Using these sprays guarantee shining black tires for your shiny black car.

If you follow the above steps to help your car retain the shine that it has always owned, you will surely get to see the desired results. In addition, you will find yourself guiding others as well whenever they are looking for ways of how to make dull paint shine on car.

Author’s View on How to Make Your Car Paint Shine Like New

While the steps, as mentioned earlier, for how to make your car paint shine like new can help you obtain a productive output, there are instances where you may find it challenging to follow all these steps together at one go.

Hence, you can narrow down the process as per your requirements while not forgetting to rinse off the car’s body before you go for two bucket wash method. Also, do not miss out on taking care of the other components, including mirrors, tires, windshields, etc. The most important of all, however, which I personally find crucial, is to get a car wax done to create a protective layer over the car, thereby enhancing its lease of life.

Make sure you know exactly how to wash your car at home, how often should you wash your car in the winter or summer, and when to follow the above steps to keep your car shining and well-maintained. Please get rid of the road grit and see how perfectly it influences the longevity of your asset.

We hope this guide helped you learn some of the most frequently questions asked by the car owners such as; what do car dealers use to shine cars? how to make your car shine like new, and how to make dull paint shine on car.

Also, if you have any question or suggestion regarding keeping a car shiny and spotless, then feel free to let us know via the comment section below. We would love to know about them.

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About Amy Cuban

I am an automotive enthusiast who loves to be around cars. I enjoy working on cars in my spare time and love anything related to automobiles. I like using different types of car accessories, car gadgets, and innovative car care products.

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