CAR DETAILING is basically professionals using specific tools to clean cars. The tools get rid of all sorts of things like dirt and road grime, both on the inside and outside of the car. Car detailing can also help keep the car in really good condition. After being thoroughly clean and detailed, a car would have more resale value.

There’s many students here at Granger High School who know how to detail a car. “First you want to clean with vacuum to make sure it is clean inside, then scrub it with a steam cleaner and soap with a horse hair brush,” Diego Serrato (12) said. Car detailing takes some time to master because, it takes a lot of time and hard work to really get a car looking as good as new inside and out.

There are many different areas a car detailer must really pay attention to, such as the paint, chassis, wheels, headlights, and trim, and of course, the inside of the car. Starting with paint, paint is very sensitive when is comes to this because some of the chemicals used in detailing could easily strip paint right off the car.

There is a process that people go through. First, the car must be cleaned on the outside of dirt and tar, then towel drying the car. After that, detailers apply what’s called clay bar. Clay bar takes of contaminants such as metal particles, dirt and things like that. A wax must then be applied to the car to prevent scratches and marks on the car.

“I spent last weekend detailing my car, I spent all of Friday after school, all of Saturday and some of Sunday just to really get my car clean,” Serrato said.

Some adults enjoy car detailing, Mr. Johnson is one of those people. “I like doing it most of the time, sometimes I enjoy it, other times it’s a pain,” Johnson said.

Another tool car detailers use is 3,000 grit sandpaper for a process called color sanding. This includes careful sanding around the car to get rid of any peeling of paint and unevenness of the car’s exterior surfaces. Some other special tools get used in car detailing for what’s called tire dressing. This process includes the application of a protectant for the tires so they don’t crack.

Using wax on the car is useful to protect the car from the sun’s UV rays. Shampoo is used for the carpets to get out any dirt, mud, and any other unwanted substances in or on the carpet. Special brushes are used for the interior to get into hard to reach places. For example, a horse brush is used to pick up any small rocks, debris, dirt particles, and small things like that.

With all that being said, car detailing seems like a difficult job to get used to, but car lovers find it very rewarding, and detailing always raises a car’s resale value.