Keeping your car’s bodywork in good condition not only means you will be proud to drive it and be seen, but it can also help save you money, by reducing the need for expensive repairs, and retaining its value for the future. Here is our quick guide to caring for your car’s bodywork to keep it in tip top condition.
1) Avoid cleaning your car in the heat
Keeping your car clean is an important part of maintaining its bodywork, however, you should make sure the conditions are right or you might damage your car’s bodywork and leave it looking worse than before.
If you have just driven your car, don’t clean it immediately – allow the car to cool down first, before tackling any cleaning jobs. Also, avoid cleaning the car on really hot days as heat makes the chemicals in the products you will be using far less effective.
2) Remove tree sap and bird droppings
It’s important to remove any residue like tree sap and bird droppings from your car as soon as you spot them. These types of dirt can dry on and then will eat through and damage your paint work, so as soon as you spot a deposit like this, clean it off with a cloth immediately, to protect your car.
3) Have your car regularly waxed
Waxing your car at least once to twice every year will help to keep the body work protected and sealed. The wax keeps your car shiny and also protects the paint from the weather. It also works to cover small scratches and dents which could create rust problems.
4) Get your car rust proofed
As you often can’t see rust, particularly on the underside of your car, it can build up and cause damage without you knowing so having a rust-proof treatment can really make a difference to keeping your car’s body work protected against the elements.
It’s important to look after the whole car, not just the body work you can see, so having this kind of treatment carried out will protect the chassis and all the undercarriage of the vehicle.
5) Paint over any small dents, chips or scratches
This advice is not simply to make your car look nice – painting over damage to the body work, however minor, will help to stop rust developing and causing major damage further down the line. It’s best to get the paintwork done by a professional to ensure a good match and finish.
If you want to do it yourself to save money then that’s still better than leaving the damage exposed which puts your car’s body work at risk of rust and far more costly repairs in the future.
Looking after your car’s body work not only means you will have a nicer looking car to drive around but it could save you huge bills in the future. Keeping it in good condition will also make it easier to sell at a higher price when the time comes.