Post-Holi car care guide – How to get back the shine

Holi, the festival of colours, is celebrated throughout India, and while the festival is fun, the question that lingers in everyone’s mind is about ways to get their cars shining again.

While this may seem like a daunting task, post-Holi car care is easy and here are the steps to follow.

Prevention is better than cure

All of us have heard this before, and one of the easiest ways to prevent any sort of damage to the paint is to keep the car covered, away from colours. This is especially crucial if the car has a matte paint finish because any sort of shampoo or chemicals on such surfaces will ruin the paint quickly. The easiest way to care for your car is prevention, and a simple car cover does the job.

Wash and care

If prevention was not possible, now you’re looking at cleaning. Take the car to a professional, or if you have the means, do it at home. First, using a pressure washer, spray the car down to remove loose dirt, then, using an appropriate car shampoo, spray the car down. Let the shampoo sit for a few minutes before rinsing it down.

Next, use a two-bucket method for contact wash. Fill the first bucket with shampoo water and the other with plain water. Using a good quality microfibre towel, dip it in shampoo and gently wash the car. Clean the cloth by dipping it into the bucket with plain water to remove whatever dirt collected when cleaning, then dip it in the bucket with shampoo and repeat the process. Once done, hose it down.

Now the protection

Once the wash has removed all the colours, dry the surface well and protect the exterior. A ceramic coating is what most recommend, but it is also an expensive process. Instead, use a good quality wax polish, since they are effective and can be done at home. The good old method of ‘wax on, wax off’ is an effective way of protecting the paint.

What about cars with a matte finish?

This is tricky, as any sort of car shampoo contains wax, which will damage the matte finish and leave a shine. The best way is to keep a matte-finished car as far away as possible from any situation that can get anything on it, and if it does, you will need professional help to clean the car.