[picus]

Hey guys, there is a good detailing FAQ on this board, but I am getting a ton of "winter prep" questions, so I wrote this.

Alright, so I'm pretty much only doing winter preps right now, so here is what I basically do, and recommend everyone do prior to winter (right around the time they put their winters on).

1) First, if you're changing your tires, let's do that first. Get the summers off and put the winters on, before you put the winters on make sure to clean them well and if you have it, use some Wheel Sealant, Wheel Wax, or a paint sealant on the mags/wheels/alloys. Put the summers aside for now, more on those later.
2) Wash the car really well. We all know how to wash, there are FAQs on this forum how to do it. I suggest really getting down and dirty, use a fine brush to clean out body panels, door jambs, polish your exhaust and use a sealant on it, open the hood and trunk and clean the water gutter areas.
2) Strip whatever sealant/wax you have on the car, you can do this a few ways so here come the options.
- If you have some marring you want removed, skip to #3
- If you do not have marring but will be using a chemical cleaner, skip to #4
- If you do not have marring and will not be using a chemical cleaner, skip to #5.
3) Polish the car. Hopefully you don't have much marring, so lets assume you're using a light polish, there are FAQs on polishing, so if you're doing that read this. Now if you're using a chemical cleaner next go to step #4, if not, go to step #5.
4) Wipe the car down with alcohol and water. Assuming you polished and/or are using a chemical cleaner I will assume you know how to do this. 50/50 alcohol/water, regular 70% off the counter isa alcohol. Apply your chemical cleaner (Klasse AIO, Werkstatt Prime, etc.), I very highly recommend these before winter for a few reasons. One, they will remove most waterspots you have from the summer/fall, they will really help "deep clean" the paint, and best of all they add a sealant base for your sealant, which will only help it last even longer. Buff off when ready (most are apply to a panel, remove). Go to step #6.
5) If you're not using a chemical cleaner you're going to want to use alcohol/water liberally to strip your old sealant/wax, clean your trim and windows, and remove any polish residue (if you polished). 50/50 rubbing alcohol/water, regular 70% off the counter isa alcohol.
6) Apply your sealant. What do I recommend? Well, we want to use something long lasting, there are quite a few you can choose from. A sampling of the ones I like: Zaino Z2pro/Z5pro, Werkstatt Acrylic Jett, Poorboys EX-P, Klasse HGSG. How you apply and remove the sealant depends on which you use. Almost all of them are apply, let haze, remove *except* HGSG, which you want to wipe on/wipe off. Apply over entire car, including windows.
#7) As the sealant is hazing, do little peripheral jobs, polish exhaust, clean and dress trim, Clean/wax door jambs and hood/trunk jambs, clean and dress wheel wells.
#8) Buff off the sealant however you choose (some dry buff, some buff w/quick detailer, some buff w/spray sealant).
#9) Dress tires if you like that!
#10) If you're not too tired go clean your summer wheels. I like trying to use soap/water first, but if that doesn't do it move to a highly diluted APC or non-acid wheel cleaner. If that doesn't do it you can try acid, but make sure you know how to use it. DO NOT use acid or apc on aluminum lips. Use a metal polish or soap and water. Seal them, cover, and put away.

Any one of the sealants above will last 4-6 months, longer with a sealant base and even longer if you maintain with a spray sealant.

Now for maintaining through winter you have a couple options, I get questions on "how to winter wash" all the time. Here is how I answer.

If you're lucky enough to have a garage that is heated and you can spray a hose, wash normally. Now most of us don't have that, so if you insist on washing in the winter I highly recommend rinseless washes, like QEW or ONR (more info on them in the FAQs), do this in a garage only. If you do not have a garage and want to keep the car salt free (remember, washing in the winter isn't about making it look sweet, it's about keeping salt off), take it to a touchless that you trust, but do not dry, it won't matter - and drying = marring. A coin-op works too.

Me? I wash occasionally with rinseless washes, but mostly I do this - when I am back from a long ride and I have a lot of salt, I will go to a local coin op, put in $2 and spray the snot out of my wheels, wheel wells, and undercarriage, I will also spray the paint and windows *lightly*, to remove any loose salt/junk. That's it, no actual touching. Remember, washing = marring, and also remember its winter, so washing is largely pointless if you use your car. ALSO remember salt will ONLY react with paint when it's over 0c/32f, so if you park in a garage or its warm, so just make sure to get it off when you can.

Why do all this? Well, the obvious reasons (keep it looking good), UV protection, bird poop, acid rain, also sealing windows WILL improve visibility, make it easier to wipe them on the highway, and make it much easier to remove snow from the car (I promise), it'll also help mitigate salt damage.

Cheers.