Washing your car every week is time-consuming and in this day and age of rushing about, 12-hour workdays and traffic jams, the last thing you have time for is washing the car.  If you are like most people, you hate to have a dirty car, so what do you do?  The answer is quick detailing!

Quick Detailer Spray History 

The quick detail spray market was created in the1981 by Meguiar's who released a product called Meguair's Trigger Wash.   After realizing the name caused some confusion with consumers, Meguiar’s changed the product name to Meguiar's Quik Detailer. The product completely defined a new market and remains one of Meguiar’s top sellers.

Quick detailers, which are often called a mist and wipe, or waterless wash are commonly used by detailers and car enthusiasts to put the finishing touch on a freshly detailed vehicle. Mist and wipe products quickly and easily remove water spots, streaks, dust and other light contamination. The special formulations evaporate quickly to prevent further spotting, lubricate to prevent scratching and contain gloss enhancers to refresh your just waxed shine. Today, every major car care brand has a quick detailer type product in their line-up. For the car enthusiast, a quick detailer is more than just a convenience; it is a necessity.

Quick detailing sprays are just one useful helper.  A number of innovative products have emerged to help us maintain the appearance and cleanliness of our cars.  The first such product was the car duster, which remains a popular, safe and effective tool for daily dusting.  Next came detailing sprays, which provide the lubrication necessary to remove dirt and dust safely.  Most recently, the car care industry has seen the emergence of high quality, lint-free microfiber towels as safe, multipurpose cleaning and polishing tools.

SAVING TIME WITH QUICK DETAILING

With the use of a quick detailer you can drastically reduce washing to about every other week on your commuter car, and once a month for the weekend toys, depending on weather conditions of course.  Time is only one factor in considering quick detailing.  Water shortages, lack of facilities and bad weather are also things that make normal washing more difficult.

Done properly, quick detailing can reduce the amount of time you spend cleaning your car.  It also reduces the effects of harmful elements (road grime, bird droppings, bugs, etc.), and keeps your car looking sharp.  Ten minutes every other day is all it takes to maintain a finely groomed car.

Supplies:

To properly Quick Detail your car you'll need a few high quality, plush microfiber detailing towels, and quick detailing spray.  A car duster also works well at removing the top layer of dust prior to quick detailing, but is not necessary.

Quick Detailing is not just for the exterior of your car.  There are detailing sprays for your car's interior, as well.  Sonus Cockpit Detailer is an excellent interior detailer.  It removes dust, fingerprints and light soil from all non-fabric surfaces.  

INTERIOR DETAILING  

A few years ago the popularity of the exterior quick detailer provoked a place in the market for an interior quick detailer.  Why not have the ease keeping the outside clean available for the interior too!  The idea is about the same as the exterior quick detailer, just mist and wipe to maintain a clean and fresh interior.

To use an interior detailing spray, fold your microfiber detailing towel, spray it with a few shots of detailing spray, and wipe down the dashboard, console and seats (just don't use a detailing spray on cloth seats), door panels and door jambs.  Use the interior detailing spray more for dusting than cleaning, just as the exterior spray, it is a maintenance product and is not meant to replace interior cleaners or protectants.

About three to four times per year you should clean and protect your interior with products like the Ultima Interior Shampoo Gel followed by the Ultima Interior Guard Plus or Sonus Total Eclipse.  Both the Ultima and Sonus protectant products offer intense UV protection for all interior plastic, rubber, metal, vinyl and leather surfaces. Protection important for all car owners but is a must or all convertible owners, who need regular protection to avoid premature damage. The finish left by both the Ultima and Sonus protectants is a natural and neither product alters the look and feel of the factory finish.

The Ultima Interior Clean, Protect & Preserve Kit is an interior spray and wipe cleaner paired with a intense protectant, applicator and microfiber towel.  It is an excellent bundled solution for modern interiors with complex metal, paint, plastic, vinyl and leather finishes.  It works well on navigation and other electronic displays and controls, too.  The anti-static formula reduces dust and the matte finish reduces glare.

EXTERIOR QUICK DETAILING

The number one concern most people have with quick detailing is scratching or dulling the paint.  This is a genuine concern and warrants discussion.

Quick detailing your paint is perfectly safe if you follow a few cautionary measures:

• Use a quality duster to lift away dust;
• Use only high quality microfiber towels with a thick, plush nap;
• Use plenty of detailing spray;
• If in doubt, if you think your car might be too dirty, don't quick detail, wash it instead.

Don't underestimate the benefit of a good duster.  The Ultima Autospa Quick Detail Bundle is a favorite among car enthusiasts!

Here are the proper steps to quick detail your car's body:

• Dust the vehicle with a paint safe car duster.  The Microfiber Max Pure Shine Dusting Wand is highly recommended.  Start at the top of your vehicle and work down.  Shake your duster frequently (rapidly flipping side-to-side is the best method).
• Clean the windows with Sonus Vision Glass Cleaner and a Sonus Der Wunder Polishing Towel.
• Wipe down the paintwork with your choice of the Ultima Detail Spray Plus, Sonus Carnauba Spritz, or Sonus Acrylic Spritz  and and a quality microfiber like either the Ultima Autospa Buffing Towel or Sonus Der Wunder Buffing Towel (mist the body panel, not the towel).  Starting at the top, wipe down your car, wiping in a single direction only.  As the surface of the microfiber towel gets soiled, flip it to a clean side.  When all sides of the towel are dirty, switch to a fresh towel.
• When the loose dirt is gone, wipe the car down again, giving a couple of shots of detailing spray into the towel for each panel.
• Use with your favorite detailing spray and super plush, high quality microfiber buffing towel to do the final wipe for sparkling, swirl-free results.

If your paint has mud splatter or other heavy soil, it should washed instead of quick detailing.  Use common sense when quick detailing and your paint will remain in very good condition.

SUMMARY

Once you are familiar with quick detailing your car, you can easily get the job done in as little as 5 to 10 minutes.  Compare this to the 45 to 60 minutes it takes to wash and dry your car with car wash shampoo and water.  If you did a quick detail on your car every day, you would spend no more time than you would with a weekly wash, and your car will always look freshly detailed.