There’s a big difference between washing and detailing a car. Detailing means taking care of the nitty-gritty and restoring it to showroom level status. So, how do you DIY it like a pro (without dropping hundreds of dollars)?

Even experienced gearheads make car detailing mistakes or fall into bad habits. The good news is that most of these car detailing mistakes are easy to avoid, once you know what to watch for.

Key Takeaways:

• The wrong products or dirty towels will wreck your detailing job fast—no matter how hard you work or how good your products are.
• Air-drying your car ruins a good detail job with water spots, swirl marks, and even clear-coat damage.
• Rushing a car detail job is how mistakes happen. Slow down, work in sections, and let the products do their magic.

Avoid these 5 Car Detailing Mistakes

Before you spray on soap, rinse, and call it a day, take a pause. When car detailing is done right, it’s a methodical process. It’s about cleaning, restoring, and protecting your vehicle from all of the hazards it can face in a day—sun, road grime, brake dust, bugs, bird droppings, and everything else the road throws its way.

But more than detailing needing to be well…detailed…it’s important to detail your car the right way, because when detailing is done wrong, you can actually damage your paint, haze your clear coat, or end up chasing swirl marks.

So, what are the top five mistakes to avoid when detailing your car? Here they are, along with practical tips to help you get better results (without complicating the process).

1. Using the Wrong Car Detailing Products (or Using Them the Wrong Way)

This car detailing mistake is numero uno on the list for good reason. Most detailing mistakes happen because there’s a misunderstanding about what the product is designed to do. Waxes, polishes, and cleaners serve different purposes. Choosing the wrong product for the job can waste your time at best and damage your finish at worst.

Wax vs. Polish for Car Scratch Removal

Many people don’t quite know the purpose of wax. So, one of the common mistakes is relying on a basic car wax to remove scratches and oxidation from your finish…that’s not what wax does well.

• Wax protects and shines.
• Polish cleans, refines, and restores.
• Scratch-removal products often use mild abrasives to level light imperfections.

If your wax isn’t resolving scratches, don’t worry—that’s not what it’s made for. Waxes, like Flitz FZ Speed Waxx enhance the finish. If you’re trying to clean up surface defects, you will have more luck with a polish formulated to address minor paint imperfections, while leaving behind protection. We recommend Flitz Paste Metal Polish also for Fiberglass, Plastic & Paint.

Choose the product that meets your goal. If you’re fixing surface issues, make sure that you have the right one.

Always start with a very smooth, clean surface before you touch your car with any polish or wax. If you skip the cleaning, you’ll seal contaminants right into the paint. Once your vehicle is clean, remove oxidation and add shine with Flitz Paste Metal Polish. Use a sealant, like Flitz Ceramic Sealant for lasting protection.

The bottom line is to know what each product does and pick the right one for the job!

2. Know that Towels Can Kill Paint Finishes

You can have the best car detailing products in the world and still wreck your paint with one bad towel. Towels scratch and don’t absorb, especially those stiff, dirty towels you have in the garage.

Instead of an old bath towel, reach for a Flitz Microfiber Polishing Cloth. Microfiber is truly the secret game-changer when it comes to car detailing. It’s also important that your microfiber is clean and used correctly (so treat yourself to a new one before detailing your car).

Using the same towel on multiple areas of the car is just asking for trouble. Even a Flitz Microfiber Polishing Cloth that touches wheels and tires will be loaded up with brake dust and grit. When you drag it across your paint, you’ll get swirl marks that you don’t want.

To keep it all sorted, use a pro hack: color-code your microfiber cloths! At Flitz, we carry grey and orange colored microfiber cloths, but a simple mark with a colored permanent marker or pen will suffice! Better yet, store your microfiber cloths in plastic storage bags and label them—easy storage, and you’ll never mix up which cloths are for which projects. We suggest:

• Mark blue or green for glass and mirrors
• Mark yellow or orange for paint and panels
• Mark grey, black, or red for wheels, tires, and dirty jobs

Once a microfiber towel does its job, switch it out. Another common car detailing mistake is using the same towel to dry and buff. That’s because drying towels trap leftover dirt and water minerals, so if you use them during polishing or waxing, you will mar the finish. Keep a towel dedicated for each stage: wash, dry, polish, and buff.

Want to make it easy? Don’t miss the Flitz Tear-Away Microfiber Roll. You get 30 convenient microfiber cloths to make every job easy. 

Laundering Microfiber Matters

Finally, the way you clean your towels makes a big difference. Microfiber towels should get washed with a mild, gentle detergent—no fabric softener. Fabric softener clogs the fibers, turning your nice microfiber towel into a glorified rag.

When drying, air dry or tumble on low heat. High heat can melt and stiffen the microfibers, which also reduces their effectiveness. Clean towels get you the best results—go the extra mile to make sure your towels are worthy of your detailing job.

3. Letting the Car Air-Dry

You may think that water spots are harmless. Leaving your car a little wet after washing can seem like no big deal, but the truth is—it’s the fastest way to ruin a good car detailing job.

When water evaporates, it leaves behind mineral deposits. Those minerals harden and turn into spots. Over time, these spots can etch into the clear coat, making it appear dull.

Better Drying Options for Washed Cars:

• Flitz Microfiber Polishing Cloth: Soft, absorbent, and paint-safe when clean.
• Blowers: A great option for drying mirrors, trim, door handles, and emblems without touching the surface.

Air drying a freshly detailed car undoes all that hard work. It’s not just about aesthetics—proper drying prevents long-term damage to your finish. It’s an extra five minutes now that will save you a polish job in a few months.

4. Skipping Regular Detail Maintenance

One-off detailing sessions are great. It’s a satisfying way to spend a Saturday, shining up your vehicle to “like new” condition. But the secret with maintenance is the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Maintenance keeps the car looking good far beyond your Sunday drive.

Regular washing is crucial for removing abrasive contaminants before they dig into and damage your paint finish. Waxing and sealing will help you create a barrier that slows UV damage, oxidation, and contamination. In other words, go the extra mile today and save yourself a headache down the road.

Why Regular Car Maintenance Matters

• Dirt left on paint eventually scratches it.
• UV exposure fades and oxidizes unprotected surfaces.
• Pollutants bond aggressively to neglected paint.

By making maintenance a regular item on your to-do list, you’ll keep those future problems small and easier to fix.

Routine maintenance keeps problems small—and small problems are easier to fix.

5. Rushing the Car Detailing Process

Detailing a car is one of those activities that rewards a patient, methodical approach. Rushing through the job will almost always lead to mistakes. Whether it’s the wrong product or a slapdash application, detailing a car is one of those times when taking your time pays off.

Trying to take on too many detailing steps too quickly can mean skipping prep, using too much product, or failing to work the product properly into the surface.

It’s far wiser to work in small sections, letting products do what they’re designed to do. Buff thoroughly before moving on. Apply sealant to lock things in. Take the time to love your vehicle, and she will love you back.

Get the Right Products for Car Detailing

There’s much to be said for having the right tool for a job. Avoid common detailing mistakes by choosing and using the right products. Use those Flitz Microfiber Polishing Cloths and take the time to dry your car for a spot-free shine. Keep up with maintenance and take your time—it all pays off.

The right products, designed for the job, come from Flitz. We carry a full line of automotive products that help you get everything from the hood to the wheels gleaming and bright. Better still, our products will help keep your sweet ride looking sweet for longer (and give you less maintenance work in the future).

Choose Flitz for professional-level car detailing results without professional-level frustration. Or make it simple and get the Flitz Professional Detailers Kit to have everything you need right in the garage.