Routine maintenance, not firefighting
A regular schedule keeps your paint, wheels, and interior from ever reaching "problem page" territory in the first place. Here's genuinely how often each step actually needs doing.
The real schedule
| Task | Typical interval | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Wash (shampoo) | Every 1–2 weeks | Road grime and traffic film build up fast in the UK — leaving it longer lets dirt embed into the paint rather than sitting on top of it. |
| Wheels | Every wash, not separately | Brake dust is acidic and bonds to alloys quickly — it's the one area that genuinely gets worse the longer it's left, not just dirtier. |
| Spray wax / quick detailer | Every 4–6 weeks | Tops up protection between full wax applications — quick, low-effort, keeps water beading between the bigger jobs. |
| Full wax or sealant | Every 2–3 months | Traditional wax and synthetic sealants both wear off with washing and UV exposure — this is the step that actually protects the paint, not just makes it shiny. |
| Ceramic detailing spray | Every 2–3 months | A lighter-duty top-up if you're not running a full ceramic coating underneath — extends beading and gloss between deeper details. |
| Interior/fabric protection | Every 3–6 months | Less exposure than exterior paint, but UK damp means fabric/carpet protection is genuinely worth doing more than once a year. |
Seasonal considerations
Autumn/Winter
Road salt and grit grip aggressively — wash more often than the summer interval above, especially the wheel arches and underbody where salt sits longest. A wax or sealant layer matters more here, not less — it's your real barrier against salt corrosion.
Spring
Tree sap and pollen season — see the tree sap page if it's already bonded. A fresh wax layer after winter's salt exposure is worth doing now, not waiting for the "every 2–3 months" clock alone.
Summer
UV is the real enemy of wax/sealant durability — direct sun genuinely shortens how long protection lasts versus a garaged car. Bird droppings (see the bird droppings page) also etch faster in summer heat — don't leave them.
Year-round
Headlights cloud gradually from UV, not a single event — check them every few months, see the headlights page once they're noticeably duller.