Preparing Your Vehicle for Winter - The Obsessed Garage Way

If you've been around here for a while, you know I'm not a fan of shortcuts. Whether it's washing, coating, or maintaining your car, I'm after repeatable processes that actually work.

Winter is no different. Salt, moisture, and temperature swings are rough on your paint, wheels, and interior surfaces. Even if your car's going into storage, neglecting it for months means dealing with corrosion, crusty interiors, and a battery that's given up on life by spring.

So here is how I would prep cars — both drivers and stored vehicles — for winter. I know we don't get much of a winter down here in Florida, but the process wouldn't change if I lived where it snows. I have also taken the time to thoroughly test all of the products I use and have found them to be the best; that's why they are in the OG store. That way, you don't have to go to 50 different websites to get what you need.

If You're Driving the Car in Winter

If your car's going to see slush and salt, your priority is protection and maintenance. The goal is to make cleaning easier, limit salt exposure, and keeping the car from deteriorating.

Step 1: Deep Clean and Decon

You want to start with a clean slate before winter hits. Get the surface of your vehicle stripped of old waxes, sealants, degraded coatings, and any grime that has built up over the summer. All of the products I use specifically for decontaminating the exterior of my vehicle can be found in the Ultimate Decontamination Solution.

Here's my approach:

• Start with the engine bay. Griot's Garage Engine Cleaner is going to be your friend here. This stuff is specifically designed to break down grease, grime, and any other junk found in your engine bay. Once you get done cleaning with that, spray some Hyper Dressing on the black plastics. It will look amazing once it's done its thing.
• From there, I am going to clean my wheels and exhaust using products found in the Wheel and Tire Solution. Make sure you don't use any protectants at this point. We are still in the cleaning phase.
• After the wheels, I am going to start tackling the paint. Pre-treat your paint with Bilt Hamber Touch-Less. This will take most of the dirt off your paint in this step alone, but I still have a few steps to go. Rinse it off before the next step.
• Now I am going to wash my car like normal (two-bucket method), only this time I will be using a decon soap instead of a pH neutral soap.
• After I rinse off the soap from the wash process, I am going to add two more steps. First, I will do an iron removal to remove any embedded particles. After that, I use a synthetic clay bar (or traditional clay bar if the paint is still pretty crunchy) combined with some Mckee's as a lubricant to avoid adding any scratches.
• Once those steps are done, I will rinse the car one last time (usually with DI water) and dry the vehicle. Make sure it is completely dry before adding protection. I don't use a typical Drying Aid here because we are adding protection later.
  

Now is also a good time to clean up your interior. Using the Interior Cleaning Package, a vacuum, and a little bit of effort, the inside of your car will be as clean as the outside. I also like to add a bit of scent with either a spray or a scent pouch.

Step 2: Protecting

A quick note: if you find your car needs a quick polishing, now would be the time to do it, just before the protection steps. Having your car properly protected means that salt and grime won't stick as easily, and washing becomes less of a chore. There are two kits I recommend purchasing to protect the exterior of your vehicle.

• Paint Protection Package - This has everything you need to protect your exterior surfaces, glass included.
• Wheel Coating Kit - This kit dials in your wheels. It won't change the look of them very much, but cleaning them will be much easier after using these products.

Depending on how dirty your car was or how long it has been since you applied protection, you may need to change your process a bit. You may find that only some panels need to be recoated, while others are still protected just as well as the day you applied it. Deep cleaning a coated surface has been known to revive its protective capabilities.

Step 3: Maintenance Washing

You can't avoid winter grime, but you can manage it. My rule: rinse the car often, even if you don't have time for a full wash. You could also do a quick application of Bilt Hamber Touch-Less and then rinse. That will really keep your paint looking better for longer.

Since I regularly wash my vehicles, I would maintain the process and chemicals currently used. If I weren't able to wash as often as I wanted to, I would swap out the regular soap for decon soap. That way, I could get the extra cleaning power to get all the winter grime off my paint.

During the winter, it is especially important to have a sacrificial layer of protection. That is where Drying Aid comes in. Not only does it give your vehicle slickness when drying, but it also creates a sacrificial layer that gets beat up so your permanent protection can last longer. Every time you dry your car, you refresh that protection.

If You're Storing Your Vehicle for Winter

If your car's not seeing pavement for a few months, the priority shifts. Rather than dealing with day-to-day grime, you need to prevent long-term deterioration. That being said, a lot of the prep work remains the same.

• Follow steps 1 and 2 from above to get your vehicle dialed in. You want to keep your vehicle in its best condition for as long as possible.
• Add stabilizer to your fuel. This will help keep your injectors clean and keep the fuel in your tank from going bad.
• Keep the battery on a maintainer. I also sell a sleeve that goes over the charging cord to keep it from scratching your paint.
• You can also either inflate your tires a few PSI or use something like Race Ramps FlatStoppers to prevent flat-spotting on your tires.

If you're fortunate enough to have a temperature controlled garage, that's ideal. If not, focus on keeping the space dry and clean. You should consider using an indoor car cover on your vehicle since that will keep the dust off, but still let moisture evaporate.

Final Thoughts

Whether your car's fighting through salt-covered roads or resting under a cover, winter prep isn't optional. It's about doing things the right way first so you don't regret it later.

All of the products linked in this article are things that I have tested and vetted to be the best. I use all of them regularly, and are products I would recommend, even if I didn't sell them.

Prep it once, maintain it properly, and your car will come out of winter ready to go.