How to Clean your Car Windscreen

Cleaning and waxing your windshield to get long lasting results

Difficulty: Easy

Any car owner knows the struggle of driving with a dirty windshield, so in this tutorial I’ll show you how to clean and wax your windshield to create a protective layer that dirt and grime will wipe straight off of once you’re finished. All products in this tutorial are listed at the bottom of the article.

Step 1: Cleaning your Windshield

The first step is to use an ammonia-based windshield cleaner to clean your windscreen. An ammonia-based cleaner willl leave your windshield shiny and smudge-free. This is a very important step in order to make sure that your windows are spotless and ready to be waxed.

Use the cleaner with our ever popular "blue roll" to ensure that no grease or dirt is left behind. Once clean, hose off any excess cleaner, wiping any extra spots off your surface with fresh blue roll.

To speed up the process of drying a wet windshield, use a drying towel.

Once the windshield is clean and dry, you are ready to start applying the wax.

Step 2: Waxing the Windshield

The purpose of applying wax to glass is to apply a protective coat that will repel dirt and water. This makes subsequent cleaning easier and will keep the glass clean for longer.

When working with wax, it is always best to work in the shade and the windscreen should be cool, so make sure your windscreen is not in direct sunlight.

If you're using the wax paste, you will need to rub a microfibre cloth in the container to pick up some wax, but if you're using the liquid wax, you can pour some directly onto the microfibre cloth.

Apply in a circular motion onto your windscreen, covering the whole surface with an even, uniform coat. Leave the wax to dry. To test whether the wax is dry, run a finger over the surface, if it smudges it's not ready and you should leave it for a bit longer. However, if the windscreen underneath is clear, it is ready to be polished off.

Polish off the dry wax with another, clean microfibre cloth. You may need to do this more than once, using a clean cloth each time, to completely get rid of all remaining wax.

Now, you can sit back and enjoy your clean, clear windows that will last.

Products Used In This Tutorial

Ammonia-Based Windshield Cleaner 

3M Car Care Glass Cleaner 562 ml

Blue Roll

2-Ply Centre Feed Paper (Single Roll)

or

General Purpose Blue Paper Wipe (Pack of 6)

Drying Cloth

Meguiars Water Magnet Microfibre Drying Towel

Microfibre Cloth

Farecla Finishing Cloth (Pack of 3)

or

3M Microfibre Detailing Cloth

Carnauba Wax

Meguiars Gold Class Carnauba Plus Paste Car Wax 311g

or

Meguiars Gold Class Carnauba Plus Liquid Car Wax 473ml