Rover P6 Club

Classic car owners, whether they have a Rover P6 or an MG Midget, do not need to be told to take care of their pride and joy. Nonetheless, if you're new to the ownership game and manage to get a classic motor from new and used car dealers around the country, you will ensure your investment is a worthwhile one by following these top tips. While you may believe that cleaning and detailing a car is simply about washing and waxing it, certain practices may lead to degradation.

Be sure to start by establishing a schedule for maintenance work. While it does not need to be done every day, light maintenance such as surface-cleaning should be done every week; meanwhile, every fortnight should lay out a plan of vacuuming, waxing, polishing and cleaning the engine. Naturally, when this is established firmly, you'll have to do it for less time each week, as you refine your technique while improving the overall quality of your Rover P6's components.

When going all-out with a cleaning job, wash your car first. Applying polish or wax onto a dusty car can ruin the paint. Be sure not to air-dry a classic; water spots can form and again affect the paintwork, so use cotton detailing cloths to get rid of any excess water before they're created.

From here, be sure to clean every single inch of the interior, including vents, with various sizes of brush. Floor mats should be vacuum-cleaned and shaken to get rid of in-ground debris. When cleaning rubber and vinyl in the interior, avoid using silicone-based protectants; these can leave oily residues that attract dust.

When cleaning the engine of your Rover P6, firstly degrease it with a good specialised product and give it plenty of time to dry it out afterwards. After this, apply wax and protectants to keep it looking ship-shape for longer.

Finally, clean glass last, as this can be made dirty during the cleaning process for the rest of the car. Cleaning solutions free from ammonia are best, while household glass cleaners are very bad for the car as they can dry out leather, plastic and vinyl.

A small investment goes a long way, so do yourself a favour: take care of the visual upkeep of your car, as it can run away from you if left for too long.