The main difference between car washing and auto detailing is how in-depth the cleaning is. A car wash is a surface clean meant to keep environmental debris from harming your car's clear coat. An auto detailing is a maintenance service that extends the life of most external and some internal components of your car.

A full-detail car wash, as opposed to a standard car wash, performs the washing process by hand. The process begins with a powerful, specialized spray on your vehicle, followed by thorough hand washing of the door jambs, car rims, glass, tires, and any other exterior components.

Professional car detailing is the art and the craft of cleaning and restoring a vehicle to like-new condition. Car detailing services are much more precise and labor-intensive than getting a car wash. A car wash is normally an automated system that a car passes through to clean the exterior.