Elbow Grease

Elbow Grease is an idiom for hard work, especially in relation to polishing, and has been since 1672. Nothing has changed.

We have a wide range of amazing compounds and polishes available to us, as well as labour saving tools. However, none of them make things happen by magic and polishing a car still takes hard work, and more importantly, skill and experience, plus quite a lot of time.

Hard work gets the job done.

What it means

Elbow grease is a casual way of saying that a job needs good old fashioned hard work. In car care it usually means putting in plenty of manual effort with a cloth, brush or hand pad rather than expecting a quick spray of chemical or a machine to do everything. If somebody says the paint came up well with a bit of elbow grease, they mean time and effort were invested in hand cleaning or polishing to get the result.

Why it matters

• Sets expectations: Some jobs, such as deep cleaning interiors, tar removal or hand polishing awkward areas, simply take time and elbow grease, even with the right products.
• Explains labour costs: When a detailer or valeter talks about a lot of elbow grease, they are often justifying the labour element of a price rather than the cost of chemicals.
• Reminds you chemicals are not magic: Cleaners and polishes help, but many still need agitation and thorough hand work to do their best.
• Highlights the limits of DIY shortcuts: Quick retail products may improve things, but the best results usually involve proper technique plus a fair bit of elbow grease.

Where you’ll see it

You will see the phrase elbow grease in informal estimates, explanations and content, rather than on technical data sheets. It might appear in blog posts, videos or conversations about bringing tired paint back, cleaning stained interiors or restoring neglected wheels, often in comments like this took a lot of elbow grease or with enough elbow grease it came up nicely.

Context

Elbow grease is not a product or a measurable specification, it is a reminder that manual effort still plays a big part in good results. Even in a modern detailing studio with machines, steam cleaners and strong chemicals, there are door shuts, awkward trims, tight wheel designs and delicate areas that benefit from careful hand work. The phrase is often used to contrast hand effort with machine polishing, strong traffic film removers or other shortcuts, and to explain why some jobs cannot be rushed if you want a proper finish.

Common mistakes

• Expecting tough stains, ingrained dirt or heavily oxidised surfaces to respond to a quick wipe without the necessary elbow grease.
• Overcompensating for a lack of elbow grease by using harsh chemicals or aggressive tools that risk damage.
• Assuming that because a job needed a lot of elbow grease once, it always has to be that way, instead of protecting the surface so future cleaning is easier.
• Underestimating the time and effort involved in professional level results and comparing them directly with quick DIY efforts that use very little elbow grease.

Written by Danny Argent. Last updated 21/11/2025 16:45