Buying a car is a very important step in our lives, but have you ever wondered what comes afterwards? Let us tell you – it’s car maintenance. In order to get the most from your car for years or even decades, you should keep your beloved vehicle in a prime state. This includes regular inspections of the car (you can do it yourself or take your car to a mechanic), replacing the broken parts, buying new performance components, and, of course, cleaning your car. You probably already know how to keep the outside of your car clean, but what about the interior? Don’t worry, because we’ve got you covered.
Step 1: Get everything you need
Like regular car wash, cleaning the inside of your car requires some special tools and liquids. At the very least, you need to have the following items prepared:
- Car vacuum cleaner
- Washing liquids (including window washer)
- Lint free cloths + sponges
- Surface protectors for dashboard and other sensitive parts
- Garden hose
- Several buckets of water
Step 2: Take out everything
The majority of drivers are known to carry lots of stuff with them in the car. If you’re no exception to this rule, then don’t take this step too lightly – if you fail to remove the unnecessary items from your car, your interior cleaning will not go as smoothly as you expect, and the effect will be far from desirable. Give your car interior a long hard look and take out anything that doesn’t belong here. This usually includes leftover food, wrappers and empty bags, newspapers and bills, clothes, bottles of water, and even regular trash like cardboard cups and old receipts. You can either throw all of this away for good, or find a temporary storage.
Step 3: Wash floor mats separately
Floor mats should not be cleaned together with the interior – instead you should take them out and clean them separately. The floor mats in your car are likely made of rubber, in which case all it takes to make them clean is some water and a bit of soap. However, if you have floor mats that resemble carpet, they will require a different kind of cleaning. This is where your car vacuum cleaner comes in handy – beat and shake the mats to get rid of the dirt and dust, and then give them a good vacuuming to clean them more thoroughly. In case there are any stains, use a respective carpet cleaning liquid.
Step 4: Apply your vacuum cleaner
Once you’re done with the mats and they are hanging somewhere to dry, start cleaning the protruding surfaces – the ones that usually gather the most dust; most importantly, the dashboard, the rear deck, the floor boards, and the areas around the pedals and underneath the seats. If you can’t reach certain areas with your vacuum cleaner, use a brush with long bristle to clean the rest of the surfaces.
Step 5: Wet clean the interior
This is what your washing liquid and lint-free cloth should be used for. Cover the windows and other sensitive areas with a protective film, spray the liquid onto the surfaces one by one, and wipe them dry. Watch the cloth – once it becomes too damp or too dirty, it means that the cloth needs to be changed. As soon as the surfaces are completely clean, buff them with a brand new cloth for an even better result.
Step 6: Clean the windows
This is usually the final step when it comes to cleaning your interior, but it’s also one of the most important ones. Take your window washing liquid, spray it onto small portions of the window area, and buff until the window is crystal clear, squeaky clean, and completely dry. A circular pattern works best for windows. A useful trick is to polish all surfaces with a crumpled newspaper to get rid of any wet spots and possible streaks. If necessary, repeat the whole process to achieve the level of cleanness your car truly deserves.
