Your car goes through quite a bit each and every day. School runs, muddy dog walks, passengers who like their snacks – the list is endless. With all that your car puts up with, one thing is certain, the mess. You may spend a lot of time and effort washing, cleaning and detailing the outside of your vehicle, making sure the paintwork is tip-top, but are you giving the same attention to the inside?
If you need a little help keeping on top of your car interior detailing then here are a few tips to keep you driving in the right direction (sorry).
Audit the inside first
The first step is to give yourself a clean canvas to work with. Open all the doors, get inside and have a good look around. Remove all the obvious rubbish; the sweet and snack wrappers, the old coffee cups, dog sticks and other nefarious things that have gathered on the seats, on the floor and in all the cracks in-between.
Take care of the mats first
You will make your life a lot easier if you remove the floor mats first before you start cleaning them.
Start by laying them on your driveway and giving them a good vacuuming followed by a good scrub with soapy water and a stiff brush. Once you’ve got them nice and clean you can leave them to air dry whilst you tackle the rest of the interior.
Pro Tip: If you are going to the trouble of detailing the interior of your car then don’t forget to give the exterior a little love too. Your car is one of your most valuable possessions so it’s always a good idea to invest in a professional to make sure your paintwork is properly sealed and protected, and they don’t come any more professional than the team at Proficient X .
Get Vacuuming
Once you’ve cleared the interior you need to give the car a thorough vacuum. Make sure you cover the front and back seats, especially the footwells and under the pedals. Use a nozzle to get into all the nooks and crannies and inside the door panels.
Wet wipes are your friend
A few wet wipes and some car dash cleaning spray will go a long way to restoring the new look and smell of your car interior. Give the dashboard, steering wheel, gear box area and all around the console a good spray-and-wipe. A damp rag will also do the trick if you don’t have and wipes handy, or you could always use a coffee filter and some olive oil !
Clean up that spilled coffee
Those handy cup holders take quite a battering from all that spilled coffee that you can’t do without on those early morning commutes so don’t forget to give them a good clean. Cotton buds are great for getting right inside them and some types are actually removable meaning you can get them under a tap to give them a thorough clean out.
Cleaning the inside windows
You want to do a good job here as visibility is a safety issue. Use a proper window spray and a microfibre cloth to do this job. Firstly spraying and wiping with a paper towel and then removing any residue with your microfibre cloth to ensure that you don’t leave any streaks or smears.
Removing tricky stains
Busy lives almost always lead to occasional stains, it’s just a fact of life, but you can always do something about them. On your car seats try a solution of equal parts vinegar and water, letting it work it’s magic for 15 minutes before giving it a good scrub and finally wipe it off with a damp rag.
