How To Clean The Inside Of Your Car

You Probably Hit Up The Car Wash On A Regular Basis But When’s The Last Time You Gave Your Car Interior A Thorough Cleaning Here Are Step

How To Super Clean the Interior of your Car (Carpets & Headliner)

You probably have a weekly cleaning routine for your home.;Heck, you probably even make sure to hit the car wash the minute the outside of your car starts looking worse for the wear. But when was the last time you actually cleaned your car interior?

Unlike at home, your dirty shoes are almost always on in the car, and theres a good chance youve been caught snacking during the rush to get to your next destination. All that use makes for a pretty grimy car interior, but most people dont bother cleaning as often as they should.

To keep the inside of your car sparkling, you should be cleaning it at least once a month, Christian Newman, owner of C & J Automotive Detailing tells TODAY. And if the dog hair and granola bar crumbs start building up even sooner, you might want to clean the inside of your vehicle every other week. In other words, theres a good chance you need to clean yours more. Luckily, weve got the steps you need to get the job done:

How To Clean A Car Interior

Working Time: 2 – 3 hrs
Total Time: 3 – 15 hrs

Skill Level: Intermediate

Cleaning the interior of your car may not bring back that heady new car smell, but it will certainly improve the air quality. Washing the windows, getting rid of trash and clutter, and cleaning the carpet and seats will make you breathe easier and could even improve your driving skills.

Professional detailing can be quite costly, but with just a few tools and cleaning supplies that you probably have on hand, you can clean your car interior just like the pros.

Cleaning The Inside Of Your Windows

Youve meticulously cleaned the interior. Its been vacuumed, the dash has been wiped down, and now its time to clean the windows. So you grab some glass cleaner and paper towel and go to town. Except now theres smears everywhere. Oh well. Theres nothing you can do, right?

Not quite. Heres how you should clean the inside of car windows.

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Clean The Seats And Doors

Whether theyre made from upholstery or leather, soft furnishings in the cabin are subject to lots of wear and tear, and are right in the firing line when it comes to dirt and stains. For fabric-upholstered surfaces, wed recommend scrubbing with our Upholstery and Carpet Cleaner. This intensive cleaning formula is guaranteed to lift stains and odours from interior fabrics, and the brush head can be used to scrub away dried-on dirt.

For leather surfaces, use our special Leather Protection Wipes to remove dirt and marks, before treating the material with our Leather Protection Cream. This product guarantees to nourish and protect the leather to prevent wear, and can be used on all types of leather trim in your car.

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How To Clean Your Steering Wheel And Dashboard

The first thing worth mentioning is that materials in your car are different than those your home, so you want to err on the side of caution when cleaning. You dont want the finishes to break down. Start by removing dry dirt and debris from the small seams and crevices. You can use a dry toothbrush or canned air to clean them out, then vacuum, says Gregory.

For additional dirt and germs, a damp microfiber cloth will actually remove 99 percent of bacteria thanks to the unique fiber structure. Its a great item to keep in your car cleaning kit but since youve got dirty hands touching the steering wheel and sweat building up, a little disinfecting could be just what you need. For a synthetic steering wheel, you can wipe it down with a microfiber cloth and a solution of two cups water and few drops of dish soap. You dont even want it to foam up, she explains.;

After the dashboard and steering wheel are clean, treat them to prevent cracks and wear. For leather, you can use Weimans leather wipes , while for interior plastic, vinyl, and rubber, you can use Armor Alls protectant wipes to help fading and discoloration. Theyre some of the best car interior cleaning products out there.

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How Do I Dry The Top Of My Suv

Use a clean drying towel or synthetic chamois to dry the remainder of the car. Start at the top and work down. If youre using a large drying towel or chamois, throw it out over the flat surface areas and slowly pull it toward you across the surface of the car. Shake and turn your drying towel frequently.

How Do I Clean And Shine My Car Dashboard

How to Clean the Inside of Your Car Motor

Put a small amount of polish on a clean cloth and rub it over the surface of the dash and center console. Go over the polished surfaces with a dry cloth to remove any excess. Add a homemade car air freshener for a finishing touch! Later, you can also use dryer sheets to wipe down your dash and keep it fresh and clean.

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Empty The Car Interior & Light Vacuum

You want to make sure to empty the car interior of any personal items as well as any large trash that your vacuum will not suck up. Grab your first empty garbage bag and place all personal items in it such as check books, insurance papers, change, and anything else of value to you. After you’re done put this bag to the side for safe keeping.

Then grab your second garbage bag and start disposing of any large garbage such as empty plastic bottles or large pieces of food. Anything your vacuum might struggle picking up make sure to throw in your second garbage bag for you to discard.

Pro Tip: If you have food crumbs and grime in your cup holders and storage compartments, give them a light vacuum prior to step 3!

How To Clean The Inside Of A Windshield Without A Streaky Mess

Youve washed your car, cleaned the wheels and tires, and cleaned every inch of the interior. Youre feeling accomplished and proud of your ride. Until you hop in to take it for a spin only to find yourself squinting through bright glares and streaks across your windshield.

Ever been here? Most of us have.

All too often, after cleaning your car and cleaning the interior windshield, youre still left with a streaky mess. Is it the cleaning solution? Are you using a window cleaner or generic glass cleaner? Or just paper towels and warm water? ;Do you wipe back and forth or in a circular motion? When you wipe a window down, why does glass cleaner still leave streaks?

On top of being unsightly, a streaky, hazy windshield poses a risk to your safety, your passengers, and other drivers by inhibiting your field of vision and increasing the likelihood of a wreck.

Here are a few glass cleaning and window cleaning tips to help you clean your interior auto glass without being left with smears and streaks.

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Wipe Down Door Jambs And Door Sills

Door jambs and door sills are also considered as the interior of the vehicle because you can’t see them for the exterior, so make sure to clean them up!

Take a quality quick detailer or a PH balanced interior cleaner and spray down the door jambs and sills, use a detailing brush to loosen up any dirt and grime in smaller areas and then buff to a shine with a quality microfiber towel.

Pro Tip: You can also top off your door jambs and door sills with a quality spray wax or sealant! This will keep them protected and easier to clean until your next wash or interior detail.

Clean And Polish The Dashboard

Dashboards are prone to collecting dust, debris and fingerprints, and can start to look faded or dirty quite quickly. Whether your dash is scuffed or is just plain mucky, we have a number of products which will make it easy to keep it clean, including Foam Action Dashboard Cleaner, Matt Dashboard Wipes, Dash Restorer Pads and specialist Matt and Gloss Dashboard Treatments.

For step-by-step guidance on using Simoniz products to clean the dashboard, watch Simoniz expert Phil demonstrate how to clean your cars dash in the video below.

Cleaning the dashboard and centre console first is a good idea, because any dust and dirt you wipe off will fall down on to the carpet for you to vacuum away later. Like when cleaning the outside of your car, its always better to work from top to bottom, so that whatever debris and dirt you remove wont come back into contact with clean surfaces.

Once youve dusted down and cleaned the dash, your cars interior will already be looking much better and thats just the first real step of the cleaning process.

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How To Clean Your Car Interior

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If we were to tell you there’s a room where people spend hours each day and even eat in you’d probably assume it gets cleaned often. But when it comes to the interiors of our cars, that’s not always the case.

TODAY Home asked Christian Newman, a professional auto detailer and owner of C&J Automotive Detailing in Slidell, Louisiana, how to clean like a pro. Hes got some great tips for keeping vehicles looking like new, no matter what you put them through.

Newman suggests going through the steps below about once a month, or as needed. If you have school pickups, carpools and sports practices on the horizon, you may want to step that up to twice a month.

Michael Dickson, president of the International Detailing Association, recommends a professional detailing about twice a year.

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How To Clean And Polish The Dashboard And Interior Plastic

Clean the dashboard, center console and other plastic parts with a barely moist clean cloth. Use a small amount of laundry detergent to remove the stains. Dry with a clean soft dry cloth. To make it shiny, use a polish for plastic.

Spray a small amount of polish. Spread it evenly with a soft brush. Don’t spray directly on the stereo, or other electrical parts, use a brush instead.

Buff gently with a clean soft dry cloth.

This is how it looked before and after polishing. If you prefer the dashboard and the plastic looking less shiny and more natural, there are a number of products that can do that. Look for Natural Shine polish or plastic protectant.

A good polish not only makes the dashboard look clean and shiny, it shields and protects the plastic. All you need to do after, just use a soft duster periodically and your dashboard will look new for a long time.

Six: Get Plastics Looking Great Again

How to clean the interior of your car (6 steps)

To bring colour back to plastics and protect them over the long-term, try this Mirror Bright Vinyl and Rubber treatment. And for professional quality protection, theres this Caramics Kit. It works on leather and cloth, carpets and fabrics. The built-in repellent and anti-dye stain technology will ensure your car stays fresh and clean for longer.

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Make Your Car Smell Good

Do you sense any tough odors inside your car despite cleaning it? Theres a solution. Sprinkling dry baking soda onto the seats and carpet and letting it sit overnight will help. Then, vacuum the baking soda away the next morning.;

You can also use activated charcoal in a plastic container with slits. Place this under the seats and replace it every month or two.;;

What Not To Use To Clean Your Car

Both Kelley Blue Book and Consumer Reports advise against using hydrogen peroxide and bleach. Both chemicals can put a welcome end to the coronavirus, but they will also cause damage to the vinyl and plastics used in most modern vehicles today, writes Kelley Blue Book on their site. Under no circumstances should you use any ammonia-based cleaning products. If you find yourself without any cleaning products, using soap and water will work fine. Now that you have the cleanest car interior, check out these weird car features you may not have known you had.

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Car Interior Cleaning Safety

Believe it or not, you can actually hurt yourself while cleaning your cars interior.;

It might seem unnecessary, but wear gloves and eye protection while working with chemicals like conditioning sprays and cleaning wipes. Also, good airflow is vital.

Take care when reaching under seats and other obstructed areas. There are plenty of sharp objects that can cut or scratch your hands.
Unless you’ve got no other option, avoid trying to clean your car while parked in a busy lot or on a street with traffic. Its best to move your vehicle out of the way to a place where you can freely and safely hop in and out as you work.

Don’t miss the details. Clean in and around small parts of the interior.

How To Expel Scratches From Plastic Door Panels

Top 10 Cleaning Tips for the Inside of Your Car

Scratches can either make the plastic shiner or more blunt .

If the scratches are more blunt then the whole surface you can endeavor to bring down the sheen of the whole panel by scouring with a grating medium, for example, a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. The issue, however, is that it is difficult to get an even complete and that one panel will be perceptibly less sparkly then the others.

If the scratches are shinier then the surface then you can delicately clean the whole panel with a fine rough, but once more, you are expanding the sparkle level of the whole panel and it is difficult to get an even wrap up.

Fortunately supplanting panels like that is generally genuinely modest and its typically only a couple snap fittings holding set up.

Leather Seats Versus Fabric Seats

Vacuum the seats. No matter what kind of seats you have, you will want to remove the dirt and crumbs from between the seat cracks. If you do not own a car vacuum with attachments, go to a local car wash or gas station where you can find a coin-operated vacuum for use. A toothbrush can also be used to scrape out debris that is embedded in the crevices.

Use a cleaning solution.;Apply a homemade cleaning solution or a commercial cleaner. When using your own homemade solution for the first time, perform a spot test on a small area. For leather seats, do not use a cleaning solution with ammonia or bleach, as it may damage the leather. You can use a bristle brush to agitate the dirt, and wipe clean with a microfiber towel.

For leather seats, apply a conditioner.;A leather conditioner will help replenish the natural oils in the leather and prevent cracking and fading. After applying the conditioner, park the car in the shade for twelve hours so that the seats will not be exposed to UV light.

To prevent stains, clean up messes as soon as they occur. It is recommended that you clean your seats once a month. A windshield sun shade can help protect not only your seats, but also your steering wheel and dashboard. The seats are not the only item in the cars interior that needs routine cleaning. Below, you will find a few additional tips for the inside of your vehicle.