We all love that new car smell: the new leather upholstery, the out-of-the-factory plastic, the soft seats and the pleasure of driving away in a spotless car. With the right know-how, you too can get that new-car feeling with a professional cleaning regime to keep your car in tip-top condition.
Car interior cleaning doesn’t have to take its toll on your back. Of course, you will need a little elbow grease, but once you find out the secrets of the professional valeting services, you’ll be able to keep your car glistening with minimal effort. Take time to understand the different surfaces of your cars’ interior, and know that there is a trick to cleaning each surface to get the best results.
Bringing the Life Back Into Your Car Seats
When it comes to car interior cleaning, your car seats are one of the most difficult items to keep clean and tidy. Car seats love to collect dust, crumbs and other particles, so removing them will be a two-step process. Cloth seats are more susceptible to collecting dirt and dust, so with the help of a vacuum cleaner, you can remove the small particles once the seats have been reclined fully.
It is important that you use special automobile upholstery cleaner, which is designed for cloth seats and allow the seats to be cleaned without becoming too moist or wet. Soaking your car seats in cleaning fluid such as washing powder or washing up liquid could end up causing patches of mould if they don’t dry out properly.
Let your car seat cleaner spray sit for roughly five minutes and then start to clean away the dirt and grime with a cloth. After the initial cleaning is done, ensure that all of the cleaning product residues is removed and allow the seats to dry.
For leather car seats, you can use a specific leather car seat solution that is made especially for leather. Using other products may damage the leather and cause water marks and other stains. Simply clean down the leather seats with a moist cloth and allow them to dry afterwards.
Cleaning Your Car’s Interior Carpeting
The carpeting in your car is also prone to collect dust and dirt over the years, especially on rainy days. The carpets often contain mud or dirt particles and need regular cleaning to keep your car looking and smelling fresh. If you have car mats in your car you can remove them, wash them down with carpet cleaning solutions and allow to dry in the air.
After you have removed your carpet mats, ensure that all seats are fully reclined so that you can gain access to hard to reach areas. Try using a fine hose vacuum head to reach under the seats and around the edges of the door spaces. If necessary, use a carpet cleaning detergent to help remove dirt and mud from the surfaces, and spot clean where necessary. Removing mud and dirt stains first will ensure that you do not spread the grime further onto cleaner parts of the carpet.
Cleaning Your Dashboard and Plastics
Before you start to clean the dashboard and plastic parts on the doors of your car, take note that some household cleaners are not meant for this purpose, especially those containing detergents, and may stain or leave abrasion marks on your car’s interior.
Start off with a dry cloth and clean over all of your dashboard and plastic surfaces. This will help to remove the majority of dust that may get caught in the instrument section of the dashboard. After all of the dust is removed, use a moist cloth with an alcohol based cleaning solution to bring back the shiny surfaces, making sure to evenly apply the cleaning solution.
Change cleaning cloths frequently to avoid dust or dirt particles being spread further and use a dry cloth to finish the job off. If you have wood panels in your car, simply use a moist cloth followed by a dry cloth to polish the surfaces.
Maintaining a Clean Car Interior
The best way to maintain a clean car interior is to regularly perform small cleaning jobs on it. Try not to eat or drink in your car, and use floor mats to help attract the dirt and mud you may bring into the car from your shoes. These floor mats can be easily cleaned in your yard and keep your floor fresh and clean.
Keeping your car clean should be an important step in your regular car maintenance routine, and will ensure that your car not only looks good but also adds to your car’s lifespan.
Servicing your car in Kia Service Center and investing for car protection would actually save your money down the road when it comes to repairs and faults, as well as giving you that new car feeling whenever you go for a ride.
