What To Use To Clean Car Interior

Whenever you get into your car, you may find that the interior is often not clean because you pay more attention to cleaning the exterior. This is true for many car owners, and when it's time to clean the interior, a lot of stains have stayed for too long and have thus become hard to remove.

You may also not know what products and tools to use to do a proper car interior deep clean. But no worries, you're in the right place. This article will take you through all you need to know about cleaning your car interior excellently. Let's get right into it.

Step-By-Step Guide For Car Interior Cleaning

Have all the necessary items handy

Grab a basic cleaning kit consisting of a window cleaner, paper towels, cloth towels, disinfectant spray and/or wipes, garbage bags, and a vacuum cleaner. You might even get a special cleaning brush if you have leather seats. A professional cleaner will probably have these items in his cleaning kit, but for the sake of a DIY car interior cleaning project, you can do just fine with what is mentioned here.

Get rid of the clutter

Before you begin cleaning up all the parts inside your car, you'll want to eliminate the unwanted clutter in your vehicle. Take those lint-free cloths, wipe off all the dirt on surfaces, and remove any paper works piled up inside your vehicle. Throw away a lot of stuff sitting around in your car, including old receipts, magazines, and newspapers.

Clean the Windows

Start by cleaning the windows of your car interior. Take the paper towel and wet it thoroughly with your water spray. You can use any kind of water or distilled water if you have challenging water in your area (most places have hard water). The reason for using a wet paper towel is that it will act like a sponge to help absorb the dirt between the cracks and crevices in your windows. Once you have dampened your paper towel, it will be easier to clean up dirt when you are done with this step.

Vacuum up dust and dirt

Vacuum dust and dirt from your car's interior with the vacuum cleaner. This way, you don't have to clean it by hand because you can use an automatic vacuum with attachments that have special brushes that help remove stubborn dirt from hard-to-reach areas (such as in-between seat areas).

Clean seats

Next comes the seats. Remember that there are two types of seats, cloth and leather. For cloth seats, you should use a lint-free cloth and run it over the seat to wipe off the dirt. For leather seats, use either your stiff brush or a dampened, lint-free cloth to wipe off the dirt from the leather seats.

Leather seats are made of various kinds of animal hide (skin), or even faux or vegan leather so they can get dirty very quickly without proper cleaning once in a while. Wipe down all your seats and ensure there is no dirt left behind on your seats' surfaces.

Clean up the dashboard and the centre console

You'll want to clean the dashboard and the centre console of your car interior next. Move the vacuum cleaner to these parts of your interior and clean them off with either your stiff brush or lint-free cloth.

Disinfect the steering wheel and rim

Use a disinfectant spray or wipe to remove dirt from the surfaces of the steering wheel and the rim. This will prevent you from turning up with grimy hands every time you drive.

Clean and disinfect the floor mats

Clean the floor mats using your vacuum cleaner. Be sure not to throw away your old floor mat and get a clean set unless it is in dire need of replacement. If you have a set of 4-floor mats (two front and two back), you should be able to wash them with lukewarm water, soap, and a scrub brush. Let them dry completely before putting them back in your car interior.

Clean the seats

Use another dampened paper towel for the rear seats to wipe up any dirt that might have collected behind them. Then, move on to washing the front seats (front passenger and driver) using the same procedure as cleaning the rear seats. Make sure to wash all dust off these seats with a scrub brush first because they are so delicate that they might be permanently damaged if you don't clean them properly.

Clean the inside of your car door

Here is where things get a bit complicated for people who have not cleaned their car interior before and are still new to cleaning up their cars from a DIY point of view. With the inside of your car door, be sure to be delicate with your cleaning and use cloths made of soft material so as not to leave behind any scratches.

Wipe your car

You'll want to wipe up any remaining or pooling water that might have gotten inside your car. Simply move the vacuum cleaner to each corner of your interior or mop the water with a wet paper towel. If you don't have a cleaning solution for vacuums, use distilled water instead and ensure all the cleaning residue is thoroughly rinsed off before using it again.

Clean spare parts

The next step is to clean any spare parts in your car that are still dirty. You don't want to see any dirty screws, buttons, or other ornaments that come with your car's interior. If you have a small apparatus for your vehicle, like a cassette player, CD player, or even a mobile phone set, clean these up and make sure they are shiny enough for anyone to notice. See if there is anything else dirty inside your car and clean it up too.

Use seat covers

A lot of cars have their seats upholstered using cloth. If yours is one of them, make sure you use seat covers to keep the dirt away from any kind of upholstery or fabric on any part inside your car. Your seats could get extremely dirty if you don't use seat covers on your car seats.

What To Use For Cleaning Your Car Interior

Before you clean your car interior, you'll want to know what you'll actually use and where you can find the best products. You can use several items to clean your interior from dust and dirt inside the car.

Window cleaning liquid or power washer solutions

This liquid consists of strong chemicals that help remove the dirt left inside your car after cleaning it. These products will leave behind some residue-like spots, which means you might want to repeat the step once in a while to ensure all stains are gone from your interior.

Dish soap

This is an excellent alternative to cleaning liquid. Dish soap is suitable for removing the toughest stains like oil and other dirt, which you can remove with only a single step. Using dish soap on your car's leather seats is also recommended, as it enhances their overall appearance. There are also leather cleaners with special chemicals in their formula that help eliminate stains and make the leather feel soft again.

Toothpaste

It sounds crazy, but it is an excellent alternative to cleaning liquid. Toothpaste works just like dish soap but has one thing that makes it better than dish soap; the ability to remove tough stains with only a single application. However, you might want to know that toothpaste is not the ideal choice for leather seats.

Toothpaste can be pretty abrasive and make the leather feel even rougher than before, which is why you should be considerate when choosing what type of cleaning product you want to use on your car's interior.

Washing-up liquid

As you might have guessed, it's another great alternative to any cleaning liquid. Washing-up liquid is usually made from the same formula as dish soap, which means that it is very efficient in removing stains and dirt in your car.

Disinfecting wipes

These wipes are excellent for cleaning your car's interior, especially if you're going to keep it in your garage for several weeks without using it. Disinfecting wipes work great with vinyl seats and make them look new. However, disinfecting wipes don't work on leather seats and can be pretty abrasive to any upholstery or fabric material.

Lint-free cloths

You can use these throughout the day to clean off any dust left behind after cleaning your car's interior. Lint-free cloths are a great alternative to any cleaning liquid or butter paper because they won't leave any streaks after removing them from the surface.

Leather cleaner

This product is easy to get and use in your car's interior. It is one of the most effective products for cleaning your leather seats. You can also use it as a spray in a bottle or apply it on the leather seats with a cotton swab.

A leather cleaner will help eliminate all dirt and grime that has recently settled on the surface of your leather car seats. Once you have cleaned them, ensure you get them dried off with an air dryer for about 24 hours before using them again.

Hydrogen peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide is probably the most effective product you can get if you want to get rid of any tough stains inside your car. You can buy it from any pharmacy, which is a good alternative to any cleaning liquid. Apply this solution on a cloth and remove all the tough stains left inside your car with layers of hydrogen peroxide.

Microfiber cloth

Microfiber cloths are made to be pretty good at removing the dirt and grime left inside the vehicle. They work great with vinyl seats, making them look like new again with just a few sweeps of a microfiber cloth. Lastly, they are also great for getting rid of any dust that might have settled on your vehicle's dashboard.

Car shampoo and soap

These two products work pretty great on the majority of dust and debris that has settled inside your car, but they aren't the best choice when it comes to leather seats. These products can be pretty abrasive and may cause your seats to look even rougher than before. You should wait a couple of days after you use them to let the smell fade and apply some leather cleaner on the seats.

Precautions For Cleaning Your Car Interior

Knowing the things you should be careful about when cleaning your car and what kind of products you should avoid is a good idea.

Don't let water sit on your dashboard

If water has sat on your dashboard for a couple of hours, it can deteriorate the plastic parts of your dashboard and cause them to become brittle. It is a popular mistake that many individuals make when cleaning their car's dashboard. Still, it can be hazardous because you might end up damaging your car's interior and the plastic parts of your car's dashboard.

Don't use car shampoo on leather seats

You should be careful about cleaning your car's interior with car shampoo, especially if you have leather seats. It can be pretty abrasive and cause even the softest leather to become stiff and tight. Use pure soap instead if you want to keep your car's leather seats fresh and smooth.

Don't use car soap on vinyl seats

As mentioned earlier, these types of cleaners can be pretty harsh and make your seats feel even rougher. It can also cause your vinyl seats to become brittle, and you might end up damaging them. The safest solution is to always remove the dirt with a cotton swab instead of using car shampoo or soap to clean it up.

Don't use a vinyl cleaner on leather seats

The same goes for leather seats. You should not use vinyl cleaners on your car's leather seats because they can be pretty abrasive and leave spots after removing them from the surface. If you want to eliminate tough stains from your interior, go for a pure soap or a good leather cleaner and make sure that you always let it dry for a couple of days before cleaning it again.

Never over-wash the car's interior

You might think that your car's interior will get dirty in the future; hence you might want to get this dirt washed repeatedly, but over-washing the interior isn't the best option. It is much better to use dry and chemical-free cleaners like pure soap or a suitable leather cleaner once in a while because these products will leave residue behind them, but they will easily come off and never cause any damage to your car's interior.

Professional Car Wash Services For Car Sales

It is generally advised that you should always take care of your car on your own, but it's never too late to use a professional. Professional car cleaners are experienced and well-trained in what they do and know exactly how to get your interior looking clean without having any problems.

Also, professional car wash services usually have their own cleaning solutions and products with them to ensure that your car's interior is clean. So if you are sure you want a shiny, clean car, then it's not a bad idea to contact a professional for the job to save yourself some time and effort with car interior cleaning.

Interior cleaning will also have your car looking top-tier if you plan to sell it to a dealership soon.