10 step guide to spring cleaning your car and preparing it for the summer season
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Now that the snow is melting, the sun is shining brighter, and the days slightly warmer, spring is officially here. Spring cleaning is not just a wonderful opportunity to give your home and garden a once-over, it’s also a great time to prepare your car for the coming summer months. Winter months can be hard on the car so we wanted to share some tips on how to clear the clutter, wash the salt away, and make it look and feel like new.
1. Clean the cabin, remove the clutter
Sounds easy, doesn’t it? The first thing to do is get rid of all the clutter in your car. Get rid of all the water bottles, coffee cups, grocery receipts, fast-food and snack wrappers, broken umbrellas, old shoes, and other debris that’s been piling up in the car. A clutter-free car cabin not only looks good, it is also important for passenger safety. You don’t want any items in the cabin to fly like missiles in an emergency or collision and hit you or the passengers.
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Once you’ve cleared the clutter, think about ordering a compact in-car trash bin to keep the clutter from building up in door pockets, glove compartments, back seats, and any other nook and cranny.
What you need: Auto trash can: Simple, compact accessory to collect garbage and to empty periodically.
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
2. Wash car floor mats / carpets
Throughout the winter months you’ve been tracking salt and dirt into the car every time you’ve gotten into it. No matter how careful you are, the salt always finds its way into the cabin. We suggest you remove all the floor mats (whether carpet or protective rubber) from the car and dust off all the loose debris. Give them a good vacuum to remove all the smaller, tough to get out bits.
What you need: There are specialist cleaning agents available to clean rubber mats and carpets. First, using a hose or a pressure washer, thoroughly wash the floor mat and carpet. Next, generously spray the cleaning agent and let it sit for about a minute. Then use a cleaning brush to gently clean the carpet and floor mat, and let the agent do its work for another minute. Bring out the hose or pressure washer and rinse off the chemical and let the carpet dry or wipe the rubber mat using a microfibre cloth.
Where to buy: Amazon
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3. Interior cleaning
With more sunlight through the day you want to protect all the interior plastics in the cabin and the upholstery from the dulling effects of UV rays. Using a soft dusting brush, give the interiors a thorough clean. A soft brush ensures that you are not scratching any surfaces. Also take the vacuum to the edges of the seats and under the armrests. This is where all the dirt and crumbs collect. Who knows, you might even find some coins hiding there.
What you need: There is a wide array of options available for every different bit of the interior, from specialist dashboard cleaners to leather upholstery foams and multipurpose detailers.
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
4. Wash the salt from under the car
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Driving your car in the snow throws road salt up into the wheel wells and the underbody. Where does it all go from there? Most of it drips back down onto the road or gets packed into the mini-icebergs that form around the wheel wells, but a layer typically sticks to the car, once soaked with water in warmer spring weather, forms the perfect recipe for oxidization, turning your underbody and sheetmetal to rust. A spring underbody rust-prevention treatment is highly recommended by our experts, but before that, it’s a good idea to give the car’s underbody a thorough wash.
What you need: An undercarriage washer is a great addition to your set of cleaning gear. These come as attachments that will work with any pressure washer. They simply roll under the car and do the cleaning without any bodily contortions.
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
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5. Give the engine bay a wash
When was the last time you looked under the hood? This bit of the car is probably the most ignored by owners, but it needs some love and attention too.
What you need: Get a couple of brushes of different sizes, degreaser, and some water. First pick out all the debris and leaves from within the engine bay. Now cover the car battery with a plastic wrap. Use water to quickly wash any dirt out from the nooks and crannies, engine cover, and underside of the hood. Spray the degreaser on plastic parts and let it sit there to work its magic. Use the bushes to rub the area most affected with grease and dirt. Next, wipe the chemical with a cloth. Uncover the battery and give it a careful wipe too.
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
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6. Wash exteriors from top to bottom
Unlike in winter, your car won’t be perpetually dirty once it’s been washed throughout the summer. We recommend washing the car at least every few weeks.
What you need: Washing a car by hand might be a fulfilling experience, but a pressure washer is just faster and saves a ton of time too. These work with many accessories as well, such as foam blasters, spray nozzles, and rotating brushes to name just a few. Remember to wash and scrub from top to bottom so the dirt moves away from the clean parts of the car
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
7. Clean windshield and windows
You’ve been using the defogger right through the winter season and now there is a thin film of muck and grease on the windshield. A dirty windshield is also one of the reasons for condensation build up when it rains.
What you need: Buy a glass-cleaning solution and clean both the inside and the outside of the windshield, along with all windows and the rear-view mirrors. Water repellents are available for these surfaces, promising better visibility in the rain because they allow water to flows off more easily.
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
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8. Remove minor scratches
Now that the car is clean, you have a chance to get rid of any of the superficial blemishes and minor scratches that the car has collected over the winter months. Using scrapers and brushes to remove snow and ice can leave the paint with small abrasions. Usually these are clear-coat scratches and not very deep.
What you need: We suggest getting a high quality, fine polish to work on these tiny scratches. Apply the polish on a part of the microfiber cloth and rub it in a circular motion on top of the scratch and the general surrounding area to get rid of it. Depending on how deep the scratch is, you might need to repeat the polish application a few times.
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
9. Wax the bodywork
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Now that all the blemishes are gone it’s time to protect the paint. Waxing the car has its advantages. First, the car looks great. Second, it helps the paint last longer by repelling water and dirt. Wax also acts as another layer of protection and may prevent the paint from getting scratched again as easily.
What you need: There’s a lot of variety in the car waxes available on today’s market. There are spray-on types, liquid waxes, and pastes. The general consensus is that the paste wax gives the best protection. Buy a high-quality wax and it may also come with a foam applicator in the box. A microfibre cloth, an essential car accessory as we’ve mentioned before, comes in handy for polishing and buffing. For best results, keep in mind what Mr Miyagi said: ‘wax on, wax off’.
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
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10. Switch to summer tires
Depending on your province, you’ll want to time your shift from winter tires to summer (or all weather) tires soon. If the old set has worn out, you may want to buy a new set. Just remember to buy all four new tires — don’t mix and match old and new tires.
What you need: Tires of course! Make sure these are the size as recommended by the manufacturer. Even if you’re only putting the existing set on, remember to get the wheels balanced and the alignment checked when you’re making the switch.
Where to buy: Amazon, Walmart
There you have it. You have successfully completed the spring cleaning for the year. Your car is now ready to deal with the upcoming summer season. Are there any other parts to your spring cleaning routine? What’s your favourite brand of car wax? Which pressure washer do you swear by? Let us know in the comments below or hit us up on social media. Happy Driving.
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