Easy Car Cleaning on a Budget
There are two types of cars on the road: Brand new ones with the new-car fragrance, and the other is where there is filth and mess from all the enjoyment in the car. If you belong to the latter category, we can understand how expensive and time-consuming getting the car scrubbed down in a detailed manner can be. But we are here to help you.
The following are some hacks that show how to get dealership-level cleanliness and polish your car with minimum effort for a fraction of the price:
Wash Your Floor Mats
We step on the floor mats with our wet and muddy shoes, and they get stained, and cleaning them is pretty expensive.
But you can avoid that extra expenditure for fabric mats by using a stain remover to help break up difficult stains and wash them in the washing machine (front-load) using the “gentle” cycle with some detergent. Wallah! Your car’s mats would look brand new!
WD-40 Helps the Stickers Slide Right Off
Does your car have an old bumper sticker from 2000, and you no longer identify with it? Don’t worry, we have a solution. Just spray some WD-40 directly onto the sticker and give it a minute to soak through, and then just pull it right off.
“Un-Crumb” Your Car
Crumbs always get into your car, and it is tough to get them out. But, don’t fret, as there is a way you can remove them, i.e., by using a regular toothbrush. All you have to do is rub the crumby areas with toothbrush bristles to get them out of hard-to-reach places and vacuum them for the best results.
Use Hair Conditioner to Make Your Car Shine
Shiny cars give a new and appealing appearance. You don’t need an expensive wax but a regular hair conditioner to achieve this desired shine. We suggest using the conditioner because it contains lanolin, which is a magic ingredient that gives your car that waxy finish. Just pour some onto a dry towel, and polish in circular motions until you see a brand-new car shine. You’ll be surprised to see how well it works.
Cooking Spray Greases Bugs Away
It is said that a happy motorcyclist is recognized by the bugs in his teeth. But for car owners, it takes more than elbow grease than just regular flossing, but not anymore. To get rid of bugs in your car’s exterior, grab a cooking spray and apply it to the car’s grill or bumper, and wipe all the bugs off with a towel.
Make Your Windshield Crystal Clear With Cola
The dust mixed with rain makes your windshield look bad and can be dangerous. But worry not, like a can of cola can easily do what Windex can’t. Pour the soda over your windshield, and don’t forget to place a towel near the hood to protect the paint. Cola’s bubbles will fizz away the grime, and make sure to wash away the soda right after, or else the sugar’s stickiness will attract the dirt again.
Wipe Down With a Coffee Filter
We barely think of cleaning our car’s dashboard, but it gets dirty, too. The best way to clean the dashboard is with a coffee filter because it is made out of lint paper as which grabs every spec and absorbs and removes dirt and dust.
Use Silica Gel to Clean the Vents
Getting the interiors can be difficult, unlike doing the seats or dashboard. Your car vents work around the clock, be it to warm up or cool off, and are filled with grime, dust, and all sorts of bacteria. Use silica gel gummy cleansers to clean this hard-to-get spot, as they easily clean and disinfect your vents.
Use a Wooden Clothespin for a Fresh Car Smell
Regular car air fresheners smell too strongly or are fake and chemical. In contrast, a nice aroma in your car always feels nice. Essential oils are comparatively reasonable and healthier options, and you can make your DIY car scent. Simply choose your favorite essential oil and sprinkle a few drops on the wooden clothespin and let it soak up the oil in and finally, attach it to one of the air vents in the car. Enjoy the fragrance you love.
Using a Screwdriver to Clean Nooks and Crannies
This is a different approach to the toothbrush trick we mentioned earlier. Since wiping with a cloth will only do half the job with the usual contour-rich car interior, it’s not a bad idea to take a screwdriver with any old rag or cloth draped around its tip to be used as a soft-surfaced scraper. This trick takes care of those tiny lines you don’t usually notice until you’ve cleaned everything else.
Clean Cup Holders Using Old Socks
Cleaning up your cup holders can be difficult because of the angle it is placed and the shape. However, there’s one easy way to get it sparkling clean, and to do so, grab a cup that fits flush with your holder, place an old sock over it, and spray Windex on it. Then, just twist it inside the holder to get to all those spots you would miss.
Avoid Wiper Blade Streak Marks With Alcohol
You know how ‘totally clean’ wipers leave dirty streaks on your windshield. To prevent that from happening again, all you have to do is rub alcohol with a cloth or towel and wipe the blades clean. Then only are they spotless: No more streaks, no more tears.
Get a Wax Finish With a Clay Bar
If you’ve ever really cleaned your car, go the extra mile to apply wax coating too. But if you’d really like to get an extra-clean effect, once you’re done washing and drying your vehicle, rub its exterior with a clay bar. The clay picks up any built-up gunk that might be stuck on your car’s exterior, leaving a nice finish that’s ready to receive a nice, fresh coat of wax.
Polish the Dashboard With Olive Oil
If you want a polished look on your dashboard, then there is an array of products for that task, but you can also use something present at your home: olive oil. It is cheaper and works well for the purpose you need it for. Apply a small amount of oil to a clean cloth and rub it on your dashboard. Make sure to apply sparingly, as a little goes a long way.
Remove Stains From Your Car Seats
Sometimes stains are ingrained that even traditional cleaners can’t get out. However, this trick will be a miracle worker; it has a simple recipe. It consists of:
- 1 cup of club soda
- 1 cup of distilled vinegar
- 1/2 a cup of Blue Dawn dish soap
- Spray bottle
- Scrub brush
Mix and shake the ingredients in a spray bottle and spray directly on your seats. Then, clean it vigorously with the brush. Let it dry, and see the results.
Maintain Clean Cup Holders Using Silicone Cupcake Liners
Keeping your cup holders clean is more manageable than cleaning them with the sock trick. Line up your cup holders with silicone cupcake liners so that you can easily remove and wash them whenever they get too dirty.
Use a Hand Squeegee and a Spray Bottle to Remove Pet Hair
To remove your pet’s hair from your car efficiently, use a squeegee and a bit of water. You have to spray some water on the seats and then use the squeegee to loosen the hair. This way, it gathers every single pet hair on your seats into an easily removable clump.
Get a High-end Detailing Look on Your Tires
The powder you polish and clean pots and pans is best for detailing rims and tires to a professional grade shine. Take a cloth or a towel, sprinkle powder, spray some Lysol on top of the powder, and then work the mixture into your rims and tires. Scrub until you see the transformation taking place right before your eyes.
Get Rid of the Odor From Your Car
The difference between an “aroma” and an “odor” is huge. If you spend more than a few minutes in your car every day, the difference gets critical. But don’t worry, you can quickly fix it. Sprinkle some baking powder on the seats and floor of your car and let it sit for several hours, then vacuum it up. The powder absorbs the smell in your car, and you won’t even be able to remember what it smelled like before.
Get a Trash Bin
Getting car-friendly trash cans is small enough to leave enough leg room to still enjoy the ride, and will stop you from collecting bits of the wrapper and soft drink containers on the floor of your vehicle.
Use a Magic Eraser to “erase” Stains and Buildup
If your car seats are made of leather or vinyl, you can use the magic eraser to scrub out some hard stains. Get the eraser slightly wet for it to work correctly.
Note: Before you start, test it in a hidden spot to make sure it won’t harm your car’s interior.
Remove Car Rust With Coca-Cola
It may sound hilarious, but you can clean your car with a Coke bottle. This method is worth trying because the level of cleanliness it brings is unbelievable.
Since Coca-Cola is carbonated, it can dissolve with metal oxides to break rust and remove tarnish from several metals and their alloys. Coca-Cola has citric acid, which removes stains, and phosphoric acid to remove rust. Make sure not to put it anywhere near the gas tank or engine, and rinse the parts thoroughly with water to keep things from turning sticky.
Remove Salt From the Car
Salt can cause rust, corrosion, and ruin the paint on your car if left for too long. However, there is a way you can remove salt from your car safely, thanks to vinegar’s neutralizing properties.
Mix one part vinegar and one part water in a spray bottle and spray the mixture on the salt. The salt is easy to wipe off with a cloth.
Compressed Air Can
We have given tips where we’ve used toothbrushes, squeegees, and screwdrivers to clean hard-to-reach places with accumulated grime. Still, one of the tools we haven’t mentioned is basic and ingenious cans of compressed air. If you face particular resilient crud, point the small plastic nozzle at it and let it rip.
Keep Wet Wipes in the Car
When we are home, we have mops and cleaning supplies readily available to take care of any stain or spill right away, but we get negligent with hygiene when it comes to cars. Though we can’t mop messes while driving, we can have a packet of wet wipes readily available in the glove box. It can go a long way in making your driving ambiance cleaner and more comfortable.
Easily Clean Air Vents
Just like the silica gel trick, there is another way you can clean your air vents. Simply take a foam paintbrush that you’ll find in any dollar or hardware store, and use it to clean your vents. It makes things very convenient.
Windshield Helpers
Over time, the grimy layer of a film formed on the inside of the windshield can impede our ability to see the road, which is annoying when driving. We suggest you keep a microfiber windshield cleaning tool handy that helps to get rid of the grime with ease. You can use that to wipe condensation off the window during winter.
Remove Bugs With Dryer Sheets
Dead bugs can be gross, and an effortless way to remove them from your car’s paint job is to spray your exterior with water and gently rub the car’s surface with a dryer sheet. So, those bugs that are intact will come right off.
Protect Your Car From Kids or Pets With a Sheet
If you have any kids or pets, you definitely have trouble keeping your car’s seats free from hair, crumbs, or sticky messes. The easiest way to prevent a mess is to use a large sheet to cover your seats and keep changing them often, so you aren’t stressed in the future.
Prep Box
There are some items in the car that we may not use but are needed to have handy for the car’s maintenance, such as bottles of washer fluid, jumper cables, ice scrapers, and a floor jack. They make the back of our car a mess. Hence, we recommend keeping them all in plain cardboard boxes. By doing so, things won’t get thrown all over the place, and the car will be tidy.
Detail Leather or Vinyl Surfaces
The grimiest part of the car’s interior is the armrest, as we touch it a lot. To give it a brand new look, take a toothbrush and a mild dish soap, and scrub the area. But simply wiping the armrest won’t get into the crevices. Say goodbye to dirt buildup and oils, and hello to the sparkling clean leather armrest.
Use an Iron to Remove Wax
Your car’s upholstery can become sticky from the pieces of a melted candle or crayons your kids or grandkids used. But to remove it, all you need is an iron and 50 seconds. Grab the iron and a piece of thick paper or a paper towel. Next, place the paper over the spill, and on a low setting, iron on top of the paper. The sticky mess will be lifted from the upholstery and onto the paper.
PRO TIP: This trick works great for spilled wax on clothes, too.
Freshen Your Car With Scented Wax
Try one of the DIY car fresheners and enjoy the fragrance of normal car fresheners that may give you a headache. All you need is a glass jar with holes drilled or poked in the lid. Next, you can fill the jar with wax cubes or your favorite candle. The heat in the car will make the cubes melt and make your car smell fresh and sweet.
Vacuum Your Roof
We just tend to vacuum our car’s floor often, but what about the inside of our roof? That part is either upholstered or carpeted.’ So, next time, don’t forget to vacuum your roof as well – you’d be amazed at the amount of dust that gets accumulated there.
Dry Your Car Off Thoroughly
Not so much a “trick” as a reminder to all those who forget this super important step for making your car look absolutely perfect. The best thing to do right after giving your car a wash is to dry it thoroughly. This will ensure that no dirt or bugs stick to the water drops and will keep your car looking clean for as long as the weather allows.