Top Ten Spring Cleaning Tasks For Your Car

August 18th, 2023

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The days are growing longer, the grass is starting to think about growing and it won’t be long until the daffodils alongside the driveway burst into bloom. Yes, it’s springtime, and it’s that time of year when, traditionally, things get deep cleaned or spring cleaned.

Any time is a good time to deep clean your car, especially if you haven’t done it for a while, but here, we’ll talk about spring cleaning your car. After all, if you hope to go on a road trip this summer, then it’s probably wise to get all the deep cleaning done well beforehand, as road trips take a bit of planning and you don’t want to be caught up in cleaning as well as packing and other logistical efforts.

Exactly how intensively you spring-clean your car will be up to you and what you plan to do with your car. If, for example, you own a beloved classic that you want to take to a few shows, or a hot sports car that you hope to turn heads with, you are probably going to take more trouble than the person who has a 4×4 that gets used for serious off-roading. In this article, I’m taking the middle ground, describing the top ten things to do if you’re giving your car a good spruce-up.

#1: Wash and polish the exterior. This is a bit of a no-brainer, but it’s always the best place to start. Even if your car doesn’t go anywhere near a dirt road, it will still pick up dirt and scudge, especially over the rainy part of the year. Do this any way you like, whether it’s going to the car wash or getting out the bucket of suds and the soft brush, followed by the chamois leather and the polish you got given as a present last Christmas.

#2: Clean out the boot. If you lug around extra and unnecessary gear in your boot (and I don’t mean things like the spare tyre, a first aid kit and the jacket you keep for emergencies) then you will increase your fuel consumption, even only fractionally. Every little bit of extra weight counts. Take those old clothes to the second-hand shop, take out the picnic chairs and other oddments that you’ve got in there, and put them where they belong.

#3: Vacuum the interior. This is easiest if you have a canister type of vacuum cleaner. Get stuck in there, removing the mats and getting all the gravel and other muck that gets under there.

#4: Steam clean the upholstery. If your car has cloth upholstery, hire one of those carpet cleaning machines with an upholstery attachment and give the front and rear seats a good going-over. You will probably be surprised at how much dirt comes out. If you carry a dog in your car, then this is a must to remove the doggy smell and all that hair.

#5: Clean out all the storage compartments. Go through the glove box and other storage compartments around the interior, and sort through them. Essentials can go back in (the driver’s manual, a logbook if you keep one, tissues, hand sanitiser and a paper map if you still use one). Everything else can go to where it ought to be kept in your home or into the rubbish or recycling bin as appropriate. Vacuum out any dust bunnies and possibly wipe the interior as well, especially if you keep a stash of snacks in there.

#6: Wipe out the cupholders. Over time, sticky liquids can spill down into the interior of a cupholder, leaving a residue that shouldn’t be anywhere near something that touches your mouth. Get a rag and some warm soapy water, and give the inside of the cupholders a good clean, then dry with a fresh rag.

#7: Scrub the floor mats. Take the floor mats outside, then scrub them thoroughly with a stiff brush and some soapy water (this requires less water than using the hose and works better). It’s amazing how much muck these mats pick up, but after all, that’s their job. Make sure they’re dry before you put them back in.

#8: Change the air filter. The air filter should be changed once a year or else every 20,000 km (more or less), depending on how dusty your area is where you drive. If you don’t click up many kilometres or drive anywhere dusty, then the annual spring-cleaning session is a good chance to change the air filter.

#9: Wipe down the dashboard. Don’t use anything fancy for this in a modern vehicle, as fancy cleaning products will hurt touchscreens. Just use a bit of warm water with detergent and a soft cloth. In fact, this will clean the dashboard of an old-fashioned car as well.

#10: Clean the glass inside and outside. You probably cleaned the exterior glass and mirrors while washing the exterior of the car, but don’t forget the interior of the glass, as quite a bit of the muck that causes sunstrike is on the inside of the glass. Don’t go crazy with the window cleaning products, as these can leave streaky residues that are much worse than the original dirt; instead, use as little as you can get away with, or even just use a microfibre cloth that cleans with just water.