You drive your car every day, but between running around after your kids, work and everything else that you enjoy doing there is no time to give it a good clean. It’s a shame as it’s good to keep on top of your car maintenance. You might like to keep your last bits of spare change so that you can get the shopping trolly, as getting the weekly shop done is more important than the car wash. However you can easily clean your car yourself with these simple effective tips.
1/ Bicarbonate of soda (for the upholstery)
Your car never smells the freshest and even that sickly air freshener can’t always get rid of musty smells. If you really want to notice a difference you need to give your car interior a deep clean. All you need to do this is the miracle ingredient – bicarbonate of soda! On day one, sprinkle your seats and foot mats with the powder. Scrub with as subtle brush and leave over night.
On day two, scrub your seats with a brush and then use the vacuum cleaner. You can also vacuum the floor and the doors. Lower the power level of the vacuum cleaner when cleaning the dashboard. With a soft cloth and a cleaning product, scrub the plastic surfaces and synthetic tissues clean.
2 / Cleaning the windows
If you want to have spotless windows use a cloth that is socked in warm water, a little washing up liquid and white vinegar. (remember to do the inside and out of your windows, the wind screen, a rear window. The mixture is also good against steam build up. If you want to get rid of rain water marks you can add 3 drops of an anti limescale mixture. Dry everything straight away with a cloth of newspapers and then make it shine with a dry, fluff free towel or a microfiber cloth to avoid any marks.
3/ Windscreen wiper maintenance (It’s important!)
Cleaning your windscreen wipers could make a difference one day. All you need is to clean the wipers with a cloth and a mixture of water and white vinegar. Dry with a clean sponge to avoid any marks.
4/ Body work
When cleaning the bodywork make sure your car is in a shaded position and then spray with hot water to get rid of the dust particles. Now scrub your body work with a non abrasive cloth soaked in warm water and some detergent. Rinse and then wipe the bodywork and windows with a chamois leather cloth to avoid calcareous traces appearing.
5/ Hub caps
Prepare a solution made up of 50% gasoline to 50% liquid black soap. Mix together until the mixture becomes smooth and the spread the product onto your hubcaps with the help of a brush. Leave the mixture to rest for about 10 minutes and then rinse.
6 / The radiator grill
Lots of dead bugs can get clocked up in your radiator grill. If you want to clean your radiator grill all you need is a pair of nylon tights and some soapy water. Couldn’t be any easier!
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