Spring cleaning checklist for your car
Although it’s still cold outside, the winter months are slowly coming to an end, which can only mean one thing: spring is coming!
Alongside the increase in outdoor temperature, spring is a great time of year for getting your affairs in order, including your car. That’s right, it’s not just your home that needs a good cleaning; it’s easy for your car to get cluttered amidst the winter madness.
Start spring on the right foot with our ultimate spring cleaning checklist for your beloved motor.
Interior car cleaning
First up we have the less involved car spring cleaning tasks.
Dusting the interior
Dust is unforgiving in your car. There are so many small crevices and cracks for dust to collect over time, becoming a major eyesore for you and your passengers. Not only does dust not look the best, but it can also cause some mechanical issues if left untouched.
For example, if dust clogs up your fan vents, you may suffocate them and cause them to work harder than needed. To fix this, simply take a damp cloth and wipe down all the dust around the car.
Using a damp cloth is key. Dry cloths will simply move the dust from one place to another, whereas a damp cloth will actually pick the dust up. You can use those slime-like tools that promise to get into your fan vents, but a damp cloth can be just as effective (and cheaper!).
Vacuuming
After dusting, the most logical step to take with spring cleaning your car is giving it a good vacuum. Vacuuming before dusting just causes the dust to bounce around the vehicle, so lift as much as you can prior to doing so.
Leave no surface untouched while vacuuming. Carpets, seats, the boot, and floor mats – all of them gather dirt, which should lift quite easily with a vacuum.
Disinfecting
With your interior free from dust and freshly vacuumed, now comes the time to get it sparkly clean.
One thing to bear in mind while cleaning your car is that some cleaning solutions will promise varying levels of ‘finish’ on your car’s plastic/leather surfaces. Anything that promises a ‘glossy finish’ will usually contain some sort of additive designed to leave a sheen on top of the plastic. If you’re a purist, avoid these solutions where possible. Instead, stick to anything that has ‘matte finish’ on the bottle.
Gloss finishes might look nice at first glance, but they’ll often leave behind a streaky finish on your clear plastic surfaces (speedo/odometers and infotainment screens, for example). Not only can these look bad, but they can impact your driving. Glossy surfaces also provide less grip compared to matte ones, so practice caution when handling/using your steering wheel.
Exterior
Pre-wash
The average car owner will rarely use tools like pre-wash for their car. But, you’re not average!
Pre-wash is a very useful tool for your car spring cleaning checklist as it does a lot of work with very little effort on your behalf. Before even a drop of water touches your paint’s surface, evenly apply a few sprays of pre-wash to every body panel on your car and let it sit for around 10 minutes.
After enough time has passed, you’ll notice that the pre-wash picks up and releases a lot of the surface-level imperfections in the paint with zero scrubbing – an excellent benefit for both short washes and more involved detailing sessions.
Rinsing body panels
Once your pre-wash has worked its magic, it’s important to get all of the dirt removed from your car. Heading straight in with a sponge at this stage can ruin your paint, so do not skip this step!
With some cold, clean water, work your way around every visible exterior surface of your car until all of the dirt, salt, and asphalt is gone. Don’t forget the wheels!
Rinsing
Depending on how dirty your car was, at this stage, you can potentially call it a rest and be done for the day. But, if you want perfection, the last remaining step of your exterior spring clean is the hand wash.
We advise using the two-bucket method for washing your car. The idea is simple – you have one bucket for rinsing sponges, and the other for adding fresh, cleaning water. This ensures that no dirt makes its way back onto your car after you’ve washed it off.
Exterior
Air filters
Although they may sound daunting, some cars have user-serviceable air filters that are easy to reach and work with. Certain vehicles have them in the driver’s footwell, adjacent to the accelerator. They’re usually hidden with a plastic panel, and simply pull outward from their holding compartments for quick removal and replacement.
That’s not the only air filter to change, though. There’s usually an air intake filter to be replaced that sits in your car’s engine bay. The instructions for replacing these will vary depending on your car, but the steps are relatively transferable.
Top up the oil
While topping up your oil isn’t necessarily a cleaning task, per se, it is a good idea to check in on your oil at regular intervals. Cleaning is a good opportunity to do this, especially if you’re attempting to clean the engine bay itself.
Simply remove the dip stick and check the oil levels as you usually would. If you see your levels are low, add a bit more fresh oil to the system by locating the filler cap, unscrewing it, and pouring more oil in via a funnel.
Clean the petrol system
An often-overlooked part of mechanical car cleaning and maintenance is the petrol system, and for good reason. The petrol tank isn’t exactly the most visible of elements, so it makes sense why it goes unchecked.
Thankfully, cleaning the petrol system is a fairly painless exercise, thanks to fuel additives. These solutions are meant to be poured into the tank prior to filling up. As fuel makes its way through your car, the additive will help break down any carbon deposits to help fuel flow through.
If you’re a frequent user of ‘premium’ fuel, you very likely won’t need to do this as often. Premium fuel is designed to have these additives included from the start.
Motoring tips and advice, from MotoNovo
Found your dream car? Keep it looking and functioning its best with the motoring advice on our blog. We cover a range of topics, from general car maintenance to cleaning guidance, and many more.
