Winter is SO hard on my car. From the salt, the dirty kids boots on the back of the seat, to the layers of grime, coffee and yuck layered throughout my car. The fresh air, the birds chirping and the windows rolled down = a deep desire to clean my vehicle from top to bottom.
8 Tips for Spring Cleaning Your Car
1) Get rid of salt-stained carpets: After all of that Winter salt and sand, your car’s carpets are likely to have white stains from road salt. Remove them by using water mixed with vinegar (white) and scrub the tough stains until they are removed.
2) Wax Often: During the Winter, your car’s paint colour is dulled by the elements and picks up scratches, so keep it looking fresh and clean with a liquid spray wax.
3) Suck Up The Dirt: Get out your vacuum and clean the mats, but also pay special attention to the small corners of your vehicle. Remember to put your seats down to get between the cracks and also vacuum cup holders, door pockets and seat backs to get rid of dirt that lingers throughout your car.
4) You’re washing your car, not your dishes: Never use dish soap to clean your vehicle as it will dull the finish and scratch the protective clear coat off your car. Try using Meguiar’s Gold Class Car Wash Shampoo and Conditioner or a similar product.
5) Shine Up Those Wheels: Get rid of that red-brown coloured powder on your wheels caused by normal brake wear. Wipe down your wheels with a specially formulated cleaning solution safe for alloy wheels (available at your local hardware store) and address the hard-to-reach places in the wheel’s spokes with a brush or rag.
6) Clean the Clutter : Do you use your car as a storage unit? Be sure to empty out your trunk, back seats, seat backs and glove compartment of all your winter build up. Removing unnecessary weight also improves fuel efficiency and your car’s handling!
7) What’s happening under the hood? Every season you should take your vehicle in for a quick inspection and get an oil change, filter replacement and tire rotation.
8) Freshen up: After you are finished cleaning your car, add your favourite smelling air freshener to keep your car smelling clean and fresh all spring and summer!
To help you spring clean your car we are offering a giveaway (valued at over $50) including:
- Scrub brushes
- Turtle Wax ICE Synthetic Spray Wax
- Meguiar’s Hot Rims Wheel Cleaner
- Meguiar’s Gold Class Car Wash
- Air Fresheners
Contest is open to Canadian residents and ends May 19, 2014.
Be sure to share your Spring Cleaning Tips and tweet @HyundaiCanada
Disclosure: I am participating in the Hyundai Canada Drive Squad program and receive special perks as part of my affiliation.
This year I have a lot of salt stains on my carpets. As well, the cup holder area needs a good cleaning. My toddler spilled a container of apple juice. It has never been the same !
I love vacuuming the car.I save this until last and always get a great feeling of satisfaction from it.
I like the shiny surface after a good cleaning. Hardest part is the inside console, too many tiny nooks and cranies.
I love the way my car just shines after it is all clean. The hardest part is getting between the seats to clean.
I like the way my car smells after I’ve cleaned it. The hardest part to clean is the seats in the back because they’re covered in dog hair and spilled food and drinks.
What I like most is when the cleaning is done… and hopefully it can stay clean for a few days (with young boys, a day is even a blessing!). The most difficult part of cleaning my car is getting all of the bits of sand that my kids drag into the car out of the material on the floor.
getting the smells out (my husband smokes)
I like how good it feels to drive a clean car. I find it physically tiring to wipe down the whole car.
I always like the way a clean car looks – so shiny! I really hate cleaning the windows because I always get streaks.
I like how pretty and shiny it looks after it get’s washed/cleaned. Mmmm not sure, just got my first car, I guess I’ll find out soon enough!
The car smells so much fresher after a thorough clean.
I like the result once it looks beautiful. The hardest part to clean is the inside. Muddy shoes + carpet = yuck.
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I like the way the car smells and shines after it is cleaned and the satisfaction I get from a job well done. The most difficult part I find is cleaning the windows, no matter if you find every smudge or piece of grit as soon as you get in for a drive you see the ones you have missed.
I like the feeling of a nice new car so cleaning is what it takes.
The worst part is between the drivers and passenger seat.
I love how nice and shiny my car looks after a cleaning. I don’t like cleaning the tires. That’s the most difficult job for me.
I find it most difficult cleaning the inside of my car…I am a community nurse and I practically live in my vehicle. I admit it gets pretty nasty and I never seem to have the time to clean it.
I love knowing how spotless and shiny my car is after a good clean. The worst part is cleaning out the salt stains from the carpets and seats after winter.
THE SMELLS ARE THE HARDEST
I like the look for a shiny clean car. The worst part to clean would have to be the tires.
I love the new car feeling of a freshly cleaned car! The worst part of cleaning the car is definitely the upholstery and carpets. I have found though, that cheap shaving cream works well to remove stains! Just spot test first :)
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I love the way the car looks and smells but it is hard to get into the corners
I love looking out those nice clean windows after I clean my car. Finding the time to clean it is the hardest part.
I find cleaning the outside of my car the easiest. I hate cleaning the inside
I like the way my car feels and looks fresh. I find it hard to clean between the seats and even under them.
I love the way my car smells and shines after it is cleaned. I hate vacuuming the car.
I love the smell of a clean car! And the most difficult areas to clean are between the seats! I can never reach all the crumbs:(
I like a clean car so much. The fresh scent and the clean dashboards.
I like a clean car so much. The fresh scent and the clean dashboards. I don’t like cleaning in between the seats.
I like the end results the most as well as being outside. I find the front grill the hardest to clean.
My husband washes my car so I am lucky that way. He finds bugs on the windshield hardest to clean off.
I don’t like any part of cleaning my car…I hate finding food the kids left in the backseat and trying to vacuum between the seats and stretching to reach the inside of the windshield to wash it. Seriously, does anyone like washing their car?!
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I LOVE the smell of a freshly cleaned car :) I don’t like cleaning the carpets, never ending job that never lasts long enough lol
I love the smell of a freshly cleaned and vacuumed car. I guess the hardest part to clean for me, is vacuuming the car floor.
What I like most about cleaning my car is finding all the money I’ve dropped under the seats all winter! Woohoo!
I love the look of grit free seats and carpets. The hardest part is washing the roof..I’m too short to reach it!
I like the comfortable feeling of being in a clean car. I find the rear window and the windshield the hardest to clean.
I really don’t like anything about cleaning my car but since I have to pick something I’d say the bodywork since that gets a nice shine to it when I’m done. What I least like is trying to clean the windscreen on the inside – practically impossible unless you’re a contortionist.
under the seats is pretty hard to clean
I don’t really like cleaning the car but love the end result! Cleaning underneath the seats is the hardest – don’t know how kids get all of that stuff under there!
I love the look of a clean car. The worst area is between the seats
I find the Wheel hardest to clean!
I find the carpets and windows hardest to clean!!
i like the way the car looks and smells when it’s clean, i hate doing the wheels
I hate cleaning the car period.!
I must admit cleaning the car is the hubby’s job. but I do love the clean smell and dust free interior
I hate cleaning out the nasty sticky cupholders!
Cleaning your car can be therapeutic, but I hate cleaning all the dust off the dashboard.
I like after all my hard work after cleaning my car I love how shiny and new she looks, How sparkly and clean she shines through the suns glares, I really find it hard to get in between the vents to get the dust out…
I love how washing the truck turns into a water fight. I don’t like cleaning the inside. So many small spaces to vacuum & for crumbs/dirt find their way into.
I love the smell of a clean car! I think that the seats are the hardest to clean.
I drive a Hyundai Sante Fe and am SO glad we went with the leather interior! It makes cleaning so much easier. I keep a tube of leather cleaning wipes on hand and have spills and what not cleaned up in no time!
My least favorite thing, just like cleaning my house, is doing the windows!
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I like how shiny my car is after I clean it, and I love it when the inside is all cleaned up without anything laying around. I find one of the hardest things to clean off are the bugs in the summer time.
I like it when the car smells fresh. I am not a fan of cleaning the car, my hubby does it really well!
The inside of the car is hardest to clean!
I like cleaning my car because it looks and feels so much better afterwards. Really don’t like cleaning the tires, though!
I like how nice it smells after you clean it.
And the floors are always the hardest for me to get really clean.
I like the feeling of accomplishment when it is done. I find the tires the hardest to clean.
I like the nice fresh smell after it is clean.. I find under the seats the hardest to clean.
I like the smell of a newly cleaned car. The hardest part is the little nook and crannies in the car that are hard to reach or clean.
I honestly love the ‘feel’ of a clean car. When I do mine I’m quite tempted to ask the monkeys to remove their shoes upon entering lol!
I find vacuuming in the little areas between the seats and way under very difficult.
I love the way it shines when it is clean. Hardest part to clean I find is the interior, lots of different areas to get into.
I like how temporarily sane life seems once the car is clean! Hate trying to get kid goo off the seats though.
I don’t mind the vaccuming…Cleaning windows not so much!
I love the fresh smell of a clean car and hate cleaning my dashboards when they get dusty so fast!
I find the back window hard to clean and I like the fresh smell after I clean it!
I like cleaning the outside more than the inside. It’s sort of relaxing, but cleaning under the seats suck because its hard to reach and see under there.
I love the smell of a freshly cleaned car! I don’t what it is about it, it just feels great to drive around when its super clean. The trickiest part to clean is to get every nook and crany under the seats
What i like is the result after having cleaned my car; it feels so fresh and looks good. A tough job is to get in between the seats for vacuuming.
Cheers.
I love the clean smell and look when it is done. Hate vacuuming!
I love the clean look after cleaning the car; I find vacuuming the most difficult
I love the smell of a clean car. My daughter leaves a lot of garbage in the backseat. I have found half-full milk cartons, food, papers, etc.
The thing I like most about cleaning my car is how it looks afterward!
The area I find hardest to clean is the cup holders between the two front seats.
I love driving in a clean fresh car. My husband loves his truck and is always keeping it top notch! This would be perfect for him!
The only thing that I like about cleaning my car is that it looks clean when I’m done. The part that I find the most difficult is getting into the cup holders and little nooks that the kids get dirty in the back seat.
My back seat is the hardest to clean and keep clean thanks to my beautiful twin girls They tend to always make my backseat look like a tornado went right thru my car lol
The most difficult part of cleaning the car is getting the back seat clean where the kids are and taking the car seats out, etc. I also hate trying to get the bits of stuff that get stuck in the fuzzy lining of the car trunk, etc. I like wiping down everything and making it all shiny again though:)
i like to see the results of cleaning my car but hate that it gets dirty so fast afterwards
love the look of a sparkling clean car, not a fan of doing windows
It looking nice and clean and hate getting the dirt from under the seats and cleaning out cup holders.
love the look of the car after it’s cleaned; most difficult is the windows. thanks
I like that it looks nice and clean. I don’t like vacuuming the carpets and seats.
Just got a new car. I’d love to get some free stuff to keep it looking new.
I have a black SUV… Its very hard to get clean without a film on it. Very frustrating
I love the way my car just shines after it is all clean, but the hardest part is cleaning the cup holders, betweent he seats, and under the seats.
I love the way the paint glitters once I can see it from under the grime!
The hardest part to clean is getting between and under the seats and oh how i love the fresh small after its all done
Not gonna lie. I really hate cleaning my car so the husband does it. I dont think he likes it that much either lol.
i love how it smells and shines after a good cleaning. looks like new and like we just brought it home all over again!
I like vaccuuming the interior the most – I’m not sure why lol! Also enjoy finding lost things and change.
I like washing the windows but find the tires worst to clean
I like when I find that surprise change I dropped under the seat, and I love how the wheel rims and the colour pops when it’s freshly washed.
the carpets are the hardest to clean
I like vacuuming the inside of the car, I find the windows hard to clean
I like how the car is shiny afterwards. The interior is hardest.
I like how fresh and shiny it is when it is done – almost feels like having a new car again each time! The hardest part right now is cleaning the back seat where the car seats are – it takes forever to deal with all the cheerios, stickiness, crayons etc. I have to remove the seats then reinstall which I also don’t like, but I know the car won’t be fully clean if I don’t do that.
I love cleaning the outside, always have, but I hate to clean the front window, just seams the worst
I like the looks of a clean car – hardest part to clean is the roof on my SUV
The area of the dash (where my stearing wheel) is the hardest to clean because there are way too many nooks and cranys! I like the feeling of accomplishment when I’m done cleaning my car though!
I like the smell of a clean car, the hardest to clean is the back inside windows
I love cleaning the hood of the car because its the easiest to clean. I dislike cleaning the rims because there more of a challenge to clean.
I don’t really enjoy washing the cars but the worst part is getting the top of the van….need to be a lot taller!
I don’t mind washing the car hate getting the dogs hair out
I’m not a fan of cleaning the rugs especially after winter ..they have salt and dirt ground into the carpets
I like washing the car but hate doing the rims.
I like how clean and shiny the car is after a good cleaning! I dislike cleaning between the seats and under the seats! and getting spilled drinks and sticky candies off the rugs!
I love to clean my car! I think how we take care of our cars shows who we really are. I love it when you get in and you smell the clean. But I hate cleaning the dash, a lot of spots for dirt to hide in.
I love the fresh smell after cleaning, I find it difficult to clean the dash and the windows.
cleaning the dash is hard work
I love how my truck looks new again after a good cleaning but I find it hardest to get the inside windows clean without streaking!
I like washing it on early days of spring. I hate cleaning the console. At times I use Qtips.
I love washing it in a beautiful summer day, but I hate passing the vacuum in the cracks.
cleaning outside is easiest, it’s inside that’s the challenge
I love having a clean and shiny car. It is really tough cleaning inbetweenseats and the rugs.
I love the way it looks after I’m done! I hate cleaning the vents!
I like how shiny the paint looks after a good cleaning and wax. My car is very old so the paint is bad but the wax helps it look way better. I hate cleaning the interior my car is a small compact car and its black so it gets very hot when I clean it and its cramped too.
The best part of cleaning my car is having it done and over with. I find cleaning the interior front and rear windows hardest to do since their angles make it difficult to get the bottom part done without streaks or lint.
These are great tips! I need to get in the habit of vacuuming more and really paying attention to all the small, overlooked areas.