By Linzi Martin
Most of the country is still operating under local and state stay-at-home guidelines, which means not many of us are actually getting much driving in these days. But whether or not you drive every day or haven’t actually used your car in a month, it’s important to keep your vehicle clean and well-taken care of. While it might be tempting to not touch your car if you don’t plan to leave your house, not keeping your car clean can affect everything from its potential resale value to its overall performance. Instead of letting your car collect dust while you’re in quarantine, why not treat it to some extra care? In this article, we’ll go over how to keep your car clean with some tried and true organizational and car cleaning tips anybody can do.
1. Create a DIY floorboard trash can
One of the easiest car cleaning tips we have is a simple DIY organizational hack. Instead of trying to keep trash in a flimsy plastic bag, or (gasp!) just throwing everything into your floorboard, consider adding a small trash can to keep things nice and neat during road trips, or trips with children.
While you can definitely buy a small trash can to fit into the space in your floorboard, the easiest solution would be to make one yourself. Simply line an old cereal box with a trash can liner or plastic bag and violà – you’ve got a great new way to keep your car’s interior clean and mess-free.
2. Try clay-barring
Now here’s one of our favorite car cleaning tips you might not have heard of before. At high interstate speeds, cars become a magnet for dirt and other debris in the air. And while your vehicle’s top coat will deflect most of it, some of the sharper and denser material can wind up stuck inside the paint.
To remedy that, try a method called clay-barring. Basically, it involves using a synthetic piece of clay to rub over your car’s paint. After a while, any bumps and lumps should be gone, leaving you with a beautiful finish ready for waxing.
3. Maintain your headlights
Headlights are often overlooked, but actually are one of the most important parts of a vehicle. And, if they’re not taken care of properly, they can quickly lose their efficacy. Keep that from happening by regularly cleaning and maintaining your headlights.
Aside from buying a headlight restoration kit, one of the easiest ways to restore some shine to your headlights is to wash them with a vinegar and baking soda solution. It might take a little bit of elbow grease, but it’ll be worth the effort when you’re left with crystal clear headlights.
4. Make your cupholders look brand new
When’s the last time you cleaned the area in and around your cupholders? I’m guessing it’s probably been a while. Turns out, the cupholders tend to be one of the dirtiest areas in a car, which means now’s probably a great time to clean them out.
Thankfully, cleaning them isn’t a big deal at all. For a quick and easy fix, fit an old sock over the bottom of a travel coffee cup, spray liberally with cleaner, and insert it into each cup holder. Give it a good few twists, and you’re good to go!
Or, if you’re wondering how to keep your car clean without having to go through the trouble, invest in some rubber cup holder liners that you can easily take out and rinse off.
No matter how often you’ve been driving your car, with the help of a few of our favorite car cleaning tips, you’ll have your vehicle looking better than ever in no time!
What are some of your car cleanliness tips? Let us know in the comments below!
What is your reaction?
This is pretty useful. My car is’ pretty old, and has been used to carry more than a few less than clean things (Plants, for example, leaving a bed of dirt and mulch in the backseat.) I really should take advantage of these tips to keep it clean.