The
interiors of cars are often subject to as much abuse as the exterior
surfaces, yet are often neglected when it comes to detailing. It wasn't
long ago that the state of the nation's car interiors made the news;
apparently a very high percentage harbour levels of dirt and bacteria
that are potentially unsafe to human health! In this guide, find out how
to clean and protect the interior surfaces in your car, including
leather and fabric seats and trims, carpets and mats, plastic and vinyl
surfaces, and the glass ...
The
interiors of cars are often subject to as much abuse as the exterior
surfaces, yet are often neglected when it comes to detailing. It wasn't
long ago that the state of the nation's car interiors made the news;
apparently a very high percentage harbour levels of dirt and bacteria
that are potentially unsafe to human health! If you stop and think about
this it is not really that surprising. Most car interiors are only
cleaned once or twice a year and the rest of the time dirt and grime is
continually dragged in off the street, sticky messes are deposited by
children (we know all about this one), bacteria are brought in by pets
and all manner of other biological nasties are deposited by way of
sweating, coughing, sneezing, vomiting or worse. In addition to the dirt
and bacteria deposited by the occupants, the interiors of cars are
subject to degradation by exposure to the more harmful rays of the sun,
and the effects of regular variations in temperature and moisture
content. Over time, porous surfaces such as vinyl and rubber tend to dry
out, becoming increasingly brittle and in danger of cracking and
splitting. The UV rays from the sun further degrade plastic and vinyl
surfaces, resulting in fading and further surface damage. Large
variations in moisture content, particularly during the winter months,
can encourage the formation of mould and mildew, which can give rise to
unpleasant musty odours.
In contrast to other detailing tasks, cleaning and protecting the interior of your is not as straightforward as you might think. If you own a relatively new car or have looked after the interior of your car relatively well then the chances are the advice given in this guide will be sufficient to enable you to achieve great results. However, if your interior has one or more of the following problems, you would be better off in the first instance employing the services of a professional valeter; badly stained fabrics and/or carpets, obvious mould or mildew, unpleasant musty odours and strong tobacco smoke odours. Such problems need to be remedied using specialist chemicals and professional cleaning equipment, and it is quite easy to make them worse by trying to fix them yourself. The reasons for this are twofold. Firstly, car manufacturers are increasingly packing more and more electronics into modern cars, meaning that the act of shampooing has become a bit of lottery (professional valeters often have to individually inspect every car to locate any electronics before commencing work). The benefit of using a professional valeter in this case is that they should know what they are looking for and should be able to work safely, plus they are generally insured if things go wrong. The second reason for employing the services of a professional is that they will have specialist wet and dry equipment and steam machines, which enable seats and carpets to be cleaned and dried in a short space of time. In contrast, attempts at home shampooing often leave seats and carpets wet for days on end, which can encourage the formation of mould and mildew, and give rise to unpleasant musty odours.
Another potential minefield is the actual quality of the fabrics and leathers used in modern cars. What appears to be leather these days is often more likely to be textured vinyl, particularly when found on the backs of seats and on door cards. Real leather is often only used on the cushion and upright of seats, and even then it is often quite different to traditional leather. In days of old, manufacturers would take a hide and shave it into three layers. The bottom layer (suede) was discarded and used for other purposes, while the top two layers were used for various parts of vehicle upholstery. However, the modern approach is to swell the hide using a chemical process and then shave it into as many as ten layers using computer-controlled machinery. These thin layers are then pressed and stamped with a leather texture in order to mask any imperfections, and then laminated between a fabric base and an uppermost layer of clear breathable vinyl. In effect, many modern leathers are actually vinyls with a thin layer of leather veneer and require different cleaning methods as a result, in particular the use of water-based cleaners and protectants as opposed to traditional oil-based leather feeds. These issues also extend to the fabrics used in many modern cars, which are often easily stained even by small amounts of water or other liquids. The reason for such staining is not well known, but is most probably due to reactions with chemical residues left over from the manufacturing process. The upshot of all of the above is that we recommend that you should avoid shampooing or making your upholstery wet and take great care with any leather, making sure you identify what type it is and use appropriate products to clean and protect it accordingly. If the interior of your car is already in good condition then the following advice will enable you to keep it that way, meaning that you will probably never need to call on the services of a valeter. We recommend that you detail the interior of your car on a monthly basis and clean and protect any leather present on a quarterly basis.
In contrast to other detailing tasks, cleaning and protecting the interior of your is not as straightforward as you might think. If you own a relatively new car or have looked after the interior of your car relatively well then the chances are the advice given in this guide will be sufficient to enable you to achieve great results. However, if your interior has one or more of the following problems, you would be better off in the first instance employing the services of a professional valeter; badly stained fabrics and/or carpets, obvious mould or mildew, unpleasant musty odours and strong tobacco smoke odours. Such problems need to be remedied using specialist chemicals and professional cleaning equipment, and it is quite easy to make them worse by trying to fix them yourself. The reasons for this are twofold. Firstly, car manufacturers are increasingly packing more and more electronics into modern cars, meaning that the act of shampooing has become a bit of lottery (professional valeters often have to individually inspect every car to locate any electronics before commencing work). The benefit of using a professional valeter in this case is that they should know what they are looking for and should be able to work safely, plus they are generally insured if things go wrong. The second reason for employing the services of a professional is that they will have specialist wet and dry equipment and steam machines, which enable seats and carpets to be cleaned and dried in a short space of time. In contrast, attempts at home shampooing often leave seats and carpets wet for days on end, which can encourage the formation of mould and mildew, and give rise to unpleasant musty odours.
Another potential minefield is the actual quality of the fabrics and leathers used in modern cars. What appears to be leather these days is often more likely to be textured vinyl, particularly when found on the backs of seats and on door cards. Real leather is often only used on the cushion and upright of seats, and even then it is often quite different to traditional leather. In days of old, manufacturers would take a hide and shave it into three layers. The bottom layer (suede) was discarded and used for other purposes, while the top two layers were used for various parts of vehicle upholstery. However, the modern approach is to swell the hide using a chemical process and then shave it into as many as ten layers using computer-controlled machinery. These thin layers are then pressed and stamped with a leather texture in order to mask any imperfections, and then laminated between a fabric base and an uppermost layer of clear breathable vinyl. In effect, many modern leathers are actually vinyls with a thin layer of leather veneer and require different cleaning methods as a result, in particular the use of water-based cleaners and protectants as opposed to traditional oil-based leather feeds. These issues also extend to the fabrics used in many modern cars, which are often easily stained even by small amounts of water or other liquids. The reason for such staining is not well known, but is most probably due to reactions with chemical residues left over from the manufacturing process. The upshot of all of the above is that we recommend that you should avoid shampooing or making your upholstery wet and take great care with any leather, making sure you identify what type it is and use appropriate products to clean and protect it accordingly. If the interior of your car is already in good condition then the following advice will enable you to keep it that way, meaning that you will probably never need to call on the services of a valeter. We recommend that you detail the interior of your car on a monthly basis and clean and protect any leather present on a quarterly basis.
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